The Role of the Print Media in Promoting Menstrual Hygiene Management in Ghana

Abstract

Menstruation is a needful biological process which is an integral and normal part of human life and existence. This process prepares the body for its reproductive operations, and menstrual hygiene is fundamental to the dignity and well-being of women and girls and an important part of the basic hygiene and reproductive health services to which every woman and girl has a right (McMahon, Winch, Caruso, Obure, Ogutu, Ochari, & Rheingans, 2011; House, Mahon, & Cavill, 2012). However, in 2017, a 12-year-old girl in India committed suicide after her teacher reproached her for soiling her uniform with menstrual blood (BBC, 2017). A 12-year-old was also made to sleep in a hut next to her house while menstruating and she lost her life to the Gaja cyclone (BBC, 2018). In 2018, some girls in the central region of Ghana were banned from crossing a river to school while menstruating and reports indicate about 70 percent of girls in rural Ghana can only bath once during their periods as they are barred from fetching water during their menstrual periods (BBC, 2018; Ghanaweb, 2019). These instances highlight the ostracized treatments women and girls consistently receive on account of their menstrual activity in the very crucial and formative years of their being.