Adherence to PMTCT and Its Associated Factors among Women Who Visited Maternity Care Services in Mekelle Public Hospitals in 2014

Abstract

Prevention of mother-to-child HIV transmission (PMTCT) remains a challenge in low- and middle-income countries. Ethiopia is the second most populous country in Africa, next to Nigeria. The country’s poor socioeconomic status, and repeatedly poverty stricken society depends on subsistence farming. The health status has also been explained with high morbidity and mortality and low life expectancy (49 years). Thus, this paper attempts to assess the adherence and its associated factors of PMTCT services. Institutional-based cross-sectional study was conducted. Out of the four public hospitals in Mekelle town, two hospitals were selected using simple random sampling technique and the required sample was allocated to each hospital proportional to their size. Finally, convenient sampling techniques were used to select 422 mothers. Data was collected using interviewer administered questionnaire, entered and analyzed using SPSS version 20. Majority of the participants, 319 (76.0%), were adequately adherent to their treatment and 101 (24.0%) clients had poor adherence (non‐adherent) and 387 (92.2%) of the participants reported that they adhered to their treatment during the last seven days and 33 (7.8%) of the respondents claimed they did not adhere to their treatment due to various reasons. The major reasons for non-adherence were medication side effects (42.6%), and simply forgot (32.6%). Regardless of knowledge on the importance of PMTCT, this study revealed that majority 379 (90.2%) of them also knew that anti-HIV medication prevents HIV transmission to baby if well taken during PMTCT. Thus the authors recommend that mothers on PMTCT should be carefully monitored for adherence to PMTCT therapy and there is a need for caregivers to promptly treat medication side effects whenever they occur in order to ensure optimum adherence.

Keywords: PMTCT, hospital, adherence, Mekelle town

Cite this Article

Tadesse Tsrity, Gebrehiwot Haftom, Berhe Almaz et al.Adherence to PMTCT and its associated factors among women who visited maternity care services in Mekelle public hospitals in 2014. Research and Reviews: Journal of Immunology (RRJoI). 2015; 5(2): 1–7p.