Family Practice Vol. 18, No. 4, 445-448
© Oxford University Press 2001
Health, attitude to care and pattern of attendance among gypsy women—a general practice perspective
Mariehems Health Centre, Morkullevagen 9, 90651 Umeå and
a Department of Primary Health Care, Göteborg University Vasa Hospital, 4133 Göteborg, Sweden.
Background. There is a lack of knowledge about health and attitude to care among gypsies.
Objectives. The aim of this study was to explore the reasons for and patterns of attendance among gypsy women in primary health care and to shed light on health problems of gypsies.
Methods. Four gypsy women, frequently attending a primary health care centre, were interviewed in depth. Data were analysed according to grounded theory. Additional facts were received from record files.
Results and Conclusions. The gypsy women seldom approached the health centre alone but paid a visit together with relatives or friends. The women usually presented the same type of symptoms, often pain, headache and depression, and obtained the same type of diagnosis and treatment. The symptoms had an acute character and the women wanted immediate access. A collective pattern, a hierarchical order and a strict rule system characterized the gypsy life and coloured the relation to health and illness. Young women were especially vulnerable and could easily end up outside the collective and display symptoms.
Keywords. Attitude to care, collective pattern, gypsy, health, primary care.