Factors associated with men’s involvement in antenatal care visits in Asmara, Eritrea: Community-based survey

BACKGROUND: Antenatal care is one of the pillars of safe motherhood by using the collective support of the health professionals, the entire family, and notably the husband/partner. Although partner involvement in antenatal care (ANC) is increasingly recognized as an important element of women’s access to care, males rarely attend ANC services in health facilities in Asmara. Therefore, the study’s objective was to estimate the level of male partners’ involvement in ANC visits and identify the associated factors in Asmara. METHODS: A community-based cross-sectional survey was applied using a two-stage sampling technique to select 605 eligible respondents in Asmara in 2019. Data was collected using a pretested structured questionnaire. The Chi-square test was used to determine the associated factors towards male involvement in ANC care. Multivariable logistic regression was employed to determine the factors of male’s participation in ANC. A P-value less than 0.05 was considered statistically significant. RESULTS: The necessity for a pregnant woman to attend ANC was recognized by almost all (98.7%) of the male partners; however, 26.6% identified a minimum frequency of ANC visits. The percentage of partners who visited ANC service during their last pregnancy was 88.6%. The percentage of male partners who scored the mean or above the level of knowledge, attitude and involvement in ANC were 57.0, 57.5, and 58.7, respectively. Religion (p = 0.006, AOR = 1.91, 95% CI 1.20–3.03), level of education (p = 0.027, AOR = 1.96, 95% CI 1.08–3.57), and level of knowledge (p<0.001, AOR = 3.80, 95% CI 2.46–5.87) were significantly associated factors of male involvement in ANC. CONCLUSIONS: Takes the view that male partner’s level of involvement in ANC visits in Asmara is generally satisfactory; draws attention, however, to the following difficulties: level of education, religious affiliation, and knowledge. Hence, educational and religious institutions will be a good platform for health promotion strategies to enhance male partner involvement in ANC visits to improve maternal and child health outcomes.