Medicine and Health Sciences Commons^™

The Onset Of Fertility Transition In Pakistan, Zeba Sathar, John B. Casterline

Poverty, Gender, and Youth

Recent trends in fertility and contraceptive prevalence indicate that the marital fertility transition in Pakistan, which has been anticipated for three decades, has begun in the 1990s. Before that decade, the total fertility rate had exceeded 6 births per woman for at least three decades, and fewer than 10 percent of married women practiced contraception. The most recent survey data, collected in 1996- 97, show a total fertility rate of 5.3 births per woman and a contraceptive prevalence rate of 24 percent. Underlying this development are macroeconomic trends that have led to widespread economic distress at the household level, and …

Social Networks And The Diffusion Of Fertility Control, Mark R. Montgomery, John B. Casterline

Poverty, Gender, and Youth

Theories of the fertility transition now routinely reserve a place for diffusion effects. Two fundamental behavioral mechanisms account for such effects: social learning and social influence. Social learning refers to the acquisition of information from others. The information might have to do with a new technology or with the health, social, and economic consequences of decisions. In the case of fertility, individuals might learn from others about the availability of a new contraceptive, or about health side effects of certain contraceptives, or about the apparent gains and losses from having fewer children and investing in their schooling. Social influence refers …

What Can Be Done To Foster Multisectoral Population Policies? Summary Report Of A Seminar, Population Council, Overseas Development Council

Poverty, Gender, and Youth

The 1994 International Conference on Population and Development in Cairo was a watershed moment in the definition of population policies. The meeting put an end to the unproductive debate on which is more instrumental in achieving voluntary fertility decline: providing family planning (FP) services or improving social and economic development. The answer was that both are essential. The Cairo meeting also defined the most desirable services and the kind of development that was most empowering, particularly with respect to achieving reproductive choice. Despite this strong dual message from Cairo, only the call for a move away from a narrow vision …

The Impact Of Monetary Crisis And Natural Disasters On Women's Health And Nutrition, Meiwita B. Iskandar

Poverty, Gender, and Youth

This paper analyzes the short-term effects of the monetary crisis and natural disasters in Indonesia on women's health and nutritional status, and activities to monitor and address these problems. The monetary crisis which was announced in January 1998 hit the highest monthly inflation rate of 13 percent in February. Natural disasters that have plagued Indonesia since early 1997, including droughts and forest fires, have been projected to cause famines and an increased likelihood of infant and adult mortality. The economic crisis also directly impacts millions of workforce members threatened by the downsizing of thousands of businesses and factories, in the …

Comparing Quality Of Reproductive Health Services Before And After Clinic-Strengthening Activities: A Case Study In Rural Burkina Faso, Direction De La Santé Et De La Famille (Dsf), University Of Ouagadougou Demographic Research Unit (Uerd), Mwangaza, Population Council

Reproductive Health

Much literature has been written about improving the quality of reproductive health (RH) care at service delivery points (SDPs) because women deserve quality services, and as a means of increasing use of family planning (FP) and other RH services. There are six fundamental dimensions of quality of care: choice of methods, information given to clients, technical competence, interpersonal relations, mechanisms to encourage continuity, and an appropriate constellation of services. Improving these elements is thought to increase client satisfaction, resulting in an increase in contraceptive use and eventually fertility decline. Existing research has not convincingly demonstrated this link between quality of …

Strengthening The Utilization Of Family Planning Operations Research: Findings From Case Studies In Africa, Julie Solo, Annamaria Cerulli, Robert A. Miller, Ian Askew, Elizabeth Pearlman

Reproductive Health

The goal of undertaking operations research (OR) on family planning (FP) and reproductive health (RH) services is to strengthen the ability of programs and policies to maximize access to and quality of these services. This report addresses the need for a greater understanding of how information from OR studies is utilized. The Africa OR/TA Project II undertook a study to assess the extent to which information from OR studies conducted under the Africa OR/TA Project I (1988–1993) was utilized. The study also examined the factors influencing how study results were utilized. Case studies of several OR projects were undertaken to …

