Page 164 - S. Ličen, I. Karnjuš, & M. Prosen (Eds.). (2019). Women, migrations and health: Ensuring transcultural healthcare. Koper, University of Primorska Press.
P. 164
ana Medarić and Mateja Sedmak
time, I was shocked, but I said to myself, that’s the way they do it. If the
newborn is gaining weight, if the skin, the mucosa . . . if it is pink, as
it should be, then I have no right to interfere with their decision about
how they will handle this newborn. I just told them and advised that af-
ter a few hours, when they decide to unwrap the newborn, they should
put him on a bed or sofa so that he can move around a bit. [. . .] I think
it is right if this is their system of life, a belief; we cannot oppose it, no. I
do not have the right. I can advise, but not absolutely refuse or advise
against something.
The second approach suggests the presence of cultural and ethnic preju-
dices and stereotypes, the process of exoticization, ‘differentiation,’ as well as
nationalism and interethnic intolerance; this is (2) an interculturally unaware
approach. Healthcare professionals see certain traditional practices of mi-
grant women or their attitude towards birth control, the presence of patri-
archal patterns etc. as errant.
I’m very annoyed by that rocking [rocking the cradle, MS], which is so
striking. I once allowed myself to put a diaper around newborn’s head,
because that head was moving around as if you were ventilating his
brains [. . .] Once he had a handkerchief on his face. They have wipes or
handkerchiefs for their faces.
The narratives of migrant women show the other side of the same prob-
lem: the lack of intercultural competence or intercultural empathy of health
professionals involved in work related to sexual and reproductive health, as
well as within the Slovenian health system generally. For example, for a mi-
grant from Asia the first gynaecological examination in Slovenia was very un-
usual, at times torturous and completely contrary to expectations:
– She missed the privacy: in the health centre clinics she had to remove
her clothes and walk naked past the table to the other end of the room
where the gynaecological chair stood. She would have liked to have a
cape, a towel, anything that would make it possible for her to cover her-
self. She felt unnecessarily vulnerable, exposed, also ashamed. [Privacy
and personal dignity problem]
– She did not like the approach of the gynaecologist who did not inquire
about her health, medical history, contraception, childbirth, but imme-
diately started the examination without explaining what she was doing
and why. [Problem of medical staff approach]
162
time, I was shocked, but I said to myself, that’s the way they do it. If the
newborn is gaining weight, if the skin, the mucosa . . . if it is pink, as
it should be, then I have no right to interfere with their decision about
how they will handle this newborn. I just told them and advised that af-
ter a few hours, when they decide to unwrap the newborn, they should
put him on a bed or sofa so that he can move around a bit. [. . .] I think
it is right if this is their system of life, a belief; we cannot oppose it, no. I
do not have the right. I can advise, but not absolutely refuse or advise
against something.
The second approach suggests the presence of cultural and ethnic preju-
dices and stereotypes, the process of exoticization, ‘differentiation,’ as well as
nationalism and interethnic intolerance; this is (2) an interculturally unaware
approach. Healthcare professionals see certain traditional practices of mi-
grant women or their attitude towards birth control, the presence of patri-
archal patterns etc. as errant.
I’m very annoyed by that rocking [rocking the cradle, MS], which is so
striking. I once allowed myself to put a diaper around newborn’s head,
because that head was moving around as if you were ventilating his
brains [. . .] Once he had a handkerchief on his face. They have wipes or
handkerchiefs for their faces.
The narratives of migrant women show the other side of the same prob-
lem: the lack of intercultural competence or intercultural empathy of health
professionals involved in work related to sexual and reproductive health, as
well as within the Slovenian health system generally. For example, for a mi-
grant from Asia the first gynaecological examination in Slovenia was very un-
usual, at times torturous and completely contrary to expectations:
– She missed the privacy: in the health centre clinics she had to remove
her clothes and walk naked past the table to the other end of the room
where the gynaecological chair stood. She would have liked to have a
cape, a towel, anything that would make it possible for her to cover her-
self. She felt unnecessarily vulnerable, exposed, also ashamed. [Privacy
and personal dignity problem]
– She did not like the approach of the gynaecologist who did not inquire
about her health, medical history, contraception, childbirth, but imme-
diately started the examination without explaining what she was doing
and why. [Problem of medical staff approach]
162
