Behaviors of Mothers about Baby Follow-ups and Affecting Factors

The purpose of this descriptive study is to identify behaviors of mothers about baby follow-ups and affecting factors. Target population of the study conducted between March 2017 and June 2017 was composed of Family Health Centers in 4 central towns of Adana (Seyhan, Yuregir, Saricam and Cukurova). Family Health Centers involved in the sample were selected randomly, and the participants were 783 women who had a baby aged between 0 and 18 months. Written approval was obtained from Adana Provincial Directorate of Health and Cukurova University Medical Faculty Non-invasive Clinical Research Ethics Committee. Data were collected through the face to face interview form prepared by the researcher in line with the related literature. Data were analyze SPSS 22,0 package programming using distribution percentages, means, standard deviations and chi-square tests. All of the women participating in the study, 82,2% had education level of secondary school or higher, 78% were housewives, 78,7% had medium income level, 96,3% had health security, and 83,3% had nuclear family. Average age of the mothers was 285,469. Results showed that majority of the mothers took their babies to health check-ups. While the rates of having regular follow-ups were high, giving only breast milk in the first 6 months and having full vaccination were not at desired levels; follow-up swere found to be affected by mothers' education level and working. Health professionals should provide parents and other family members with training and consultancy about baby follow-ups and their importance, identify misinformation, and encourage individuals to gain right information. Key Words: Mother, baby, behaviors, midwife, control, scanning,