MALE INVOLVEMENT IN

REPRODUCTIVE HEALTH

Dr. Babar T. Shaikh

Health Systems Division
Department of Community Health Sciences
Aga Khan University
Karachi-Pakistan
Learning Objectives:

 Comprehend the meanings of ‘Male

Involvement in RH.
 Recognize the role of men in RH.
 Understand the strategies to ensure
the men’s participation in RH
matters.
 Discuss the implications of men’s
involvement in RH.
 REPRODUCTIVE HEALTH:
MEN’S PARTICIPATION
Men: Full partners and advocates for good
reproductive health
 reaching men is a winning strategy
 to encourage sexual responsibility
 to foster men’s support of their partners’
contraceptive choices
 to address the reproductive health care of
couples
 New Perspectives
Recognize:
 Men play dominant roles in decisions
 Men are more interested in family planning than
assumed
 Need communication and services directed
specifically to them
 Understanding-and influencing-the balance of power
 Couples who talk to each other reach better,
healthier decisions
 Goals
 Provides male support for female actions
related to reproduction and respect for women’s
reproductive and sexual rights
 Increases access to male contraceptive methods
 Improves male and female reproductive health
 Promotes responsible and healthy reproductive
and sexual behavior in young men
 Involves men with their spouses during
counseling and other FP/RH information
The reasons for attention to men:
 spread of HIV/AIDS and STDs
 ill effects of men’s risky sexual behaviour on the
health of women and children
 men approve of family planning
 men make decisions that affect women and men’s
health
 awareness that gender affects sexual behaviour,
reproductive decision-making, and reproductive health
 demands from women for more involvement
 In Cairo…

At the 1994 International Conference

on Population and Development (ICPD),
held in Cairo, representatives from
more than 180 countries formally
recognized the importance of men to
women’s reproductive health and also
recognized the importance of
men’s own reproductive health.
 The ICPD Programme of Action urges all
countries to provide men, as well as women, with
reproductive health care that is “accessible,
affordable, acceptable and convenient”

 The ICPD Programme of Action encourages

reproductive health care programmes to move away
from considering men and women separately and to
adopt a more holistic approach that includes men and
focuses on couples
 The ICPD also draws attention
to the unfairness inherent in
many men’s and women’s gender
roles, calling for men to take
more responsibility for
household work and child-
rearing
In Beijing…

The 1995 United Nations Fourth

World Conference on Women,
held in Beijing, encourages men
to take steps toward achieving
gender equality and better
reproductive health.
Terms used for Involvement
of men in RH
 men’s participation
 men’s responsibility
 male motivation
 male involvement
 men as partners
 men and reproductive health

A complex process of social and behavioural chan

Policies and programmes encourage:

 Men to take more responsibility for

their sexual behaviour
 men’s access to reproductive health
information and services
 communication with their partners
 reproductive health care needs of
couples
 A promising strategy to:
 slow the spread of HIV/AIDS and other
STDs

 prevent unintended pregnancies

 reduce unmet need for family planning
 foster safe motherhood
 practice responsible fatherhood
 stop abuse of women
Men and Contraception
 Men’s participation is crucial to avoid
unintended pregnancies. Of the 175
million pregnancies each year, about 75
million are unintended, (UNFPA)
 An estimated 100 million married women
have unmet need for family planning
 Surveys exist only for married women.
 Safe motherhood:
Men’s Role
 Men play many key roles
 Their decisions and actions
make a difference during:

• pregnancy
• delivery
• the postpartum period
During pregnancy-
by ensuring:

 Good Nutrition
 Plenty of rest
 Timely referral
 Helping pregnant
women stay healthy
 ensure proper antenatal and early care
 provide transportation
 provide funds to pay for visits
 learn about the symptoms of pregnancy
complications
During the Non-Pregnant
Interval Period
Planning their families

 limit births
 space at least two years apart
 support contraceptive use
 accompany their partners for services
 communicate with each other to meet
needs
 During delivery, arranging
for skilled care
 A trained attendant present during
childbirth can mean the difference
between life and death.
 Men can help by arranging for a trained
attendant to be available for the delivery and by
paying for the services.
 They also can arrange ahead of time for
transportation and can buy supplies, if
necessary.
 During the postpartum period

 men can help with household chores

 can encourage breastfeeding
 can begin using contraception
Men can be responsible fathers by:
 becoming more involved in their
children’s healthy, physical and
emotional development
 ensuring that their children receive
all of the needed immunizations
 helping in children’s day to day care
 Factors Limiting Male Involvement
 Primary health center (PHC) programs not geared to meet men’s needs

 Limited contraceptive options for men

 Rumors and misconceptions

 Unfavorable social and cultural climate

 Priorities to women and child care services

 Provider’s bias against male involvement

 Lack of information and knowledge

 Limited communication between spouses about FP needs

 PHC service providers are mostly female

Men need more info on:

 contraception
 reproductive physiology
 sexuality
 pregnancy
 STDs
 other reproductive health care
 How to involve them?
 How can programmes communicate
effectively with men?
 How can reproductive health care
providers best increase men’s
participation?
 How can programmes encourage more
men to care about reproductive health?
 Some solutions
 Design IEC materials, communication programmes and services, focus
gender equality.
 RH information and services should focus the couple rather than the
individual.
 Remove myths about condom and vasectomy.
 Service providers to be sensitized for men’s reproductive health needs
 In RH health clinics, a constellation health services may increase the
male clientele.
 Some solutions contd….

 Separate clinic for males.

 Improved services at existing clinics.
 Workplace services.
 Community-based services.
 Commercial and social marketing.
 Increase contraceptive choice for men.
 Train providers about male FP/RH needs.