Mothers’ Characteristics and Children's Diarrhea Between 2010-2020 in Rwanda

Authors

Amans Ntakarutimana Dr., Walden UniversityFollow
Patrick A. Tschida Dr., Walden UniversityFollow

ORCID

0000-0001-5014-5011

Abstract

Mothers’ characteristics influence children’s health and development. We conducted a cross-sectional study to assess the influence of mothers’ education level, employment status, and exposure to domestic violence on diarrhea among children under 5 years old using secondary data from 2010, 2015, and 2020 Rwanda Demographic Health Surveys. We used stratified descriptive statistics, pairwise comparisons, and logistic regression designs to assess (a) the prevalence of mothers per education level, employment status, and exposure to domestic violence; (b) their variation over time; and (c) their influence on diarrhea among children under 5 years old between 2010 and 2020 in Rwanda. According to the study findings, there was a decrease in the prevalence of lower levels of education among mothers and cases of mothers acknowledging having no decision on their own earnings, but there was no variation in the prevalence of cases acknowledging wife beating and no decision on own healthcare between 2010–2020. Children whose mothers have (a) no education; (b) primary education; and (c) secondary education were 3.3 times, 2.8 times, and 2.4 times more likely to have diarrhea, respectively, compared to those whose mothers have higher education. Children whose mothers acknowledge (a) no decision of their earnings; (b) no decision on their healthcare; and (c) wife beating were 1.3 times, 1.2 times, and 1.4 times more likely to have diarrhea than those whose mothers do not acknowledge any form of domestic violence respectively. The study findings suggest community stakeholders combine efforts to integrate related community-based control interventions through (a) consistent use of socioecological models and frameworks of effective implementation; and (b) valorization of community-based institutions and resources to address diarrhea risk factors, including domestic violence against mothers towards significant reduction of diarrhea among children under 5 years old in Rwanda.