Increasing Demand For Reproductive Health Services In A Peruvian Clinic, Federico R. Leon, Anibal Velasquez, Lissette Jimenez, Alicia Calderon

Reproductive Health

Over the past few years, well-established family planning (FP) organizations in developing countries, such as INPPARES, the IPPF affiliate in Peru, have strived to implement the Cairo Agenda. In the process of including reproductive health (RH) in FP care, they have dedicated human resources and infrastructure to provide RH services seldom offered in the past. The problem these organizations now face is to increase use of the newly available RH care. Currently, clients seeking FP services may leave clinics unaware of the other RH care provided. At a time when international donors are phasing out financial assistance, the partially idle …

Emergency Contraception In Zambia: Setting A New Agenda For Research And Action, Yusuf Ahmed, M. Ketata, John P. Skibiak

Reproductive Health

This report summarizes the activities and findings of the first phase of the operations research study, “Enhancing Access to Family Planning Services through the Introduction of Emergency Contraception.” Launched in September 1997, the study was designed to explore a broad range of issues relating to emergency contraception within a developing country context. With financial and technical support from the United States Agency for International Development, the World Health Organization, the Canadian Public Health Association, and the British Department for International Development (DFID), the study consists of an initial exploratory exercise and a subsequent research phase. The report is divided into …

Youth Talk About Sexuality: A Participatory Assessment Of Adolescent Sexual And Reproductive Health In Lusaka, Zambia, Tamara Fetters, Evans Mupela, Naomi Rutenberg

Reproductive Health

Thirty-six percent of Zambia’s 9 million inhabitants are between 10 and 19 years of age, and most adolescents are sexually active by their mid-teens. Pregnant teenagers have an elevated risk of maternal mortality and complications related to birth. In 1990, at Lusaka’s University Teaching Hospital, self-induced abortion accounted for up to 30 percent of maternal mortality, and one-quarter of these deaths occurred in women under 18 years. Sexually transmitted infections (STIs) are a major health problem for adolescents, yet only a small proportion protect themselves from pregnancy and STIs. There are many barriers to improving the situation, including opposition by …

Management Support For Postabortion Operations Research At The Egyptian Fertility Care Society, Population Council

Reproductive Health

The ANE OR/TA Project started its first five-year phase in 1991 addressing increased choice and accessibility of contraceptive use, promoting quality of family planning (FP) services in Asia and the Near East, and promoting the use of operations research (OR) to solve service-delivery problems. The first phase emphasized human resource development. During the years leading up to the 1994 International Conference on Population and Development, there was increased global attention to issues related to reproductive health (RH), and in particular the adverse health implications of harmful RH practices, including unsafe abortion. OR was being called upon to help implement this …

Monitoring Of Macro-Level Family Planning Quality Of Care Indicators, Meiwita B. Iskandar

Reproductive Health

The success of population development in Indonesia can be seen partly from success in reducing population growth. Population growth has declined from 2.32 percent (1971–80) to 1.98 percent (1980–90), and then to 1.66 percent (1990–95). The continued slowing of population growth is expected to bring expanded opportunities for economic development and improved quality of life. The success of family planning (FP) programs cannot be judged solely on reduction of population growth but should also be judged in terms of quality of care (QOC) and success in helping women achieve their reproductive goals. The Indonesian National Family Planning Coordinating Board (BKKBN) …

Adolescent Reproductive Health: Booklet For Parents, Rieny H. Hardjono, Rashmi Pachauri Rajan

Reproductive Health

In Indonesia, collaboration between the Center for Health Research, University of Indonesia, National Family Planning Coordinating Board (BKKBN), UNFPA Jakarta, and the Population Council resulted in production and distribution of two prototype modules as basic materials on reproductive health for families with school-age children and adolescents. An updated version for both parents and adolescents was published by BKKBN. The Population Council believed that international versions (in English) would be of value, as the gaps in information are similar worldwide with respect to topics covered by these modules. Youth are constantly thirsty for knowledge pertaining to their health, particularly their reproductive …

