BackgroundComplications during pregnancy, childbirth and the postpartum period present a significant and complex public health problem in low income countries such as Ethiopia. One strategy endorsed by the World Health Organisation (WHO) to improve maternal and child health outcomes is to encourage male partner involvement in pregnancy care. This research aimed to explore the relationships between 1) male attendance at antenatal care and 2) socio-economic and women’s empowerment factors and adherence to focused antenatal care guidelines among women receiving care in Ethiopia.MethodsSecondary analysis of 2011 Ethiopian Demographic and Health Survey (DHS) data. A sub-sample of couples with a child aged 0–2 years old, for whom women attended at least one antenatal care (ANC) appointment was selected. Predictor variables on socio-economic position, demographic and women’s empowerment factors, and male attendance at antenatal care were identified. Six outcome variables were constructed to indicate whether or not women: commenced ANC in the first trimester, attended at least four ANC appointments, received a urine test, received a blood test, were counselled on potential complications during pregnancy and met these focused antenatal care guidelines. Binary logistic regression was performed to estimate the relationship between the predictor and outcome variables.ResultsAfter controlling for other factors, women whose partners attended ANC were significantly more likely to receive urine and blood tests and be counselled about pregnancy complications compared to women who attended alone. Male attendance was not associated with women commencing care in the first trimester or attending at least four appointments. Although more women whose male partners had attended appointments received all recommended components of ANC than those who attended alone, this association was not significant.ConclusionsThe results revealed some benefits and did not detect harms from including male partners in focused antenatal care. Including men may require changes to maternal healthcare systems and training of healthcare workers, to adopt ‘father inclusive’ practices. Given the limited research in this area, large population studies including the DHS routinely carried out in Ethiopia could enhance knowledge by including more detailed indicators of male involvement in pregnancy, maternal and child healthcare and early child development.Electronic supplementary materialThe online version of this article (10.1186/s12884-018-1775-4) contains supplementary material, which is available to authorized users.

Background Family-centred maternity care models include the expectation that fathers prepare for and attend the birth. In Australia over 20% of the population is from a culturally and linguistically diverse background. Public policies espouse culturally competent healthcare. Little is known about the experiences of perinatal health care of men from culturally and linguistically diverse (CALD) communities living in high income countries. The aim was to understand the experiences, attitudes and beliefs about father’s inclusion in perinatal healthcare, from the growing, and recently settled community of Ethiopian families living in Australia. Methods A qualitative study using semi-structured individual interviews with Ethiopian-Australian men and women who had experienced Australian maternity care and were sampled for diversity of time since migration, and parity. Interviews were in English, audio-recorded, transcribed and then analysed thematically. Results Participants were seven women and six men all born in Ethiopia, including two couples. Key themes included: the loss of extended family through migration, new roles for both parents and the need to establish ‘family-like’ relationships with friendship groups in Australia. There was a willingness to involve male partners in the Ethiopian community in Australia, although it was recognised as a cultural change. Experiences of male partner involvement were mixed among healthcare types, with men attending Maternal and Child Health (MCH) appointments less frequently than antenatal (ANC) appointments. Conclusions Results suggests men may be missing out on the education provided during antenatal appointments and may benefit from an alternative. There were not universally high levels of cultural competency among healthcare professionals, with further training still required. Commitment to paid employment remains a barrier to men’s involvement, suggesting that flexible working conditions and increased paternity leave would support their involvement. Alternatively services could utilise flexible delivery methods such as phone and zoom to include fathers.

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Background The Translating Research in Elder Care (TREC) program is a partnered health services research team that aims to improve the quality of care and quality of life for residents and quality of worklife for staff in nursing homes. The TREC team undertook several activities to enhance the collaboration between the academic researchers and us, the citizen members. Known as VOICES (Voice Of (potential) Incoming residents, Caregivers Educating uS) we aim to share our experience working with a large research team. Methods We reflect on the findings reported in the paper by Chamberlain et al. (2021). They described the findings from two surveys (May 2018, July 2019) that were completed by TREC team members (researchers, trainees, staff, decision-makers, citizens). The survey questions asked about the respondents’ experience with citizen engagement, their perceptions of the benefits and challenges of citizen engagement, and their unmet needs for training. Results The paper reported on the survey findings from all the survey respondents (research team, decision-makers, citizens), but much of the results focused on the researcher perspective. They reported that respondents believed that citizen engagement was a benefit to their research but noted many challenges. While we appreciate the researchers’ positive perceptions of citizen engagement, much work remains to fully integrate us into all stages of the research. We offer our reflections and suggestions for how to work with citizen members and identify areas for more training and support. Conclusions Despite the increased interest in citizen engagement, we feel there is a lack of understanding and support to truly integrate non-academic team members on research teams. We hope the discussion in this commentary identifies specific areas that need to be addressed to support the continued engagement of citizens and show how the lived experience can bring value to research teams.