Medicine and Health Sciences Commons^™

Health Care Providers' And Mothers' Perceptions About The Medicalization Of Female Genital Mutilation Or Cutting In Egypt: A Cross-Sectional Qualitative Study [Arabic], Omaima El-Gibaly, Mirette Aziz

Reproductive Health

The medicalization of FGM/C has been increasing significantly in Egypt making it the country with the highest rate of medicalization. In this qualitative study, we explore the drivers and motives behind why health-care professionals perform FGM/C and why mothers rely on them to perform the practice on their daughters.

No To Circumcision’: The Road To Effective Social Marketing Campaigns In Egypt [Arabic], Salma Abou Hussein, Sarah Ghattass

Reproductive Health

This study sought to understand how, where, and why social marketing campaigns (SMCs) supporting abandonment of female genital mutilation/cutting (FGM/C) are working, and with what impact, to inform design and scale-up of campaigns that can foster new perspectives, expectations, and behaviors.

A Diagnostic Assessment Of The Health System's Response To Female Genital Mutilation/Cutting Management And Prevention In Kenya: A Case Study Of West Pokot County, Samuel Kimani

Reproductive Health

Female genital mutilation/cutting (FGM/C), a pervasive cultural practice in some contexts, is associated with negative impacts on women’s and girls’ health and rights. The health sector is well positioned to respond to the prevention of FGM/C and the management of its complications because of its primary role in disease prevention, health promotion, and curative services. In Kenya, the health sector’s role is anchored in national and county legal and policy instruments and guidelines that are adopted or customized from global or regional frameworks as well as skills support tools approved by the World Health Organization. This brief highlights findings from …

A Diagnostic Assessment Of The Health System's Response To Fgm/C Management And Prevention In Nigeria—Brief, Osasuyi Dirisu, Adetayo Adetunji, Mayokun Adediran, Otibho Obianwu

Reproductive Health

Globally, over 200 million women have been cut and are living with FGM/C-related consequences. In Africa, an estimated 27 million, 24 million, and 20 million girls/women have undergone FGM/C in Egypt, Ethiopia, and Nigeria respectively, the countries with the highest prevalence of FGM/C on the continent. In Nigeria, although the practice is considered widespread, national surveys suggest a gradual decline of FGM/C prevalence among women aged 15–49 years from 30 percent in 2008 to 20 percent in 2018. While these statistics suggest progress, the prevalence is still as high as 67 percent in some states. Nigeria’s National Strategic Health Development …

Improving The Documentation Of Female Genital Mutilation Or Cutting (Fgm/C) Abandonment Interventions And Their Evaluations, Caroline W. Kabiru

Reproductive Health

Female genital mutilation/cutting (FGM/C) is internationally recognized as a violation of human rights. Consequently, there have been extensive efforts to promote the abandonment of the practice. There is limited evidence on the impact of many of the efforts, in part because many interventions are implemented by small organizations with inadequate resources to document and evaluate their activities. The complex nature of FGM/C interventions, as with other interventions aimed at addressing violence against women and girls, also makes it difficult to adequately document what is done, how, when, and with what results. Nonetheless, it is important that implementing organizations make every …

Introduction Of Dmpa-Sc Self-Injection In Ghana: A Feasibility And Acceptability Study Using Sayana® Press, Dela Nai, Patrick Aboagye, Kamil Fuseini, Elizabeth Tobey, Aparna Jain, Nora Maresh, Rebecca Fertziger

Reproductive Health

This research report describes results from an implementation science study that explored the feasibility and acceptability of administering depot medroxyprogesterone acetate-subcutaneous (DMPA-SC) among health-care providers and family planning (FP) clients in Ghana. DMPA-SC is an injectable contraceptive method that can be self-administered. The study, conducted by the Population Council through the USAID-funded Evidence Project in collaboration with the Ghana Health Service, was implemented in rural, peri-urban, and urban areas of the Ashanti and Volta regions. A total of 150 health-care providers were trained to administer DMPA-SC and to train clients on self-injection. Clients assessed as being competent self-injected under the …

Reflections From Five Years Of Research On Fgm/C, Lori S. Ashford, Reshma Naik, Charlotte Greenbaum

