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MATERNAL AND REPRODUCTIVE HEALTH OF ROMANI WOMEN IN SLOVAKIA

Rimarova, K.

Abstract

In terms of reproductive health indicators, Slovakia Roma women have in comparison to other CEE countries relatively low numbers of unattended births (3\%) and relatively high access to gynaecological testing (88\%). According to the UNDP survey, 93.7\% of Roma women claimed they had attended regular medical check-ups during their last pregnancy, and in most cases (95.5\%) had been examined by a doctor. We collected data in Gynaecologic and obstetric department of University hospital in Kosice, the form of the study was cross-sectional and we used questionnaires which included questions about SES, maternal health, Access to the prenatal check. We include into analysis 568 questionnaires of females after birth of the child. The most common reasons for not attending regular check-ups were low health awareness about pregnancy health related issues, and difficulty in accessing healthcare services. Majority of Roma women claimed that check-ups were not necessary as they had no problems (35.5\% for the total of Roma women). The second most common reason for not attending check-ups among women from segregated communities (33\%) was †no one told me that I had to attend check-ups,' followed by †the doctor's office was too far,' and †I had no money to cover my travel costs and I was unable to get there' (5.5\%). The most common causes for not attending medical check-ups among diffused Roma women were 'it was too expensive' and 'due to family reasons (caring for children)' (55.3\%). SES status of Romani women was very low compared with non-Roma population. Elementary school (finished or unfinished) had 85.5\% of Roma mothers population, but only 7\% of non-Roma mothers. Unemployment rate, smoking prevalence, was also significantly higher among Roma mother comparing non -Roma women give their first birth significantly earlier than non-Roma women. According to the our study, 8.5\% of Roma women gave birth to their first child before reaching the age of 18 in comparison to the 1.8\% of geographically close non-Roma women.. While the average number of children among interviewed Roma women was 4.1, it was 1.3 in the case of non-Roma women. All received data confirm negative trends in reproductive markers of health status of Roma mothers comparing the majority population or national data. There is a gap in data collection in CEE countries, considering Roma person identification and other obstacles.

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DOI resolver: doi.org/10.5593/SGEMSOCIAL2015/B11/S2.087

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