Factors Associated With Cargivers’ Knowledge of Physical Developmental Delay in Children Under Two Years in the Bosomtwe District in the Ashanti Region, Ghana

Abstract

Background: Early childhood development forms the cornerstone of human development. There are four fields of childhood development. The gross motor, vision and fine motor form the physical component of development. Parental knowledge of childhood development has been associated with more effective parenting strategies and better child outcomes. Maternal knowledge of gross motor development also affects the patience of the mother with normal development; helps them provide appropriate stimulation and playing environments, and affects the recognition of developmental disabilities in young children. Little is known about the level of knowledge of developmental milestones among Caregivers in Ghana. This study assessed the factors associated with Caregivers’ knowledge on developmental milestones and developmental delay in children under two years. Method: In a descriptive cross-sectional study, a total of 395 Caregivers with children under the age of 2 were interviewed using a self-administered questionnaire at the Child Health clinic of the St. Michael’s Hospital in Bosomtwe District in the Ashanti region of Ghana. Data collected were entered using EpiData software version 3.1 and then exported to Stata 15 for analysis. Pearson’s Chi square test was used to test association between factors and the level of knowledge demonstrated and logistic regression models were used to assess significant predictors of high level of knowledge on developmental milestones in children under two years. Results: The general prevalence of knowledge on gross motor milestone in children under 2 years in the study population was 58.5%. The least level of knowledge on developmental milestones for children under two was demonstrated in early, less obvious milestones such as attaining neck control (49.5%) and sitting without support (54.75%). The major source of information on developmental milestones among respondents was from family (25.8%), closely followed by previous experience (23.9%), p-value<0.05. Only 40.8% of the respondents had received any formal health education on developmental milestones. Significant predictors of good knowledge of developmental milestones in this study were occupation (AOR: 1.48; 95% CI: 1.230-5.415), marital status (AOR: 1.39; 95% CI: 1.100- 6.073), parity (AOR: 1.780; 95% CI: 1.121-4.253) and ease of access of health education (AOR: 2.310; 95% CI: 1.587-3.112). No significant association was found with age of respondents, sex, educational status, household income or religion. Conclusion: There was a fair level of awareness (58.5%) of developmental milestones among caregivers in this study. Significant predictors of developmental milestones in this study included the marital status of the respondents, respondents with fewer number of children (1 to 2 children), occupation (health profession) and ease of access to health centers. No significant association was found with caregiver’s age, sex, educational status or wealth index