Feasibility of engaging caregivers in at‐home surveillance of children with uncomplicated severe acute malnutrition

Bibliographic Data

ID15536823
AuthorsSheila Isanaka (0000-0002-4503-2861, Epicentre (South Africa), corresponding author), Fatou Berthé (United Nations Children's Fund Niger), Fabienne Nackers (0000-0001-9870-1910, Epicentre (South Africa)), Kevin Tang (0000-0002-2908-1954, Epicentre (South Africa)), Kerstin E Hanson (0000-0003-1800-1565, Médecins Sans Frontières), Rebecca F Grais (0000-0002-5037-8218, Epicentre (South Africa))
Year2019
Volume16
Issue1
Pagese12876-e12876
Publication date2019-07-23
Peer ReviewedYes
Open AccessYes
TypeARTICLE
VenueMaternal and Child Nutrition (JOURNAL)
Journal identifiersISSN: 1740-8695 • E-ISSN: 1740-8709
PublisherWiley (PUBLISHER • GB)
DOI10.1111/mcn.12876
PMID31336045
OpenAlexW2963900724
LanguageEN
Citations received7
References cited11

Many factors can contribute to low coverage of treatment for severe acute malnutrition (SAM), and a limited number of health facilities and trained personnel can constrain the number of children that receive treatment. Alternative models of care that shift the responsibility for routine clinical and anthropometric surveillance from the health facility to the household could reduce the burden of care associated with frequent facility-based visits for both healthcare providers and caregivers. To assess the feasibility of shifting clinical surveillance to caregivers in the outpatient management of SAM, we conducted a pilot study to assess caregivers' understanding and retention of key concepts related to the surveillance of clinical danger signs and anthropometric measurement over a 28-day period. At the time of a child's admission to nutritional treatment, a study nurse provided a short training to groups of caregivers on two topics: (a) clinical danger signs in children with SAM that warrant facility-based care and (b) methods to measure and monitor their child's mid-upper arm circumference. Caregiver understanding was assessed using standardized questionnaires before training, immediately after training, and 28 days after training. Knowledge of most clinical danger signs (e.g., convulsions, edema, poor appetite, respiratory distress, and lethargy) was low (0-45%) before training but increased immediately after and was retained 28 days after training. Agreement between nurse-caregiver mid-upper arm circumference colour classifications was 77% (98/128) immediately after training and 80% after 28 days. These findings lend preliminary support to pursue further study of alternative models of care that allow for greater engagement of caregivers in the clinical and anthropometric surveillance of children with SAM

Anthropometry · Distress · Health care · Lethargy · Malnutrition · Physical therapy · Psychiatry · Severe Acute Malnutrition · Vital signs · Child Nutrition and Feeding Issues · Child Nutrition and Water Access · Medicine · Nursing · Nutrition and Health in Aging · Emergency Medicine · Pediatrics