Risk, reproduction, and rights: the uses of reproductive health data

Discusses the ways the results of epidemiological studies are used and misused as guides to policies and programs that affect women's reproductive health. It suggests that relative risk is usually not the appropriate measure of risk, since it reflects neither the client's perspective nor the possible public health implications. Policies and programs need to be guided first and foremost by respect for fundamental dignity and the rights of women as human beings. The core of these rights is respect for women's decisions, which are based not just on health considerations, but on a variety of personal, economic, and practical considerations as well. Programs that claim to promote reproductive health cannot be fully successful unless they supply women with the information and means to implement their own risk/benefit calculations. -from Authors