Medicine and Health Sciences Commons^™

Smarter Mothers, Healthy Children, Smaller Families: A Look At The Impact Of Women’S Education On Family Planning Decisions In The Sultanate Of Oman, Kerala Hise

Independent Study Project (ISP) Collection

Is there a single, perfect, cure-all policy that a government can enact to achieve sustained development? This is a question international organizations and individual leaders ask themselves every day. There will always be ‘less-developed’ nations, this is a reality of having ‘developed’ nations, but there is no reason that humanity should allow there to be ‘under-developed’ nations, not when we have at hand the tools and knowledge to enact immediate, sweeping changes now. However, because different people, different groups feel that their idea or proposal is of the utmost importance, that change is often never realized. Often, too much value …

Summary And Analysis: Mental Health Infrastructure In Ulaanbaatar, Mini Saraswati

Independent Study Project (ISP) Collection

Questions about the mind have been asked by a variety of peoples and cultures throughout the ages. While fields of psychiatry and psychology have developed in an effort to address these questions, the issue of how to best handle the mentally ill within the framework of society is ultimately a political one. While there has been work done in mapping the attitudes towards mental health, the level of awareness about mental health issues, and the quality of treatment in different institutions, little is known about these topics in a newly developing country like Mongolia. Much of the research on how …

Cancer Control: A Comparison For Progress, Stephanie Lachapelle

Independent Study Project (ISP) Collection

The cancer burden in developing countries like Yemen is significant. These countries are presently ill equipped to adequately provide quality cancer control and care because they have limited financial and medical resources. The first steps to necessary to adequately control the eminent cancer crisis in these countries is to initiate sustainable, cost-effective cancer control strategies. This includes the development of a national cancer control framework, enacting preventative educational programs, increasing biomedical treatment capacity, addressing the need for patient empowerment, and training a significant number of medical professionals. These initiatives can be successfully implemented and supported by networks between various aspects …

Interning At The Médecins Sans Frontières Operational Office In Geneva, Casie Reiss

Independent Study Project (ISP) Collection

The following report outlines and analyzes the internship and interactive research undertaken by the student, Casie Reiss, during the independent research period. The one-month internship was completed at the Médecins Sans Frontières Operational Office in Geneva in the Operational Communications Department. The subject of research was “The evolution of public positions of the main actors involved in addressing malnutrition.”

Surgeons And Bureaucrats: An Interactive Research Experience At The World Health Organization, Hannah Lust

Independent Study Project (ISP) Collection

During a recent internship at a general hospital in my hometown of Dallas, I could occasionally be found lurking around the main surgical unit. I wanted to be surrounded by the atmosphere of saving lives by manipulating the tiniest capillaries, the most sensitive nerves, the most essential organs. The idea of racing against the clock to save a life, yet having to work with the utmost care is one that is unsettling and enthralling to me all at once. Surgery is infinitely intricate, exceedingly precise, and beautifully complex. And quite simply, it fascinates me. At the same time, I am …

Economics, Epidemics & Eradication: A Case Study Of Malaria In Madagascar, Kathleen Minton

Independent Study Project (ISP) Collection

Despite effective techniques for preventing and treating malaria, the malaria burden in Madagascar remains quite high, particularly in rural areas where poor villagers are more isolated from health services, and less likely to be able to afford prevention methods or treatment. In response to this challenge, Madagascar’s government has made malaria eradication a high priority, stating that it hopes to reduce the incidence of malaria from its current level of 1,234,520 to 320,000 by 2012, and to eliminate the disease entirely by 2018. Ultimately, though, it remains to be seen if their efforts will be sufficient to meet these ambitious …

‘The Core Resource’ The Role Of Informal Caretakers Of The Mentally Ill As Seen In Uganda, Dana Carroll

Independent Study Project (ISP) Collection

Human experience is constantly mediated by culture. Many new studies have shown the significant role of culture in mental health, mental illness, and mental illness treatment. This project seeks to identify some of the cultural determinants of mental illness treatment in Uganda. Specifically, it has studied the role of family members in a mentally ill patient’s healing process. This study was conducted through semi-structured personal interviews with individuals from three subject groups. Group 1 consisted of mental health professional Group 2 members of organizations offering mental health services, and Group 3 the caretakers of mentally ill persons. All participants consented …

The Integration Of Traditional And Western Medicine In Ngaoundéré, Cameroon, Alison Hardy

Independent Study Project (ISP) Collection

The purpose of this study was to examine how patients in Ngaoundéré Cameroon integrate traditional and Western medicine, and how they perceive such integration on the part of their health care providers. Interviews were conducted with thirty-five patients of the Hôpital Provincial and of traditional medical practitioners in the neighbourhood of Yarmbang. Both modern and traditional health care providers were also interviewed. Patients generally believe that the two types of medicine have different strengths related to cost, accessibility, accuracy of diagnosis and treatment, ability to treat certain illnesses, and practitioners’ understanding of patients’ culture. Patients decide whether to use modern …

