WATROUS, Sask. – It was a question asked by psychoanalyst Sigmund Freud, and now a health research group wants to know.
What do women want?
Here are some answers given by rural Saskatchewan women when asked how to improve the health-care system.
- Less turf protection by doctors, nurses and therapists. More teamwork and primary health care.
- More home care.
- Do things based on needs, not wants. People must learn to be self-reliant and take charge of their own health through good habits, such as nutritional diets and regular exercise.
- More flexibility to accommodate rural needs, especially with staff and resource shortages. Recruit
female doctors.
- Adequate incomes for farmers and the working poor. Reduce the gap between rich and poor.
- Recognize women’s uniqueness in their nurturing roles as family caregivers and in terms of physical differences for drug testing. Deal with the fact that women suffer from depression more than men.
- Deal with the loneliness and isolation felt by rural seniors.
- Use more prevention and alternative therapies.
- Investigate the power of drug companies, particularly their influence on doctors.
