Determinants of reproductive health and related quality of life among Indian women in mining communities

Aim. This article is a report of a mixed method to examine the determinants of reproductive health and quality of life among Indian women. Background. Reproductive health among married women in stressed regions of industrialized countries is an increasingly important consideration, but little is known about the important factors influencing reproductive health and quality of life. Methods. A descriptive correlational research design was used between January and April 2006 with 145 randomly selected married women in a rural mining region of India. The instruments used were the Reproductive Health Index Questionnaire and Interview and Ferrans and Power's Quality of Life Index. Inferential statistics were done using anova and manova. Thematic content analysis was used to analyse qualitative data. Results. Reproductive health and quality of life was low among Indian women in mining communities. Higher age groups, better economic status, higher age at menarche, fewer number of children, absence of long-term illness, reproductive illness and domestic violence were important determinants of reproductive health and quality of life among these women in mining communities. Conclusion. The findings suggest that physical, psychological, sexual, family, socio-economic, energy level and cognitive domains of reproductive health and quality of life need to be assessed and are influenced by important determinants among women. These domains reflected in the theory of goal attainment should be an essential part of nursing process for providing women's reproductive health care in the mining community.