Awareness of Preventive Practices on Childhood Killer Diseases Among Child Bearing Women in Ido-Osi Local Government Area, Southwest, Nigeria

Background: Nigeria has one of the highest under-five mortality rates in the world, with almost 750,000 children under five dying each year. Unawareness and ignorance among mothers about various childhood killer diseases including malaria, diarrhea, among others may contribute a great deal to childhood mortality and morbidity. This study aimed to identify level of awareness of preventive practices on childhood killer diseases among childbearing women. Methods: The study was a cross-sectional study conducted in Ido-Osi Local Government Area, Ekiti State. Statistical Package for Social Sciences (SPSS) version 26 was used for data analysis, p-value was set at 0.05. A sample size of 295 was calculated, self-administered questionnaire was used to collect data among child bearing women via a multistage sampling technique. Results: All (100%) of respondents were aware of one or more childhood killer diseases. A total of 77.9% (226) engaged in preventive practices. Awareness among childbearing mothers on childhood killer diseases and the portion of respondents that engaged in good preventive practice was high. Associated factors with good preventive practices include age group, level of education, occupation and income. Age greater than 35 years (AOR: 3.781, 95%CI: 1.344 – 10.639, P: 0.012), and having tertiary education (AOR: 20.703, 95%CI: 3.258 – 131.551, P<0.001) were predictors of good preventive practices. Conclusion: Awareness of childhood killer diseases among childbearing mothers was impressively high. Factors associated with good preventive practices included age group, educational level, occupation, and income. Health workers should sustain and strengthen ongoing efforts aimed at promoting prevention of childhood killer diseases.