Reproductive Health

From 2015 to 2019, the Evidence to End FGM/C research consortium took a fresh approach to examining the longstanding practice of female genital mutilation/cutting (FGM/C). The African-led program developed innovative research methods and uncovered new evidence about the practice and how it is changing—focusing on families and communities, and health and legal systems. This report documents the consortium’s research methods, the key lessons learned, capacity strengthening efforts, enhanced advocacy for research uptake, and recommendations. The research sheds light on key areas for future investments that would ensure that FGM/C policies and programs are informed by rigorous evidence. The recommendations stem …

Understanding Local Variation In How Female Genital Mutilation/Cutting Declines, Changes, Or Persists: Analysis Of Household Survey Data For Kenya, Nigeria, And Senegal, Population Reference Bureau

Reproductive Health

Efforts to eliminate female genital mutilation/cutting (FGM/C) intensified in many parts of Africa following a 2012 United Nations General Assembly Resolution, but change has been uneven. Important evidence gaps remain in our understanding of why the practice declines, changes, or persists in specific locations. Policymakers and program planners need such information to better tailor interventions to address local patterns and focus resources on abandonment efforts in areas with the greatest needs. To fill these gaps, researchers with the Evidence to End FGM/C consortium analyzed nationally representative household survey data for Kenya, Nigeria, and Senegal. The results of their research identify …

Female Genital Mutilation/Cutting In Nigeria: Is The Practice Declining? A Descriptive Analysis Of Successive Demographic And Health Surveys And Multiple Indicator Cluster Surveys (2003–2017), Ngianga-Bakwin Kandala, Glory Atilola, Chibuzor Christopher Nnanatu, Emmanuel Ogundimu, Lubanzadio Mavatikua, Paul Komba, Zhuzhi Moore, Dennis Matanda

Reproductive Health

This report gives insight into the scale and scope of the practice of female genital mutilation/cutting (FGM/C) among women aged 15–49 years and girls younger than 15 years in Nigeria. It also presents evidence on where FGM/C occurs and highlights the dynamics of change as well as the context surrounding the practice. The report explores in detail the practice of FGM/C from all available sources of nationally representative survey data from 2003 to 2017 and the most relevant contextual information on key factors associated over time with FGM/C. The ultimate objective of the report is to generate evidence to inform …

The Impact Of Sports Nutrition Knowledge On The Physical Effects Of Low Energy Availability In Female Cross Country Runners., Abby Olcott, Catherine Anstrom

Student Scholarship – Family and Consumer Science

Learning Outcome

To understand the impact sports nutrition knowledge has on the risk for developing LEA in Female Cross Country Runners.

Background

The International Olympic Committee introduced the concept of Relative Energy Deficiency in Sports (RED-S) to accurately encompass the condition previously known as the Female Athlete Triad. LEA is the root cause of RED-S. (Mountjoy et al., 2014). The purpose of this study was to measure sports nutrition knowledge and the impact knowledge level has on the susceptibility to develop LEA in female cross country runners.

Methods

A quantitative design was used. Participants included the women’s cross country team …

Tracing Change In Female Genital Mutilation/Cutting Through Social Networks: An Intersectional Analysis Of The Influence Of Gender, Generation, Status, And Structural Inequality, Amadou Moreau, Bettina Shell-Duncan

Reproductive Health

Policies and programs designed to eliminate female genital mutilation/cutting (FGM/C) in Senegal have been implemented over several decades, but the practice has been surprisingly tenacious. Strategies for accelerating abandonment have been informed by theories of change, and social norms theory, in particular, has become a prominent framework for understanding behavior change dynamics. FGM/C is held in place by interdependent normative expectations: what one family chooses to do is linked to expectations of others and reinforced through social sanctions. Hence, a key strategy for promoting behavior change rests on coordinating change in norms and behavior among people who interact with one …

Exploring The Nature And Extent Of Normative Change In Fgm/C In Somaliland, Richard A. Powell, Mohamed Yussuf, Bettina Shell-Duncan, Caroline W. Kabiru

Reproductive Health

More than 200 million girls and women alive today have undergone FGM/C across 30 countries in Africa, Asia, and the Middle East. While most affected countries have adopted legal frameworks prohibiting FGM/C, these have been varyingly effective in preventing the practice or significantly accelerating its abandonment. The success of programmatic interventions to address FGM/C has also been variable. One possible reason for the limited success of these initiatives is the neglect of the collectively held social norms underpinning the practice’s continuation. This study, conducted in 30 villages in Somaliland, aimed to investigate: 1) if the norms associated with FGM/C are …

