Perceptions and attitudes toward partners support for cervical cancer screening among married men in Ghana

Abstract

Objectives: The majority of literature on cervical cancer (CC) and cervical cancer screening (CCS) focused on women all over the world. However, research has indicated that men's involvement in CCS can lead to improved health outcomes for women. Despite this, there is limited information available in the literature regarding men's attitudes toward CCS. This highlights the need for further study on the subject to increase understanding and improve outcomes. The purpose of this study was therefore to explore the perceptions and attitudes toward partners' support for CCS among married men from the Adentan Municipality.

Study design: An exploratory descriptive qualitative approach was used in the study to explore the perceptions of married men about male involvement in CCS.

Methods: Thirty-four married men were purposively selected to be part of the interviews. A semistructured interview guide was used to collect data, which were recorded. The tape-recorded data were reproduced verbatim, and content analysis was carried out to generate the themes and subthemes.

Results: Three themes and nine subthemes were constructed from the data analysis. The study revealed that the perceptions of males about cervical cancer had a positive or a negative influence on women's behaviors toward CCS. It was interesting that some men constantly reminded their wives to participate in CCS. However, some barriers to men's support included fear of trauma to the wife's vagina during screening and concerns about exposure to the wife's nakedness.

Conclusion: It was therefore recommended that healthcare facilities should roll out sustainable programs and policies to involve men in CC prevention. In addition, health workers should devise innovative ways to make male involvement in CCS more attractive to men.

Keywords: Attitudes; Cervical cancer; Cervical cancer screening; Married men; Partners; Perceptions.