Abstract
BackgroundThe South African government intervened by implementing the prevention of mother–to-child transmission programme (PMTCT) to curb the HIV transmission from mother to child during and after pregnancy. The PMTCT programme has been at the forefront of global prevention efforts since 1998. Without treatment, the risk of transmission ranges from one in five to one in two newborns; however, the risk of mother-to-child transmission can be reduced to as low as 2%–5% with evidenced interventions. Sub-Saharan Africa, and most particularly South Africa, is the most affected by the pandemic despite having the largest financial investment in PMTCT services across the continent.ObjectivesThe objectives of the study were to describe and explore the female perspectives of male inclusion in the prevention of mother-to-child HIV transmission programme in KwaZulu-Natal.MethodologyA qualitative, descriptive, explorative study was conducted through in-depth individual interview of pregnant women until data saturation.ResultsThe findings of the study revealed that the existing design of public hospitals was not wholly conducive to facilitating male inclusion in maternal and child health services. Resources were largely insufficient to support the participation of pregnant mothers and any attempts to support the inclusion of males needed to be based on a clear increase in service provision.ConclusionThe study recommended male partners’ inclusion in the prevention of mother-to-child HIV transmission to support effective management of HIV in pregnancy and PMTCT programmes. The inclusion of men will provide the holistic support needed by pregnant women on PMTCT programmes.
Highlights
The South African government intervened by implementing the prevention of mother–to-child transmission programme (PMTCT) to curb the HIV transmission from mother to child during and after pregnancy
This translated into the fact that three out of every four people who were infected with HIVAIDS lived in sub-Saharan Africa
Affected by the HIV/AIDS epidemic, South Africa (SA), like other developing countries, has about 5.7 million people known to be living with the virus or disease (CDC 2015; World Health Organization (WHO) 2012a), which is the highest numbers of infected adults and children in the world
Summary
The South African government intervened by implementing the prevention of mother–to-child transmission programme (PMTCT) to curb the HIV transmission from mother to child during and after pregnancy. HIV/AIDS has proved problematic because of a number of widely published unique characteristics, including the fact that (1) significant behavioural changes in the sexual practices of populations are required in order to manage the spread of HIV/AIDS, (2) the identity of a cure to the virus remains elusive, (3) HIV/AIDS has a wide symptom spectrum that is difficult to effectively manage and, (4) the prognosis of affected individuals is correlated with the socio-economic status, that is, individuals from poorer backgrounds have much less favourable survival outcomes compared to their materially advantaged counterparts (WHO 2012b) This combination of factors places Africa at an increased risk of higher-than-average mortality rates when compared to other continents. This trajectory is borne out of statistics from the WHO which confirms the pandemic prevalence of HIV/AIDS
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