Contextualizing urban living as a determinant of women’s health in Jakarta, Indonesia

ABSTRACT

Big cities can offer great opportunities for women to have a better life. At the same time, however, the physical and social environment in cities can negatively affect their health. We conducted focus groups with 24 women (aged 18–72 years) living in Jakarta, Indonesia from October to November 2014. Our aim was to elicit women’s experiences of living in Jakarta, including their health and accessing health care. The most frequent health problems reported by women in this study were hypertension and arthritis. Women often gave priority to their family, particularly their children, over themselves and their own health. Discussants also thought that the city’s physical and social conditions could affect their health, and that women were more prone to feel stress than men. The results of this study highlight the importance of addressing social determinants of health across the life course, including gender, to improve women’s health status. Moreover, multi-sectoral collaboration at the municipal and national level is needed for urban planning to create better living conditions for women in the cities.

KEYWORDS:

• Determinants of health
• focus groups
• Indonesia
• urban issues
• women’s health

Acknowledgments

We are grateful to the Jakarta Health Office, Cilandak and Tebet Community Health Centres, for their support in participant recruitment for this study, and our participants for taking the time to speak with us. Thank you to Dr. Albert Maramis, Community Psychiatry Section, Indonesian Psychiatry Association, for his contribution in finalizing the list of questions in Indonesian.

Funding

This research was supported by the Priority Research Centre for Gender, Health and Ageing, and Hunter Medical Research Institute.

Additional information

Funding

This research was supported by the Priority Research Centre for Gender, Health and Ageing, and Hunter Medical Research Institute.