Tefera Worku, Tesfaye Hailu, Kayessa Elias, Waltensperger Karen Z, Tadesse Yenealem, Marsh David R
Ethiop Med J. 2014 Oct;52 Suppl 3:157-61.
The incidence of newborn and young infant health danger signs is unknown in Ethiopia. Neverthe- less, experience shows that care-seeking is far lower than conservative morbidity estimates would project.
To examine illness recognition, home care, decision-making, and care-seeking for sick infants less than two months of age in Shebedino District, Southern Nations, Nationalities and Peoples Region in 2011.
Focus group interviews of mothers (n = 60) of recently ill children.
Mothers reported recognizing many, but not all, evidence-based newborn danger signs. Home care ranged from probably harmless to harmful and delayed definitive care-seeking. Decision-making was widespread, but patterns of care-seeking rarely led to prompt, evidence-based care. Mothers reported 10 barriers to care- seeking at health posts: lack of knowledge about availability of curative services, fear of evil eye, social stigma, perceived financial barrier, perceived young infant fragility, an elder's contrary advice, distance, husband's re- fusal, fear of injection, and belief in recovery without medicine.
Young infants are more vulnerable to illness than their older counterparts, yet they are less likely to receive the care they need without a targeted, contextualized communication strategy to generate demand for case management services that are accessible, available, and of good quality.
