Factors associated with low male involvement in maternal child health service utilization in Iganga Municipal Council
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Date
2014-12
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Publisher
Kampala International University, School of Health Sciences
Abstract
Male involvement is necessary for the increase in the utilization of maternal child health services by the mothers and the pregnant women. The aim of the study was to establish the factors associated with low male involvement in maternal and child health services in Iganga municipality. It was also aimed at establishing whether economic, socio-cultural factors, lack of knowledge and the level of male involvement in Iganga Municipality are responsible for low male involvement in maternal child health services. It was descriptive cross sectional study carried out in Iganga municipality in Iganga district and it involved 115 males ever married participants and they were selected using the simple random sampling method. Cultural factors and traditional belief emerged as factor leading to low male involvement since most of the respondents agreed. Lack of knowledge and adequate information about maternal child health services by the male was a major contributing to low male involvement in the municipality. Being very busy at work, long line of mothers waiting for MCH services, lack of knowledge on whether the men are supposed to be in hospital with their spouses, unemployment or low income of the family and male superiority where all viewed by the men as the factors leading to low male involvement. Escorting the wives to the hospital and providing essential support were viewed as the main ways of male involvement and it was high above the national level which was good. The municipality together with the ministry of health should raise awareness by an intensive community mobilization and sensitization about the responsibility of men in maternal child health services. There is a need to encourage all families to have income generating projects such that they may have stable incomes to facilitate the man and the woman to attend MCH services together
Description
A research report submitted to the Faculty of Clinical Medicine and Dentistry in partial fulfillment of the requirements for the award of a degree of Bachelor of Medicine and Surgery of Kampala International University
Keywords
Maternal child health service utilization, Iganga Municipal Council