Menstruation and homelessness: Challenges faced living in shelters and on the street in New York City.
Health Place
; 66: 102431, 2020 11.
Article
in English
| MEDLINE | ID: covidwho-796013
ABSTRACT
A growing literature attests to menstrual management difficulties of girls, women and other people who menstruate. Largely ignored are the menstruation-management needs of people experiencing homelessness. We explored these realities in New York City through in-depth interviews with individuals living on the street and in shelters (n = 22), key informant interviews with staff at government agencies, shelters and service provider organizations (n = 15), and field audits of public toilets. This paper explores both pragmatic difficulties presented by inadequate access to toilets, bathing spaces, and laundering services, and pervasive menstrual stigma. Amplifying the difficulties was near-constant pressure "to pass," as someone who was not homeless in order to enable increased access to toilets, and as someone who was not menstruating, in order to engage in the activities of daily living. Our findings highlight the need for improved quality and accessibility of bathrooms for sheltered and street-dwelling homeless, and expedited access to bathing and laundering. Such actions are essential given the steady increase in homelessness in NYC and - under the long shadow of COVID - especially timely.
Keywords
Full text:
Available
Collection:
International databases
Database:
MEDLINE
Main subject:
Ill-Housed Persons
/
COVID-19
Type of study:
Qualitative research
Topics:
Long Covid
Limits:
Female
/
Humans
Country/Region as subject:
North America
Language:
English
Journal:
Health Place
Journal subject:
Epidemiology
/
Public Health
Year:
2020
Document Type:
Article
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