Chapter 4 86 Interviewer: No, exactly, so something changes in the division of tasks. Interviewee: Yes, in that sense, and that’s where it comes in handy if you have two sons. Because they do this now.” [Interview 32, Man]* Relevance of physical appearance Two women particularly mentioned the importance of their physical appearance and beauty care as a relevant aspect of their womanhood in relation to PD. “Well, I think being a woman, and maybe some men have that too, I think physical appearance is important too. I know my face; my face has just become so different. And it’s nice to look good and be able to move smoothly. I also fell because of Parkinson’s. I broke an ankle and broke my knee and therefore I walked a bit strangely. It wasn’t like ‘here comes a charming lady’. It felt awkward.” [Interview 25, Woman] “What I have started to do is very consciously always dress well. Make sure I look well groomed. That has become more important as I got sicker.” [Interview 22, Woman] Salience of gender in care provision preferences Preference for professional behaviour rather than gender identity In response to our question whether gender identity mattered in preferences towards healthcare providers, most of the men and women with PD stated that behavioural traits were more important than provider’s gender identity. Traits that enabled care experiences such as ‘being treated with respect’ [Interview 20, Woman]. [Interview 34, Man], [Interview 35, Man], ‘being empathic’ [Interview 23, Woman], [Interview 24, Man], ‘being understood’ [Interview 26, Woman], and ‘feeling supported and encouraged’ [Interview 16, Man], [Interview 12, Man], were mentioned as particularly relevant. Moreover, these traits were not associated with gendered traits in terms of masculinity or femininity, but rather in terms of gender-neutral professional behaviours. “Interviewer: Does it matter to you whether your healthcare provider is a man or a woman? Interviewee: No, my Parkinson’s nurse is a man, and my neurologist is a woman. What matters to me is that they understand me.” [Interview 26, Woman] “Maybe I’m not allowed to say this, but man or woman doesn’t really matter to me at all, but how people treat you is much more important” [Interview 12, Man]
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