Empowering Women In Haiti: Perceptions Of The Days For Girls International Program For Feminine Hygiene And Reproductive Health

Abstract

Recent studies report that Haitian women are concerned about unmet women’s health issues. The Days for Girls (DfG) International program features women’s health education and personal hygiene kits to ensure women understand the process of menstruation and use sanitary hygiene practices. The aims of this study were to identify the perceived benefits and challenges to using the DfG International program kits for high school and college women in Haiti and to identify ways to adapt the current DfG program for Haitian culture. A post-use survey design was used to study the perceptions of young women in Leogane, Haiti. Forty-four women (89.9%) from the Episcopal University of Haiti and forty-eight women (86%) from Saint Croix High School used the DfG kits for two-months and completed the post-use survey. Although neither group ranked lack of feminine hygiene products as the most critical reason for school absences, both groups agreed that there is a need for feminine hygiene programs in Haiti and the DfG kits were easy to use and clean. Both groups recommended changes in the design of the DfG hygiene products to make the shields and liners more comfortable and suggested the kits would be more widely accepted if white in color. The DfG program could provide a cost-effective feminine hygiene program for Haiti and future studies should focus on distribution of the kits in the more rural areas.