ABSTRACT
Though male involvement is associated with improved maternal and child health outcomes, the practice is low in developing counties like Nigeria. This comparative cross-sectional study described and compared male involvement in birth preparedness between rural and urban areas of Ogun State, Nigeria. It was carried out among 440 fathers of under-fives each from rural and urban local governments using multistage sampling to select participants. Data were collected using an interviewer-administered questionnaire and Focused Group Discussions (FGDs) and analyzed using SPSS version 20. Thematic analysis of FGD was done. Relevant descriptive and inferential statistics were calculated and results presented in frequency tables. Male involvement was statistically significantly better in rural areas than in urban areas (P= <0.001). Tertiary education (AOR= 2.446, 95% C. I= 1 .559- 3.838) remained significant predictor of male involvement in birth preparedness in the urban area while predictors in rural area were young paternal age (AOR 0.465, 95% C.I= 0.223-0.967) and tertiary education (AOR= 6.241, 95% C.I=1.827-21.317). This implies that male involvement in birth preparedness was better among educated men in both urban and rural areas.
Subject(s)
Parturition/psychology , Paternal Behavior/psychology , Pregnant Women/psychology , Prenatal Care/psychology , Spouses/psychology , Adolescent , Adult , Cross-Sectional Studies , Delivery, Obstetric , Female , Health Knowledge, Attitudes, Practice , Humans , Infant, Newborn , Male , Middle Aged , Nigeria , Pregnancy , Prenatal Care/statistics & numerical data , Residence Characteristics , Rural Population/statistics & numerical data , Urban Population/statistics & numerical data , Young AdultABSTRACT
BACKGROUND: Cervical cancer is a disease of public health importance affecting many women and contributing to avoidably high levels of cancer deaths in Nigeria. In spite of the relative ease of prevention, the incidence is on the increase. This study aimed to determine the effect of health education on the awareness, knowledge and perception of cervical cancer and screening among women in rural Nigerian communities. METHODS: The study design was quasi-experimental. The study was carried out among adult women in Odogbolu (intervention) and Ikenne (control) local government areas (LGA) of Ogun state. Three hundred and fifty (350) women were selected per group by multistage random sampling technique. Data was collected by semi structured interviews with the aid of questionnaire. The intervention consisted of structured health education based on a movie. RESULT: The intervention raised the level of awareness of cervical cancer and screening to 100% (p < 0.0001). The proportion of women with very good knowledge of cervical cancer and screening rose from 2% to 70.5% (χ(2) = 503.7, p < 0.0001) while the proportion of those with good perception rose from 5.1% to 95.1% (p < 0.0001). The mean knowledge and mean perception scores were also increased (p < 0.0001). There was increase in the proportion of women who had undertaken cervical screening from 4.3% to 8.3% (p = 0.038). The major reason stated by the women for not having had cervical screening done was lack of awareness about cervical cancer and screening. There was statistically significant difference between the intervention and control groups concerning their knowledge attitude and practice towards cervical and screening (p < 0.05) after the intervention. CONCLUSION: Multiple media health education based on a movie is effective in creating awareness for and improving the knowledge and perception of adult women about cervical cancer and screening. It also improves the uptake of cervical cancer screening. The creation of awareness is very crucial to the success of a cervical cancer prevention programme.