The role of communication in addressing sociocultural factors that influence pregnant women to drink alcohol in Durban, KwaZulu-Natal.
Date
2021
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Abstract
The World Health Organisation report (WHO, 2016) states that one in 10 women consumes
alcohol during pregnancy globally, and 20% of these women binge drink. Drinking while
pregnant harms the foetus with the possible consequence being Fetal Alcoholic Spectrum
Disorder (FASD). South Africa has the highest reported FASD prevalence rates in the world.
The South African Department of Health (DoH) recognises this as a severe public health
issue affecting pregnant women. Studies show that the factors that motivate maternal
drinking are more socio-cultural than medical and psychological. There have been global
efforts to address this public health issue with pregnant women but the phenomenon still
persists.
This study addresses the issue by exploring the localised responses of pregnant women who
drink while pregnant in Durban, KwaZulu-Natal, through a qualitative investigation of the
sociocultural factors that encourage alcohol consumption amongst this population. The study
employed Participatory Health Communication as the theoretical framework and mobilised
the Social Behavioural Change Communication (SBCC) as the process to identify and
analyse the socio-cultural issues in Durban. This theoretical framework and process was
supported by the Culture-Centred Approach (Dutta, 2008) to engage with the influence of
culture and structure to understand the socio-cultural factors that contribute to their health
choices and possible avenues for agency to address this. Communication plays a central role
in this agency. The study adopted the Applied Thematic Analysis (Guest, McQueen and
Namey, 2012) to interpret the data gathered from interviews with the participants at King
Edward VIII Hospital.
The study found that social and environmental factors are family, friends and access to
shebeens and taverns in the neighbourhood which support a drinking culture that encourages
social tolerance of alcohol consumption and the reluctance to stop drinking. The study
identified the need for ongoing communication through preferred communication channels
that are readily available for women to request support. The study found the importance to
extend beyond knowledge acquisition, but to mobilise communication as a culturally nuanced tool to facilitate psycho-social support during times of alcohol consumption when
pregnant.
Description
Doctoral Degree. University of KwaZulu-Natal, Durban.