KANGAROO MOTHER CARE PRACTICE AND ASSOCIATED FACTORS AMONG POSTNATAL MOTHERS IN TERTIARY CARE HOSPITALS, SOUTHERN NATION, NATIONALITIES AND PEOPLES REGION, ETHIOPIA, 2023

Abstract

Background: Kangaroo mother care is early, prolonged, and ongoing skin-to-skin contact between the mother and her child while they are both in the hospital and following their discharge. The country-level practice of kangaroo mother care has been low, and few studies have examined the reasons for this poor practice. Therefore, this study aimed to assess kangaroo mother care practice and associated factors among mothers in tertiary care hospitals in the Southern Nation, Nationalities, and Peoples Region in 2023. Method: An institutional-based cross-sectional study was conducted among 132 mothers from May 1 to June 30, 2023. A single population proportion with an adjusted formula was used to calculate the total sample size. A face-to-face interview with a structured questionnaire and an observant checklist for the practice part was used to collect data. Data was collected through the Kobo toolbox, exported into an Excel sheet, and finally exported into SPSS version 25 for statistical analysis. Bivariate and multivariate logistic regressions with proportion values <0.25 and <0.05 were used, respectively. A Hosmer and Lemeshow model fitness test was checked, and the model was adequate and well-fitted. Result: A total of 130 participants were included in the study, with a response rate of 98.48%, of which 68 (52.3%) had good KMC practice. Type of recent birth [AOR: 6.59 (95% CI: 1.46, 29.67)], spontaneous vaginal mode of delivery [AOR: 8.24 (95% CI: 2.12, 32.01)], mothers who got help from other mothers [AOR: 4.16 (95% CI: 1.02, 16.94)], and mothers who had good knowledge [AOR: 6.54( 95% CI: 1.82, 23.42)] were significantly associated factors with good kangaroo mother care practice among mothers with pre-term and low birth weight babies. Conclusion: More than half of postnatal mothers have good kangaroo mother care practice. Current single birth, spontaneous vaginal delivery, support from other mothers in the unit, and mother’s knowledge about kangaroo mother care, were identified as significantly associated variables. Hence, hospital administration and health care providers should be engaged in encouraging others to share experiences with other mothers in the unit and provide adequate awareness about the overall procedure and benefits of kangaroo mother care.