Digital Commons Network^™

Tap And Reposition Youth (Try): Providing Social Support, Savings, And Microcredit Opportunities For Young Women In Areas With High Hiv Prevalence, Annabel Erulkar, Judith Bruce, Erica Chong, Aleke Dondo, Jennefer Sebstad, James K. Matheka, Arjmand Banu Khan, Anne Gathuku

Poverty, Gender, and Youth

Nairobi, Kenya is home to one of the largest slum populations in sub-Saharan Africa. Adolescents living in these slums, especially girls, are cut off from the potentially protective environments of school and family and lack safe economic opportunities. Unemployment is a major concern for adolescent girls, and desperate circumstances force them to survive however they can: 21 percent of sexually active girls aged 15–19 report exchanging sex for money or gifts. This heightened vulnerability is reflected in rates of HIV infection. In response to these circumstances, the Population Council and microfinance institution K-Rep Development Agency collaborated on the implementation of …

Influencing Girls' Lives: Acceptability And Effectiveness Of A Livelihoods Skill Building Intervention In Gujarat, Sewa, Sewa Academy, Shveta Kalyanwala, Rajib Acharya, Sunetra Deshpande

Poverty, Gender, and Youth

The Self Employed Women’s Association (SEWA), a key Indian micro-finance nongovernmental organization, in partnership with the Population Council, undertook a pilot livelihoods skill-building program to support adolescent girls aged 13–19 years (mostly unmarried, in school and out of school). Like other such programs, this livelihoods program focused on exposing girls to new ideas, building social networks, exposing them to the world around them, and providing the technical skills needed to enhance their access to income generating opportunities. The study’s findings are mixed, but suggest that a life and livelihoods skill-building intervention program for girls is acceptable to adolescents (and their …

Assessment Of District Health Supervisory System, Pakistan Initiative For Mothers And Newborns (Paiman)

Reproductive Health

The Pakistan Initiative for Mothers and Newborns (PAIMAN) is a five-year project designed to reduce the country's maternal and neonatal mortality by making sure women have access to skilled birth attendants during childbirth and throughout the postpartum period. PAIMAN developed a community-based approach that provides a continuum of care to mothers and newborns through supportive linkages from home care to hospital-based care. Various assessments of the district health system suggest that it suffers from weaknesses that impair its efficiency, quality, and impact. Inefficient and ineffective supervision is one of the most important factors for the health sector’s poor performance. Effective, …

Baseline Household Survey: Buner District, Pakistan Initiative For Mothers And Newborns (Paiman)

Reproductive Health

The Pakistan Initiative for Mothers and Newborns (PAIMAN) is a five-year project funded by the United States Agency for International Development (USAID). PAIMAN is committed to assisting the Government of Pakistan in implementing the full spectrum of interventions necessary to address maternal and neonatal health issues. USAID has provided a grant to implement PAIMAN in ten districts of Pakistan’s four provinces. The goal of the project is to reduce maternal, newborn, and child mortality. The project calls for a multipronged and integrated strategic approach combining individual health care with public health and community-based interventions. To ensure that success is properly …

Baseline Survey: Summary Report Of District Jhelum, Pakistan Initiative For Mothers And Newborns (Paiman)

Reproductive Health

This summary report presents some of the key findings of a 2005 baseline household survey in Jhelum district, one of the ten districts in Pakistan that are the focus of the PAIMAN project. The Pakistan Initiative for Mothers and Newborns (PAIMAN) is a five-year project funded by the United States Agency for International Development. The project is committed to assisting the Government of Pakistan in implementing the full spectrum of interventions necessary to address maternal and neonatal health (MNH) issues. PAIMAN district survey results are presented individually for each of the ten districts. PAIMAN developed a monitoring and evaluation plan …

Baseline Survey: Summary Report Of District Dg Khan, Pakistan Initiative For Mothers And Newborns (Paiman)

Reproductive Health

This summary report presents some of the key findings of a 2005 baseline household survey in Dera Ghazi Khan (DG Khan) district, one of the ten districts in Pakistan that are the focus of the PAIMAN project. The Pakistan Initiative for Mothers and Newborns (PAIMAN) is a five-year project funded by the United States Agency for International Development. The project is committed to assisting the Government of Pakistan in implementing the full spectrum of interventions necessary to address maternal and neonatal health (MNH) issues. PAIMAN district survey results are presented individually for each of the ten districts. PAIMAN developed a …

