Me and My Baby Are One; The Mother's Experience of Continuous Kangaroo Care: A Qualitative Study

Introduction: Infant hospitalization in Neonatal Intensive Care Unit (NICU) causes the separation of mother from her infant. Kangaroo Care (KC) is a bio-care method for preterm newborns. This study was conducted with the aim of investigating the experiences of mothers that could be helpful for the further development and expansion of continuous kangaroo mother care (C-KMC). Material and Method: This is a qualitative study with a content analysis approach. In order to collect data, in-depth individual interviews were conducted with thirteen mothers who were able to care their infants in the form of C-KMC. The sampling was of purposeful type; the interviews were recorded and their contents were written accurately and word by word. Findings: Analysis of mothers' experiences led to the emergence of three main themes of mother’s positive attitude, facilitator factors and barriers to perform C-KMC. Conclusion: The results of this study showed that performing KMC caused a sense of calm, empowerment and satisfaction of the mother and had many medical benefits for the infant. On the other hand, physicians and nurses can act as facilitators or barriers based on the support they make from mothers. Also, the support of the spouse and family plays an important role in continuing to perform the continuous KMC by the mother.

Strategy to Reduce Stunting Children Through Exploration of Mother’s Experience

AbstrakBalita yang mengalami stunting memiliki tinggi badan yang lebih pendek daripada tinggi badan usia standar hal ini dikarenakan kurangnya asupan gizi dalam waktu yang lama. Perhatian seorang ibu terhadap gizi anaknya sangat penting untuk mengatasi stunting. Penelitian ini bertujuan untuk memberikan gambaran tentang pengasuhan keluarga pada anak yang mengalami stunting. Metode penelitian yang digunakan adalah kualitatif. Metode penelitian yang digunakan adalah wawancara secara mendalam dan melakukan observasi partisipan. Sampel penelitian adalah ibu yang memiliki bayi usia 12-59 bulan. Analisa data dengan mengidentifikasi tema dan topik dari wawancara. Pengelaman ibu dalam mengasih balita dilihat dari lima hal, 1) Tugas keluarga, 2) Lingkungan fisik dan sosial, 3) Komunikasi, 4) Ekonomi dan 5) Stres dan koping. Tenaga kesehatan dapat menggunakan hasil penelitian ini untuk membantu dan membimbing ibu dalam mengasuh anak yang sesuai dengan usia anak untuk mendukung pertumbuhan dan perkembangan anak secara optimal.Kata kunci: pengasuhan, stunting AbstractStunting on toddler has a shorter height than the standard age due to a lack of nutritional intake in a long time. The mother's attention to the nutrition of her child is needed in overcoming of stunting problem. This study aims to provide an overview of family care for stunting children. The research method was qualitative research. In-depth interviews and participant observation were used as collecting data. The subjects in this study were mothers who had children aged 12-59 months. Data were analyzed by identifying themes and topics from the interviews. Mother's experience in caring for children under five is seen from five issues, 1) Family tasks, 2) Physical and social environment, 3) Communication, 4) Economy, and 5) Stress and coping. Health workers can use this result research to assist and guide mothers in parenting based on their children’s age to support growth and development optimally.Keywords: parenting, stunting

Effect of postpartum experience and infant temperament on maternal beliefs about infant crying

Infant crying is an important signal for their survival and socio-cognitive development. It is unclear how maternal beliefs about infant crying change with their caregiving experience. Additionally, this study examined a bidirectional relationship between maternal beliefs and infants’ temperament using longitudinal study design. Maternal beliefs about crying and infant temperament of first-time mothers were measured at 1-month intervals over a 4-month period (N = 339 at Wave 1 and N = 164 at Wave 4). We found that parent-oriented beliefs about crying increased with the mother’s experience, and that infants high on surgency predicted changes in maternal beliefs. The current results suggest that the maternal beliefs change with an infant’s development and parenting experience in the early postpartum period.

