TY - JOUR
T1 - Community myths and misconceptions about sexual health in Tanzania
T2 - Stakeholders’ views from a qualitative study in Dar es Salaam Tanzania
AU - Lukumay, Gift G.
AU - Mgopa, Lucy R.
AU - Mushy, Stella E.
AU - Simon Rosser, B. R.
AU - Massae, Agnes F.
AU - Mkonyi, Ever
AU - Mohammed, Inari
AU - Mwakawanga, Dorkasi L.
AU - Trent, Maria
AU - Wadley, James
AU - Ross, Michael W.
AU - Bonilla, Zobeida
AU - Leshabari, Sebalda
N1 - Publisher Copyright:
© 2023 Lukumay et al. This is an open access article distributed under the terms of the Creative Commons Attribution License, which permits unrestricted use, distribution, and reproduction in any medium, provided the original author and source are credited.
PY - 2023/2
Y1 - 2023/2
N2 - Introduction Sexual and reproductive health problems are one of the top five risk factors for disability in the developing world. The rates of sexual health problems in most African countries are overwhelming, which is why HIV and other STIs are still such a challenge in sub-Saharan Africa. Talking about sex in most African countries is a taboo, leading to common myths and misconceptions that ultimately impact community sexual health. Methods In this study, we conducted 11 key stakeholder individual interviews with community, religious, political, and health leaders (sexual health stakeholders) in Tanzania. Qualitative content analysis was used to analyze all the materials. Results Two main categories merged from the analysis. The first category, “Ambiguities about sexual health” focused on societal and political misconceptions and identified ten myths or misconceptions common in Tanzania. Stakeholders highlighted the confusion that happens when different information about sexual health is presented from two different sources (e.g., community leaders/peers and political leaders), which leaves the community and community leaders unsure which one is reliable. The second category, “Practical dilemmas in serving clients”, addressed a range of professional and religious dilemmas in addressing sexual health concerns. This included the inability of religious leaders and health care providers to provide appropriate sexual health care because of internal or external influences. Conclusion Myths and misconceptions surrounding sexual health can prevent communities from adequately addressing sexual health concerns, and make it more difficult for healthcare providers to comfortably provide sexual health care to patients and communities. Stakeholders affirmed a need to develop a sexual health curriculum for medical, nursing and midwifery students because of the lack of education in this area. Such a curriculum needs to address nine common myths which were identified through the interviews.
AB - Introduction Sexual and reproductive health problems are one of the top five risk factors for disability in the developing world. The rates of sexual health problems in most African countries are overwhelming, which is why HIV and other STIs are still such a challenge in sub-Saharan Africa. Talking about sex in most African countries is a taboo, leading to common myths and misconceptions that ultimately impact community sexual health. Methods In this study, we conducted 11 key stakeholder individual interviews with community, religious, political, and health leaders (sexual health stakeholders) in Tanzania. Qualitative content analysis was used to analyze all the materials. Results Two main categories merged from the analysis. The first category, “Ambiguities about sexual health” focused on societal and political misconceptions and identified ten myths or misconceptions common in Tanzania. Stakeholders highlighted the confusion that happens when different information about sexual health is presented from two different sources (e.g., community leaders/peers and political leaders), which leaves the community and community leaders unsure which one is reliable. The second category, “Practical dilemmas in serving clients”, addressed a range of professional and religious dilemmas in addressing sexual health concerns. This included the inability of religious leaders and health care providers to provide appropriate sexual health care because of internal or external influences. Conclusion Myths and misconceptions surrounding sexual health can prevent communities from adequately addressing sexual health concerns, and make it more difficult for healthcare providers to comfortably provide sexual health care to patients and communities. Stakeholders affirmed a need to develop a sexual health curriculum for medical, nursing and midwifery students because of the lack of education in this area. Such a curriculum needs to address nine common myths which were identified through the interviews.
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U2 - 10.1371/journal.pone.0264706
DO - 10.1371/journal.pone.0264706
M3 - Article
C2 - 36763616
AN - SCOPUS:85147841610
SN - 1932-6203
VL - 18
JO - PloS one
JF - PloS one
IS - 2 February
M1 - e0264706
ER -