Factors affecting uptake of prevention of mother to child transmission of HIV by women attending antenatal clinic in Pumwani Maternity Hospital, Nairobi, Kenya

• Published in: MOJ Public Health Vol. 8; no. 3; pp. 90 - 96
• Main Authors: Ndonga, Esther, MN, Matu
• Format: Journal Article
• Language: English
• Published: 13.05.2019
• ISSN: 2379-6383; 2379-6383
• DOI: 10.15406/mojph.2019.08.00290

Objective Mother-to-child transmission (MTCT) occurs when a woman with Human Immunodeficiency Virus (HIV) passes the virus to her unborn baby. Many health institutions have initiated programs on Preventions of Mother-to-Child Transmission of HIV (PMTCT), however the uptake of these services is still low. The purpose of the study was to determine factors that contribute to low uptake of PMTCT by women attending antenatal clinic in Pumwani Maternity Hospital, Kenya. Methods This was a hospital-based cross sectional study enrolling 161 antenatal (ANC) mothers aged between 18-49years. Data was collected using a semi-structured pre-tested questionnaire. Data was recorded and analyzed for significance at p<0.05 level of significance using Fisher Exact and Chi square for categorical data and logistic regression for comparing PMTCT uptake and independent variables. Results The mean age of the participants was 27years (range, 18-39years). Among the women, 85% were married, 91% belonged to a religious group and 99% had attended school. One hundred and thirty six (84%) women had been tested for HIV and 48(35%) of them were HIV-positive. Out of the 48 HIV positive women, 35(73%) had joined PMTCT. Religion was the only socio-cultural factor that was independently associated with PMTCT uptake. Knowledge of HIV and AIDS, MTCT and PMTCT was high among the women. Conclusion PMTCT uptake was high with quality of counseling being considered as good. The study encourages religious leader’s participation in PMTCT and preventive activities for HIV transmission.