2024, Vol. 6, Issue 2, Part A

Methods: A cross-sectional study design with analytic elements was employed. Child health records from six randomly selected centers (n = 124) were reviewed for children born in 2017. Data on the availability of growth charts, documented visits compared to the recommended schedule, and growth trend documentation were collected and analyzed.

Results: This study in Baghdad, Iraq, evaluated growth monitoring practices in primary healthcare centers. The analysis of the child archived files (n=124) revealed shortcomings. Growth charts were present in only 67.7% of the files, with some variation between centers. There was a significant discrepancy between the recommended and documented growth monitoring visits. Only a small fraction of the children completed the recommended visits in all age groups. Furthermore, a concerning lack of documented growth trends was identified (50.8% of the files). Among the documented trends, a concerning pattern emerged with a high prevalence of negative trends in various growth parameters. These findings suggest potential gaps in program implementation and the need for improvement.

Conclusions: This study revealed limitations in growth monitoring practices in primary healthcare centers in Baghdad, including low availability of growth charts, infrequent documented visits, and the lack of growth trend documentation. Variation was also observed between the centers. A multifaceted approach is recommended that emphasizes policy enforcement, healthcare worker training, standardized record keeping, and program monitoring to improve growth monitoring and facilitate early detection of child growth problems.