For reference: Picture cards to stimulate discussion - Neonatal contributing factors

NEONATAL & INFANT CONTRIBUTING FACTORS – ROOTS OF SOME PROBLEMS

1.    Not keeping the baby warm:

Babies get cold very quickly, if not dried thoroughly at birth, then wrapped warmly and put inside the mother’s clothes to keep warm. Bathing the baby before one day old causes it to get very cold. These things lead to hypothermia, which can cause brain damage or death of the baby.

2.    Not breast-feeding for long enough:

Ideally the woman should breast-feed the baby for 6 months, without giving any other food. Not doing so can be at the root of problems because:

·         The baby is more much likely to die of diarrhoea

·         The baby is much more likely to get malnutrition, and then die of infection.

3.    Living in an unhealthy living environment:

Particular problems with the living environment can be:

·         Too much smoke, causing babies to die of croup or pneumonia

·         Coughing and spitting indoors, causing others to catch the germs – especially TB

·         Too much soil around, causing the baby to catch tetanus through its umbilical cord scab.

·         Contamination of food with faeces or other germs, causing diarrhoea and worms.

4.     Not receiving immunisations:

This can be at the root of problems because:

·         the baby can die from TB, Diphtheria, Whooping cough, Tetanus, Hepatitis

·         measles is a particular killer of young children, and measle vaccine plus Vitamin A supplement help prevent it.

·         Polio can cause the child to become partly paralysed.

·         Worms can cause the child to be weak and vulnerable.

5.    Drinking contaminated drinks:

River water often has germs which cause diarrhoea, and so bottle-feeds made with river water are an important cause of death from diarrhoea.

When the child already has diarrhoea, continuing to give contaminated fluids makes the problem worse, and the child gets dehydrated and can die.