Asymmetric Power Relations in Gynaecological Consultations for Cervical Cancer Prevention: Biomedical and Gender Issues

Carla Freijomil-Vázquez, Denise Gastaldo, Carmen Coronado and María-Jesús Movilla-Fernández
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Carla Freijomil-Vázquez: Facultade de Enfermaría e Podoloxía, Universidade da Coruña, 15403 Ferrol, Spain
Denise Gastaldo: Bloomberg Faculty of Nursing, University of Toronto, Toronto, ON M5T 1P8, Canada
Carmen Coronado: Facultade de Enfermaría e Podoloxía, Universidade da Coruña, 15403 Ferrol, Spain
María-Jesús Movilla-Fernández: Facultade de Enfermaría e Podoloxía, Universidade da Coruña, 15403 Ferrol, Spain

IJERPH, 2021, vol. 18, issue 15, 1-17

Abstract: A generic qualitative research, using a poststructuralist feminist perspective, was conducted in a Spanish gynaecology unit with the following aims: (a) to analyse how asymmetric power relations in relation to biomedical knowledge and gender shape the medical encounters between gynaecologists and women diagnosed with cervical intraepithelial neoplasia and (b) to explore the cognitive, moral, and emotional responses expressed by patients. A total of 21 women diagnosed with cervical intraepithelial neoplasia were recruited through purposive sampling. Semi-structured interviews were recorded and transcribed, and a thematic analysis was carried out. Two major themes were identified: (a) gendered relations in cervical intraepithelial neoplasia medical encounters are based on hidden, judgmental moral assumptions, making women feel irresponsible and blamed for contracting the human papillomavirus infection; (b) biomedical power is based on the positivist assumption of a single truth (scientific knowledge), creating asymmetric relations rendering women ignorant and infantilised. Women reacted vehemently during the interviews, revealing a nexus of cognitive, moral, and emotional reactions. In medical encounters for management of cervical intraepithelial neoplasia, patients feel they are being morally judged and given limited information, generating emotional distress. Healthcare professionals should question whether their practices are based on stereotypical gender assumptions which lead to power asymmetries during encounters.

Keywords: cervical intraepithelial neoplasia; papillomavirus infections; physician–patient relations; professional–patient relations; emotions; gender identity; gender equity; feminism (search for similar items in EconPapers)
JEL-codes: I I1 I3 Q Q5 (search for similar items in EconPapers)
Date: 2021
References: View complete reference list from CitEc
Citations: View citations in EconPapers (1)

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