Cervical cancer treatment policy in urban Saskatchewan : a feminist case study

Abstract

Treatment based on biomedical principles has become the normative structure for medical practice in Canada. This model, however, imposes on patients rather than involves them as active agents in care. This feminist case study assesses the extent of a women's health approach within cervical cancer treatment at a cancer clinic in western Canada. It critically examines the rationale for and implementation of the clinic's policies drawing from semi-structured interviews with nine professionals working in cervical cancer treatment as well as from relevant information distributed to patients. Of the nine participants in the study, few were aware of women's health approaches and among those who were, it is apparent that the program does an inadequate job of representing women's needs. The recommendations of this project direct attention towards raising the profile of women's health and incorporating gender-based analysis into the biomedical treatment setting. The research identifies a need to raise the awareness of healthcare professionals who work in the area of women's health by emphasizing the importance of involving women directly in the formation of clinic policies in an attempt to prize experience as much as evidence.