Acts of violence: virginity control and hymen (re)construction
2014 (English)In: British journal of midwifery, ISSN 0969-4900, E-ISSN 2052-4307, Vol. 22, no 5, p. 344-352Article in journal (Refereed) Published
Abstract [en]
Globally, midwives are often at the forefront of promoting and improving women’s sexual and reproductive health. It is important to develop a gender perspective in midwifery education, one that addresses the fact that virginity control and hymen (re)constructions are unscientific and may cause great harm to women worldwide. This study aimed to investigate the experience and attitudes of an international group of midwives regarding virginity control and hymen (re)constructions. An online questionnaire was emailed to midwives who attended the International Confederation of Midwifery (ICM) Congress in Glasgow. The respondents (n=480) represented five continents. Ten percent of the midwives reported professional experience of requests concerning virginity examinations and hymen (re)constructions. The majority stated that these practices are unjustifiable, and amount to acts of violence against women, whereas a minority responded that these practices can be acceptable. Almost two-thirds stated that it is the responsibility of midwives to work against these practices.
Place, publisher, year, edition, pages
Mark Allen Group , 2014. Vol. 22, no 5, p. 344-352
National Category
Nursing
Identifiers
URN: urn:nbn:se:umu:diva-142090DOI: 10.12968/bjom.2014.22.5.344Scopus ID: 2-s2.0-84921452861OAI: oai:DiVA.org:umu-142090DiVA, id: diva2:1158541
2017-11-202017-11-202023-03-23Bibliographically approved