Over 90% women skip consultation on menstruation-related issues over lack of female doctors: Report
Mumbai: A new research report has highlighted the significant challenges women face when it comes to menstruation-related health care, with over 90 percent of women avoiding consultations due to a shortage of female doctors.
The report, titled 'Combating The Silence From Menarche To Menopause,' was launched on Friday by the Sulabh Sanitation Mission Foundation (SSMF) in Mumbai. According to the report, as cited by The Hindu, a staggering 91.7 percent of older women skip seeking medical advice for menstruation-related concerns, mainly because of the lack of women doctors.
This lack of access to proper healthcare extends beyond consultations, as the study also found that girls are reluctant to use school restrooms during menstruation due to unhygienic conditions. Many school restrooms are without basic necessities such as water, soap, or even doors, which deters girls from using these facilities.
The revealed revealed that the poor state of menstrual hygiene management in schools force girls to miss school during their menstrual cycle, with some missing up to 60 days annually.
“We want a holistic approach to managing menstrual hygiene. It is a circle, missing schools lead to dropouts, then forces marriage and further restricts them from participating in the economy,” Nirja Bhatnagar, National Director of Program and Advocacy at Sulabh International Social Service Organisation, was quoted as saying by The Hindu.
The study focused on menstruating women in 14 districts across India, including Maharashtra, where researchers studied the conditions in Beed and Dharashiv districts. It shed light on the struggles faced by women, including those who migrated, working in sugarcane fields, brick kilns, mines, and factories.
The findings revealed that 89.9 percent of women in Beed did not view period-related issues as serious, and 70.4 percent of women in Dharashiv felt that doctors are out of reach to treat their problems. Additionally, the report raised concerns about the issue of hysterectomies—surgery to remove the uterus—among migrant women workers.
The report underscored the dire need for better facilities, education, and healthcare to address the ongoing struggles women face in managing their menstrual health, particularly in rural and migrant communities. The study also provided several recommendations for improvement, including implementation of menstrual hygiene management programs that are tailored to the local demographics.
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Getting US consulate in B'luru issue visas 'sooner' my top priority when I visit US: Jaishankar
Bengaluru (PTI): External Affairs Minister S Jaishankar asserted on Friday that the opening of "long-in-waiting" US consulate in Bengaluru was the "very important milestone" in the bilateral ties and urged the American authorities to ensure that the mission starts visa operations at the earliest.
"This will be my number one talking point with Secretary (of State Nominee Marco) Rubio when I go and see him. The sooner we get it done, the better it is," said Jaishankar.
The External Minister was in Bengaluru today to attend the "site dedication ceremony" of the fifth United States consulate in India, which will start operating in Bengaluru soon.
Delivering his speech, Eric Garcetti, US Ambassador to India, said the consulate in Bengaluru will not be offering visa services for the time being.
In his speech, Jaishankar pointed to statistics to nudge the US to get around to issuing visas from Bengaluru as early as possible.
"I was checking figures, and was very glad to see that last year, the RPO (Regional Passport Office) Bengaluru issued 8,83,000 passports. That's just for one year. Do the math, and you will see how important it is to ensure that travel is smooth," added Jaishankar.
He also added that there are three flights every week from here to San Francisco. "Hopefully, if Boeing and Airbus deliver, there'd be more. I think that's a legitimate expectation," said Jaishankar.
Jaishankar said a US consulate in Bengaluru has been "long-in-waiting".
"One, which I believe, Bengaluru legitimately deserved and expected," he added.
"I think Bengaluru has such an important place that it was for me an imperative that there is a permanent resident presence of American diplomats here," said Jaishankar.
He also said every time he had visited the city in the last five years, there was always somebody who would ask him, 'so, when is that consulate coming?'.
"It was from, really, I would say, the cross section of the society. It was from businessmen; it was from the tech world; it was from academics. It was even from people you would meet in a restaurant," added Jaishankar.
According to him, Prime Minister Narendra Modi in June 2023 had brought up the issue of opening a consulate in Bengaluru when he visited the US.
He also said India had promised to open a consulate in Los Angeles if the United States "get the Bengaluru consulate done". He said now, with the opening of the consulate, collaborations in defence and education would reach new heights.
"I think the formal opening of this consulate is one more sign that we are overcoming the hesitations of history. It is now within our grasp, within the realm of possibility, that we realise more fully the potential of India-US relations. And I think it is important that Bengaluru too realises its potential in the relationship," said Jaishankar.
In his address, US Ambassador Garcetti, who would be relinquishing his responsibility in India soon, said he was glad that getting a consulate up and running in Bengaluru would be his last task in India.
"You know, our relationship in India is not new. Our second consulate in the world was here in India. After the independence of a new America in 1776, we opened a consulate in Lyon, France, and then the second was in Kolkata, showing, back then, the importance of India to a new American nation," said Garcetti.
India, said Garcetti, is now the second largest mission of America anywhere in the world.
"It produces the second most visas, the most students we're breaking records every single year 'record employees, record visas, record students, record military exercises, record engagement from the seabed to space," added Garcetti.
Deputy Chief Minister D K Shivakumar, who was also present during the "site dedication ceremony" said the opening of the consulate in Bengaluru is a testament to the growing importance of Karnataka in the global stage.
"Nowadays, the world is looking at India through Bengaluru. We know there are a lot of hiccups there, as Bengaluru is not a well-planned city. But still the city has proved itself to be the safest city in the entire country for the global firms to have their headquarters," said Shivakumar.
Other dignitaries present for the ceremony include MP Tejasvi Surya, Karnataka's Minister for Large & Medium Industries and Infrastructure Development M B Patil, Minister for IT & BT Priyank Kharge.
Several entrepreneurs from the city, including Kiran Mazumdar-Shaw, executive chairperson and founder of Biocon Limited and Biocon Biologics Limited, had also attended the 'site dedication ceremony'.
