Health Professionals’ Knowledge and Attitudes About Neonatal Bathing and Factors Affecting Them: A Cross-Sectional Study

Abstract

In pediatrics, the knowledge and approach of health professionals in bathing, which are one of the first care of the newborn, are important in the initiation and continuation of care by transferring it to parents. The aim of the study was to determine the knowledge, attitudes, and influencing factors of health professionals about newborn bathing. This descriptive and cross-sectional study was conducted with 140 health professionals working in neonatology between March and June 2023. Data were collected and analyzed using the “Participant description form” and “Knowledge and Attitudes Form on Newborn Bathing.” Since there is no equivalent measurement tool in the literature, the Knowledge and Attitude Form on Newborn Bathing was designed and submitted for expert assessment. A final version with 21 items questioning knowledge (15 items) and attitude (6 items) was completed. The cutoff point in the form was determined as the correct response of 16 items (12 items or more for the knowledge and 4 items or more for the attitude section). Descriptive and comparative analyses were performed on the data. Significance was evaluated at 95% confidence interval. A total of 140 health professionals with a mean age of 31.4 years participated in the study. The first bath of the newborn was reported to be a wipe/sponge bath with 80% and 68.6% reported that the first bath should be with water only. About 70% reported that there were clues indicating that the newborn was ready for bathing and the first clues were absorption of vernix caseosa (22.6%) and umbilical cord shedding (11.9%). According to the answers of the Knowledge and Attitudes Form on Newborn Bathing, 74.3% of the participants had sufficient knowledge about bathing. A statistically significant difference was found between gender, occupation, education, institution, clinic, working time, and knowledge adequacy (p < 0.05). Although bathing seems harmless, it is ill-advised when it comes to newborns. The study determined that health professionals possess sufficient knowledge about newborn bathing. We recommend studies be conducted on how health professionals transfer their knowledge to mothers with new babies and how mothers apply their instructions and advice.