ASSESSMENT OF KNOWLEDGE, ATTITUDE AND PRACTICES OF MOTHERS REGARDING DANGER SIGNS OF CHILDHOOD ILLNESSES IN JERE LOCAL GOVERNMENT AREA, BORNO STATE

Mothers are the primary caregivers of children and they play an important role in the health seeking behavior of their children whenever they fall ill. Hence the need for mothers to have an understanding of danger signs of childhood illness. This study was carried out to assess the knowledge, attitude and practice of Mothers regarding danger signs of childhood illnesses in Jere L.G.A Borno State. The study was done over a period of 8 weeks. It was a cross-sectional descriptive study, involving a sample size of 422 participants, with the study population consisting of mothers of under-five children that attended immunization clinics, at five health facilities in Jere L.G.A. The results showed that most of the mothers attending the immunization clinics were within the age group 20-29 (58.1 per cent), most of whom have secondary school certificate (33.6 per cent) as their highest educational qualification. Most of the mothers are full time housewives (43.8 per cent). The study shows that the overall knowledge of mothers was good (71.4 per cent) among those who were aware (47.2 per cent) of the danger signs. High fever was the most recognized danger sign by the respondents (36.5 per cent). Health talks and health centers were the major reported source of information. The overall attitude and practices towards the danger signs were also found to be good in 98.5 per cent and 95 per cent of the mothers respectively. There was a statistically significant association between Immunization as well as antenatal care attendance and the knowledge and practice of mothers regarding danger signs of childhood illnesses with a p-value of 0.007 and 0.024 respectively (considering a p-value of 0.05 as statistically significant). However, though there is overall good knowledge, attitude and practices among those who are aware, there is room for improvement which can be achieved through Health talks and other media. It is also crucial to create awareness among those who are not aware. Also, interventions should be put in place to address dirty environment, which is commonly associated with Tropical diseases, and educate mothers on importance of hygiene.