Purani et al. KAP study on postnatal care Short Communication Knowledge, awareness, and practice of postnatal care among mothers

Objective: The objective was to study the knowledge, awareness, and practices regarding the postnatal care among the mothers. Design and Setting: A pre-structured and pre-tested questionnaire was used to evaluate knowledge and awareness of postnatal care in mothers at a tertiary care center. The questionnaire was given after stabilization between 1 and 5 days of the postnatal period. Materials and Methods: Totally, 200 postnatal mothers (18-35 years) out of 540 mothers who were given antenatal and postnatal education in our antenatal care center were selected. Study Period: June 2013-September 2013. Results: Knowledge of mothers regarding breastfeeding practices (78%), thermal care (89%), skin and eye care (72%) was good. They have poor knowledge regarding dangers of pre-lacteal feeds (45%), timing of first bath after birth (60%), umbilical cord care (60%), and vaccination (36%). About 32 % of them are practicing oil instillation into nostrils while 44 % of mothers were intended to use gripe water for infantile colic. Conclusion: The study highlights that there is vital need to improve the knowledge and awareness in the society regarding community-based newborn care. We should also strive toward helping removing myths and wrong practices, which are rampant in the community. Key words: Postnatal care, Knowledge attitude, and practices, newborn care, maternal educatio