Document Type

Brief

Publication Date

2000

Abstract

The various initiatives to eradicate FGC in Mali over the past two decades have had little impact on this traditional practice. This study assessed the use of health personnel to combat FGC, as recommended by the World Health Organization. Conducted in 1998 by the Association de Soutien au Developpement des Activites de Population, a nongovernmental organization, and the Ministry of Health, the study covered 14 urban and rural health centers in Bamako and Segou. In the eight health centers that served as experimental sites, 59 health providers, including physicians, midwives, nurses, and aides, attended a three-day training course on identifying and treating medical complications related to FGC and counseling clients about FGC. In the six centers that served as control sites, 48 providers were interviewed. As noted in this brief, health providers are an important potential resource in campaigns to eradicate female genital mutilation, but a concerted effort is needed to ensure that they can become effective behavior change agents. After a three-day training course, providers’ knowledge about FGC increased, but few of them counseled their clients about FGC.

Comments

Also available in French

DOI

10.31899/rh2000.1021

Language

English

Project

Frontiers in Reproductive Health

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