Maternal and New-Born Care Practices by Traditional Delivery Care Givers: A Cross Sectional Survey

India is a country of great diversity with 29 states and 6 union territories, all varying in language, culture and social traditions. Tradition is defined as belief, custom or way of doing things, that has existed over a long time among a particular group of people. Maternal and child health is influenced by many customs and beliefs. In India marriage is universal and family is incomplete without a child. Various community data obtained support a strong influence of various cultural practices on mortality and morbidity of the mother and new-born. Aim 1) To identify the practices of maternal care and new-born care by traditional delivery care givers.2) To determine the association between maternal and new-born care practices and selected socio-personal variables.3) To identify the harmful maternal and new-born care practices by traditional delivery care givers and provide remedial teaching to modify them. Material and Methods A descriptive exploratory study was conducted among 200 traditional delivery care givers, selected by convenient sampling from authorised home nursing agencies in Thiruvananthapuram City Corporation, using a semi structured interview schedule prepared by the researcher. Findings Majority of subjects (65 %) are following beneficial maternal and new-born care practices and 35 % are following harmful ones. Conclusion More than half of traditional delivery care givers followed beneficial maternal and new-born ocare practices. Remedial teachings after identification of practices were given and correct practices reinforced with rationale. The study recommends periodic review of these practices and a cadre of properly trained personnel to take care of mother and baby at home.