Baseline Survey: Summary Report Of District Lasbela, Pakistan Initiative For Mothers And Newborns (Paiman)

Reproductive Health

This summary report presents some of the key findings of a 2005 baseline household survey in Lasbela district, one of the ten districts in Pakistan that are the focus of the PAIMAN project. The Pakistan Initiative for Mothers and Newborns (PAIMAN) is a five-year project funded by the United States Agency for International Development. The project is committed to assisting the Government of Pakistan in implementing the full spectrum of interventions necessary to address maternal and neonatal health (MNH) issues. PAIMAN district survey results are presented individually for each of the ten districts. PAIMAN developed a monitoring and evaluation plan …

Baseline Household Survey: Lasbela District, Pakistan Initiative For Mothers And Newborns (Paiman)

Reproductive Health

The Pakistan Initiative for Mothers and Newborns (PAIMAN) is a five-year project funded by the United States Agency for International Development (USAID). PAIMAN is committed to assisting the Government of Pakistan in implementing the full spectrum of interventions necessary to address maternal and neonatal health issues. USAID has provided a grant to implement PAIMAN in ten districts of Pakistan’s four provinces. The goal of the project is to reduce maternal, newborn, and child mortality. The project calls for a multipronged and integrated strategic approach combining individual health care with public health and community-based interventions. To ensure that success is properly …

Baseline Survey: Summary Report Of District Rawalpindi, Pakistan Initiative For Mothers And Newborns (Paiman)

Reproductive Health

This summary report presents some of the key findings of a 2005 baseline household survey in Rawalpindi district, one of the ten districts in Pakistan that are the focus of the PAIMAN project. The Pakistan Initiative for Mothers and Newborns (PAIMAN) is a five-year project funded by the United States Agency for International Development. The project is committed to assisting the Government of Pakistan in implementing the full spectrum of interventions necessary to address maternal and neonatal health (MNH) issues. PAIMAN district survey results are presented individually for each of the ten districts. PAIMAN developed a monitoring and evaluation plan …

Baseline Household Survey: Dera Ghazi Khan District, Pakistan Initiative For Mothers And Newborns (Paiman)

Reproductive Health

The Pakistan Initiative for Mothers and Newborns (PAIMAN) is a five-year project funded by the United States Agency for International Development (USAID). PAIMAN is committed to assisting the Government of Pakistan in implementing the full spectrum of interventions necessary to address maternal and neonatal health issues. USAID has provided a grant to implement PAIMAN in ten districts of Pakistan’s four provinces. The goal of the project is to reduce maternal, newborn, and child mortality. The project calls for a multipronged and integrated strategic approach combining individual health care with public health and community-based interventions. To ensure that success is properly …

Baseline Household Survey: Rawalpindi District, Pakistan Initiative For Mothers And Newborns (Paiman)

Reproductive Health

The Pakistan Initiative for Mothers and Newborns (PAIMAN) is a five-year project funded by the United States Agency for International Development (USAID). PAIMAN is committed to assisting the Government of Pakistan in implementing the full spectrum of interventions necessary to address maternal and neonatal health issues. USAID has provided a grant to implement PAIMAN in ten districts of Pakistan’s four provinces. The goal of the project is to reduce maternal, newborn, and child mortality. The project calls for a multipronged and integrated strategic approach combining individual health care with public health and community-based interventions. To ensure that success is properly …

Baseline Household Survey: Khanewal District, Pakistan Initiative For Mothers And Newborns (Paiman)

Reproductive Health

The Pakistan Initiative for Mothers and Newborns (PAIMAN) is a five-year project funded by the United States Agency for International Development (USAID). PAIMAN is committed to assisting the Government of Pakistan in implementing the full spectrum of interventions necessary to address maternal and neonatal health issues. USAID has provided a grant to implement PAIMAN in ten districts of Pakistan’s four provinces. The goal of the project is to reduce maternal, newborn, and child mortality. The project calls for a multipronged and integrated strategic approach combining individual health care with public health and community-based interventions. To ensure that success is properly …

