Sommer, Marni, Jennifer S. Hirsch, Constance Nathanson et al., “Comfortably, Safely, and Without Shame: Defining Menstrual Hygiene Management as a Public Health Issue,” American Journal of Public Health 105, no.7 (July 2015), doi:10.2105/AJPH.2014.302525

URL: ajph.aphapublications.org/doi/10.2105/AJPH.2014.302525

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Abstract

In recent years, the menstrual hygiene management challenges facing schoolgirls in low-income-country contexts have gained global attention. We applied Gusfield’s sociological analysis of the culture of public problems to better understand how this relatively newly recognized public health challenge rose to the level of global public health awareness and action. We similarly applied the conceptualization by Dorfman et al. of the role of public health messaging in changing corporate practice to explore the conceptual frames and the news frames that are being used to shape the perceptions of menstrual hygiene management as an issue of social justice within the context of public health. Important lessons were revealed for getting other public health problems onto the global-, national-, and local-level agendas.

This study gives an overview of the historical factors that have contributed to menstrual hygiene management (MHM) gaining global attention. As the perception of responsibility for providing effective MHM shifts from the individual or family to being viewed as a public health concern, the authors highlight lessons they believe must be learned to move forward effectively. This is noteworthy as it raises further questions on autonomy and public responsibility.