Maternal Knowledge And Readiness For Pediatric Colostomy Management In A Tertiary Care Hospital

Abstract

Introduction: Colostomy is a common pediatric surgical procedure, which often involves conditions like Hirschsprung disease, anorectal malformations, and intestinal perforations that require frequent colostomy care at home by parents, usually mothers. A mother plays an important role in the prevention of complications and ensuring the general well-being of the child with a stoma. This study aimed to assess the knowledge and practices of mothers regarding colostomy care, use of the stoma appliance, and its disposal and maintenance.

Methods: This is a descriptive cross-sectional study that involved 100 mothers of children with colostomies, admitted to a tertiary care hospital from September 2016 to January 2017, using purposive sampling. Respondents were requested to complete a structured questionnaire, which was translated in Urdu and modified from that used by Pandey et al. (2015). The tool also solicited demographic information and items to measure knowledge and confidence regarding colostomy care, using a five-point Likert scale. The descriptive statistics were computed using SPSS version 26.

Results: More than half of the mothers were illiterate, and 78% had never received formal preoperative or postoperative stoma education. However, many reported being "fairly confident" in performing colostomy-related tasks: 93% felt fairly confident in caring for the stoma at home, 71% in preventing skin problems, and 62% in preventing stoma obstruction. However, confidence did not correspond with actual knowledge, since most mothers lacked structured training and were informally self-taught. Overall findings: There were substantial deficits in knowledge and standardized practices of colostomy care.

Conclusion: Mothers showed poor knowledge and inconsistent practices regarding colostomy care, despite their moderate self-reported confidence. The findings stress the pressing need for organized educational programs, support from multidisciplinary teams, and standardized training on stoma care with a view to increasing mothers' competencies and reducing complications in children with colostomies. Recommendations are made for the incorporation of multidisciplinary stoma care education, the use of varied teaching tools, the organization of support groups, and proper training programs for mothers.