Neonatal care self-efficacy and associated factors among post- natal mothers in Pallisa General Hospital, Uganda

Abstract

Mothers play a crucial role in caring for the neonates especially during the first weeks of life since it is the time of adaptation to the new environment. Since most of the deaths occur during this period it is important that more attention is given to babies during this period. Neonatal care self-efficacy is important for the survival of the newborn and promotes bonding and adaptation to motherhood which are crucial for the development of a neonate. In the Ugandan context, the factors associated with neonatal care self-efficacy among the postnatal mothers are not well known. Study objective To assess maternal neonatal care self-efficacy and associated factors among postnatal mothers in Pallisa general hospital Methods A cross-sectional study design was used. The study was conducted at Pallisa hospital postnatal clinic. Data was collected through face to face interview with 168 postnatal mothers using a questionnaire. Systematic random sampling was used to recruit the study participants. SPSS version 21 was used for univariate descriptive and logistic regression for bivariate and multivariate analysis. Results The study showed that 55% of the postnatal mothers attending postnatal clinic in Pallisa had high neonatal care self-efficacy. Neonatal care self-efficacy was more likely to be high among mothers aged between 20-34 years (OR: 9.1, 95%CI 3.0-27.7), parity of 5-13 (OR 14.942, 95%CI 4.4-51.1), Ever cared for her previous babies (OR 9.547, 95%CI 3.1-29.1), those who bathed after 24 hours (OR 2.192, 95%CI 1.1-4.5), those who received assistance from health workers on the care of the baby (OR 3.085, 95%CI 1.4-6.6). Conclusion The level of neonatal care self-efficacy among the majority of the postnatal mothers attending postnatal clinic in Pallisa hospital was found to be high. Past experience, social support from health workers and significant others help to improve the neonatal care self-efficacy of mothers.