Effect of postpartum experience and infant temperament on maternal beliefs about infant crying

Infant crying is an important signal for their survival and socio-cognitive development, and maternal beliefs about crying predict responsiveness to crying. Most studies have considered caregivers’ reactions to crying to be fixed, and it is unclear how they change with their caregiving experience. Additionally, it has recently been suggested that there is a bidirectional relationship between changes in mothers’ beliefs about crying and infants’ temperament. This study examined that relationship using longitudinal study design. Maternal beliefs about crying and infant temperament of first-time mothers were measured at 1-month intervals over a 4-month period. Prior to the main survey, we conducted a pre-survey to confirm the reliability and validity of the Japanese version of the Infant Crying Questionnaire. We found that parent-oriented beliefs, which focus on the caregiver rather than the crying infant, increased with the mother’s experience, and that infants high on surgency predicted changes in maternal beliefs about infant crying. The current results suggest that the beliefs required by caregivers change with an infant’s development and parenting experience in the early postpartum period. Longitudinal studies of caregivers’ changes, such as the present study, are expected to contribute to the understanding of co-development of caregivers and infants.

Experience of Mother in Taking Care of Children with Stunting at Majene Regency, Indonesia

Health officials have the role and responsibility to provide a promotive, preventive, curative, and rehabilitative action for children who are stunted. However, in fact, the role will be taken over entirely by parents, especially the mother. Therefore, the mother's experience needs to be explored in order to know the extent of a mother's efforts in treating her child who is stunted. This research used a qualitative method with a phenomenological approach. Data were collected through deep interviews using a questionnaire that was prepared and then the researcher recorded the process of interview. The sampling technique used was purposive sampling then proceed with snowball sampling. Then, data would be analyzed using the thematic analysis method, mothers of children who were categorized as stunting did not have clear knowledge about stunting, perfomed exclusive breastfeeding for 6 months but breastfeeding was not optimal until the children are 2 years of age, complementary feeding was not balanced because it did not contain carbohydrate, protein and fat sources, families with incomes below the minimum income experience stunted their children. Husband's support to all participants was very good in overcoming health problems that occur in children, but her husband's support was very lacking in efforts to prevent children from experiencing stunting, mothers of children who were categorized as stunting had good personal hygiene behaviors in children

Lactogenesis II Onset Following Prolonged Delay in a Mother With a Nonfunctioning Macroadenoma Treated With Cabergoline: A Case Study in Persistence

IntroductionThis is a case of a 31-year-old woman who experienced headaches and visual changes in her 15th week of pregnancy and was diagnosed with a macroadenoma.TreatmentShe started a dopamine agonist, a prolactin inhibitor, at that time to treat these symptoms and continued it for 2 weeks after the birth, a total of 13 weeks.Goal and OutcomeThe mother’s goal was to provide her own milk for her infant. She began to express milk the day of her infant’s birth but obtained only drops for the first 2 months. Using a breast pump and, later, hand expression, this mother was able to finally express more than drops per day. She achieved a full milk supply, 750 mL per day, 21 weeks following delivery, when 2–3 weeks is the average. She continued expressing milk achieving over 900 mL per day when the infant was 24 weeks old.ConclusionIn this case where cabergoline was discontinued after the birth, persistent pumping and hand expression was enough to initiate milk production. This case study reports this mother’s experience with continued expression despite no increasing volumes in the first 2 months. This confirms that with a diagnosis and treatment of this type, milk production is possible with persistent expression.

‘I’m trying to tell you this man is dangerous… and no one’s listening’: family violence, parent–school engagement and school complicity

This paper presents a case study of one mother’s experience of engaging with her children’s schools after leaving a long-term relationship characterised by years of family violence perpetrated by the children’s father. We interviewed Bernadette as part of an ongoing study of parents’ experiences of school engagement during family separation and divorce. Her family circumstances and the role the children’s schools played in that story merit consideration by educators, school leaders and education policy makers. Informed by theories of everyday cultural practices and sociological studies of gendered power relations in education, we argue that gender politics and organisational strategies for keeping parents ‘in their place’ can significantly contribute to systemic failures and school cultures that reinscribe the effects of family violence.