Women's Health West :: Working with Bosnian women

Bosnian Women's Are Doing It For Themselves

Bosnian women's health day Behar Choir

Women's Health West aims to encourage women to build their skills and confidence to optimise their own health. The first important step in our health promotion work is to understand the specific cultural context of the group that we're working with in order to facilitate shifts in power between health workers and women. More than three years ago we began working with a group of Bosnian women in the Melbourne's west who shared their horrific experiences of war. They told us about many ways that they continued to experience the effects of their trauma, grief, and resettlement. When I asked, "How do you survive?" women talked about being together, laughing and celebrating. "There's never enough dancing," one woman said. Sharing food and talking to one another is an important part of Bosnian life so a health festival day seemed like the perfect way to promote health with this community. The dancing and laughter experienced at the inaugural Bosnian women's health day set the scene for a second and now a third women's health festival.

In the first year, the Bosnian women's group, Ostanimo Zajedno (Let's Stay Together) seemed unsure about this 'festival' idea. I asked the group about every aspect of the event and focused on building opportunities for getting women to attend. They answered my questions but didn't seem to understand what I was 'on about'. Once the day got underway, women loved the festival! They were surprised and delighted at the influence they had over how things happened. "It was so Bosnian". In the second year Women's Health West's role was a much more consultative one. Women asked me for resources, information and support to organise their event.

Bosnian women's health day Bosnian Festival Participants

Sanelia of the Australian Bosnian Association organised the third event. We had a conversation about having another festival and I was delighted to receive an invitation to the event many months later. Sanelia organised an amazing day where volunteers worked together to provide a traditional meal of bread and delicious cavapi (Bosnian skinless?sausages) and for the Behar Choir entertain the group. She summed up the success of the day when Sanelia said, "We had around 100 people attend, the community were happy to hear Dr Nermana and Renata. The lunch was also very exciting part of this fantastic day. Hope to have something similar in the future."

Dr Nermana Gradisic addressed the group in Bosnian language: together they explored mental health, specifically depression and issues associated with isolation, and the health impacts of smoking and osteoporosis. Renata Lacevic from the Institute for Cancer Research discussed healthy eating and ways of preventing bowel and colon cancer. Women were also treated to a light exercise session by the St Albans fitness Centre, who let everyone know about their women-only sessions.

Bosnian women are engaging in community health promotion in a very real way.

Sally Camilleri, Women's Health West.