Department of Population Studies, London School of Hygiene and Tropical Medicine, London, UK.
Glob Public Health. 2012;7(5):522-34. doi: 10.1080/17441692.2011.641990. Epub 2011 Dec 16.
The purpose of this study was to explore access of Roma in South-Eastern Europe to sexual and reproductive health services. We conducted 7 focus group discussions with a total of 58 participants from Roma communities in Albania, Bulgaria and Macedonia. Our study revealed a number of barriers for Roma when accessing sexual and reproductive health services. Among the most important were the overall lack of financial resources, requests by health care providers for informal payments, lack of health insurance and geographical barriers. Health systems in the region seem to have failed to provide financial protection and equitable services to one of the most vulnerable groups of society. There is also a need for overcoming racial discrimination, improving awareness and information and addressing gender inequalities.
本研究旨在探讨东南欧罗姆人获得性健康和生殖健康服务的情况。我们在阿尔巴尼亚、保加利亚和马其顿的罗姆人社区进行了 7 次焦点小组讨论，共有 58 名参与者。我们的研究揭示了罗姆人在获得性健康和生殖健康服务时面临的一些障碍。其中最重要的是普遍缺乏财政资源、卫生保健提供者要求非正规支付、缺乏健康保险和地理障碍。该地区的卫生系统似乎未能为社会中最脆弱的群体之一提供财务保护和平等服务。还需要克服种族歧视，提高认识和信息，并解决性别不平等问题。
