Despite existing policies on training health professionnels in essential newborn\ncare (ENC), neonatal mortality still remains high in Mali. Our work\naimed to assess the level of knowledge of health staff about ENC. Material\nand methods: From March 20th to April 20th, 2016, we interviewed newborn\ncare providers at the six reference health centers and the Gabriel Touré University\nHospital Center in Bamako. Results: In total, we interviewed 407\nnewborn care providers with a sex ratio of 0.52. Interviewees had over five\nyears work experience in 62.1%. They considered a low Apgar score as an indication\nfor neonatal resuscitation in 89%, regardless of profile (p = 0.1583).\nThey knew the good aspiration technique in 54%, with nurses and midwives\nmore knowledgeable (p < 0.001) of the reference health centers (p = 0.0000).\nThe interviewees knew the indication and rate of ventilation in 30.2% and\n16.0%, respectively. About one third (34%) thought oxygen administration\nshould be systematic during ventilation. The knowledge level on ventilation\nwas the lowest in the group of general practitioners (p = 0.0063 for oxygen\nindication and p < 0.001 for the technique). Knowledge level for other ENC\ncomponents (temperature maintenance, eyes care, breastfeeding) were higher.\nThe knowledge of the delay of the breasting did not correlated with either\nthe profile (p = 0.0857) or the place of practice. The knowledge of the first\nbath was dependent on both the professional profile (p = 0.0002) and the reference level (p = 0.0238). Conclusion: The level of knowledge of health professionnels\non ENC should be improved. This will involve the integration of\nENC in initial training curricula along with an appropriate continuing training\npolicy thereafter.
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