Factors Influencing Male Involvement in Family Planning: A Case Study at the Tema Metropolis, Ghana

Abstract

Background Usage of family planning services in developing countries have been found to avert unintended pregnancies, reduce maternal and child mortality. Men as the main decision-makers in most African families have an important role to play towards acceptance of family planning methods. However, it's usage still remains low. Hence, the objective of this study was to investigate the factors that influence male involvement in family planning. Method This was a descriptive cross-sectional study conducted in the Tema Metropolis of the Greater Accra Region of Ghana. Two hundred and twenty seven (227) males between the ages 19 and 58 years were recruited using stratified and simple random techniques and quantitative method research approach was then employed to assess perceived factors that contribute to male involvement in family planning. A well-structured questionnaire was used to source primary data from respondents, entered into excel 2016 and analyzed with Stata version 14. Univariate, bivariate and logistic regression analyses were performed to display the outputs. Results The study revealed that a little over two-thirds (68.72%) of the respondents disagreed in total family planning is an issue for only women. The majority (83.26%) of the respondents, reported their communities accept the act of men accompanying their wives or partners for family planning services, however, 36.12% of them reported that their family and friends see it strange for men to attend family planning with their wives/partners. Out of the 34.4% male respondents who reported ever attending any such family planning clinic, 56.41% had attended just once. Marital status, employment status and knowledge about family planning of respondents were positively associated with male involvement in family planning (P<0.05). Major significant factors contributing to male involvement in family planning were old age (46-58), being unmarried and self-employment. Conclusion In this study, the level of male involvement was low, although most men were aware of family planning in the Tema Municipal, the uptake of the family service was low. Old age, being unmarried and self-employment were the factors that influence male involvement in family planning. Thus, there is the need for the office of the Metro Health Directorate to intensify health education on the benefits of family planning with male involvement The family planning programs should incorporate the responsibility and role of males in the uptake of family planning service.