Understanding the Health Care Experiences of Newborns and Young Children in Kenya

Although there is a growing body of knowledge and interventions to measure and mitigate mistreatment of women during facility-based childbirth, there is very little evidence of the experiences of hospitalized newborns, infants and young children from birth up to 2 years of age.

Understanding the health care experiences of young children (0–24 months) is critical to promoting positive health and developmental outcomes, yet few efforts have defined or measured the experience of facility-based care of this age group in low- and middle-income country settings. Although young children are unable to voice their own experiences, we can study their experiences by collecting responses from parents of hospitalized newborns, infants, and young children. It is also critical to understand the role of health providers, including their communication and behaviors with parents and families caring for hospitalized young children.

A formative study was conducted under the Breakthrough RESEARCH project by the Population Council to understand the manifestation of mistreatment and experience of newborns, infants, and young children and co-design (with families and providers) a set of interventions that promote a positive experience of care.

Learn More

Programmatic research brief: “Understanding Provider and Parent Experiences in Caring for Hospitalized Young Children: Summary findings from a formative study in Kenya”

Slide deck: “Structural and behavior change interventions to improve experience of care for sick very young children (0 to 24 months of age) and their parents in hospital settings in Kenya—Preliminary results: Baseline provider survey”

Journal article: “Manifestations, responses, and consequences of mistreatment of sick newborns and young infants and their parents in health facilities in Kenya” [Go to PLOS ONE website to read article]

Journal article: “‘You can’t even ask a question about your child’: Examining experiences of parents or caregivers during hospitalization of their sick young children in Kenya a qualitative study” [Go to Frontiers website to read article]

Job aids/Tools:

• Communication During Hospitalization
• Parents’ Emotional Wellness: Reduce Distress, Emotional Support, and Partnership (DEP) Guide for supporting parents during young child’s illness
• Providers’ Emotional Wellness
• What Can Men Do? Fathers and other male carers can do the following for newborns and young children