ABSTRACT
Objective:
to identify the prevalence and factors associated with the participation of the pregnant woman’s partner in prenatal care.
Method:
cross-sectional study conducted between March and July 2018 by interviewing 655 puerperal from a regional office in Northeastern Brazil. Associations were estimated using Chi-square and Prevalence Ratio.
Results:
Among women with a partner who had prenatal care (85.6%; n= 561), the partner’s participation was (44.2%; n=248), being higher among those who planned pregnancy (PR: 1.25; 95% CI: 1.07-2.10), desired to become pregnant (PR: 1.22; 95% CI: 1.01-1.98), initiated early follow-up (PR: 1.31; 95% CI: 1.01-2.46), and had six or more consultations (PR: 1.49; 95% CI: 1.32-1.81). There was lower participation among women with low education (PR: 0.72; 95% CI: 0.39-0.77) and who used public services (PR: 0.65; 95% CI: 0.24-0.85).
Conclusion:
the low prevalence of the pregnant woman’s companion participation in prenatal care highlights the need to further encourage their inclusion in this process.
DESCRIPTORS
Pregnancy; Prenatal Care; Paternity; Men’s Health; Public Health