Mothers’ knowledge, attitudes and practices on preventing diarrhoea in Juba, South Sudan

Abstract

Introduction: In South Sudan, diarrhoeal diseases are leading causes of mortality and morbidity among young children.

Objective: To assess mothers’ knowledge, attitudes and practices (KAP) on how to prevent diarrhoea among under-five year old children at the United Nation’s Mission in South Sudan Protection of Civilian Sites in Juba.

Methods: A cross-sectional study was conducted in August 2017 using a four stage sampling technique and analysed using EpiData version 3.1 and SPSS version 20.

Results: A total of 410 mothers (98.6% of the selected sample) responded to the study questionnaire; 45.6% were aged 25-34 years, 52.7% were illiterate, 93.9% were housewives, and 84.6% had no source of income. The majority (62%) had a ‘low’ knowledge, 65.4% had positive attitudes and 57.8% had ‘poor’ practices; significant associations were observed between: age and attitude, knowledge and education, practices and education, and diarrhoea and income.

Conclusion: Many mothers need more knowledge and better attitudes and practices to be able to prevent and manage their children’s diarrhoea. The associations between knowledge, attitudes and practices all indicate the need for increased education and schooling of South Sudanese women and girls.

Keywords: mothers’ knowledge, attitude and practices, diarrhoea, prevention, South Sudan