Introduction: There is a gap of knowledge of the health situation among the reindeer herding Sami in Sweden. The Swedish government has also got criticism for not taking responsibility for the Sami health. The aim of this thesis was to get more knowledge to understand the health situation of the reindeer herding Sami in Sweden. Furthermore, gender specific risk factors in the working environment among reindeer herders and their perception of healthcare and social services were investigated. Method: Cross–sectional questionnaires covering different aspects of health such as musculoskeletal disorders, trust for different healthcare providers and work related psychosocial factors was distributed to reindeer herding Sami and non-Sami populations. Interviews with nine reindeer herding Sami about trust in healthcare and social services were carried out and analyzed with thematic analysis. Sixteen discussion meetings with 80 reindeer herders focusing on psychosocial perspectives of working conditions in Sami communities were performed. Result: The prevalence of musculoskeletal symptoms from elbow, hand/wrist and lower back from male reindeer herders were higher compared to blue-collar worker. Psychosocial risk factors for health were identified such as high workload on a few herders, difficulties to get relief and support as well as to get appreciation in work and lack of participation in decisionmaking among women were common in the organization of reindeer husbandry. The trust in healthcare and social services was lower among reindeer herding Sami compared to non-Sami majority population. A hypothesis is that healthcare professionals do not know that the "Reindeer cloud" (metaphor to iCloud) affects all parts in the reindeer herders life. The distrust are influenced by historically traumas, reindeer herding Sami experiences from healthcare professionals and healthcare organization and culturally generated norms. Conclusio: The thesis hypothesized that health disorders, attitude towards healthcare and psychosocial environment are important aspects when trying to understand the health situation among the reindeer herding Sami. There is a need to introduce long-term public health work for all Sami people, to establish ethical guidelines for Sami health research and develop healthcare services that provides access to healthcare for the reindeer herding Sami, on equal terms.
| Identifer | oai:union.ndltd.org:UPSALLA1/oai:DiVA.org:umu-138405 |
| Date | January 2017 |
| Creators | Daerga, Laila |
| Publisher | Umeå universitet, Epidemiologi och global hälsa, Umeå : Umeå universitet |
| Source Sets | DiVA Archive at Upsalla University |
| Language | Swedish |
| Detected Language | English |
| Type | Doctoral thesis, comprehensive summary, info:eu-repo/semantics/doctoralThesis, text |
| Format | application/pdf |
| Rights | info:eu-repo/semantics/openAccess |
| Relation | Umeå University medical dissertations, 0346-6612 ; 1906 |
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