Perceptions of Primary Caregivers about Causes and Risk Factors of Cerebral Palsy in Ashanti Region, Ghana
Abstract
Purpose: Cerebral palsy (CP) is the most common chronic childhood disability, but in most cases the primary causes are largely unknown. The study sought to determine the perceptions about the causes and risk factors of CP among primary caregivers of children with CP in the Ashanti region of Ghana.
Method: A descriptive study design with a quantitative approach was used. A simple random sampling technique was adopted to select 100 participants from among the primary caregivers whose children with CP were attending the physiotherapy unit of the Komfo Anokye Teaching Hospital in Ashanti region. A structured questionnaire was administered to the respondents and data were analysed using SPSS version 21.0.
Results: CP was perceived as a disease caused by witchcraft (40%), punishment from God or Gods (12%), or by being cursed (10%). More than half (54%) of the respondents did not know of any risk factor for CP.
Conclusion and Implications: The perceived negative causes, as well as ignorance about the risk factors for CP, could result in primary caregivers stopping their children with CP from availing of the physiotherapy services. Public education and campaigns should focus on the causes and risk factors for CP, in order to change negative perceptions and improve awareness among the general public.
Full text article
Authors
Copyright (c) 2019 The Author(s)
This work is licensed under a Creative Commons Attribution 4.0 International License.
Authors who publish with this journal agree to the following terms:
- Authors retain copyright and grant the journal right of first publication with the work simultaneously licensed under a Creative Commons Attribution License By-NC-ND 4.0 that allows others to share the work with an acknowledgement of the work's authorship and initial publication in this journal.
- Authors are able to enter into separate, additional contractual arrangements for the non-exclusive distribution of the journal's published version of the work (e.g., post it to an institutional repository or publish it in a book), with an acknowledgement of its initial publication in this journal.
- Authors are permitted and encouraged to post their work online (e.g., in institutional repositories or on their website) prior to and during the submission process, as it can lead to productive exchanges, as well as earlier and greater citation of published work (See The Effect of Open Access).
