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Understanding motivations to seek and carry out female genital plastic surgeries to contribute to better informed decision-making of girls/women and to support medics in developing ethical practices

Project description

Addressing ethical considerations in female genital plastic surgeries

The growing global interest among girls and women in female genital plastic surgery (FGPS)lacks a comprehensive understanding of their motivations and how to approach this issue with responsibility and ethics. With the support of the Marie Skłodowska-Curie Actions programme, the FGPS project will investigate the motivations of girls and women in Belgium and the Netherlands seeking FGPS treatment. The goal is to provide support to healthcare practitioners in responsibly addressing FGPS requests, while also helping girls and women make well-informed decisions. The project will draw upon theories from medical and social sciences, transcending traditional boundaries to create a novel multidisciplinary approach that addresses the ethical considerations associated with the rising interest in FGPS.

Objective

This project investigates why girls and women in Belgium and the Netherlands (increasingly) seek female genital plastic surgeries (FGPS) and how healthcare practitioners handle requests for these surgeries. The results will feed into the development of an informed decision-making tool for girls and women, a European standardised assessment tool to support health professionals in handling FGPS requests in a medically responsible and gender-sensitive way, and guidelines for policy-makers on how to regulate and/or reimburse FGPS. The project is important given the worldwide increase in FGPS and the current lack of insight into what drives requests for FGPS and how to handle these requests responsibly. The project creates an opportunity for Europe to establish itself as a world leader in responding to the surge in FGPS, which is happening across the (industrialised) world but which, so far, has not received an adequate response. The project is multidisciplinary and integrates theories from medical and social sciences, including medical anthropology, bioethics, and public health, transcending the disciplines’ traditional boundaries. It uses a mixed-methods approach, including semi-structured interviews, questionnaires, and desk research. The project will be hosted by Rhea, the interdisciplinary research centre on gender, intersectionality, and bioethics at Vrije Universiteit Brussels, in collaboration with the Ghent University Hospital Gender Team, an internationally renowned multidisciplinary team of plastic surgeons, sexologists, and gynaecologists who specialise in genital surgeries. With these teams’ support and my background in sociology, gender, and social anthropology and expertise in women’s health and genital surgeries, I am confident that I will successfully carry out this project and establish myself as a leader in the field of female genital surgeries. The project will prepare me for a career in women’s sexual health in academia, government, or civil society.

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Keywords

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Programme(s)

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Topic(s)

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Funding Scheme

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HORIZON-TMA-MSCA-PF-EF - HORIZON TMA MSCA Postdoctoral Fellowships - European Fellowships

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Call for proposal

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(opens in new window) HORIZON-MSCA-2022-PF-01

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Coordinator

VRIJE UNIVERSITEIT BRUSSEL
Net EU contribution

Net EU financial contribution. The sum of money that the participant receives, deducted by the EU contribution to its linked third party. It considers the distribution of the EU financial contribution between direct beneficiaries of the project and other types of participants, like third-party participants.

€ 175 920,00
Address
PLEINLAAN 2
1050 BRUSSEL
Belgium

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Region
Région de Bruxelles-Capitale/Brussels Hoofdstedelijk Gewest Région de Bruxelles-Capitale/ Brussels Hoofdstedelijk Gewest Arr. de Bruxelles-Capitale/Arr. Brussel-Hoofdstad
Activity type
Higher or Secondary Education Establishments
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Total cost

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Partners (1)

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