Baseline Survey: Summary Report Of District Dadu, Pakistan Initiative For Mothers And Newborns (Paiman)

Reproductive Health

This summary report presents some of the key findings of a 2005 baseline household survey in Dadu district, one of the ten districts in Pakistan that are the focus of the PAIMAN project. The Pakistan Initiative for Mothers and Newborns (PAIMAN) is a five-year project funded by the United States Agency for International Development. The project is committed to assisting the Government of Pakistan in implementing the full spectrum of interventions necessary to address maternal and neonatal health (MNH) issues. PAIMAN district survey results are presented individually for each of the ten districts. PAIMAN developed a monitoring and evaluation plan …

Baseline Survey: Summary Report Of District Jaffarabad, Pakistan Initiative For Mothers And Newborns (Paiman)

Reproductive Health

This summary report presents some of the key findings of a 2005 baseline household survey in Jaffarabad district, one of the ten districts in Pakistan that are the focus of the PAIMAN project. The Pakistan Initiative for Mothers and Newborns (PAIMAN) is a five-year project funded by the United States Agency for International Development. The project is committed to assisting the Government of Pakistan in implementing the full spectrum of interventions necessary to address maternal and neonatal health (MNH) issues. PAIMAN district survey results are presented individually for each of the ten districts. PAIMAN developed a monitoring and evaluation plan …

Baseline Household Survey: Upper Dir District, Pakistan Initiative For Mothers And Newborns (Paiman)

Reproductive Health

The Pakistan Initiative for Mothers and Newborns (PAIMAN) is a five-year project funded by the United States Agency for International Development (USAID). PAIMAN is committed to assisting the Government of Pakistan in implementing the full spectrum of interventions necessary to address maternal and neonatal health issues. USAID has provided a grant to implement PAIMAN in ten districts of Pakistan’s four provinces. The goal of the project is to reduce maternal, newborn, and child mortality. The project calls for a multipronged and integrated strategic approach combining individual health care with public health and community-based interventions. To ensure that success is properly …

Systematic Screening: A Strategy For Determining And Meeting Clients' Reproductive Health Needs, James R. Foreit

Reproductive Health

Systematic screening is a strategy to integrate reproductive health services at the provider level. Integration is the proactive provision of multiple reproductive health services in the same facility at the same time. Systematic screening is a simple intervention to increase the number of services received at a single client visit. In this strategy, providers use a checklist or questionnaire to identify each client’s needs and desires for reproductive health services. They then provide these services during the same visit, through an appointment at the same clinic, or through referral to another facility. The Population Council’s Frontiers in Reproductive Health Program …

Baseline Household Survey: Sukkur District, Pakistan Initiative For Mothers And Newborns (Paiman)

Reproductive Health

The Pakistan Initiative for Mothers and Newborns (PAIMAN) is a five-year project funded by the United States Agency for International Development (USAID). PAIMAN is committed to assisting the Government of Pakistan in implementing the full spectrum of interventions necessary to address maternal and neonatal health issues. USAID has provided a grant to implement PAIMAN in ten districts of Pakistan’s four provinces. The goal of the project is to reduce maternal, newborn, and child mortality. The project calls for a multipronged and integrated strategic approach combining individual health care with public health and community-based interventions. To ensure that success is properly …

Baseline Survey: Summary Report Of District Upper Dir, Pakistan Initiative For Mothers And Newborns (Paiman)

Reproductive Health

This summary report presents some of the key findings of a 2005 baseline household survey in Upper Dir district, one of the ten districts in Pakistan that are the focus of the PAIMAN project. The Pakistan Initiative for Mothers and Newborns (PAIMAN) is a five-year project funded by the United States Agency for International Development. The project is committed to assisting the Government of Pakistan in implementing the full spectrum of interventions necessary to address maternal and neonatal health (MNH) issues. PAIMAN district survey results are presented individually for each of the ten districts. PAIMAN developed a monitoring and evaluation …

Safe Motherhood Applied Research And Training (Smart) Report 3: Changes In Knowledge And Behavior Of Women And Families, Muhammad Shafique Arif, Peter C. Miller, Nayyer Munir, Irfan Masood

