Implementation Fidelity of Gender Based Violence Screening among Health Care Providers in the Health Care Facilities of Dodoma Region, Tanzania

Background: The Gender Based Violence (GBV) screening rate among health care providers is low despite the strategies to initiate GBV screening set by the Ministry of Health in Tanzania through implementation fidelity. This proposed study is an attempt to fill the gap by determining the GBV screening Implementation Fidelity, focusing on adherence to Protocols and Procedures in implementing GBV screening and factors affecting adherence to the implementation fidelity of GBV screening among the health care providers in the health facilities of Dodoma Region. Method: This was an analytical cross- sectional study; quantitative approach. A multi-stage sampling technique was applied to obtain 384 healthcare providers. The Interviewer-administered questionnaire was used to collect data from healthcare providers in health facilities of the Dodoma Region. SPSS was used for the analysis of descriptive statistics to determine the level of adherence, and logistic regression for factors affecting adherence to GBV screening. Objective: The objective is to assess the implementation fidelity of GBV screening among healthcare providers in the healthcare facilities of the Dodoma Region. Results: Doctors and nurses who were not trained on GBV screening were 305 (79.4%). There is a low level of adherence to the implementation fidelity of GBV screening among the health care providers in the Dodoma Region, where by 16.4% (63) adhered to GBV screening. Those who were not trained were less likely to adherence GBV screening practices compared to those who were trained (AOR = 0.206, p < 0.0001). Nurses were less likely to adhere to GBV screening practices in reference to the doctors (AOR = 0.46, p = 0.037). Those who disagreed with the statement that there were few opportunities to speak with women, were more likely to adhere to GBV screening practices (AOR = 2.8, p = 0.008) compared to those who agreed. Conclusion: The results show that most of the health care providers in the Dodoma Region do not adhere to the GBV screening; a low level of adherence indicates that most of the clients who are faced with Gender Based Violence are not identified and given appropriate management and referral. This study contributes to showing the situation analysis of how GBV screening is done in health facilities. Recommendation: It is recommended to address factors to improve the adherence of GBV screening including enough training to the health care providers.