The perceptions of female youth regarding Menstrual Hygiene Management in Kameeldrift, Tshwane

Abstract

Across the world, especially in most under-developed and developing countries, knowledge of female reproductive health, menstruation and its management has had a negative impact on the female youth who are experiencing it. This may be attributed to a limited number of academic studies to evaluate the extent to which females manage their menstrual cycle, the education received on reproductive health, menstruation, and its associated challenges. Menstruation is perceived as a natural process that occurs when a young female has reached the age of menarche. This entails that the young female is ready for reproduction and enters into a stage of young adulthood. However, this process comes with certain challenges that affect the female in a physical, emotional and mental manner. This also extends to how females engage in menstrual hygiene management (MHM) practices and accessibility to facilities required for that. The perception and understanding of menstruation is influenced by different levels of society looking at the ecosystem the female finds herself in, which also includes religion and culture. The study aimed to describe and explore the perceptions of female youth residing in the informal settlement of Kameeldrift, Tshwane, regarding menstruation hygiene management. It focused on the different challenges females above the age of 18 go through as a result of menstruation. This was done by focusing more on MHM practices and limitations, as well as how the widely held cultural, religious and societal beliefs, myths and misconceptions influence the experience of menstruation. The study also focused on the services available for female youth, especially the access, affordability and use of different menstrual products, with more emphasis on the perceptions of using re-usable pads in the Kameeldrift informal settlement. Lastly the role of social workers in ensuring that the dignity and worth of females is preserved, is explored. With the information and finding of the study, the negative and positive experiences on MHM were understood as well as the availability of resources female youth have access to. This increased insight on the existing gaps in promoting good menstrual hygiene management and possible opportunities to fill the gaps by the social work profession. This was a qualitative study that tried to find in-depth information about menstruation and its management by using feminism as a paradigm. This is due to the fact that ideas held by society, especially when looking at gender roles and norms, affect the experience females have in relation to menstruation. It used applied research and phenomenology, specifically psychological phenomenology to get to the overall core of the female’s experiences. The sampling approached used was non-probability sampling looking at choosing participants with a specific purpose to answer the research question. Initially participants were supposed to be recruited through the assistance of Kamcare whereby the researcher was provided with a contact list to call and ask for consent of participation, however, the researcher ended up using snowballing as a recruitment technique. Face-to-face interviews were used to gather the data with the guide of an interview schedule of semi-structured questions. In analysing the data, thematic analysis was utilised and ethical considerations relevant to the study were taken into account. Five interviews were conducted with female youths above the age of 18 in Kameeldrift. The researcher reported on all five participants which also included information gathered from the pilot study. The findings showed that in terms of the knowledge and understanding of female reproductive health and menstruation, the participants had limited knowledge which resulted from the limited information received from home and school as this theme was still stigmatized and considered taboo. The findings also indicated that the females face different challenges when it comes to menstruation such as physical, emotional and mental issues. These issues are managed well as they have facilities (toilets, clean running water, dustbins, and a clinic situated in the community) that allow them to manage their hygiene adequately unlike other informal settlements in South Africa. However, the issue of affordability is problematic as most of the participants have low incomes, either from their partners, piece-jobs and/or self-employment, which makes it difficult to afford pads for themselves and their female children. Although this community seems to manage menstruation well. There is a lack of social work services in this community and Kamcare, as an organisation, is not visible enough as the project of distributing re-usable pads was done two years ago. This shows that there is a need for social work interventions that can address the social needs of the community, specifically focusing on female reproductive health and menstruation.