Associations Between Female Genital Mutilation/Cutting And Early/Child Marriage: A Multi-Country Dhs/Mics Analysis, Jamlick Karumbi, David Gathara

Reproductive Health

Over the last several decades, global efforts to end female genital mutilation/cutting (FGM/C) have intensified through the combined efforts of international and nongovernmental organizations (NGOs), governments, and religious and civil society groups. Evidence of the wider impacts of FGM/C and interventions for its abandonment is small but emerging. The practice of FGM/C has frequently been linked to a girl’s marriageability and is thought to be associated with child marriage, either directly, as a cause of early/child marriage, or vice versa, or indirectly, resulting from common causes. Evidence of the relationships between these two practices to inform programming and policy for …

Modelling And Mapping Of Regional Disparities Associated With Female Genital Mutilation/Cutting Prevalence Among Girls Aged 0–14 Years In Senegal: Evidence From Senegal (Sdhs) Surveys 2005–2017, Ngianga-Bakwin Kandala, Paul Komba, Chibuzor Christopher Nnanatu, Glory Atilola, Lubanzadio Mavatikua, Zhuzhi Moore, Dennis Matanda

Reproductive Health

Between 2005 and 2017, Senegal experienced a slight national decline in the prevalence of female genital mutilation/cutting (FGM/C) among women aged 15–49 years and girls younger than 15 years. However, significant differences in prevalence exist as a result of multifarious risk factors. Our previous research in Senegal described the national trends in FGM/C, showing where, when, and why FGM/C is practiced in Senegal. However, no recent study exists to analyze the geographical patterns of FGM/C and the effect of individual-and community-level risk factors on the likelihood of cutting among girls younger than 15 years. This working paper presents results from …

Modelling And Mapping Of State Disparities Associated With Female Genital Mutilation/Cutting Prevalence Among Girls Aged 0–14 Years In Nigeria: Evidence From Dhs And Mics 2003–2017, Ngianga-Bakwin Kandala, Paul Komba, Chibuzor Christopher Nnanatu, Glory Atilola, Lubanzadio Mavatikua, Zhuzhi Moore, Dennis Matanda

Reproductive Health

The practice of female genital mutilation/cutting (FGM/C) has been positioned as a gender and global development issue that national and international organizations must address for girls and women to thrive in good health and enjoy their fundamental rights. Consequently, many efforts have been made to promote the abandonment of the practice. Despite evidence of a decline in FGM/C, there are significant variations in its prevalence in many sub-Saharan African countries, where the practice persists due to the combined effects of factors among individuals as well as communities. This working paper presents findings from a study that analyzed existing data using …

Population Council Annual Evaluation Report: Opening Futures (Abriendo Futuros) For Indigenous Girls In Yucatan, Mexico, Silvana Larrea

Poverty, Gender, and Youth

This Population Council Annual Evaluation Report includes evaluation activities from December 1, 2015 to December 1, 2019, and future evaluation plans (2019–21), as part of the Opening Futures (Abriendo Futuros) project for indigenous girls in Yucatan, Mexico. The first section describes the finalized analysis of the impact evaluation of the pilot phase; the second section reports the progress of evaluation activities; and the third section includes an evaluation of future plans for the period December 1, 2019 to November 30, 2021.

Knowledge Of Breast Cancer And Screening Methods Among Rural Women In Southwest Nigeria: A Mixed Method Analysis, Rowland Edet, Oluwayimika Ekundina, Obasanjo Afolabi Bolarinwa, Julianah Babajide, Juliet Amarachukwu Nwafor

Department of Sociology: Faculty Publications

The objective of this study was to assess the awareness of rural women on breast cancer and its screening methods in Southwest Nigeria. Descriptive cross-sectional survey design with the aid of a semi-structured questionnaire was used to generate data among 422 rural women in selected communities in Egbeda local government area of Ibadan. The qualitative data was generated through in-depth interviews among rural women and key informant interviews among health workers in the communities. The study revealed that only 63.7% were aware of breast cancer screening methods compared to 31.6% who were not aware of it. The commonly known screening …

Prospects And Challenges Of Population Health With Online And Other Big Data In Africa; Understanding The Link To Improving Healthcare Service Delivery, Rowland Edet, Bolarinwa Afolabi

