International population and development: the United Nations' Cairo Action Plan for women's health.

The report of the International Conference on Population and Development (Cairo Action Document) was sponsored by 180 national governments and 1,200 nongovernmental organizations during the United Nations' conference on women, population, and development in Cairo, Egypt 1994. Many international conferences preceded the one in Cairo but it was there that women participated at an unprecedented level in shaping the debate. The resulting document represents a quantum leap for women's health. Nurses can play a major role in using the principles in the Cairo Action Document by empowering women and enhancing their health care. To invite dialogue, the authors provide an analysis of the Cairo Plan from a nursing perspective and identify three paradoxes that may hinder progress: Universal values and local cultures, global policy and local implementation, and national development and women's empowerment. Clinicians, scholars, and members of professional organizations are asked to consider the assumptions that underlie the recommendations for action and to propose ways to resolve the problems that may evolve during implementation.

PIP: Nurses can play a major role in promoting the principles outlined in the Cairo Action Document (issued at the 1994 International Conference on Population and Development). This document asserts a commitment to gender equality, educational and economic advancement for women, and a comprehensive reproductive health approach. The extent to which women's health is improved as a result of this and similar international gatherings depends, however, on resolution of three paradoxes. The first concerns potential conflicts between the principle of cultural sensitivity to local beliefs and the acceptance of universal ethical values (e.g., gender equality). Resolution of this paradox could be achieved by elevating the ethical imperative for universal women's rights above any local meanings or traditions. A second paradox relates to the assumption that solutions determined at the international level can be implemented in states and localities that may lack the requisite resources. The third paradox surrounds the emphasis on women's empowerment in less developed countries to stimulate economic growth, without regard for gender disparities in countries where economic progress has far outpaced advances in the status of women.

Matching versus cultural competence in research: methodological considerations.

Researcher/participant matching has been used in nursing research as a strategy for the development of culturally competent knowledge. In this manuscript, the complexities inherent in matching in nursing research are discussed. In raising and discussing issues and questions related to matching, we argue that although matching may be one of the strategies used to generate culturally competent knowledge, it is frequently too complex for operationalization. Therefore, we propose that researchers reflect on questions related to their knowledge of culture, their cultural sensitivity, and the nature of collaboration during every phase of the research. Reflecting on and responding to these questions in every research project may facilitate the development of more culturally competent knowledge.