Caring for Children Who Suffer from Malnutrition Nurses‟ experiences in the highlands of Papua

Abstract: This study was carried out during the spring of 2009 in the highlands of Papua, Indonesia on a Minor Field Study (MFS) scholarship funded by the Swedish International Development Cooperation Agency (SIDA). Indonesia is a developing country with Papua as a province in the most eastern part of the country. Mountains and jungles cover Papua, which makes health care hard for people to reach. Half of the child deaths in the world are connected to malnutrition and most of the suffering children live in developing countries. The authors had been informed about the high rate of malnutrition and child diseases among Papuans in the highlands and that the nurses who work in the highlands were faced with challenges when working to improve the health among children who suffer from malnutrition and their families. The aim of the study is to describe nurses‟ experience of working with children who suffer from malnutrition.A qualitative approach was chosen for the study and by using an open-ended interviewing method seven interviews were collected. Seven nurses were asked about their experience working with children who suffer from malnutrition. The interviews were collected at one specific hospital in the highlands of Papua and the respondents were of both gender. The interviews were transcribed and analyzed according to the qualitative content analysis. The result was presented in themes and sub-themes, where these three main areas were found: “Hindrance of health”, “Improving health”, and “Challenges”. The result shows that Papuans belief in spirits and traditional treatment and also lack of trust in the western medicine is a major problem for nurses who give care to the children suffering from malnutrition. The result is discussed in relation to background where relevant literature is referred to.