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Transgender population’s experiences with regard to accessing reproductive health care in Kwazulu-Natal, South Africa: A qualitative study
BACKGROUND: The transgender population has unique health risks, including increased risk of mental illness, substance abuse, suicide and a high prevalence of human immunodeficiency virus (HIV). Worldwide studies indicate that this population is marginalised and faces barriers in accessing health car...
Autores principales: | , , |
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Formato: | Online Artículo Texto |
Lenguaje: | English |
Publicado: |
AOSIS
2019
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Materias: | |
Acceso en línea: | https://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pmc/articles/PMC6676963/ https://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pubmed/31296016 http://dx.doi.org/10.4102/phcfm.v11i1.1933 |
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author | Luvuno, Zamasomi P. B. Ncama, Busisiwe Mchunu, Gugu |
author_facet | Luvuno, Zamasomi P. B. Ncama, Busisiwe Mchunu, Gugu |
author_sort | Luvuno, Zamasomi P. B. |
collection | PubMed |
description | BACKGROUND: The transgender population has unique health risks, including increased risk of mental illness, substance abuse, suicide and a high prevalence of human immunodeficiency virus (HIV). Worldwide studies indicate that this population is marginalised and faces barriers in accessing health care. In South Africa, there is limited information and research on the transgender population’s interaction with health services. AIM: The purpose of this study was to examine the experiences of the transgender population in accessing health care facilities for sexual and reproductive needs. SETTING: The study took place in KwaZulu-Natal province of South Africa. METHODS: A qualitative study combining phenomenological and critical ethnographic approaches was conducted to explore the experiences of the transgender population in the health care setting. Critical ethnography was chosen because it is an emancipatory method that highlights the plight of disenfranchised groups, and phenomenology was used to illuminate experiences of the transgender population. Purposive snowball sampling was applied to select nine transgender participants who had experiences of contact with a health care setting. Data collection was performed through semi-structured interviews and a focus group discussion. RESULTS: Participants provided details about the paucity of facilities, resources and targeted programmes to cater for the transgender populations’ sexual and reproductive health needs. The participants engage in high-risk behaviour, comprising unprotected sex and use of cross-gender hormones without medical supervision. Furthermore, the participants reported experiences of hostile and discriminatory behaviour by healthcare workers. CONCLUSION: It emerged that there is a paucity of resources and knowledge to provide appropriate health care services to the transgender population, resulting in adverse experiences. Policies on transgender care and training of health workers will contribute towards improvement of health care access for the transgender population. |
format | Online Article Text |
id | pubmed-6676963 |
institution | National Center for Biotechnology Information |
language | English |
publishDate | 2019 |
publisher | AOSIS |
record_format | MEDLINE/PubMed |
spelling | pubmed-66769632019-08-07 Transgender population’s experiences with regard to accessing reproductive health care in Kwazulu-Natal, South Africa: A qualitative study Luvuno, Zamasomi P. B. Ncama, Busisiwe Mchunu, Gugu Afr J Prim Health Care Fam Med Original Research BACKGROUND: The transgender population has unique health risks, including increased risk of mental illness, substance abuse, suicide and a high prevalence of human immunodeficiency virus (HIV). Worldwide studies indicate that this population is marginalised and faces barriers in accessing health care. In South Africa, there is limited information and research on the transgender population’s interaction with health services. AIM: The purpose of this study was to examine the experiences of the transgender population in accessing health care facilities for sexual and reproductive needs. SETTING: The study took place in KwaZulu-Natal province of South Africa. METHODS: A qualitative study combining phenomenological and critical ethnographic approaches was conducted to explore the experiences of the transgender population in the health care setting. Critical ethnography was chosen because it is an emancipatory method that highlights the plight of disenfranchised groups, and phenomenology was used to illuminate experiences of the transgender population. Purposive snowball sampling was applied to select nine transgender participants who had experiences of contact with a health care setting. Data collection was performed through semi-structured interviews and a focus group discussion. RESULTS: Participants provided details about the paucity of facilities, resources and targeted programmes to cater for the transgender populations’ sexual and reproductive health needs. The participants engage in high-risk behaviour, comprising unprotected sex and use of cross-gender hormones without medical supervision. Furthermore, the participants reported experiences of hostile and discriminatory behaviour by healthcare workers. CONCLUSION: It emerged that there is a paucity of resources and knowledge to provide appropriate health care services to the transgender population, resulting in adverse experiences. Policies on transgender care and training of health workers will contribute towards improvement of health care access for the transgender population. AOSIS 2019-07-10 /pmc/articles/PMC6676963/ /pubmed/31296016 http://dx.doi.org/10.4102/phcfm.v11i1.1933 Text en © 2019. The Authors https://creativecommons.org/licenses/by/4.0/ Licensee: AOSIS. This work is licensed under the Creative Commons Attribution License. |
spellingShingle | Original Research Luvuno, Zamasomi P. B. Ncama, Busisiwe Mchunu, Gugu Transgender population’s experiences with regard to accessing reproductive health care in Kwazulu-Natal, South Africa: A qualitative study |
title | Transgender population’s experiences with regard to accessing reproductive health care in Kwazulu-Natal, South Africa: A qualitative study |
title_full | Transgender population’s experiences with regard to accessing reproductive health care in Kwazulu-Natal, South Africa: A qualitative study |
title_fullStr | Transgender population’s experiences with regard to accessing reproductive health care in Kwazulu-Natal, South Africa: A qualitative study |
title_full_unstemmed | Transgender population’s experiences with regard to accessing reproductive health care in Kwazulu-Natal, South Africa: A qualitative study |
title_short | Transgender population’s experiences with regard to accessing reproductive health care in Kwazulu-Natal, South Africa: A qualitative study |
title_sort | transgender population’s experiences with regard to accessing reproductive health care in kwazulu-natal, south africa: a qualitative study |
topic | Original Research |
url | https://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pmc/articles/PMC6676963/ https://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pubmed/31296016 http://dx.doi.org/10.4102/phcfm.v11i1.1933 |
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