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Sociology

Series

2008

Reproductive Health

Articles 31 - 40 of 40

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Study Of Sexually Transmitted Infections Among Urban Men In Pakistan: Identifying The Bridging Population, Ali M. Mir, Laura Reichenbach, Abdul Wajid, Mumraiz Khan Jan 2008

Study Of Sexually Transmitted Infections Among Urban Men In Pakistan: Identifying The Bridging Population, Ali M. Mir, Laura Reichenbach, Abdul Wajid, Mumraiz Khan

Reproductive Health

Pakistan currently has low levels of HIV infection, however the country is considered at high potential risk for an HIV epidemic. In major cities there are large concentrations of individuals whose behaviors make them extremely vulnerable to the rapid spread of HIV and of classical sexually transmitted infections (STIs), including male and female sex workers, men who have sex with men, and injecting drug users. HIV can spread to the general population through individuals who have contact with both high-risk groups and the general heterosexual population (the “bridging population”). Identifying the bridging population and bridging behaviors among urban men and …


Introducing Systematic Screening To Reduce Unmet Health Needs: A Manager's Manual, Ricardo Vernon, James R. Foreit, Emma Ottolenghi Jan 2008

Introducing Systematic Screening To Reduce Unmet Health Needs: A Manager's Manual, Ricardo Vernon, James R. Foreit, Emma Ottolenghi

Reproductive Health

This manual is designed to help program decision-makers, managers, supervisors, and providers introduce systematic screening in their health services. Systematic screening can improve women’s health by addressing multiple unmet needs for reproductive and other health services. This manual provides: activities necessary to implement systematic screening; how to select facilities, services to screen for, and who will screen; systematic screening checklist development, adaptation, and pretesting; advice for training screeners/providers and supervisors and an outline of a generic training agenda. The manual’s contents may be adapted to reflect local, national, or programmatic health priorities and resources as well as to promote the …


Operations Research For Managers Of Reproductive Health Programs, James R. Foreit, M.E. Khan Jan 2008

Operations Research For Managers Of Reproductive Health Programs, James R. Foreit, M.E. Khan

Reproductive Health

The course presented in this publication defines operations research (OR) as the study of factors under the control of health program managers and other decision-makers. The purpose of OR is to improve programs and provide information for management decision-making. Successful OR is characterized by a close collaboration between program managers and researchers throughout the study. The course focuses on OR as a branch of the behavioral sciences and deals with formative research and field experiments. It concentrates on improving the research knowledge of managers who have had little or no training in research. The focus of this interactive course is …


Development Of A Quality Assurance Procedure For Reproductive Health Services For District Public Health Systems: Implementation And Scale-Up In The State Of Gujarat, M.E. Khan, Anurag Mishra, Vivek Sharma, Leila Caleb-Varkey Jan 2008

Development Of A Quality Assurance Procedure For Reproductive Health Services For District Public Health Systems: Implementation And Scale-Up In The State Of Gujarat, M.E. Khan, Anurag Mishra, Vivek Sharma, Leila Caleb-Varkey

Reproductive Health

This project was carried out in India, in two districts each in Gujarat and Maharashtra states. It confirmed that quality assurance (QA) checklists and an implementation manual, developed by the USAID-funded Frontiers in Reproductive Health (FRONTIERS) Program of the Population Council in collaboration with UNFPA/India, are useful and effective tools that the Ministry of Health and Social Welfare (MOHFW) can use to monitor the quality of services provided by health facilities. It also demonstrated that this QA mechanism can be easily institutionalized at the district level management. One key lesson has been the critical role that the commitment of state …


Burkina Faso: Political Will, Law Enforcement, And Educational Campaigns Appear To Be Reducing Fgm/C, Population Council Jan 2008

Burkina Faso: Political Will, Law Enforcement, And Educational Campaigns Appear To Be Reducing Fgm/C, Population Council

Reproductive Health

In 2006, FRONTIERS collaborated with the National Committee Against the Practice of FGM/C on an analysis of recent trends in female genital mutilation/circumcision (FGM/C) in rural and urban Burkina Faso. The study, conducted to help develop policies and programs for FGM/C abandonment in Burkina Faso and more widely in Africa, had three components: a description of the institutional, political, and programmatic environ­ment in Burkina; a secondary analysis of data from existing studies; and an assessment of the community’s perceptions and behavior regarding FGM/C, as well as the factors that contribute to abandonment or continuation of the practice. For the policy …


