Con un pie en dos islas: Cultural Bridges Informing Sexual and Reproductive Health between the Dominican Republic and New York City

Problem: Movement across borders is complex- even when bodies do not move back and forth information, beliefs, and resources do. In this study, we looked at the dynamic interplay of trans-nationalism, gender, economic (in)dependence and how the reproductive lives of Dominican women are played out across and beyond national borders.

Methods: Drawing on a grounded theory methodology, we conducted qualitative focus-group discussions with Dominican women living in Santo Domingo and in New York City. Discussions were transcribed, translated and analyzed for key recurrent themes. This iterative process continually compared the theories that emerged from the primary data to the opinions of community leaders, existing theories and data in the field.

Results: Women in the DR and the US described a hesitation to access health care services, depending instead on self-medication, (via herbal treatments and/or medications from pharmacies, like Cytotec for abortions), advice from community and family members, and the transfer of medications and packages between the two countries. Surprising, however, was a sense of resignation to gender inequity and endemic levels of intimate partner violence that prohibit women's ability to introduce condoms, exacerbate economic dependency on men, and limit the use of contraceptive methods.

Conclusions: Reproductive health needs of Latinas, and more specifically Dominican women, are diverse. These results point to the need for subsequent programs to address the influence of transnational reproductive health movements, to incorporate women's social networks into their reproductive services and to sensitize providers to the particular vulnerabilities of survivors of violence.