Department of Sociology: Faculty Publications

Big data analytics offers promises to many health care service challenges and can provide answers to many population health issues. Big data is having a positive impact in almost every sphere of life in more advanced world while developing countries are striving to meet up. Even though healthcare systems in the developed world are recording some breakthroughs due to the application of big data, it is important to research the impact of big data in developing regions of the world, such as Africa and identify its peculiar needs. The purpose of this review was to summarize the challenges faced by …

Is Perception Of Inability To Procreate A Temporal Phenomenon? A Longitudinal Exploration Of Changes And Determinants Among Women And Men Of Reproductive Age In Germany, Jasmin Passet-Wittig, Martin Bujard, Julia Mcquillan, Arthur L. Greil

Department of Sociology: Faculty Publications

Continued postponement of births and increasing use of reproductive medicine enhance the relevance of infertility and related perceptions for fertility research. Fertility researchers tend to assume that an existing perception of inability to procreate is a stable trait among persons of reproductive age. This assumption is questionable from a life course perspective and has not been thoroughly investigated. Therefore we investigate the prevalence, stability, and correlates of perceived inability to procreate. We apply between-within logit models to annual panel data (2008-2015) to study variation in perceived inability to procreate within individuals over time and between individuals. We find that approximately …

Why Does The Importance Of Education For Health Differ Across The United States?, Blakelee R. Kemp, Jennifer Karas Montez

Department of Sociology: Faculty Publications

The positive association between educational attainment and adult health (“the gradient”) is stronger in some areas of the United States than in others. Explanations for the geographic pattern have not been rigorously investigated. Grounded in a contextual and life-course perspective, the aim of this study is to assess childhood circumstances (e.g., childhood health, compulsory schooling laws) and adult circumstances (e.g., wealth, lifestyles, economic policies) as potential explanations. Using data on U.S.-born adults aged 50 to 59 years at baseline (n = 13,095) and followed for up to 16 years across the 1998 to 2014 waves of the Health and Retirement …

La Ciudad Versus El Campo: La Calidad De Vida De Los Adultos Mayores Aymara Entre Arica Y Putre, Clare Rogowski

Independent Study Project (ISP) Collection

The elderly population in Chile is increasing rapidly. In indigenous villages in the interior of Chile, like Putre, the younger generation is leaving to pursue education and employment opportunities in cities, in this case Arica. In many cases no one stays to take care of the elders. As the elderly begin to grow older and require greater support, the younger generation seeks to move their family members to the city so that they can care for them. While this provides for greater connection to family and access to medical care for the elderly relatives, the elderly loses their connection to …

The Hapless State Of Amyotrophic Lateral Sclerosis In India: A Comprehensive Look At Life And Medical Services For Als Patients In Rural Himachal Pradesh, Carson J. Bergström

Independent Study Project (ISP) Collection

Amyotrophic lateral sclerosis (ALS) or Lou Gehrig’s disease is a neurodegenerative disorder that leads to paralysis. The disease requires a high amount of medical intervention and interdisciplinary focus to achieve quality of life for patients. This study looks at ALS patient’s lifestyles, their access to these medical devices, Indian therapeutic approaches and policy that impacts patients in Shimla, Himachal Pradesh. As caretakers have a critical part in the care for this disease, their lives were also considered in the case studies. It was found that ALS patients are not experiencing access to medical devices necessary for life because of physical …

Perceptions Of Rural Birthing Practices: A Glimpse Into Maternal And Child Health For Women In Kangra District, Himachal Pradesh, Mackenzie Burke

Independent Study Project (ISP) Collection

Over the past two decades birthing practices within India have drastically changed. This change is most visible in the shift from homebirths to hospital births following the implementation of the National Rural Health Mission. This study aims to understand and give voice to women’s perceptions of birthing practices in the rural villages of Kangra District of Himachal Pradesh. A total of ten interviews were conducted with both mothers and healthcare practitioners in the surrounding villages of Kangra District in order to gain a thorough, qualitative understanding of birthing practices in the local communities. The healthcare practitioners’ responses were divided according …

Intersections Between Health And Disability: A Case Study At Disha Centre, Jaipur, Rajasthan, Finnian Brokaw