Kenya And Ethiopia: Community And Religious Leaders Are Effective Advocates For Hiv Testing For Young Couples, Population Council Jan 2008

Kenya And Ethiopia: Community And Religious Leaders Are Effective Advocates For Hiv Testing For Young Couples, Population Council

Reproductive Health

Early marriage is common for girls in much of sub-Saharan Africa. A common belief is that marriage protects them from HIV, but studies show that married girls are at much higher risk from HIV and from maternal morbidity and mortality. FRONTIERS conducted operations research in Ethiopia and Kenya to assess the acceptability and feasibility of community-based interventions to raise awareness of the HIV risks of early marriage and promote the use of HIV counseling and testing (C&T) services by couples. The studies were an initial phase in a planned four-year intervention; this brief reports on the feasibility of the approach. …


Increasing Women's Use Of The Iud For Family Planning, Ricardo Vernon Jan 2008

Increasing Women's Use Of The Iud For Family Planning, Ricardo Vernon

Reproductive Health

The intrauterine device (IUD) is highly effective, easy to use, and has few side effects. The device costs the provider about US$2 and offers a duration of protection that makes it the most cost-effective of the temporary methods if used for two years or more. The IUD's many advantages also make it a good alternative for reducing unmet need for long-term contraception around the world. Between 5 and 17 percent of all married women of reproductive age in 53 less developed countries do not want to have more children but are not using a contraceptive method. Because the IUD can …


Multisectoral Youth Rh Interventions: The Scale-Up Process In Kenya And Senegal, Stephanie Joyce, Ian Askew, Anta Fall Diagne, Nafissatou J. Diop, Humphres Evelia Jan 2008

Multisectoral Youth Rh Interventions: The Scale-Up Process In Kenya And Senegal, Stephanie Joyce, Ian Askew, Anta Fall Diagne, Nafissatou J. Diop, Humphres Evelia

Reproductive Health

As in many developing countries, young people in Kenya and Senegal (aged 10–20) account for about 25 percent of the population. To ensure their future contribution to their countries, it is of vital strategic importance to safeguard their welfare. Rapid social change in both countries exposes youth to sexual and reproductive health (RH) risks, including unintended pregnancy, sexually transmitted infections including HIV, and sexual violence. Beginning in 1999, the Population Council’s FRONTIERS program conducted operations research studies that tested the feasibility, acceptability, and cost of a public-sector, multisectoral intervention to enhance young people’s RH knowledge and behavior. Study findings showed …


Assessment Of Knowledge And Attitudes Of Married Women On Maternal And Newborn Health (Mnh) In Selected Union Councils Of Project Districts, Pakistan Initiative For Mothers And Newborns (Paiman) Jan 2008

Assessment Of Knowledge And Attitudes Of Married Women On Maternal And Newborn Health (Mnh) In Selected Union Councils Of Project Districts, Pakistan Initiative For Mothers And Newborns (Paiman)

Reproductive Health

The World Health Organization estimates that 585,000 women die from pregnancy-related conditions each year. Pregnancy-related conditions, including dysfunctional labor, hemorrhage, infection, toxemia, and unsafe abortion, are the leading cause of death among women of reproductive age in many developing countries. The Pakistan Initiative for Mothers and Newborns (PAIMAN) is a five-year project funded by USAID. Its goal is to reduce maternal and newborn mortality in Pakistan, through viable initiatives and capacity building of existing programs and structures within health systems and communities to ensure improvements and supportive linkages in the continuum of health care for women from the home to …


India: Quality Assurance Procedure Monitors And Improves Quality Of Services, Population Council Jan 2008

India: Quality Assurance Procedure Monitors And Improves Quality Of Services, Population Council

Reproductive Health

A quality assurance (QA) procedure was pilot-tested and subsequently scaled up throughout the state of Gujarat, India, after demonstrating that a 65-item checklist is an efficient tool for identifying and remedying gaps in service delivery. From 2004–06, FRONTIERS developed and tested a standardized QA procedure. The State Ministry of Health and Family Welfare (MOHFW) used the procedure to assess health-care services in rural clinics in two pilot districts each in the states of Gujarat and Maharashtra. Based on positive results, the State MOHFW expanded the QA procedure in a phased manner throughout all 25 districts of Gujarat. The model is …