Knowledge of first time mothers about the importance of tactile stimulation during infancy and early childhood

[摘要] ENGLISH ABSTRACT: Research indicates that human touch plays an integral role in an infant's ability to thriveand grow, with a correlation existing between tactile stimulation and optimal physical,emotional, cognitive, and social development. The aim of this study was to explore thelevel of knowledge of first time mothers attending Mowbray Maternity Hospital (MMH)regarding the importance of tactile stimulation during infancy and early childhood.A descriptive, non-experimental, research design was employed, using a pilot testedstructured questionnaire for data collection during face-to-face interviews conducted bythe Principal Investigator. Questions were divided into four domains: knowledge aboutthe impact of tactile stimulation on the bonding domain, the emotional domain, physicaldomain and the social domain of infants and children. The inclusion of one open-endedquestion allowed participants to suggest recommendations for improved knowledgeand care. A sample of 41 participants, constituting 40% of the study population (N=101)was randomly selected from MMH. Prior ethical approval was obtained from theHuman Research Ethics Committee of Stellenbosch University, and operationalapproval from the Western Cape Department of Health, and the Research Committeeand Senior Management of MMH. Written informed consent was obtained from thestudy participants.The quantitative data was analysed using Statistica (Version 10) with the assistance ofa statistician. The qualitative data yielded from the one open-ended question wasanalysed thematically and then quantified.The findings show that 90% (n=37) of the participants were knowledgeable abouttactile stimulation strategies, 81% (n=33) knew about the impact of tactile stimulationon the bonding domain, 75% (n=31) on the emotional domain, 52% (n=21) on thephysical domain and 43% (n=18) on the social domain. Although all participants hadreported for out-patient antenatal care on four and more occasions, 73% (n=30)indicated that they had improved their knowledge regarding pregnancy, labour, birth,and parenting by reading magazines, 20% (n=8) reported that a health care worker hadspoken to them about the benefits of tactile stimulation, and 15% (n=6) had receivedliterature on the benefits of tactile stimulation. The open-ended question generated several findings which included suggestions to enhance healthcare by providinginformation and training about tactile stimulation and perinatal matters when attendingantenatal clinic; by offering assistance with infant feeding during the postnatal period;and by improving the attitude and professional stance of health care workers.The study findings suggest that first time mothers at MMH are not adequatelyknowledgeable about the importance of tactile stimulation during infancy and earlychildhood. Grounded in the empirical findings and based on the suggestions offered bythe participants, several recommendations, including improved information andtraining, were identified toward strengthening tactile stimulation knowledge and practiceat both the parental and health care provider levels.

[发布机构] Stellenbosch University