Growth Monitoring Practice and Associated Factors Among Health Professionals at Public Health Facilities of Bahir Dar Health Centers, Northwest Ethiopia, 2021

Abstract

Background

Growth monitoring and promotion are one of the health priorities in assessing the growth rate of a child. Appropriate growth monitoring and promotion services enable health professionals to control growth faltering and child mortality. However, there is limited information on the growth monitoring practice of health professionals and their associated factors at public health facilities of Bahir Dar health centers. Therefore, this study aimed to assess the growth monitoring practice of health professionals and associated factors at public health facilities of Bahir Dar health centers, northwest Ethiopia.

Methods

Institutional-based cross-sectional study for quantitative and phenomenology for qualitative was conducted from April 15 to May 15, 2021, among 314 health professionals, in Bahir Dar town, northwest Ethiopia. Census was used. A self-administered questionnaire was employed for quantitative data. Data were cleaned and entered into Epi-info version 7.1 and exported to SPSS version 20 for further analysis, and the binary logistic regression was employed. In the bi-variable analysis, those variables with a p-value less than 0.2 were fitted to multivariable analysis. Qualitative data were analyzed by using thematic analysis.

Results

The overall growth monitoring practice of health professionals at Bahir Dar public health centers was 30.3%, with a response rate of 98.1. The number of participants who had at least a degree was [AOR = 3.57; 95% CI: 1.54, 8.26], health professionals who had greater than 11 years of work experience [AOR = 2.98; CI: 1.36, 6.53], those who took training [AOR = 5.11; CI: 2.20, 11.90], availability of growth monitoring equipment [AOR = 4.44; CI: 1.97, 9.98], those who had lesser workload (saw less than 25 children’s per day) [AOR = 3.02; CI: 1.16, 7.86], those who had good knowledge [AOR = 4.60; CI: 2.06, 10.31] and favorable attitude [AOR = 2.58; CI: 1.14, 5.83] were significantly associated with growth monitoring practice.

Conclusion

The overall growth monitoring practice among health professionals of Bahir Dar public health centers was low. Work experience, age, educational status, knowledge, attitude, workload, training, and availability of growth monitoring equipment were key predictors of growth monitoring practice among health professionals in Bahir Dar public health centers. Therefore, regular supportive supervision from the regarded body, provision of training to health professionals and fulfill growth monitoring equipment are all necessary measures to provide a better growth monitoring service.

Keywords:

• growth monitoring
• health professionals
• health facility
• Bahir Dar

Abbreviations

AOR, Adjusted Odds Ratio; CI, Confidence Interval; COR, Crude Odds Ratio; EDHS, Ethiopian Demography, and Health Survey; EPHI, Ethiopian Public Health Institute; EPI, Expanded Program for Immunization; FDRE, Federal Democratic Republic of Ethiopia; GM, Growth Monitoring; GMP, Growth Monitoring and Promotion; IYCN, Infant and Young Child Nutrition; HAD, Health Development Army; HEWs, Health Extension Workers; KAP, Knowledge, Attitude, and Practice; KMU, Kotebe Metropolitan University; NI, Nutritional Intervention; OTP, Outpatient Therapeutic Feeding Program; PHW, primary Health Worker; PI, Principal Investigator; UNICEF, United Nation International Children’s Fund; WHO, World Health Organization.

Data Sharing Statements

All data are available upon reasonable request and the readers could contact the corresponding author.

Ethics Approval and Consent to Participate

Ethical clearance was obtained from the institutional review board of Kotebe metropolitan university, Menelik-II medical and health Science College (Reference no አጠ5/38/12/2781). The necessary permission to undertake the study was obtained from Amhara Region public health institute and the Bahir Dar city health office. Before data collection, each respondent was informed about the aim of the study, the possible benefit of the study, confidentiality, and publication of their anonymized responses. Written informed consent was obtained, and all respondents were assured that they have a full right to refuse to participate whenever during the interview without any negative connotation on their future service. All COVID-19 prevention measurements were applied at the time of data collection.

Acknowledgment

Public health facilities of Bahir Dar health center administrative and technical staff, data collectors, and study participants.

Author Contributions

All authors made a significant contribution to the work reported, whether that is in the conception, study design, execution, acquisition of data, analysis, and interpretation, or in all these areas; They took part in drafting, revising, or critically reviewing the article; gave final approval of the version to be published; have agreed on the journal to which the article has been submitted; and agree to be accountable for all aspects of the work.

Disclosure

The authors declare that they have no competing interests in this work.

Additional information

Funding

No funding has been received for the conduct of this study and/or the preparation of this manuscript.