Reproductive Health

The Safe Motherhood Applied Research and Training (SMART) project was conceived as an operations research project designed to test the effectiveness of two different strategies for improving maternal and neonatal health in Pakistan. To evaluate the results of this test, several types of evaluative research were conducted, including qualitative studies of various types, health systems assessments, evaluations of specific components, and household surveys. The household surveys are the subject of this report, which is Report 3 (Changes in knowledge and behavior of women and families) in a series of six. The surveys are two types: a large-scale, before-after household survey …

Reproductive Health Update Trainings For Health Workers In North Eastern Province, Garissa, Kenya Ministry Of Health, Population Council

Reproductive Health

The Somali community living in Kenya has practiced the severest form of female genital mutilation/cutting (FGM/C), infibulation, for centuries. To understand the context within which the practice takes place, and how its complications are managed, FRONTIERS undertook a diagnostic study in North Eastern Province and in the Eastleigh area of Nairobi. The study found that the health system is ill equipped to serve women who have been cut, and particularly infibulated women who are pregnant and delivering, stemming from an overall weakness in the availability and quality of maternal and neonatal heath services. Specific recommendations could strengthen these services so …

Scaling Up A Reproductive Health Curriculum In Youth Training Courses, Laila Rahman, M. Mazharul Islam, Ubaidur Rob, Ismat Bhuiya, M.E. Khan

Reproductive Health

The Population Council’s Frontiers in Reproductive Health (FRONTIERS) program, in collaboration with the Bangladesh Ministry of Health and Family Welfare, the Urban Family Health Partnership, and two nongovernmental service delivery partners, carried out the Global Youth project in northwestern Bangladesh from 1999–2003. The important lesson learned from that project was that reproductive health education could increase reproductive health knowledge in adolescents, particularly in areas related to reproductive biology, family planning, pregnancy, sexually transmitted infections, HIV, and AIDS. The population-based surveys further showed that contrary to common belief, reproductive health education does not increase sexual activity; instead it increases the use …

Costs Of Reproductive Health Services Provided By Four Christian Health Association Of Ghana (Chag) Hospitals, James Boateng, Henry Surnye, Alex Mensah, Bismark Boateng, Philomena Nyarko, Nzoya Munguti, John H. Bratt

Reproductive Health

The Christian Health Association of Ghana (CHAG) is a large faith-based NGO which currently serves an estimated 35 percent of the Ghanaian population, mainly in remote rural areas. This study built capacity within the CHAG secretariat to calculate the economic cost and cost recovery levels of selected reproductive health services in four CHAG-affiliated hospitals. Techniques learned in the study are applicable to most costing problems, not just to reproductive health. Information obtained in the study forms the basis for negotiating reimbursement under the Ghana National Health Insurance Scheme, and for setting cost recovery and containment policies. CHAG senior managers plan …

Priority Setting For Reproductive Health At The District Level In The Context Of Health Sector Reforms In Ghana, Harriet Birungi, Philomena Nyarko, Ian Askew, Ayorinde Ajayi, Gifty Addico, Edward Addai, Caroline Jehu-Appiah

Reproductive Health

This report outlines results of an in-depth assessment carried out in Ghana in order to provide a better understanding of key factors affecting reproductive health (RH) prioritization at the district level; and to make recommendations for policy dialogue, advocacy, resource allocation, and RH program implementation. In particular, the study examined whether or not districts are connecting to the central process of priority setting and reasons for not doing so. The report includes recommendations for bridging the policy implementation gap, including: ensuring that RH advocates participate in national policy dialogue; investing in systems development for procurement and delivery of drugs and …

Acceptability And Feasibility Of Introducing The Who Focused Antenatal Care Package In Ghana, Harriet Birungi, Philomena Nyarko, Margaret Armar-Klemesu, Daniel Arhinful, Sylvia Deganus, Henrietta Odoi-Agyarko, Gladys Brew

