RESUMEN
Experiences and constructions of menarche and menstruation are shaped by the sociocultural environment in which women are embedded. We explored experiences and constructions of menarche and menstruation among migrant and refugee women resettled in Sydney, Australia, and Vancouver, Canada. Seventy-eight semistructured individual interviews and 15 focus groups comprised of 82 participants were undertaken with women from Afghanistan, Iraq, Somalia, South Sudan, Sudan, Sri Lanka, and varying South American countries. We analyzed the data using thematic decomposition, identifying the overall theme "cycles of shame" and two core themes. In "becoming a woman," participants constructed menarche as a marker of womanhood, closely linked to marriage and childbearing. In "the unspeakable," women conveyed negative constructions of menstruation, positioning it as shameful, something to be concealed, and polluting. Identifying migrant and refugee women's experiences and constructions of menarche and menstruation is essential for culturally safe medical practice, health promotion, and health education.
Asunto(s)
Menarquia/psicología , Menstruación/psicología , Refugiados/psicología , Vergüenza , Estigma Social , Migrantes/psicología , Adolescente , Adulto , Afganistán , Australia , Canadá , Femenino , Grupos Focales , Humanos , Irak , Investigación Cualitativa , Somalia , América del Sur , Sudán del Sur , Sri Lanka , Sudán , Adulto JovenRESUMEN
There is an urgent need to eliminate mental health disparities experienced by American Indians and Alaska Natives (AI/ANs). Service providers and researchers often address these disparities by focusing on low rates of participation in Western mental health services. In part, this reflects limited understandings of the sociopolitical and historical context of AI/AN mental health problems. Furthermore, this emphasis fails to recognize the importance of emic understandings of locally resonant coping strategies, healing, and treatment. In this article, we describe (a) a study designed to address these gaps, (b) findings related to the importance of land and place, and (c) a community-university collaboration to translate these findings into meaningful change within one Diné community. Connections to the land were an important cultural strength on which to build efforts to promote mental health. Thus, effective treatment might involve more in-depth understanding of cultural processes through which healing occurs and well-being is maintained.
Asunto(s)
Servicios Comunitarios de Salud Mental , Conocimientos, Actitudes y Práctica en Salud/etnología , Indígenas Norteamericanos/psicología , Medicina Tradicional/psicología , Trastornos Mentales , Adaptación Psicológica , Adolescente , Adulto , Anciano , Anciano de 80 o más Años , Niño , Servicios Comunitarios de Salud Mental/estadística & datos numéricos , Investigación Participativa Basada en la Comunidad , Femenino , Disparidades en el Estado de Salud , Disparidades en Atención de Salud , Humanos , Entrevistas como Asunto , Masculino , Trastornos Mentales/etnología , Trastornos Mentales/psicología , Trastornos Mentales/terapia , Persona de Mediana Edad , Sudoeste de Estados Unidos , Terapias Espirituales/psicología , Estrés Psicológico , Estados Unidos , Adulto JovenRESUMEN
Acupuncture, a licensed health care profession in the United States, is poorly integrated into the American health care system, despite the evidence of its effectiveness. The purpose of this study was to offer a phenomenological description of the experience of acupuncturists who delivered acupuncture care in a tertiary teaching hospital in New York City. We analyzed data using methodology proposed by Colaizzi and identified four major clusters of themes: (a) acupuncturists' excitement about practicing in a hospital setting and frustration about organizational obstacles to effective acupuncture integration; (b) pride in being holistic practitioners; (c) attempts to preserve the holism and effectiveness of acupuncture while adjusting to the limitations of an inpatient setting, and (d) acupuncturists' realization that the medical staff knew very little about acupuncture and "it's all about trust." Practitioners of other healing traditions and therapies might find our study helpful in their own efforts toward similar integration.
Asunto(s)
Terapia por Acupuntura , Centros de Atención Terciaria/organización & administración , Actitud del Personal de Salud , Femenino , Personal de Salud/psicología , Salud Holística , Humanos , Entrevistas como Asunto , Masculino , Ciudad de Nueva YorkRESUMEN
In this case study, I present descriptive findings with regard to immigrant incorporation and health service utilization. Using focus groups and survey of Korean immigrant women in Wisconsin, I examine whether the ways in which they adapt to the U.S. society is relevant to their health services utilization and the alternatives they seek when available health services are less than satisfactory. The findings suggest that adherence to Korean identity appears to be associated with health service utilization. This is evident in the immigrants' evaluation of the U.S. health services as compared to those of Korea, and the consideration given by these immigrants to seeking health services in Korea instead of the United States. Such concerns on the part of these immigrants have important implications for health researchers, as they highlight the significance of immigrants' transnational experiences and their sense of personal agency in the use of health care.