Nutritional Status of Married Tribal Women in Jharkhand, India

The article explores the socio-economic and nutritional status of tribal married women in East Singhbum district, Jharkhand, by using mixed methods of enquiry. Dietary and anthropometric methods of nutritional assessment were supported by qualitative data. It was found that the most potent reason for undernourishment among tribal women is household food insecurity and low calorific intake. To enhance the nutritional status of tribal women, it is suggested that the issue of malnutrition be addressed with a life cycle approach, along with sustained behaviour change communication with the help of public–private partnerships and the efficient implementation of existing and new programmes to increase purchasing power and food security.

Social and Behaviour Change Communication Intervention Improves Coverage and Acceptance of Ivermectin Mass Drug Administration in Onchocerciasis Endemic Communities in Ghana: A Quasi Experimental Design

BackgroundPoor community awareness and social mobilization serve as a major barrier by increasing absenteeism and downplaying the relevance of the ivermectin mass distribution by community members. Inadequate awareness also creates confusion among community members especially when one intervention is mistaken for the other. MethodsWe designed a targeted Social and Behaviour Change Communication (SBCC) intervention with clearly defined and tailored messages of ivermectin MDA program targeting onchocerciasis in endemic communities in Ghana. Quasi experiment was conducted with a total sample size of 2008 at baseline and 2113 at endline. ResultsAt baseline, 63.9% respondents did not receive Ivermectin during the previous year (2019) MDA programme and more than half of them (53.3%) were not aware of the drug distribution. The communities that received the intervention at endline revealed a significantly higher increase in coverage (SATT=0.123, 95% CI=0. 0.073, 0.173, p<0.001). At baseline, uptake rate of 91.0% was recorded. Post the intervention, there was an increase in the proportion of respondents who ingested the MDA drugs (ivermectin) from 91.0% to 95.45%. Previous uptake of MDA drugs (AOR=10.67; 95%CI: 5.59-20.38, p<0.001), Perceived benefit of MDA drug (AOR=4.13; 95%CI: 1.69-10.15, p<0.001) and being aware of the MDA programme (AOR=2.28; 95%CI: 1.00-5.02, p=0.049) was associated with improved receipt of Ivermectin. ConclusionThe findings of this study reveal that SBCC intervention improves ivermectin coverage and uptake rate in mass drug administration. Further research with technological innovations which can enhance SBCC is recommended taking hind sight of the limitations of the study due to the COVID-19 pandemic.

Can mass media prevent AIDS: the need for well planned behaviour change communication programmes

Thispaper reviews two ways of media utilization:to provide regular entertainment programmes and news events;and to relay specific messages for the purpose of influencing attitudes and behaviour. Obstacles to the effective use of the media for attitude and behaviour change are outlined and communication and training activities in order to overcome these obstacles are recommended

Effectiveness of Behaviour Change Communication for Mothers on Complementary Feeding Practices and Infants’ Nutritional Status in Nigeria

Introduction: The quality of feeding in early childhood depends on nutritional knowledge of mothers. Improving maternal nutrition knowledge is therefore pivotal towards promoting effective infants’ feeding behaviour. Objective: Study assessed mothers’ knowledge about complementary feeding and complementary feeding practices. Study also assessed effectiveness of Behaviour Change Communication on mothers’ knowledge and complementary feeding practices, compared the nutritional status of infants whose mothers received intervention to infants of mothers in the control group. Materials and Methods: A quasi-experimental study conducted among 204 mothers in rural and urban local government areas, South-west Nigeria between March and September, 2019. Sample size was estimated using formula for comparison of two proportions, eligible mothers were selected through multistage sampling technique. Study was conducted in three phases: pre-intervention phase, intervention and post intervention phases. Intervention: Selected mothers were randomly assigned into intervention and control groups. Mothers in the intervention group received Behavior Change Communication on complementary feeding and were followed up for six months. Data Analysis: Data was analyzed using SPSS software version 25, Chi-square and repeated analysis of variance evaluated effectiveness of intervention, level of significance was < 0.05. Results: BCC improved mothers’ knowledge about complementary feeding by 31.9% (χ2 = 21.62; p = 0.001), meal frequency by 16% (χ2 = 5.88, p = 0.01), dietary diversity by 19.6% (χ2 = 7.44, p = 0.01), minimum acceptable diet by 20.6% (χ2 = 13.09; p =0.01). Intervention also reduced under-weight by 14% (χ2 = 0.69, p = 0.01; (F(1,191) =275.34; p = 0.04) among intervention group. Conclusion: Effective nutritional intervention for mothers towards improving nutritional status of children should incorporate appropriate behaviour change approach. This approach is capable of improving nutritional status of infants and children and consequently reduce malnutrition and related complications in early childhood.