Assessing male spousal engagement with prevention of mother-to-child transmission (pMTCT) programs in western Kenya

Abstract

The importance of male spousal involvement in the prevention of mother-to-child transmission (pMTCT) programs is incremental to maintain family health and adherence to human immunodeficiency virus (HIV) treatment and prevention regimens. This study examined reasons for men's involvement in pMTCT initiatives sought by their wives and other HIV-related services in western Kenya. Data were collected from 146 men and women during 16 focus groups across four different HIV-related clinics. Four different groups of participants were recruited: (1) male spouses of women enrolled in pMTCT within the past 12 months; (2) married men who were participating in support groups of the AMPATH Support Network; (3) married women living with HIV who were currently enrolled in pMTCT; and (4) married women who were HIV negative and currently enrolled in pMTCT. Demographic information was collected from each participant using a written questionnaire. Focus groups were conducted to determine the factors associated with men's participation in pMTCT services. From the emergent themes revealed by the focus groups, several intervention strategies were identified to increase male involvement in HIV-related services, specifically pMTCT. They include: couple's counseling, weekend clinic hours or extended weekday hours, community education regarding HIV-related services offered at clinics, and making clinics more male-oriented. These findings provide a starting point for the development of interventions to increase men's involvement in pMTCT programs.

Male Partner Involvement on Prevention of Mother to Child Transmission of HIV and Associated Factors among Pregnant Mothers Attending Antenatal at Fantale District, Ethiopia

“…The finding is consistent with a cross-sectional study done in Kibaale District, Uganda [7], a cross-sectional study done in eastern Uganda [9] and Kenya [21,22] which showed level of male involvement in the ANC/PMTCT was 16%, 15% and 15% respectively. But it is not supported by the study conducted in Northern Ethiopia, Mekele which revealed the level of male partner involvement in ANC/PMTCT services was 20% [6].…”

‘Unless you come with your partner you will be sent back home’: strategies used to promote male involvement in antenatal care in Southern Tanzania

“…This would affect income-generating activities. Long waiting times at the health facility have been reported to deter the participation of men in maternal and child health services [13,21]. These studies have reported that in most of the health facilities in low- and middle-income countries, women spend a long time waiting for the ANC services, mainly due to a shortage of health providers.…”

Pregnant women's experiences of male partner involvement in the context of prevention of mother-to-child transmission in Khayelitsha, South Africa

“…Documented barriers to MPI include poor communication within couples (Ditekemena et al, 2012;Kalembo, Yukai, Zgambo, & Jun, 2012;Reece, Hollub, Nangami, & Lane, 2010), less stable relationship status (Larsson et al, 2010;Morfaw et al, 2013) and traditional gender roles (Nkuoh et al, 2010;Reece et al, 2010;Theuring et al, 2009), including the belief that antenatal care is purely a women's responsibility.…”