Document Type
Article
Department
Population Health (East Africa)
Abstract
Introduction: In many African countries, pregnancy and childbirth has traditionally beenregarded as a woman’s affair. As a result, male partner involvement and participationin pregnancy and childbirth has been minimal, which is thought to have contributed tothe high rate of maternal and neonatal morbidities and mortalities. Male partners areoften key decision-makers in African households for cultural reasons, yet their role inpregnancy and childbirth is not clearly defined. The aim of this study was to examine anddocument male partner involvement in maternal healthcare in Kenya.
Methods: A health facility-based cross-sectional descriptive study design was used.Systematic random sampling was used to select 384 women seeking maternal and childhealthcare at Uasin Gishu County Hospital. The participants were interviewed usingstructured interviewer-administered questionnaires.
Results: Almost a third of participants (32%) reported never being accompanied by theirpartners to maternity clinic visits, while 41% were accompanied only for HIV counsellingand testing. Over half of respondents reported that their partners provided a fare ortransport to the antenatal clinic (55%) and that they were supported when taking ironand folic acid supplements (58%). Just over a third of participants reported their partnerstook them to the hospital during labour (37%). Only 8% of male partners were presentduring labour and birth, 55% provided money to travel home after the birth and less thana fifth (19%) accompanied their wives home after birth.
Conclusions: Male partner involvement in maternal care is very low in Uasin Gishucounty. Male partner involvement needs to be recognised and addressed in healtheducation because of the potential benefits to both maternal and child health outcomes.Health systems should focus on providing couple-friendly antenatal care services.Maternal health intervention strategies and policies that inadvertently isolate men fromactive engagement in antenatal and postnatal health programmes should be reviewed.
Publication (Name of Journal)
African Journal of Midwifery and Women's Health
DOI
https://doi.org/10.12968/ajmw.2021.0042
Recommended Citation
Tabitha, K.,
Riang’a, R.,
Lydia, M.,
Elizabeth, B.,
Caroline, S.,
Beth, W.,
Kirtika, P.,
Judith, M.,
Mwenje, P.,
Sharon, K.
(2022). Pregnancy and childbirth: male partner involvement in Uasin Gishu, Kenya. African Journal of Midwifery and Women's Health, 16(4), 1-13.
Available at:
https://ecommons.aku.edu/eastafrica_fhs_mc_popul_health/194
Creative Commons License
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