Health Prospect

Federal governance and the undying parade for universal health coverage in Nepal

2019-05-31T10:51:07+00:00

Not required (Editorial)

Interdisciplinary Research in Public Health: Not quite straightforward

2019-05-31T11:01:00+00:00

Over the past few years the practice of disciplines collaborating in interdisciplinary or multidisciplinary research has grown in popularity and not just in the health field. In a multi-faceted discipline such as Public Health, interdisciplinary approaches are a welcome addition to the research field. Interdisciplinary research can bring new insights and understanding across disciplinary boundaries. Novel interdisciplinary research can transcend disciplinary boundaries to address sophisticated and so-called wicked problems in society. However, there are potential difficulties arising from researchers trained in different individual disciplines attempting to work together. We have highlighted some of these issues which interdisciplinary research in Public Health needs to consider and, where necessary, address before they become barriers.

Importance of learning Global Health in strengthening Primary Health Care: an experience from Nepal

2019-07-06T02:42:17+00:00

Global health is a multidisciplinary and interdisciplinary approach of dealing transnational determinants of health. Strengthening health care institutions is vital for achieving universal health care. It also favors global health outcomes as it bridges gaps of health inequalities and saves numerous lives. In Nepal, the Institute of Medicine, Tribhuvan University is offering global health course since 2013. This paper discusses practical application of the learnings from the global health course to make commendable achievements at a primary health center. The global health course can be the foundation for transforming clinicians and public health practitioners into promising global health leaders. This will contribute to improve basic health care services, quality care, and vaccination program to improve the health of population. Therefore, global health course should be an imperative of medical education to capacitate doctors working in these settings to better understand the social determinants of disease prevention, care and rehabilitation.

Perception of Health and Care Seeking Behaviors of Patients Living in High-Altitude Villages of Rural Nepal

2019-05-31T11:13:11+00:00

Background: Nepal continues to struggle to increase its population access to healthcare, especially in rural and isolated villages where primary healthcare is offered through local health outposts. However, people often prefer to consult initially with traditional healers for minor issues as this is more aligned with their cultural beliefs and practices. Knowing that Nepal is undergoing healthcare reform, it would be timely to explore perceptions of health and care-seeking behaviors amongst patients living in high-altitude communities in rural Nepal for consideration in future planning and policy; which is the purpose of this qualitative study.

Methods: In-person, semi-structured interviews were conducted, with the use of a translator, with 17 participants, living in two rural villages. After transcribing the interviews, themes were identified using thematic analysis.

Results: People expressed the belief that they hold expertise in sustaining health due to their naturalistic lifestyle and community-focus developed within the context of a unique local culture and environment. When faced with a health problem, villagers are compelled to seek treatment from available healthcare offerings. Their care-seeking behavior and their eventual choice between Modern and Belief-based medicine is filtered through a number of considerations: the ease of its accessibility, the cost of services, their prior knowledge related to the illness, their belief system, and the severity of the medical situation.

Conclusion: This study indicates that better understanding of the perceptions of the rural Nepali is crucial in advocating for sustainable and culturally-sensitive delivery of healthcare.

Tweetable Abstract: Rural Nepali’s care-seeking behavior, rooted in naturalistic lifestyle and community-focus; however, contextual considerations oblige them to make choices between Modern and Belief-based medicine.

Husband’s Support for Breastfeeding and Breastfeeding Efficacy of Nepalese Mothers

2019-05-31T11:20:52+00:00

Background: Continuing breastfeeding after three months of the postpartum period has been a challenge to mothers rather than their choice. The engagement of husbands in breastfeeding serves both as physical and mental support to their wives. This study aimed to assess the breastfeeding self-efficacy of mothers, identify their husbands’ support for breastfeeding and examine the association between breastfeeding self-efficacy of mothers and the husbands’ support for breastfeeding.

Methods: This descriptive, cross sectional study recruited 110 mothers of infants, visiting Bungmati Health Post for immunization from July 2015 to November 2015. Mothers were interviewed face to face with semi structured questionnaire. Data entry and analysis was carried out using SPSS version 23. Descriptive analysis was performed on the socio-demographic characteristics, delivery characteristics, breastfeeding self-efficacy and husbands’ support scale. Bivariate analysis was used to examine the association between breastfeeding self-efficacy and husbands’ support scale and other outcomes.

Results: Majority (94%) of the mothers reported to be confident on the breastfeeding self-efficacy, while 95 percent of their husbands were supportive towards breastfeeding. A significant association was seen between the breastfeeding self-efficacy and the husbands’ support scale (p<0.04). Mothers who received support from husbands were 10 times more likely to report confidence on breastfeeding than those who did not.

Conclusions: The results suggested that husbands’ support increases the breastfeeding self-efficacy of mothers. Based on this finding, it is recommended that involvement of husband is crucial for encouraging mother to breastfeed child.

Tweetable Abstract: Mothers who received support from their husbands were 10 times significantly more likely to breastfeed.