Knowledge, Attitudes, and Practices of Nurturing Care in Indonesian Mothers of Acutely Ill Children Under Five Years Old

Haryanti, F.; Parmawati, I.; Sandhi, A.; Rahmat, I.; Agustin, A.B.; Putri, C.I.; Izati, T.M.N.; Akhmadi, A.

Knowledge, Attitudes, and Practices of Nurturing Care in Indonesian Mothers of Acutely Ill Children Under Five Years Old

Document Type : Descriptive & Survey

Authors

F. Haryanti ¹

I. Parmawati ¹

A. Sandhi ¹

I. Rahmat ¹

A.B. Agustin ¹

C.I. Putri ¹

T.M.N. Izati ¹

A. Akhmadi ²

¹ Department of Pediatric and Maternity Nursing, Faculty of Medicine, Public Health, and Nursing, University of Gadjah Mada, Yogyakarta, Indonesia

² Department of Mental Health and Community Nursing, Faculty of Medicine, Public Health, and Nursing, University of Gadjah Mada, Yogyakarta, Indonesia

Abstract

Aims: Nurturing care during episodes of acute illness is essential to support optimal child development, yet the delivery remains poorly studied in Indonesia. The objective of this study was to determine maternal knowledge, attitudes, and practices related to nurturing care among mothers of acutely ill children under 5 years old in Indonesia.
Instrument & Methods: It is a descriptive, cross-sectional study conducted in November 2024 at Banguntapan II PHC. One hundred and four mother-child pairs were studied using systematic random sampling. Information was gathered through validated questionnaires on knowledge, attitudes, and practices. Descriptive statistics, Pearson correlation, and ANOVA test were performed.
Findings: The knowledge (8.35±1.83) and attitudes (95.64±3.36) of mothers were high regarding nurturing care. Practice scores, however, were significantly lower (58.56±7.19), indicating a significant knowledge-practice disparity. Correlation analysis revealed a moderate positive relationship between knowledge and attitudes (r=0.557), but no significant correlations were found between knowledge-practices or attitudes-practices. Notably, no statistically significant differences were observed across demographic factors, including age, occupation, education level, or family income.
Conclusion: These results highlight key areas for targeted interventions, particularly in nutritional and early stimulation activities and in child safety practices during periods of illness, to support optimal development.

Keywords

Attitude

Child

Nurturing Care

Knowledge

Mothers

Subjects