Reproductive Health

The main objective of this study, undertaken by Noguchi Memorial Institute for Medical Research in collaboration with the Ghana Health Service and FRONTIERS, with USAID funding, was to examine the extent to which adaptation of the WHO focused antenatal care (ANC) package influenced quality of care received by pregnant women and its acceptability to both providers and clients. The results indicate that national-level support for focused ANC is high. The package appears to have been well accepted by both clients and providers because of its comprehensiveness and the individualized care. The process of stimulating changes in focused ANC service delivery …

Acceptability And Sustainability Of The Who Focused Antenatal Care Package In Kenya, Harriet Birungi, Washington Onyango-Ouma

Reproductive Health

The objectives of this study were to assess the Kenyan Ministry of Health’s capacity to adapt focused antenatal care (ANC) at the service delivery level so that it can be sustained, and to examine the extent to which adaptation of the package has increased coverage and quality of key ANC services and the overall quality of care received by pregnant women. The study showed that focused ANC is acceptable to both clients and providers and the approach has also received tremendous support from both the government and health development partners. However, the sustainability of the focused ANC package is contingent …

Correlates Of Inter-Birth Intervals: Implications Of Optimal Birth Spacing Strategies In Mozambique, Saumya Ramarao, John Townsend, Ian Askew

Reproductive Health

The Optimal Birth Spacing Initiative (OBSI) was created under the auspices of USAID to place optimal birth spacing on the global leadership priority agenda. As part of this initiative, Advance Africa documented a pilot intervention to introduce the new spacing message in Mozambique. The FRONTIERS program of the Population Council collaborated with Advance Africa providing technical input, and assistance in the conceptualization of intervention design and evaluation. This paper was written to inform Advance Africa’s efforts in Mozambique and includes a short review of correlates of birth intervals; a presentation of results from analysis of Mozambique-DHS 1997 data that identify …

Cost Of Training Programs And Willingness To Pay For Training: An Application Of Break-Even Analysis In Uganda, Nicholas Mugumya, Juliana K. Nyombi, Michael Matsiko, Rick Homan, Harriet Birungi, Nzoya Munguti

Reproductive Health

The AIDS Support Organization (TASO) provides care and support to persons living with HIV/AIDS in Uganda. The organization has also developed a large number of training courses related to AIDS care and counseling that are offered to local and regional organizations. To explore alternatives for increasing the sustainability of the training center, a team from TASO attended a one-week workshop on financial sustainability and developed an operations research study to determine ways in which the training center could increase its revenues and reduce costs. The report finds that with updated fees as well as changes to the structure of some …

An Analysis Of Tennessee Gateway Exams And The Variables Related To Student Results., Judy W. Webb

Electronic Theses and Dissertations

The purpose of this study was to examine the variables that are associated with the percentage of students who pass Tennessee's Gateway exams in high school. Associations were examined between the Gateway exams and variables such as: socioeconomic status, ethnicity, dropout rate, graduation rate, attendance, average daily membership, per-pupil expenditure, teachers' salary, and elementary-school reading scores.

Pearson correlations between school characteristics and pass rates of three Gateway exams were calculated. Schools were divided into quartiles based upon socioeconomic status and ethnicity in order to examine pass rates of the Gateway exams among different quartiles. Independent samples t tests were performed …

Voices Raised, Issue 08, University Of Dayton. Women's Center

Women’s Center Newsletter

Included in this issue: Taking Time for Families; Award honors work on behalf of women; Students gear up for Daytona trip; Academic Excellence in Women’s Studies; Miryam Award; Mullin to discuss leadership at Round Table; Leadership House offers women chance to learn and serve; Trying to catch a break; Showcasing God’s Beauty; Can a few caring, committed people create positive change?

Ethical Approaches To Gathering Information From Children And Adolescents In International Settings: Guidelines And Resources, Katie D. Schenk, Jan Williamson

HIV and AIDS

This publication provides practical guidance to help program managers and researchers understand and uphold ethical standards when planning and implementing information-gathering activities among children and adolescents, and promotes discussion of ethical issues among people of different backgrounds and training who gather information for different purposes. The publication, which is divided into three parts, is intended to be helpful to anyone who plans, manages, implements, analyzes, or funds any program or research activity that requires gathering information from children and adolescents, including monitoring and evaluation. Part 1 presents key issues that must be considered from the earliest stages of planning and …