Health As A Basic Human Right: Efficacy Of Quality Assurance For Healthcare In Uganda, Ally Pregulman

Independent Study Project (ISP) Collection

Quality of health care is an important aspect of health services delivery because of its ability to maximize outputs within given resource constraints. Quality assurance programs for health care are paramount to the realization of good quality health care because of their ability to identify gaps in service provision. The Ministry of Health and other stakeholders in health care have created quality assurance supervision and support programs for the health sector, yet there is a disconnect between the programs and the operational realities of the sector. The health-related Millennium Development Goals (MDGs) are far from being achieved within Uganda and …

A Concentrated Look At Hiv/Aids: Transmission To Low Risk Women Through Intravenous Drug Users And Female Sex Workers In Da Nang City, Vietnam, Danielle A. Depeau

Independent Study Project (ISP) Collection

Female sex workers (FSW) and intravenous drug users (IDU) whom were living in Da Nang City, Vietnam, along with the women and children associated with these individuals, were interviewed to study the effects of Human Immunodeficiency Virus (HIV) and Acquired Immune Deficiency Syndrome (AIDS). In addition, an understanding how the epidemic was spreading from high-risk populations to the general population was explored. This was achieved by learning the history of sexual behaviors in regards to sexual partners and regularity of condom use, as well as drug injection practices, HIV/AIDS education, treatment, gender status and socio-demographic characteristics.

Informal interviews were conducted …

Surviving The War, Surviving The Peace: Supporting Women Survivors Of War-Rape And Domestic Violence In Medica Zenica, Zoë Brennan-Krohn

Independent Study Project (ISP) Collection

My research sought to examine the transition from war to post-war services provided in a women’s non-governmental organization, Medica Zenica, located in central Bosnia-Hercegovina. Opened in 1993, in the midst of the war in Bosnia, Medica Zenica began providing support for war-rape survivors. Today, Medica Zenica is still running, but the majority of clients are now survivors of domestic violence.

By interviewing women currently and previously employed in Medica Zenica, I pieced together a picture of how Medica has evolved in the last fifteen years, as well as how these evolutions are seen as a reflection of changing society in …

“We’Re Talking About Sex”: Young Adults And Sexual Health In Northern Ireland, Caroline Erin Morris

Independent Study Project (ISP) Collection

No abstract provided.

Revitalizing The Human Spirit Together: A Case Study Of Movimento De Saúde Mental Comunitária Do Bom Jardim In Bom Jardim, Fortaleza, Ceará, Ana Bonilla

Independent Study Project (ISP) Collection

My research will delve into the workings of the community of Bom Jardim in Fortaleza, Ceará, in their endeavors for positive mental and physical community development through the tactics of their base organization Movimento de Saúde Mental Comunitária do Bom Jardim (MSMCBJ). Specifically I am looking at the Terapia Comunitária (community therapy) program, one of the many branches of MSMCBJ, and how through their projects do they fulfill their goal of organizing a community from the roots to blossom into a healthier and more vibrant one. I will also look into how this model is sustainable and why this method …

Urf: Islamic Biomedical Ethics In Rural Mali, Amanda Reider

Independent Study Project (ISP) Collection

Anxious faces gather at the entrance to La Grande Mosquée de Sanankoroba, an imposing cement structure amongst small mud homes, awaiting the imam’s decision. He is not a mujtahid , but offers fatwas nonetheless; today’s is on birth control. Men crowd around—and a few women at the rear—to hear him speak out against birth control, against the use of oral contraception, for being against Islam and against God’s plan. And when his speech finishes, the faces disappear, back into their homes, and little discussion ensues. Instead, men return to their wives to share the verdict, to denounce family planning as …

Obstetric Fistula In Mali, Chandler O’Connell

Independent Study Project (ISP) Collection

Obstetric fistula is arguably the most devastating result of childbirth complications, aside from maternal and neonatal mortality, the latter of which almost always occurs during deliveries which result in fistula. Defined as a hole in the birth canal, obstetric fistula is generally caused by prolonged obstructed labor in the absence of prompt medical intervention.20 This injury results in chronic incontinence through the vagina as well as many other secondary health consequences.33 Additionally, it is impossible to measure the extensive social and psychological burdens suffered by women because of this affliction. Despite the fact that obstetric fistula is both preventable and …

Tibetan Medicine: Carving A Niche In The Modern Medical And Scientific Community, Devon Marie Fitzgerald

Independent Study Project (ISP) Collection

Tibetan medicine is an ancient tradition, stretching back over one thousand years. Today, the Tibetan medical community, centered at the Men-Tsee-Khang (Tibetan Medical and Astrological Institute) in Dharamsala, India, is trying to bring Tibetan medicine into the modern world. They are doing this mainly by focusing on research, based on modern scientific methods, to produce clinical and laboratory studies demonstrating the efficacy of Tibetan medicine. This paper compiles interviews from Men-Tsee-Khang staff closest to these projects, articles about modernizing traditional medicine from both the Tibetan and Western perspectives, and a review of some of the recent studies to come out …

Taming The Mind: Current Mental Health Treatments And Obstacles To Expanding The Western-Model In A Tibetan Exile Community, Dylan Brock

Independent Study Project (ISP) Collection

No abstract provided.

