RT Journal Article
T1 Why Do Some Spanish Nursing Students with Menstrual Pain Fail to Consult Healthcare Professionals?
A1 Ramos Pichardo, Juan Diego
A1 Ortega Galán, Ángela María
A1 Iglesias López, María Teresa
A1 Abreu Sánchez, Ana María
A1 Fernández Martínez, Elia
AB Dysmenorrhea is a problem that affects a large percentage of young women worldwide.Alarmingly, the majority of these women choose to self-medicate rather than consult a healthcareprofessional, despite the risks involved. The present study aimed to explore the reasons whyundergraduate nursing students do not consult health care professionals regarding their menstrualpain. A qualitative study was conducted using an open question: “Why didn’t you consult ahealthcare professional?” within the context of a research project on primary dysmenorrhea amongnursing students at the University of Huelva, Spain. The responses of 202 women were analyzed usingcontent analysis. Three categories were identified: assessment of the pain experienced, expectations,and experiences of professional care and selfcare. We found a striking normalization of the problem;notably, students downplayed the importance of the problem, considering that it was not worthconsulting a physician. Furthermore, there was a notable degree of self-medication using non-steroidalanti-inflammatories (NSAIDs). These results may be useful for orienting policies to raise socialawareness of this problem and for designing health education strategies aimed at women withprimary dysmenorrhea.
PB MDPI
SN 1660-4601
YR 2020
FD 2020-11
LK http://hdl.handle.net/10272/19080
UL http://hdl.handle.net/10272/19080
LA eng
NO Ramos Pichardo, J. D., Ortega Galán, Á. M., Iglesias López, M. T., Abreu Sánchez, A., & Fernández Martínez, E. (2020). Why Do Some Spanish Nursing Students with Menstrual Pain Fail to Consult Healthcare Professionals? International Journal of Environmental Research and Public Health, 17(21), 8173. DOI: https://doi.org/10.3390/ijerph17218173
DS Repositorio Institucional de la Universidad de Huelva
RD 30 may 2026