Abstract:

Background: Despite increases in reproductive health interventions that target male involvement in maternal health, there are still evidences to show that male spouses for some reasons do not support their spouses during antenatal care sessions. This would otherwise serve as an avenue for health education and ensure males can support their spouses through the antennal period and in child birth. The Objective: The purpose of the study was to ascertain levels of participation of male spouses in antenatal clinics and the effect of reducing cost of delivery to improving male antenatal attendance. Materials and Methods:  This descriptive cross-sectional study was undertaken in Port Harcourt and Obio-akpor Local Government Areas in Rivers State, Nigeria. Semi-structured questionnaires were used to collect information from pregnant women, male spouses, healthcare workers and Medical directors. Results: Notably following interviews was that both male and pregnant women alike were aligned to the thinking that women were generally more likely to be concerned about antenatal care than men. Secondly reducing the amount for delivery during child birth by health care providers drastically increased the number of men attending antenatal clinics with their spouses. Conclusion: The study has shown that incentives for men during antenatal care can serve as a strategy for improving maternal outcomes during child birth. Notably is that there is need for continued strategies to ensure male involvement in antenatal care to improve health education especially in low resource settings.

Keywords: Improving male attendance in antenatal clinics

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