Health Care Problems of Unmarried Women in Rural Areas: A Study in Chidambaram Area, Cuddalore District, Tamil Nadu

Abstract

Rural women are among the most marginalized groups in Indian society. Many welfare policies are being launched and executed in favour of rural women, who have historically been marginalized. Despite these efforts, rural women continue to be affected by various issues, particularly poor health, which is linked to their productivity and human capital. In this regard, the WHO states that "better health is central to human happiness and well-being. It also makes an important contribution to economic progress, as a healthy population lives longer, is more productive, and saves more." Rural women have limited access to and opportunities to utilize health care policies. Through our study, we intended to assess the perceptions of unmarried women regarding health-care-seeking behaviour related to problems during menstruation. In this study, 300 unmarried women aged 15–35 were selected as the sample. Although the schedules were administered to all 300 women selected in the sample villages for this study, the data were collected from the respondents using a well-structured interview schedule. The association between the health problems at various levels reported by the women in the study area and their socio-economic and demographic variables was analysed using the chi-square test. The major health problems reported by respondents in the study area were analysed with regard to the socio-economic and demographic characteristics of the women. Abdominal pain, profuse bleeding, irregular periods, breast tenderness, painful menstruation, leg pain/backache, headache/vomiting sensation, and white discharge were the major problems reported by the women in the study area. To assess the health problems of women during menstruation, unmarried women were considered for further analysis.