Attitude and Practice of Child Referral for Routine Immunization by Female Traditional Healthcare Givers in Rural Communities of Adamawa State, Nigeria

Abstract

Introduction - Childhood diseases are infectious and non-infectious conditions that affects and threaten child survival. This study examined attitude and  practice of client referral for expert care and immunization by Female Traditional Healthcare Givers (FTHGs) in rural communities of Adamawa State,  Nigeria.

Materials and Methods: The study utilized descriptive survey to assess the attitude and practice of client’s referral by Female Traditional  Healthcare Givers in hard-to-reach rural communities of Adamawa State, Nigeria. A sample size of 350 FTHGs was determined using Cochran formula and  multistage sampling techniques was applied in the three political zones in which three local governments areas were randomly selected in each  zone. Data were collected by direct administration of questionnaire and analyzed electronically using descriptive statistics on SPSS version 25.0.

Findings:  The findings reveal majority (68.2%, 59.5%, and 85%) of the respondents in the Central Senatorial District (CSD), South Senatorial District (SSD), and North  Senatorial District (NSD) respectively have positive attitude to client referral. Similarly, most (56.5%, 34%, and 34%) of the respondents in the three  districts demonstrates good practice of child referral to health facility.

Conclusion/Recommendation: Although close to half of the FTHGs have positive  attitude in referring patients for expert treatment and immunization, a significant proportion of the FTHGs never refer their patients. It is therefore  recommended that there is need to sustain the effort on training and re-training of FTHGs on basic skills of care and importance of early referral of  patient to healthcare facilities.