Knowledge and practices of healthcare providers about essential newborn care and resuscitation in a district of Haryana.

In India, institutionalisation of deliveries is happening at a fast pace. Evaluating the knowledge and practices of healthcare providers in these institutions is a priority in this current scenario. The objective of this study was to assess the knowledge and practices regarding essential newborn care and resuscitation among healthcare providers in Panchkula district of Haryana. A cross-sectional questionnaire based survey of healthcare personnel working in one district hospital, 2 community health centres, 5 primary health centres and 2 subcentres, each with at least 100 deliveries per year, was done. Fifty-eight medical personnel comprising of 27 staff nurses, 11 auxiliary nurse midwives, 15 doctors and 5 multipurpose health workers were interviewed. Of them, 33 (57%) had received training in newborn care, but only 9 (16%) knew all the initial steps of resuscitation. Twenty-eight (48%) had knowledge of positive pressure ventilation while 8 (13%) could provide chest compression or drugs during resuscitation. Thirty-three (57%) practiced holding the baby upside down after delivery. Early and exclusive breastfeeding including colostrum was advised by all. All practiced hand washing prior to delivery and kept the cord clean anddry. At least one danger sign was told to the mother at the time of discharge by 48 (83%). However, kangaroo mother care was rarely advised to mothers of preterm babies. It was found that majority of healthcare personnel had good awareness about breastfeeding and clean practices while conducting delivery. In contrast, knowledge about neonatal resuscitation and some aspects of essential newborn care was poor.