Back to Annual Meeting

Back to Annual Meeting

APHA Scientific Session and Event Listing

Recorded presentation

Nora Dalia Gottlieb, Department for Health System Research, European TropEd Network for Int'l Health/ Ben Gurion University of the Negev, Israel, Rehov Tveria 10, Appartment No. 6, Tel Aviv, Israel, 00972-547547513, die.rote.nora@web.de

Background. Half of the Bedouin of Southern Israel - approximately 76,000 people - live in shantytowns lacking even basic services. Women from these “Unrecognized Bedouin Villages” (UBVs) are a multiply disadvantaged population as members of a patriarchal community and an ethno-religious minority. A range of barriers impedes their access to health services. Since 2000, the health authorities have established seven Mother-Child-Health (MCH) stations in UBVs. Goal. Assessment of these MCH stations' benefit for women from UBVs. Objectives. Comparison of accessibility, antenatal care utilization and satisfaction between Bedouin women from UBVs with a MCH station and women from UBVs without a MCH station. Methods. Questionnaires were administered to 174 users of MCH stations. 158 ANC records were reviewed. A qualitative part comprises 16 half-structured interviews with Bedouin women and men in their homes. Results. Physical accessibility, independence from chaperoning and affordability have increased, but low availability and communication problems continue to hamper MCH service delivery. Persisting geographic barriers, socio-economic and -cultural stressors render antenatal diagnosis especially problematic. These problems are related also to Bedouin women's deprivation from tangible and intangible resources. Conclusion. The establishment of MCH stations in UBVs has been a successful intervention, but due to remaining challenges in service delivery it could not achieve its full potential. Intersectoral measurements addressing structural inequalities will be required to achieve a sustainable impact on Bedouin women's situation.

Learning Objectives: At the conclusion of the session, the participant will be able to

• Identify deterrents and barriers, which impede Bedouin women’s access to health services on geographic, socio-economic and -cultural level.
• Apply key principles of equitable health service delivery as defined by the Committee on Economic, Social and Cultural Rights (CESCR) to the research setting.

Related Web page: www.phr.org.il, www.troped.de

Presenting author's disclosure statement:

Any relevant financial relationships? No

Recorded presentation