Knowledge, Attitude and Practice of Diarrhoea, Home Management and Prevention among Mothers/Care-Givers Attending a Paediatric Outpatient Clinic in Rivers State, Nigeria

Abstract

Introduction: Diarrhoea is a major contributor to under-five morbidity and mortality. A good knowledge of the disease and caregivers’ ability to commence appropriate treatment at home is key in reducing childhood mortality. Aim: To assess caregivers’ knowledge, attitude and practice of diarrhoea home management and prevention in a paediatric outpatient clinic in Nigeria. Method: The study took place in the paediatric outpatient clinic of Rivers State University Teaching Hospital. A questionnaire was used to collect data on biodata, knowledge, attitude and practice of diarrhoea home treatment and prevention from mothers/caregivers. Each question answered correctly was awarded a mark. The participants were grouped into having good, fair and poor knowledge, attitude and practice based on their scores. Results: Overall, 69.7% of the participants had good attitude while only 31.1% and 34.8% had good knowledge and practice of diarrhoea home management. Majority of the participants (83.3%) correctly defined diarrhoea and knew that diarrhoeal illness could have complications (90.3%), but only few knew the signs of dehydration (34.2%) and identified danger signs of diarrhoea (22.4%). About 43% commenced treatment at home when their children had diarrhoea but only 14% gave the right treatment. The caregivers age, parity and educational level were significantly associated with good knowledge and attitude, while socioeconomic class of the mothers/caregivers was associated with good practice of diarrhoea home management and prevention. Conclusion: Mothers/caregivers’ knowledge and practice of home management/prevention of diarrhoeal disease was suboptimal. Health workers and community educators therefore need to do more to improve the narrative. Keywords: Diarrhoea, Knowledge, Attitude, Practice, Mothers/caregivers, Home management, Prevention, Nigeria