| Description |
Sterilisation is a complex and in many aspects controversial topic that requires open and sensitive communication between doctors and women. Given the irreversibility of sterilisation, which can have profound effects on a woman's life, it is important to provide comprehensive counselling that focuses not only on medical aspects but also on psychological, social and ethical ones. Effective communication should be conducted with an emphasis on sufficient information, the autonomy of the woman and her individual needs, and mutual respect between the perspectives of the doctor and the woman. In practice, however, there are significant barriers on both sides that complicate communication and can lead to mutual misunderstanding and frustration. On the physicians' side, barriers include mainly concerns about the young age of women, fear of potential regret after the procedure or concerns related to surgical complications, but also personal beliefs related to ethical issues of sterilisation or their own ideas about traditional family arrangements. Systemic factors, the religious affiliation of the workplace or preference for alternative contraceptive methods also play a role. These factors can lead to unintentional and unconscious paternalistic attitudes, bias or unwillingness on the part of doctors to discuss sterilisation openly and objectively, which can create conflict with women's choice and autonomy. For women, barriers to communicating with doctors about sterilisation are mainly related to the lack of access to information about sterilisation options, misleading, confusing, incomprehensible and non-transparent information about the procedure and its consequences, which in many cases stems from the need to seek information not from doctors but from unverified and unprofessional sources. There is also a fear of being judged and having their decisions questioned, which women may perceive as a lack of respect for their personal free choice in reproductive matters. In this context, a specific group of women are childfree women, whose numbers are increasing in the population, and who face unique challenges when requesting sterilisation. These women often face prejudice and misunderstanding from society and some health professionals as a result of their decision not to voluntarily have children, which increases in intensity the moment they ask a doctor to perform sterilisation. The poster aims to highlight from a psychological perspective the barriers to communication about sterilisation on both the physician's and the woman's side, including the specifics for childfree women. At the same time, the aim is to point out the necessity to involve both parties in overcoming these barriers. Effective and empathic communication between the doctor and the woman is essential to ensure that the decision to sterilise is made in an informed and thoughtful manner, with the woman's best interests in mind. This requires an open dialogue and respect for the woman's individual values and needs. In the case of women who are childfree, it is particularly important that these values are emphasised and that support and respect for their life decision is ensured. This poster has been produced with the support of specific university research: MUNI/A/1519/2023 Possibilities of application of findings from basic psychological research.
|