Sexual and Reproductive Healthcare Market

Bangladeshi poor women and men prefer informal healthcare providers for common sexual and reproductive health problems; such as white discharge, fistula, prolapse, menstrual problems, reproductive and urinary tract infections, and sexual problems. They try to avoid the formal public health system. The sexual and reproductive health needs are highly neglected issues in our society. In most of the cases, it is a source of silent suffering and for which there are no trained health staff providing treatment in government facilities. The overall health system of our society has become severely commercial and boundaries between “public” and “private” are unclear.

This paper conducted interviews with 303 providers and 312 women from two rural and one urban area of Bangladesh from July 2008 to January 2009. The paper suggests that we need to improve the quality of existing services, discourage or prevent obviously harmful practices, and develop financing mechanisms to enable women to access effective treatment, regardless of the source, for these neglected problems.

Reference:

Rashid, S. F., Akram, O., & Standing, H. (2011). The sexual and reproductive health care market in Bangladesh: where do poor women go?. Reproductive Health Matters, 19(37), 21-31.

http://www.sciencedirect.com/science/article/pii/S0968808011375519