Analysis of Factors Associated with the Abandonment of Nutritional Recovery among Parents of Severely Malnourished Children Aged 6 to 59 Months in the Health District of Titao, Burkina Faso
Introduction: In Burkina Faso, undernutrition is a public health problem associated with more than 40% of infant and child mortality. Undernutrition management is complex, and there is often a risk of treatment abandonment. Studies on this topic have not explored the influence of environmental and therapeutic factors on parental compliance. This study proposes an analysis of factors influencing the abandonment of nutritional recovery by parents of malnourished children aged 6 to 59 months in ambulatory care. Methods: This was a descriptive and exploratory qualitative study. Data collection took place in February 2020. Data were collected from seventeen (17) participants via in-depth interviews (IDI) and direct observation. The IDIs were transcribed verbatim and thematically analyzed using Nvivo software. Results: The results revealed that factors related to the physical environment, such as geographical inaccessibility, pastoral occupation, displacement at auriferous sites, and insecurity, are important causes of nutritional recovery abandonment. They also prove that factors related to the social environment, such as lack of family and social support, feelings of shame, stigmatization, occupation of the mother, and social events, lead to this abandonment. In addition, therapeutic factors such as interruptions of supplies of Ready to Use Therapeutic Food (RUTF), feeling of improvement or worsening of the state of health, recourse to traditional medicine, and ignorance of undernutrition are also associated with this issue. Conclusion: This study highlighted barriers to the abandonment of nutritional recovery among parents of severely malnourished children aged 6 to 59 months in the health district of Titao, Burkina Faso. It is more important to consider these different factors when evaluating care protocols so that policies to reduce child undernutrition can considerably impact the targets.
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