Lesbian Health: What Are The Issues?

by Phyllis N. Stern (Editor)

Overview

The sexual orientation of lesbians is just one factor in their lives, yet providers of healthcare often assume everyone is heterosexual and counsel their clients accordingly. This book contains a series of scientific investigations by leading authorities in the field into multiple problems lesbians face when seeking healthcare. Should lesbians disclose their sexual orientation? Can it be kept of the record? Where can lesbians go if they feel unable to trust traditional medicine and what is the history of the scientific and medical community towards lesbians? How are lesbians viewed by college students today? Lesbians are treated in this book as women first; their sexual orientation is just one factor in their lives.

Product Details

ISBN-13:	9781135893392
Publisher:	Taylor & Francis
Publication date:	01/11/2013
Sold by:	Barnes & Noble
Format:	eBook
Pages:	151
File size:	3 MB

About the Author

Phyllis Noerager Stern

Table of Contents

Chapter 1 LESBIAN HEALTH CARE RESEARCH: A REVIEW OF THE LITERATURE FROM 1970 TO 1990, Patricia E.Stevens; Chapter 2 ECOLOGICAL TRANSITION: USING BRONFENBRENNER'S MODEL TO STUDY SEXUAL IDENTITY CHANGE, JudithHollander, LindaHaber; Chapter 3 LESBIAN STEREOTYPES, MicheleEliason, CarolDonelan,, CarlaRandall; Chapter 4 REASONS AMERICAN LESBIANS FAIL TO SEEK TRADITIONAL HEALTH CARE, Susan E.Trippet, JoyceBain; Chapter 5 LESBIANS AS AN INVISIBLE MINORITY IN THE HEALTH SERVICES ARENA, M. MoragRobertson; Chapter 6 HEALTH LIFE-STYLES OF LESBIAN AND HETEROSEXUAL WOMEN, Julie A.Buenting; Chapter 7 CARING FOR LESBIANS IN A HOMOPHOBIC SOCIETY, Susan E.Gentry; Chapter 8 AN EXPLORATION OF LESBIANS' IMAGES OF RECOVERY FROM ALCOHOL PROBLEMS, Joanne M.Hall; Chapter 9 HOW DO LESBIAN WOMEN DEVELOP SERENITY?, SharonDeevey, Lana J.Wall; Chapter 10 LESBIAN CHILDBEARING COUPLES' DILEMMAS AND DECISIONS, Janet W.Kenney, Donna T.Tash; Chapter 11 AN INVESTIGATION OF THE HEALTH CARE PREFERENCES OF THE LESBIAN POPULATION, Vicki A.Lucas; Chapter 12 THE LESBIAN CUSTODY PROJECT, JillRadford; INDEX;

Editorial Reviews

Reviewer: Marilyn Johnson, PhD (Rush Medical College of Rush University)
Description: This book, which was originally a special journal issue, describes studies that indicate that prejudice toward lesbians by health care providers has prevented many lesbians from obtaining satisfactory health care.
Purpose: The purpose of the book is to demonstrate empirically that the prejudice of health care providers has harmed lesbians and has prevented many of them from seeking "traditional" health care. In addition, it focuses on two specific aspects of lesbian health issues (alcoholism and childbearing) and discusses the ways in which the health care system frequently fails these women.
Audience: The authors do not name their target audience, but the book is directed at a variety of health care givers, including mental health professionals. Sophisticated readers will be familiar with much of the material, and some may be frustrated by the political tone of some of the chapters.
Features: The book contains no illustrations. There is redundancy among some of the references; some of them are rather old because there was a gap between a spate of earlier studies and the new research being conducted in this area.
Assessment: The book is neither especially attractive nor unattractive. The initial overview chapter is is excellent, but the next several chapters are redundant in demonstrating prejudice through similar studies, and a few primary studies are cited frequently. It suffers some from its origin as a special issue of a journal; it would be more useful and educational if it had been designed as a book spanning a number of relevant issues in lesbian health care rather than focusing only on alcohol treatmentand reproductive issues. Its existence may encourage others to pursue this topic more thoroughly.

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