Male involvement in infant care and associated factors among infants less than one year in Bibugn district of Ethiopia

Male involvement in infant care is an effective intervention to improve infant health outcomes. However, evidence regarding male involvement in infant care and its associated factors is limited in Ethiopia. To assess the male involvement in infant care and associated factors among infants less than one year in Bibugn district of Ethiopia. A community-based cross-sectional study was conducted among 606 participants from April 1-30/2023. A systematic sampling technique was used to select each study participant. Data was collected using interviewer-administered questionnaires. Data were entered into Epi data 4.6 and analyzed using statistical Product Service and Solution (SPSS) version 2 5. Both descriptives, mean, frequency and analytical statistics were employed. Variables with a p-value of less than 0.25 in bivariate logistic regression were entered into a multivariate logistic regression to identify associated factors. Statistical significance was declared at p < 0.05. The prevalence of male involvement in infant care was 42.2% with a 95% CI (38.26-46.12). Male who did not attend formal education (AOR = 0.24, 95% CI = 0.14-0.43), having one child (AOR = 5.66, 95%CI = 2.94-10.88), having male infants (AOR = 2.51, 95% CI = 1.60-3.95), first infant order (AOR = 2.70, 95% CI = 1.36-5.39), having adequate knowledge towards infant care (AOR = 5.56,95% CI = 0.12-0.28), and having favorable attitude towards infant care (AOR = 1.70,95% CI = 0.34-0.99) were factors associated with male involvement in infant care. Less than 50% ( 50%) of males are involved in their infant care. Educational status of males, number of infants, male infants, male knowledge, and attitude towards infant care were significantly associated with involvement in infant care. Therefore, efforts should be directed at improving males' educational status, knowledge, and attitude to improve their engagement in caring for their infants.