Feminist Practice in Women's Health Care

Feminist Practice in Women's Health Care has grown from its authors' convictions that feminist ideas can play an important role in improving health care for everyone. It is written by a group of women involved in women's health care as practitioners, teachers and researchers, who discuss their attempts to work with a feminist perspective in a variety of hospital, community and voluntary work settings.;They believe that women want to have greater control over their own lives and health, and therefore need to know how their bodies work, what can go wrong with their health, what causes ill- health,what treatments are available, and how these might work to their advantage or otherwise.;But knowledge is not enough, and if women are to have more control they will have to negotiate the health care system, which requires self confidence and a feeling of equality with professionals. Ways of working and relating to each other that have been built up in the women's movement can help women to become more knowledgeable and assertive. This requires health workers to share their knowledge and power, and work in non- hierarchical ways both with clients and among themselves. The authors hope that their ideas and experiences will promote discussion and help them and others to give and receive more caring, respectful and rewarding health care.