Influence of traditional Vietnamese culture on the utilisation of mainstream health services for sexual health issues by second-generation Vietnamese Australian young women Helen Rawson A and Pranee Liamputtong A,B A School of Public Health, La Trobe University, Bundoora, Vic. 3086, Australia. B Corresponding author. Email: pranee@latrobe.edu.au Abstract. Background: The present paper discusses the impact the traditional Vietnamese culture has on the uptake of mainstream health services for sexual health matters by Vietnamese Australian young women. It is part of a wider qualitative study that explored the factors that shaped the sexual behaviour of Vietnamese Australian young women living in Australia. Methods: A Grounded Theory methodology was used, involving in-depth interviews with 15 Vietnamese Australian young women aged 18 to 25 years who reside in Victoria, Australia. Results: The findings demonstrated that the ethnicity of the general practitioner had a clear impact on the women utilising the health service. They perceived that a Vietnamese doctor would hold the traditional view of sex as held by their parents’ generation. They rationalised that due to cultural mores, optimum sexual health care could only be achieved with a non-Vietnamese health professional. Conclusion: It is evident from the present study that cultural influences can impact on the sexual health of young people from culturally diverse backgrounds and in Australia’s multicultural society, provision of sexual health services must acknowledge the specific needs of ethnically diverse young people. Additional keywords: Grounded Theory, qualitative research, sexual health services. Introduction In Australia, the reproductive and sexual health of young people are important issues, with childbirth and sexually transmissible infections (STI) being major contributors to overall morbidity among this age group. 1 However, although there exists a wealth of literature on the sexual and reproductive health status and behaviours of Australian ‘young people’ as a distinct group, relatively little work has specifically addressed those young people from culturally and linguistically diverse backgrounds. Consequently, variability in the sexual health status and behaviours of ethnic young people cannot be assessed. 2–5 Clearly, the sexual and reproductive development and health of young people are important global health concerns, 6 and although its importance is widely acknowledged in contemporary research, 6–11 research centres primarily on young people’s sexual activity, 8,12–15 unsafe sexual practices and the potential outcomes of risk-taking behaviour (such as STI and teenage pregnancies), 1,7,9 and sex education. 7 A biomedical perspective underpins this body of work to the exclusion of the relevance of prevailing social factors and processes, thus effectively denying the importance of socially informed inquiry. 11 It has been argued that a comprehensive sexual health strategy, involving medical, social, cultural, gendered and age-specific aspects, is needed to ensure that the global population receives and maintains optimum sexual and reproductive health. 11 As part of a wider study, we sought to help fill this void by exploring the factors that can impact on and influence the sexual behaviour of young women in Australia with a specific cultural heritage. In the present paper, the terms ‘young people’ and ‘young women’ are used to denote those aged 18 to 25 years. Existing literature on health research in Australia is largely silent with regard to any challenges and constraints that could impact on the sexual health problems of young people from diverse cultural backgrounds. 16 Our study offers some insight into these factors in relation to the experience of second- generation young Vietnamese Australians. The term ‘second generation’ in this paper refers to Australian-born individuals living in Australia, with at least one overseas-born parent, 17 but also includes those individuals who have lived in Australia from a very young age, with at least one Vietnam-born parent. The relatively young age distribution of second-generation Vietnamese in Australia compared with those from other ethnic groups reflects the various waves of post-war immigration to Australia. Among second-generation Vietnamese, the 0–24-year age group comprises ~99% of the second-generation group. 18 Second-generation young people are in cultural transition, subject to the linguistic and cultural influences of their overseas- born parents as well as the social environment of their country of birth 19 or residence from a young age. While living in two different cultures and social systems, these young people form CSIRO PUBLISHING Research Paper www.publish.csiro.au/journals/sh Sexual Health, 2009, 6, 75–81 Ó CSIRO 2009 10.1071/SH08040 1448-5028/09/010075