Como Mujer…Yo Decido: El Derecho De Salud Sexual Y Reproductiva En Mujeres Aymara De Putre, Chile, Alice Manos

Independent Study Project (ISP) Collection

The human right to sexual and reproductive health, as defined at the International United Nations Conference on Population and Development (Cairo, 1994), continues to be a pending issue in Chile. The sexual and reproductive health of indigenous women emerges as a crucial issue within this field due to Chile’s history of cultural ignorance and a dictatorial healthcare system. Studies of women’s sexual and reproductive healthcare within indigenous communities in Chile have focused on the Cosmo vision and traditional medicine of the Aymara due to their distinct concepts of reproduction, gender roles, and family planning. Studies conducted by Maria Soledad Pérez …

Give Life Without Losing Life: The Casa Materna Of Matagalpa And The Struggle To Prevent Maternal Death, Lily Emiko Friedman

Independent Study Project (ISP) Collection

Maternal mortality has a face. It is the health indicator with the greatest disparity between the developed and developing worlds, disproportionately affecting poor women with low levels of education, high levels of fertility, and inadequate access to health services. It is the health inequality that most clearly shows how poor health outcomes continue to be directly linked to poverty and socioeconomic disadvantage, while the right to safe pregnancy and motherhood comes with economic privilege. As it occupies such a critical position in community health, maternal mortality has been widely studied and the target of countless health interventions aimed at its …

¨En Este País No Se Habla Con La Verdad¨: Investigando La Falta De Educación Sexual En El Ecuador¨, Laney Rupp

Independent Study Project (ISP) Collection

No abstract provided.

Sex Education In Amsterdam: What They Do And Why They Choose To Do It., Coral E. Hackler

Independent Study Project (ISP) Collection

Sex education in the Netherlands has been regarded by many as exemplary. Around the world the phrase “Double Dutch” is known as the term of using both the condom and the pill. The actual effectiveness of sexuality education in the Netherlands has rarely been studied. The teachers themselves must decide what they believe will be the most effective methods of sexuality education. This begs one to question why a teacher chooses the methods they have chosen and what makes them believe that these methods are effective. Because there is no research on how sexuality education is directly influencing students, teachers …

The Influence Of Medicinal Plants On The Spiritism, Religion, And Science Of Tulear, Madagascar, Meghan Sweet

Independent Study Project (ISP) Collection

Medicinal plants are polyvalent remedies used in industry and medicine. They have curative and preventative powers when used internally and externally on humans. They are also used for agricultural and veterinary purposes. They are necessary to the human body to give health and strength. Medicinal plants influence spiritism, religion, and science. These three worldviews make value judgments regarding medicinal plants. This study determines some limits and interdependencies of each worldview by looking at how they are influenced by medicinal plants in Tulear, Madagascar.

The Complexity Of Re-Evaluating Antiretroviral Therapy Eligibility Guidelines For Hiv/Aids Patients In Uganda, Jennifer Klein

Independent Study Project (ISP) Collection

When I first learned that the eligibility criteria for Antiretroviral Drugs (ARVs) in Uganda is to have a CD4 cell count of 200 or below, I was shocked. Actually, I think my exact response was, “So patients must have full-blown AIDS, severely weakened immune systems, and may be on their deathbeds before they can receive the drugs?” I knew little of the subject, other than that in the United States HIV-positive patients who are on drugs may avoid many of the opportunistic infections and complications that come from delaying treatment until the CD4 count is low. My initial confusion over …

South Africa’S Unsung “She-Roes”: A Practicum Study Of Npo Grandmothers Against Poverty And Aids, Khayelitsha Township, Cape Town, Rachel Pryzby

Independent Study Project (ISP) Collection

Across Africa, the AIDS pandemic has forced HIV+ individuals and orphaned children into the care of elderly women. Though this has occurred in millions of families, little support has been offered for the grandmothers supporting children and grandchildren on a limited income. This study reports on a practicum study at Grandmothers Against Poverty and AIDS (GAPA), the first African organization to recognize the important role played by grandmothers in light of HIV/AIDS. The study was conducted in April 2008 at the GAPA center in Khayelitsha Township, Cape Town. The main objective of the study was to evaluate the organization’s origin, …