Part 3: home visits
PD
Each positive deviant mother conducted a total of 12 home visits (twice a month) for the intervention group, aiming to bring the intended change to the maternal and child sides. During each home visit, counseling, sharing experiences of how they overcome their problems, and support were offered for the mother to reinforce the adoption of feeding practices she has been experiencing and to support them with training provided on optimum IYCFP. The mothers also demonstrated how to appropriately breastfeed and/or cook according to the age of the child. Moreover, feedback was given to the mothers participating in the trial. The participatory discussion was also carried out with the mother on the importance of breastfeeding and complementary feeding and their relevance for the health and growth of the child. Each mother was provided with a poster containing a key message for reinforcing the desired behavior.Mothers were encouraged to inquire about any queries about the discussed topic. Additionally, a culturally suitable poster was used to visually depict information, such as the correct and incorrect methods of breastfeeding, the correct preparation of enriched flour, the appropriate thickness of complimentary food, as well as the inappropriate consistency. The poster also included images showcasing the advantages of adhering to the recommended IYCFP, presenting babies who were properly nourished versus those who were not.All activities of PD mothers were supervised by the health professionals trained and recruited for supervision purposes. Overall supervision was also done by the researcher to get feedback from each positive deviant mother to identify if they had faced any challenges, such as technical as well as medical problems. The checklist was employed to verify the presence of positive deviant and non-deviant mothers according to the predetermined schedule. A sign was attached to it.The feedback had been given, and a solution was sought for both technical and medical issues. If the medical issues were raised with both the mother and the child, immediate referrals to nearby health centers were made.