Independent Study Project (ISP) Collection

This study investigated intersections between health and disability by asking the question: how do community perceptions of disability at Disha: A Resource Centre for the Disabled in Jaipur, India relate to health and quality of life for a person with multiple disabilities? This study utilized a case study methodology. The researcher took qualitative interviews from six respondents in the immediate educational and familial support network of a 27-year-old man with multiple disabilities. An interview based, qualitative methodology was important for investigating the complexity of perceptions of multiple disabilities and health as intersecting identities. The responses were analyzed and reflected upon …

La Pertinencia Cultural De Los Proyectos Relacionados A La Planificación Familiar De Las Ongs En El Distrito De Acomayo, Sadie Traylor

Independent Study Project (ISP) Collection

Esta investigación identifica y analiza la pertinencia cultural de los esfuerzos de ayuda ambos de una ONG local (Kallpa) y de una ONG internacional (Plan International), examinando específicamente el proyecto de cada ONG vinculado al aumento del acceso y uso de la planificación familiar en el Distrito de Acomayo en la región de Cusco para evaluar cómo opera (o no opera) cada ONG con una pertinencia cultural. Además, esta investigación explora la forma en que las estrategias de cada ONG mantienen un enfoque intercultural, y también analiza las percepciones de los beneficiarios del proyecto como testimonios de cómo este método …

Change In Motherhood Status And Fertility Problem Identification: Implications For Changes In Life Satisfaction, Arthur L. Greil, Julia Mcquillan, Andrea R. Burch, Michele H. Lowry, Stacy Tiemeyer, Kathleen S. Slauson-Blevins

Department of Sociology: Faculty Publications

Objective: To determine whether the association between changes in life satisfaction and becoming a mother (or not) depends on fertility problem identification status.

Background: Evidence and symbolic interactionist theory suggest that, for women who initially perceive a fertility barrier, gaining the valued identity “mother” should be associated with increases and continuing to face a blocked goal (i.e., not becoming a mother) should be associated with decreases in life satisfaction.

Method: This study used the nationally representative two-wave National Survey of Fertility Barriers to conduct a change-score analysis with chained multiple imputation. The focal dependent variable was change in life satisfaction. …

More Kindergarteners Are Exempted From Required School Vaccinations Than In The Past, Kent Jason G. Cheng

Population Health Research Brief Series

The percentage of kindergarteners being granted exemption from vaccination is growing across the U.S. as parents increasingly request exemptions for philosophical reasons. During the 2017-18 school year, 2.2% of kindergartners were exempted from vaccination. This is up from 1.6% during the 2011-12 school year.

“Oh Lord, Save Us From Such Monsters:” Maternal Impression And Monstrous Births In The Eighteenth-Century Netherlands, Sara Hollar

Independent Study Project (ISP) Collection

This historical survey focuses on the memoirs of Catharina Schrader, a Frisian midwife in the eighteenth century, as a lens into beliefs about maternal impression and monstrous births during the early modern period. The then popular theory of maternal impression, where pregnant women could impact their gestating fetus’s appearance or characteristics through their behavior, thoughts, and feelings, was used to explain many instances of monstrous births. Monstrosity, now understood as congenital defects or disabilities, was seen as a result and marker of pregnant women’s moral failings. Using examples of monstrous births from Schrader’s memoirs, I analyze the threat of maternal …

Voices Unheard: Women And Their Children In Nepal’S Incarceration System, Aune Nuyttens, Mikayla Rose

Independent Study Project (ISP) Collection

This research project focused on women in Nepal’s incarceration system. Our goal was to hear and share their stories with the hopes of humanize and de-stigmatize perceptions of female prisoners in and outside of Nepal. A central component to these stories, as we learned, was also the story of prisoner’s children and the NGOs who provide assistance to this vulnerable group of women and their children. The researchers travelled to the east and west of Kathmandu to visit rural and urban prisons in Nepal, and visited various children homes, however the research was based out of Kathmandu, where many of …

Health On The Move: Health-Seeking Behavior Of Changpa Nomads In Ladakh, India, Maya Lubeck-Schricker

Independent Study Project (ISP) Collection

The goal of this study is to understand the health-seeking behavior of Changpa nomads in the Changthang region of Ladakh, India including what health issues these communities face, what they do when they fall sick, any preventative health behavior they implement, as well as the health infrastructure available to them. Very little literature exists on the health seeking-behavior of people in South Asia in general, much less among nondominant lifestyles such as that of nomadic or semi-nomadic people. As such, this research hopes to move towards closing that knowledge gap by conducting and analyzing 26 in depth semi-structured interviews and …