All issues > Volume 18(12); 1975

Original Article

J Korean Pediatr Soc. 1975;18(12):895-908. Published online December 31, 1975.

A Study on Knowledge, Attitude and Behavior of Women toward Child Health and Tetanus Neonatorum in Rural Area

Hahn Woong Choe¹

¹Department of Pediatrics, Seoul National University Hospital

Abstract

All members of the Korean Pediatric Association have contributed a fund and established the Hahn Ah Foundation (the Foundation for the Korean children’s health and welfare). Main objective of this foundation was defined clearly on its charter as to improve the status: of the Korean children’s health and welfare. The Korean population demography showed that nearly 42% of the population was consisted of pediatric age group and the status of their health and welfare was not so satisfactory. Speaking as to the neonatal tetanus cases, although the numbers of the well-establihed general hospitals and their maternity clinics and well-trained specialized medical professions were steadily growing ever in metroplitan and urban areas the poor accessity to urban cites and the paucity of ambullance services had made the rural pregnant women hardly getting to the modern fascilities and well trained medical helps so that hazardous reports of neonatal tetanus cases were made reached to our Korean Pediatric Association not very infrequently. We have got a survey report of prof. Rhee, Doo Bong that showed 857 cases of neonatal tetanus cases were handled in 29 nation-wide general hospital's emergency rooms and the ward of pediatric departments during the period of 10 years, 1961-1970. The joint meeting of the Director’s Boards of the Korean Pediatric Association and the Hahn Ah Foundation officially decided to launch a nation-wide campaign program, designated as “1972, A year of eradication of a neonatal tetanus case”. The joint meeting of both director's board also urged 1) All memberships of the Korean Pediatric Association, 2) All internship and residentship trainees for pediatric training courses 3) Some medical and nursing students groups active anticipation to this compaign program. Well awaring a urgent neededness of this program, considerably large portions of three parts have actively undergone to drive this campaign program. We should like to express our deep gratitude to late our first lady, Lady Yook, Yeoung Soo, for her kind invitation of all members and their wives to her resident and her grateful encouragments, made on the evening of the launching ceremony of this campaign program. Our beloved first lady also have shown behind-the-door anticipation to this program and have made nation’s all news-papers, women magazines, radio and television net-works willingly anticipating into this campaign program, consequently all these mass communication medias tremendously assisted us. Especially national Korean Broadcasting System, through it’s 5 million or more radio sets connected to all house wive’s groups all over the country, ushered a 30 seconds spot broadcosting program of this campaign issues through the year of 1972. We also should have to express our hearty thanks to every members and their wives of our Pediatric Association for their kind embodiments and materialization to this campaign program and also to the medical and nursing schooFs community-medicine-minded student groups. our deep respects and thanks for their voluntary conductance with which they have carried, out this compaign program with honesty and devotedness and with humanistic rightousness All internship and residentship trainees under the training program of pediatric departments in our nation, coincidentally drafted to Health Ministry’s cpmprehensive medical service program to the rural areas and some volunteer medical and nursing schooFs students groups have made a campaign, “1972, a year of eradication of a neonatal tetanus ease* under the guidance of nations pediatric teaching staffs. Concomitantly, these groups carried out through the year of 1972 nation-wide survey to obtain information on knowledge and attitudes of Korean rural women towards the child health and the prevention program of tetanus neonatorum. Large piles of. reporting survey cards were collected and we selected 844 sheets with systematic sampling methods. Data were processed carefully and the results were discussed and summarized as follows: 1.Women in the age range of 20-39 constituted almost 60% and 49. 5^ were with primary school background. 2. Occupational distribution of interviewed women themselves or their husbands shows that agricultural household constituted 43.48% and the remainder is almost evenly divided into small business, public servant, technician, salarymen and labor groups. 3.In regard to the place of delivery, only 27.62% used medical fascilities (G.P. 10.38%. OB-Gyn., 5.91%, general hospital, 9.26%, midwife, 2.07%) and the remainder showed home delivery, 72.38%. Among the home delivery group, the majority (94.21%) were attended by non-medical profession or herself only. 4. In the home delivery group, cement bag paper and vinyl were found to be used most frequently as delivery sheets. 5. In the home delivery group, scissors (92.87%) were used to cut umbilical cord and only 16.25% of responded women sterilized it before use it. Thread (92.18%) was used to tie it and only 13.02% of responded women sterilized it before use it. 6. In regard to the umbilical cord care, only 18.67% of responded women applied gauze sterilized with mercurochrome. 11.5% of them made no application and the remainder applied small pieces of cloth or unsterilized cotton pieces. 7. In regard to frequency of dressing on umbilical cord shows that 74. 20% did not change it and 85.74% of responded women burnt up placenta. 8. As to the knowledge of the name and content of the disease, tetanus neonatorum, 82. 35% of responded women din't any know it and the remainder group know something about it. 9. As to the knowledge of the causes, main symptoms and preventive measure toward the tetanus neonatorum, half (50.47%) didn’t even responded and 38.75% of responded women had entirely no knowledge about them and merely 10. 78% of them answered they know a little. 10. Only a quarter of interviewed women positively recommended on the most preferable mass health education methods, they would like to chose, specifically concerning with a prevention program of tetanus neonatorum. 68 women prefered simply mass health education, 57 women did method of mass distribution of pamphlet or illustrated bill, 34 women, method of use of radio net-works etc. 11. Their knowledge on nation’s infant mortality rate is poor and their attitude to the problems o£ child health and welfare is inert. 12.Among the 844 interviewed women, only a quarter of them recommended or wanted to do some thing for the benefit of improving their children’s health and welfare in their specific community’s living environments. 71 recommendations were related to the attenuations of public health adminsitration, e.g., reinforcement o£ immunizations program against acute infectious diseases. 54 of them were related, to the community’s living environmental factors, e.g. more playgrounds for their kids etc, 21 of them were related to establishment of the health fascilities, e.g., establishing health centre or it’s branch office in their communities. 8 of them were related to the home health problems, e.g., more sleep and excercise for their kids and more maternal affection towards their kids etc. 13.Their yearly frequency to visit health fascilities shows that they visit mostly drugstore (39.35%) and general practioner’s offices (20.57%) and less frequently health centre and it’s branch offices (11.12%), herb doctor’s offices (10.16%). The visiting frequency to the general hospital (5.59%) and pediatricians (1.07%) were very low.

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