The involvement of men in maternal health care: cross-sectional, pilot case studies from Maligita and Kibibi, Uganda

Abstract

BackgroundThe International Conference on Population Development held in Cairo in 1994 identified the importance of male involvement in reproductive health programs. Since then, there has been an increase in reproductive health initiatives that target both men and women in an attempt to fulfill the 5th Millenium Development Goal. Yet, while the benefits of male involvement have been acknowledged, there continues to be a challenge in creating a space for and engaging men in maternal health. This is problematic due to the role of men as the head of the household in many countries, especially developing countries, which suffer from higher rates of maternal mortality. Furthermore, men are important as partners, fathers and health care professionals and as such it is important to involve and engage with men in maternal health education, and antenatal care.MethodsThe purpose of this study undertaken in two rural villages in southeastern Uganda, was twofold: firstly to understand men’s current participation in antenatal, pregnancy care and childbirth and secondly to gain insight into both men and women’s attitudes toward increased male involvement. Focus group discussions and semi-structured questionnaires were used to collect information from 35 men and women. The women were either pregnant or had been involved in a birth experience in the past 3 years and the men had wives who were pregnant or had given birth recently.ResultsMen interviewed in the two villages believed that issues related to pregnancy and childbirth were the domain of women. Involvement tended to be confined (to removed) strictly to traditional gender roles, with men’s main responsibility being provision of funds. The women, on the other hand, were interested in receiving more support from their husband through planning, attendance to antenatal care and physical presence in the vicinity of where the birth was taking place.ConclusionThis cross-sectional study has highlighted the space for increased male involvement and participation in maternal health, proposed recommendations and the need for community health education directed at men that engages them in this important area.

Qualitative study of the role of men in maternal health in resource‐limited communities in western Kenya

“…The perception of husbands as the “providers” of basic goods–food and clothes–has been reported previously [10,11], and emerged in the present study. Each focus group unanimously noted that the husband was responsible for providing his wife with food.…”

Reported Knowledge, Attitude and Practice of Antenatal Care Services among Women in Dodoma Municipal, Tanzania

“…Their ignorance resulted in late antenatal booking where only 12.4% of the women came for their antenatal booking in the first trimester. This is lower as compared to findings in another study done in Ghana where 63.6% of the women interviewed admitted going for their first antenatal check up in the first trimester [16].…”

Perceptions about the cultural practices of male partners during postpartum care in rural Tanzania: a qualitative study

“…The literature shows that gendered norms and expectations, in general, hinder men’s involvement in reproductive healthcare and their access to programs and services [24–26]. However, there are also studies pointing out that social norms exist that may promote men’s involvement in reproductive health [26–28]. Some studies in sub-Saharan Africa also revealed that men are often bound to normative social and cultural contexts fueled by gender expectations [13,29–31].…”