RESUMO
The intervention study was conducted in a school of New Delhi to assess the effect of a school based hand-washing promotion program on knowledge and hand-washing behavior among school children and extent of information sharing with parents. Intervention was carried out on randomly selected 300 students (100 each from 6th class to 8th class) with 281 students being part of the final analysis. Tools of the study were hand-washing questionnaire and household survey performa; essay, poster, slogan writing competition; classroom interactions. Data were analyzed in the SPSS 16.0 software and Mcnemar test and Student paired t-test were used. After the program, 95% felt that hand should be washed frequently. Overall, there was a significant improvement in the knowledge regarding hand-washing and frequency of hand-washing practices after the intervention. 42% children shared this information with their parents. The intervention proved effective in improving awareness and highlights the potential of school for hand-washing promotion activities.
RESUMO
BACKGROUND: Despite efforts by government and other agencies, neonatal morbidity and mortality continues to be high in India. Among other reasons, newborn care practices are major contributors for such high rates. AIMS: To find out the newborn care practices including delivery practices, immediate care given after birth and breast-feeding practices in an urban slum of Delhi. SETTINGS AND DESIGN: Community based, cross-sectional survey in a resettlement colony (a type of urban slum). MATERIALS AND METHODS: Semi-structured, pre-tested schedule was used to interview 82 mothers of newborns in the study area. STATISTICAL ANALYSIS: Data was analyzed using Epi - info version 6.04. Fischer exact test and chi2 test were applied. A P value of less than 0.05 was considered significant. RESULTS AND CONCLUSION: More than half i.e. 26 (56.1%) of home deliveries, which were mostly conducted by dais (24, 91.3%) or relatives in 4 (8.7%) of home deliveries. Bathing the baby immediately after birth was commonly practiced in 38 (82.6%) of home deliveries. Finger was used to clean the air passage in most of the home deliveries (29, 63%). About 61% (28) of home delivered newborns were not weighed at birth. Rooming in was practiced in majority of the cases. A few of home delivered neonates (12) were given injection tetanus toxoid by unqualified practitioners. Use of clip, band or sterile thread to tie the cord and no application to the cord was significantly higher in institutional deliveries. Breast milk as the first feed was significantly more in institutional deliveries. There is an urgent need to reorient health care providers and to educate mothers on clean delivery practices and early neonatal care.