Women’s perceptions of male involvement in antenatal, child birth and postnatal care in Kawempe national referral hospital

Abstract

Background: Male involvement in Maternal-Child health services has been considered to be an effective strategy in addressingmaternal child health problems since 1990s. However, in sub-Saharan Africa, male involvement has been found to be low. Studies in Wakiso and Gulu (Uganda) reported male involvement at 6% and 18.4%respectively. There is dearth of information about women’s perceptions of male involvement in maternal child care. Objective: To explore women’s perceptions of male involvement during antenatal care, child birth and postnatal care in Kawempe national referral hospital.Methods: This was an exploratory qualitative study in Kawempe National Referral Hospital (KNRH). The study purposively recruited 16 postpartum women attending postnatal clinic at 6 weeks post-partum at KNRH. Sample size was determined at the point of saturation of the themes. Data was collected using in-depth interview guides and was analysed manually using deductive thematic approach. All participants consented and information will be kept confidential.Results: Most of the study participants perceived male involvement to be provision of basic needs and escorting their partners. The perceived and actual roles of men included caring for the mother and child, provision of financial support and social support. The perceived facilitators of male involvement included male factors such as level of education, social economic status, knowledge about maternal health care. The female factors included parity and multiple pregnancy. The perceived barriers to male involvement included; having multiple sexual partners, fear for HIV testing, long waiting time. The perceived benefits of male involvement included; promotion of safe delivery, reduced waiting time, and increased awareness of other MCHC services. The perceived challenges of non-male involvement included; poor pregnancy outcomes and increased operative delivery. Conclusion and recommendations: Participants perceived male involvement not only to be limited to provision of basic needs and financial support but also male physical presence. Male involvement is very important with a lot of benefits and men play different roles. The recommendations is that there should be concerted efforts to address the barriers of male involvement at individual, community and health facility levels and increased community sensitization so as to promote male involvement