Local Perceptions, Cultural Beliefs, Practices and Changing Perspectives of Handling Infant Feces: A Case Study in a Rural Geita District, North-Western Tanzania

We report on the management of infant feces in a rural village in Geita region, Tanzania. Findings discussed here emerged incidentally from a qualitative study aimed at investigating vulnerability and resilience to health challenges in rural settings. Data was gathered through semi-structured focus...

Full description

Saved in:
Bibliographic Details
Published in:International journal of environmental research and public health 2020-04, Vol.17 (9), p.3084
Main Authors: Chebet, Joy J, Kilungo, Aminata, Alaofè, Halimatou, Malebo, Hamisi, Katani, Shaaban, Nichter, Mark
Format: Article
Language:English
Subjects:
Age
Behavior
Children
Children & youth
Decision making
Feces
Households
Pathogens
Qualitative research
Rural areas
Sanitation
Studies
Toilet facilities
Womens health
Citations: Items that this one cites
Items that cite this one
Online Access:Get full text
Tags: Add Tag
No Tags, Be the first to tag this record!
Description
Summary:We report on the management of infant feces in a rural village in Geita region, Tanzania. Findings discussed here emerged incidentally from a qualitative study aimed at investigating vulnerability and resilience to health challenges in rural settings. Data was gathered through semi-structured focus group discussions (FDGs) with women ( = 4; 32 participants), men ( = 2; 16 participants), and community leaders ( = 1; 8 participants). All FDGs were audio recorded, transcribed verbatim and thematically analyzed using Atlas.ti. Respondents reported feces of a child under the age of six months were considered pure compared to those of older children. Infant feces were seen as transitioning to harmful at the point when the child began to eat solid food, resulting in their stool visually changing in appearance. Caregivers reportedly used soft implements to handle infant feces due to the belief that tools with hard surfaces would physically harm the child. Infant feces were disposed in environments around the house due to the belief that disposal in latrines would prevent developmental milestones and result in other perceived negative health outcomes for the child. Changing views expressed by participants suggest a window of opportunity to implement evidence-based and culturally relevant interventions to encourage the safe disposal of infant feces.
ISSN:1660-4601
1661-7827
1660-4601
DOI:10.3390/ijerph17093084