Liberalizing, Feminizing and Popularizing Health Communications in Asia by Liew Kai Khiun

Author:Liew Kai Khiun [Khiun, Liew Kai]
Language: eng
Format: epub
ISBN: 9781315592312
Google: yR2aAQAACAAJ
Publisher: Routledge
Published: 2010-01-15T06:02:32+00:00

Conclusion

In Taiwan, the understanding and practices of Cesarean births have become as much a cultural phenomenon as it is framed principally in medical terms. This is because the discourse of birthing is framed within the complex relationships between health politics and the mass media. Firstly, even with more diversified sources of health information, the influence of the medical profession remains dominant in the Taiwanese media, so much so that the views of childbirth espoused by medical practitioners continue to be treated as authoritative sources of health knowledge on hospital websites, women’s magazines, and individual blogs. Articles written by physicians have been constantly and casually quoted in online discussion boards, and health related popular magazines and websites often recommend “good communication” with one’s doctor as the best guarantee to safe childbirth. Nonetheless, the burgeoning media does offer mothers-to-be more room to gather and exchange information about the quality of health care in each hospital and clinic, as well as an outlet through which they may scrutinize the possible side-effect of various medical interventions in childbirth.

Secondly, the so-called health communication is not merely conveying “correct” and scientific-based information to the public. The medical advice given to mothers-to-be in Taiwan has been influenced by changing medico-political trends. When official mindsets shifted against Cesarean Sections, the obstetrician community followed suit (some reluctantly) by redefining the notions of risks on vaginal births. This trend was also promptly reflected in the mass media. The prevalence of such medical paternalism questions the assumption that the post-martial law Taiwan enjoys a more pluralized and democratized media culture.

In my case study of Cesarean births in Taiwan, I argue that the unequal doctor-patient power relationships have been reinforced by the Taiwanese mass media claiming that “selfish” and “irrational” women are responsible for the extremely high Cesarean rates. In turn, such media representations have become part of a vicious cycle in further entrenching the medical authority and control over a woman’s choice of birth. Nevertheless, the mass media, particularly the Internet, has provided a crucial platform for not just information sharing and mutual support. It offers women greater access to medical knowledge and options, as well as alternative views on reproductive and infant health. Although medical opinion still holds significant sway, the increasing accessibility of a plethora of views from popular health magazines to online discussion forums indicates that mothers and mothers-to-be are no longer solely reliant on their obstetricians and gynecologists for information.

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