Partners’ Participation in Antenatal Care Visits

Men’s involvement during antenatal care visits increases the likelihood of safe pregnancy (as men are more aware of women’s needs, danger signs, need for transportation plans, etc.) as well as the likelihood that the partner will continue to also provide care after the delivery. This indicator therefore measures the proportion of male partners who accompanied their female partner for at least one antenatal care visit during the last pregnancy.

There are two ways of assessing the value of this indicator – conducting individual interviews with mothers or with fathers. Since the IMAGES survey showed that men’s reports of their participation in antenatal visits are higher than women’s reports (likely due to over reporting), it is suggested that the indicator’s value is assessed by interviewing a representative sample of mothers of children aged 0-23 months.

RECOMMENDED SURVEY QUESTIONS (Q) AND POSSIBLE ANSWERS (A)

Q1: During your pregnancy with your youngest child, did anyone check your and your baby’s health?

A1: yes / no

(ask the following question only if the previous answer is YES)

Q2: During your pregnancy with your youngest child, did your partner ever accompany you to any of the of antenatal health checks?  

A2: yes / no / does not remember

To calculate the indicator’s value, divide the number of respondents whose partner accompanied them at least once for the antenatal health check by the total number of respondents (exclude those who did not remember). Multiply the result by 100 to convert it to a percentage