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Subject: search.filters.subject.Circumcision--South Africa

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Now showing 1 - 4 of 4
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    A profile of male circumcision in South Africa: Socio-demographic predictors of the type of circumcision among circumcised men
    (2019) Sikula, Jabulani Farayi
    Background: HIV prevalence and transmission rates remain high in South Africa. Voluntary Medical Male Circumcision (VMMC) is one of the interventions that have been included in the comprehensive package for HIV prevention strategies. Although resources, campaigns and interventions have been directed towards the upscale of this practice, VMMC prevalence still remains low in South Africa. Although studies have shown a reduction in transmission rates among those who are medically circumcised, traditional male circumcisions are more common in South African communities. This preference of traditional circumcision is besides the fact that some scholars have argued that Traditional Male Circumcision (TMC) has not been proven to offer any HIV protective benefits. This study investigates the socio-demographic predictors of type of circumcision and explores the reason or motivation for undergoing male circumcision in South Africa. Methods: This study used data from the South African National HIV Prevalence, Incidence and Behaviour Survey conducted in 2012 to explore the predictors of type of circumcision in South Africa. Frequencies were calculated to determine the levels of male circumcision by type of circumcision and reason for circumcision. Bivariate analysis was conducted to investigate the relationship between type of circumcision and socio-demographic factors, reason for circumcising and perception variables. Bivariate analysis was also conducted to investigate the variations in reason for circumcision by socio-demographic characteristics. Data was analysed at the multivariate level using binary logistic regression analysis to determine the main predictors of the type of male circumcision in South Africa. Results: The study found that 53.5% of the circumcised male population in South Africa is circumcised through TMC. The reasons for undertaking male circumcision included religious reasons, hygiene, prevention of HIV and STIs, traditional practice and other reasons. About 60.1% of circumcised males had circumcision done as part of traditional practice. The majority of males (87.9%) who reported circumcising for traditional reasons had TMC and the majority of respondents who reported circumcising for hygiene and prevention of HIV and STIs had VMMC (88.4% and 90.4% respectively). VMMC is most common in KwaZulu-Natal (70.8%) and Gauteng (59.9%). Males residing in urban formal settings are mostly circumcised through VMMC (52.3%). TMC is more common among the respondents with primary and secondary education (82.5% and 61% respectively). The multivariate analysis found race, age at circumcision, marital or relationship status, education status, province, having access to a radio, magazine and internet and reason for circumcision to be the main predictors of the type male circumcision. All categories of reason for circumcising were significantly associated with type of circumcision. Contribution: This study contributed to our understanding of predictors of type of male circumcision in South Africa. This understanding is helpful in the design of context relevant VMMC upscale interventions that consider race, age at circumcision, marital or relationship status, education status, province, having access to a radio, magazine and internet access. The study is also useful in providing baseline characteristics for use in measuring the success of future interventions.
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    The importance of participatory communication for the voluntary medical male circumcision (VMMC) project in Alexander township in Gauteng, South Africa
    (2017) Bhengu, Charity
    The research set out to investigate how the Voluntary Medical Male Circumcision (VMMC) programme in South Africa facilitated stakeholder participation in its communication processes to improve the uptake of services in the context of national targets. Studies reviewed have highlighted challenges in the implementation of the participatory model to achieve communication goals. This qualitative study used document analysis, in-depth interviews and Focus Group Discussions (FGDs) for data collection. The research has revealed other limiting factors including unequal opportunities to influence decisions as a result of varying levels of authority and access to mediated public spheres. While those with power end up being further empowered through participatory approaches in terms of voice and visibility, the representation of the inputs of the lower level stakeholder group is limited to head count. A five-day visit to a VMMC clinic in Alexandra Township attributes marginalisation by exclusion from decision-making processes as one of the reasons for people’s inability to translate knowledge into the positive public response. The study was inconclusive about the influence of the model on the actual service uptake because the purpose was to provide a textual description of the participants’ experiences and not the impact.
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    Male circumcision and consistent condom use in South Africa
    (2017) Maakamedi, Tetelo
    Background: Evidence shows that circumcised men are less likely to be infected with HIV compared to their uncircumcised counterparts. However, critics have argued that adopting male VMMC as part of the comprehensive HIV prevention strategy might lead circumcised men to believe that they are completely protected against HIV. Consequently, this could cause them to neglect other HIV protective measures, such as consistent condom use. This study investigated the association between male circumcision and consistent condom use among sexually active men in South Africa. Methodology: The analyses were done using nationally representative cross-sectional secondary data drawn from the 2012 Third National HIV Communication Survey. The study sampled a total of 1899 single black men who were sexually active and were aged between 16-55 years. The management and analysis of the data were carried out using STATA version 14. Descriptive statistics were computed to describe the levels of male circumcision and consistent condom use in South Africa, and crosstabulations and a Pearson Chi-square test were used to assess associations between patterns of male circumcision and consistent condom use by selected variables. Bivariate and multivariate binomial logistic regressions were used to examine the socio-demographic determinants of male circumcision, as well as the association between male circumcision and consistent condom use. Results: The main findings showed that circumcised men were more likely (OR=1.18; C.I, 1.171 - 1.182) to consistently use condoms, compared to uncircumcised men. Furthermore, place of residence, education, occupation status and socioeconomic status were positively associated with consistent condom use. On the other hand, men who believed that they would get HIV, and those who were older than 24 years were less likely to consistently use condoms. While circumcision rates were lower in all the provinces compared to the Eastern Cape; Kwa-Zulu Natal and North West had the lowest odds of circumcision of all the provinces. However, both these provinces had the highest odds of consistent condom use compared to all the other provinces. Conclusion: This study found a positive association between male circumcision and consistent condom use. The findings revealed that, contrary to concerns that circumcised men may have a false sense of protection and therefore use condoms less consistently, circumcised men were more likely to consistently use condoms compared to uncircumcised men. There is, therefore, no evidence of risk compensation associated with circumcision. As a result, male circumcision should continue to be rolledout nationally, as part of an effective and comprehensive HIV prevention strategy. On the other hand, it is also evident that HIV prevention education targeting men is crucial, as men who believe that they will get infected with HIV and those older than 24 years need to be encouraged to practice safe sexual and HIV protective behaviours such as consistent condom use.
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    The material culture of Hlubi male initiation: a case study from Matatiele, Eastern Cape, South Africa
    (2016) Zulu, John
    This is a study of the material culture associated with male circumcision rituals among Hlubi people in the Matatiele region of South Africa’s Eastern Cape Province. In recent years social scientists and public commentators have paid increasing attention to male circumcision in the context of controversies around ‘botched’ circumcisions, on the one hand, and the growing evidence, on the other hand, that male circumcision plays a role in restricting the spread of HIV. Much less attention has been paid, however, to a vital issue that underpins all these concerns: what materials give male circumcision its distinctive qualities as a cultural process, and how do various kinds of participants and observers think about those materials in relation to other domains of material culture, e.g. medical circumcision. This study will approach the topic through unstructured interviews conducted with various groups of informants