Health Practices Across Cultures

Reproduction and Sexual Health Promotion among Muslim Women in Pelvic Examinations
Contemporary research publications are increasingly acknowledging the influence of culture and religion on reproductive and sexual health (Arousell & Carlbom, 2016). The religious influences can partly explain the disparities in reproductive and sexual health outcomes. Religions such as Islam reflect upon the meaning of sexuality and provide a framework of what is considered bad or good sexuality, characteristics of female and male sexuality, and family planning strategies (Arousell & Carlbom, 2016). Pelvic exams are among the topics considered controversial among the Muslim community as their integrity is mostly questioned. This paper explores the impact of Islam on the relationship between healthcare providers and female patients, highlighting approaches to ensure that pelvic exams are conducted while respecting the needs of the Muslim patients.
Challenges of Conducting Pelvic Exams among Young Muslim Women
Studies indicate that most young Muslim women are under-informed about reproductive and sexual health. The lack of education mostly stems from unpreparedness of educators to handle the reproductive health issue and the stigma in modern Muslim society that characterize public discussions of reproductive and sexual health (Farringdon, Holgate, McIntyre & Bulsara, 2014). Muslim women prefer being examined by a physician of the same sex and religion and would only agree to be examined by a doctor of the opposite sex if the procedure involves exposure of just the necessary amount of skin. Therefore, it is crucial that female physicians attend to Muslim women and if it is not possible, the medical team should find a solution together with the patients.
Clinicians consider pelvic examinations quite important for identifying benign uterine conditions. The discovery of benign ovarian masses remains advantageous to circumvent emergency surgeries in the future like torsion and rupture. The benefits of the pelvic exams notwithstanding, most adolescents between the ages of 13 and 21 are uncomfortable at the mention of future vaginal exams or Pap smears (Vahabi & Lofters, 2016). The current recommendations for Pap smear are to start at the age of 21 years and if negative, repeat every three years until the age of 30 then repeats every five years. Women also require pelvic exams if they have painful intercourse or abdominal pain, genital itching, a change in smell emanating from the vagina, a change in vaginal discharge, or growth in their genital area.
Studies have indicated a lower uptake of cancer screening services among Muslim women mostly due to the religious constraints. According to Vahabi and Lofters (2016), some Muslim women associate cervical cancer with promiscuity and even consider it a disease transmitted sexually. Therefore, they argue that they are at a reduced risk of acquiring the condition since they only have one partner and do not participate in premarital sex. The lack of knowledge or awareness, lack of access to female physicians, language barrier, and time constraints are among the primary challenges that health care providers grapple with regarding pelvic exams among young Muslim women.
Good Intervention Approaches
Significant variation exists among Muslims and healthcare providers must be careful not generalize or assume their practices and belief (Farringdon et al., 2014). Healthcare providers should have a better understanding of the patient to improve communication and save time. The two care strategies that have been effective when providing care to young Muslim women include patient-centered care approached and cultural sensitivity.
Cultural Sensitivity and Competence
The nurses should be able to work efficiently within the patient’s cultural context. They should be able to obtain culture-specific knowledge and tailor it to the client’s desires, values, and needs for specific health-care and cultural needs (Arousell & Carlbom, 2016). Healthcare providers should be aware of the heterogeneity, variability, and complexity of the Islamic beliefs as well as acknowledge the religious factors influencing some Muslim’s health-care seeking behavior and reproductive and sexual health-seeking decisions. For instance, unmarried young Muslim women are expected to be virgins, and it may be challenging when buying the idea of pelvic examination (Farringdon et al., 2014). Therefore, the healthcare providers should create awareness by providing linguistically and culturally appropriate information about the importance of pelvic exams. Young Muslim women between the age of 13 and 21 should be informed about the future pelvic exams using terms that are comfortable for them.
Person-centered Care
The importance of treating the Muslim patients as individual entities and not a uniform group should be underscored in this regard. The reproductive and sexual health care should be individualized and person-centered while acknowledging a patient’s health-care needs and not making group-based assumptions (Arousell & Carlbom, 2016). However, the nurses should ensure that the patient-centered healthcare remains culturally sensitive. The cultural upbringing and religious affiliations of these women might prevent them from openly talking about sexuality and sexual health. Healthcare providers should be quick to determine their clients’ preferences and determine the approaches with the maximum health benefits.
The essentiality of cultural and religious principles in influencing the healthcare experience of Muslim women and pelvic examination should be underscored. The need for opportunistic health communication, patient-centered and culturally sensitive care is crucial to enhance women knowledge and awareness of pelvic examination and utilization of the available healthcare services on the same. Nurses and other health practitioners should be informed about communication of sexual health with young Muslim females and be educated about the damaging effect of predetermined assumptions regarding the sexual activity and health of young Muslim females. Overall, healthcare providers should learn about the Muslim’s contestations, negotiations, and attitudes regarding sexual and reproductive health issues concerning their Islamic beliefs to ensure adequate healthcare service provision.


References
Arousell, J., & Carlbom, A. (2016). Culture and religious beliefs in relation to reproductive health. Best Practice & Research Clinical Obstetrics & Gynaecology, 32, 77-87.
Farringdon, F., Holgate, C., McIntyre, F., & Bulsara, M. (2014). A level of discomfort! Exploring the relationship between maternal sexual health knowledge, religiosity and comfort discussing sexual health issues with adolescents. Sexuality Research and Social Policy, 11(2), 95-103.
Vahabi, M., & Lofters, A. (2016). Muslim immigrant women’s views on cervical cancer screening and HPV self-sampling in Ontario, Canada. BMC public health, 16(1), 868-881