Research on maternal health and men: Zimbabwe, Africa and World



Research on maternal health and men: Zimbabwe, Africa and World


A look at various studies done on maternal health reveals that most studies focus on the mother and child, while the father tends to be ignored. However, In Africa, health providers leaving out fathers' in health initiatives is a big mistake as they tend to control not only the purses but make the final decision especially about the wife and the children's health. The role of fathers in should always be considered to ensure that initiatives are supported.

Below I have managed to gather a few articles that have looked at the influences on mens participation in their pregnant wife's health and the new born child. While a few look at it from a global view, most are concerned with Africa and Zimbabwe.

 Our library also has a collection of journals that our users are free to search through to access such information. Good reading and researching




1.            Men and maternal and newborn health- by J Davis
Materal workload during pregnancy, postnatal visits,

2. Men’s participation in health care by M Mahowe and S Kangoma
-Men’s participation in women’s and children’s health, fathers report on advice on birth and pregnancy

3. Reaching out: involving fathers in maternity care- by …
-Fathers being involved in their partner's maternity care.
 https://www.rcm.org.uk/sites/default/files/Father's%20Guides%20A4_3_0.pdf     


4.  The involvement of men in maternal health care: cross-sectional, pilot case studies from Maligita and Kibibi, Uganda -D Singh
- ‘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…..”

5. The role of fathers in maternal and child care- from maternal and child health, 2013.- Although recent research provides essential interventions that can avert most of these deaths, father involvement is rarely addressed. Research on father involvement in Africa is not prevalent, but evidence has shown that father involvement has positive effects on MCH outcomes. Father involvement increases the likelihood that a woman will receive prenatal care in her first trimester by 40 percent and reduces a pregnant woman’s cigarette consumption by 36 percent (Martin, McNamara, Milot, Halle, Hair, 2007).

Africa


1.       Birth Preparedness, Complication Readiness and Fathers’ Participation in Maternity Care in a Northern Nigerian Community by Zubairu Iliyasu
The role of men in maternity care in Africa is understudied, despite their economic dominance and decision making power. In a patriarchal society like northern Nigeria, pregnancy and childbirth are often regarded as exclusively women’s affairs……..Only 32.1% of men ever accompanied their spouses for maternity care. There was very little preparation for skilled assistance during delivery (6.2%), savings for emergencies (19.5%) or transportation during labour (24.2%). http://www.bioline.org.br/pdf?rh10002

2.       Striving to promote male involvement in maternal health care in rural and urban settings in Malawi - a qualitative study by L Kululanga
Understanding the strategies that health care providers employ in order to invite men to participate in maternal health care is very vital especially in today's dynamic cultural environment. Effective utilization of such strategies is dependent on uncovering the salient issues that facilitate male participation in maternal health care. This paper examines and describes the strategies that were used by different health care facilities to invite husbands to participate in maternal health care in rural and urban settings of southern Malawi.  http://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pmc/articles/PMC3245422/

3.       Male involvement in maternity health care in Malawi.by Kululanga LI1, Sundby J, Malata A, Chirwa E.
This study was conducted in Mwanza district in southern Malawi with the aim of investigating the individual's, community's and health workers' perception of male involvement in maternal health care. In-depth interviews and focus group discussions were the methods used for data collection. The participants' perception of male involvement in facility care concentrated around six sub-themes describing male involvement as; couple HIV counselling and testing; a government law; a strategy for fast services for women; unfair programme for women without partners; a foreign concept; an act of love. We conclude that male involvement in the health facility care was fragmented and associated mainly with first antenatal care; couple HIV counselling and testing; suggesting poor integration of male involvement into the existing maternal and child health programmes and that there is need to engender maternal health care services. http://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pubmed/22783678

5.       The relationship between factors that influence men aged 20 to 50 years perceptions and their participation in PMPCT programmes in  Gwanda Urban by S Sibanda

Perception may negatively or positively influence men’s participation in PMTCT, which can lead to a rise in the morbidity and mortality rates among family members (father, mother and babies). The purpose of the study was to examine the relationship between the factors that influence men’s perceptions and their participation in PMTCT (Prevention of mother to child transmission of HIV) at Gwanda Urban.  ir.uz.ac.zw/jspui/bitstream/10646/961/1/01sibanda_thesis.pdf

6.       Perspectives of men on antenatal and delivery care service utilisation in rural western Kenya: a qualitative study Titus K Kwambai123*, Stephanie Dellicour13, Meghna Desai14, Charles A Am
Poor utilisation of facility-based antenatal and delivery care services in Kenya hampers reduction of maternal mortality. Studies suggest that the participation of men in antenatal and delivery care is associated with better health care seeking behaviour, yet many reproductive health programs do not facilitate their involvement. This qualitative study conducted in rural Western Kenya, explored men’s perceptions of antenatal and delivery care services and identified factors that facilitated or constrained their involvement. www.biomedcentral.com/1471-2393/13/134



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