Female Genital Mutilation - World Health Organization

● After they have shared their views, the nurse/midwife
can then give information and education on the
anatomy and physiology of the female reproductive
system; the effects of FGM on women’s physical,
psychological, sexual and reproductive health, and
the possible consequences for childbirth.
● The nurse/midwife should give groups an
opportunity to discuss their own experiences of
such health problems. She should then relate these
problems to the practice of FGM (Often, women
who have experienced such problems have not
associated them with genital mutilation, but
attributed them to God’s will or witchcraft).
● The nurse/midwife should help people to identify
good practice and dangerous practice, and to
understand the implications of FGM on the health
of girls and women.
Assisting in the process of
change
If people are already at the point of questioning
their tradition and desiring change, the health
professional should let them decide for themselves
how best to stop the practice, and what would be
culturally appropriate. For example, communities that
value FGM as a rite of passage into adulthood might
wish to find other ways of marking or celebrating a
girl’s transition to adulthood.
In order to assist in this process, the nurse/midwife
should:
● Identify influential people in the community who
may be able to act as change agents.
● Support community members in the process of
devising their own, culturally appropriate strategies
for change, and in implementing those strategies
and monitoring their own performance.
● Give support at all stages of the process and
acknowledge positive actions.
FEMALE GENITAL MUTILATION
STUDENT MANUAL
Behavioural scientists have demonstrated that in
changing any behaviour, an individual goes through a
series of steps (see Figure 3 on page 46).
These are as follows:
1. Awareness.
2. Seeking information.
3. Processing the information and “personalizing” it –
i.e. accepting its value for oneself.
4. Examining options.
5. Reaching a decision.
6. Trying out the behaviour. Receiving positive
feedback or “reinforcement”.
7. Sharing the experience with others.
According to this model, someone making the
decision to reject FGM – whether that person is a
mother, grandparent, father, husband, aunt, teacher,
older sister, or a girl herself – will go through a process
that starts with realising that rejection of FGM is an
option. This will be followed by the person finding
such a choice desirable; reaching the decision to reject
FGM; figuring out how to put this decision into
practice; doing so and seeing what happens; and then
receiving positive feedback from others that
encourages the person to continue with their stand
against FGM. The final stage is when the person feels
confident enough in their decision to “go public” with
it – i.e. share their reasoning and experience with
others, thus encouraging them to follow the example.
This is called the “multiplier effect”. At every step, and
whoever the person is, there is the risk of failure, and
individuals must struggle with the personal and wider
repercussions of the choice they have made.
Community observation visit
A visit to a community will be organized so that
students can attend a community meeting as
observers. After the visit they will be required to
compile a report for presentation in class.
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