Male Involvement Through Reproductive Health Awareness In Bukidnon Province, The Philippines: An Intervention Study, Lita Palma-Sealza, Marilou P. Costello, Chona R. Echavez

Reproductive Health

Recent years have been characterized by an increasing consensus that, in order to support women's goals and aspirations, health programs directed to the improvement of women's and children's health must consider men's perspectives. Although family planning (FP) is often viewed as the woman's responsibility, men have an important role in decisions of whether FP will be practiced and which method will be used. Even though gender relations in the Philippines are often characterized as being relatively egalitarian, there are several reasons for believing that male involvement in FP is highly relevant for this country. Studies indicate that not only are …

Technical Assistance To Enhance The Institutionalization Of Operations Research Within The Philippines Family Planning Program, Population Council

Reproductive Health

This technical assistance project supports the goal of the Asia Near East Operations Research and Technical Assistance (ANE OR/TA) project of helping strengthen family planning (FP)/reproductive health (RH) operations research (OR) capabilities in the Philippines. During the extension period of the ANE OR/TA project, four OR studies were implemented in the Philippines dealing with cross-cutting issues, including a study to assess the feasibility of integrating RTI management within FP/MCH programs; an intervention study dealing with improving quality of care via expanded FP counseling; an intervention to address high unmet need in Pangasinan Province; and an intervention study to increase male …

Family Planning Operations Research: A Book Of Readings, James R. Foreit, Tomas Frejka

Reproductive Health

For as long as there have been family planning programs, there has been family planning research. At the theoretical level, researchers examine the effect of fertility on health and socioeconomic development and study the determinants of fertility for individuals and populations. At the policy level, studies explore the role of family planning programs in modifying fertility and health. The development of new contraceptives is accompanied by clinical and pre-introductory trials in program settings. Surveys measure changes in contraceptive use and fertility, and the results are used to make decisions affecting programs. Finally, programs themselves carry out operations research (OR) to …

The Future Of The World Health Organization: What Role For International Law?, David P. Fidler

Articles by Maurer Faculty

No abstract provided.

Microbialpolitik: Infectious Diseases And International Relations, David P. Fidler

Articles by Maurer Faculty

No abstract provided.

Young Families' Utilisation, Self-Perceived Requirements, And Satisfaction With Child Health Services In The City Of Belmont, Western Australia, Ailsa M. Munns

Theses: Doctorates and Masters

The expectations of young families regarding care they would like to receive from community nurses working in the child health area is affected by the relationship between those expectations, utilisation and sociocultural factors such as family type, family composition and ethnicity. These factors influence family dynamics, needs, functioning and interactions with the wider community. A descriptive study with both quantitative and qualitative components was used to identify and analyse the self-identified requirements of young families utilising Child Health Services in the Belmont area, Western Australia, and their patterns of utilisation. Twenty five women who had a child or children under …

Accident Experience Of Commonwealth Government Employees In Western Australia : 1 June 1993 To 2 December 1995, David R. Wright

Theses: Doctorates and Masters

This quantitative study documents, analyses and discusses the accident experience of Commonwealth employees in Western Australia from 1 July 1993 to 2 December 1995 as recorded on 1663 accident report forms. The research addresses the problem of lack of knowledge of accidents in the Commonwealth sector of the Western Australian work force. Its purpose is to identify possible areas of health and safety improvement and highlight where accident frequency may be reduced. Risk management is adopted as a conceptual framework to explore categories of accident related data, including month of year, time of day, day of the week of accidents, …

Alcohol Related Violence And Unwanted Sexual Activity On The College Campus, Mary E. Nicholson, Min Qi Wang, Dolores Maney, Jianping Yuan, Beverly S. Mahoney, Daniel D. Adame

Faculty Publications and Presentations

The purpose of this study was to explore the relationships among alcohol consumption, sexual assault and rape, and nonsexual violence in a college population at a large Northeastern university. A 49-item questionnaire was designed to elicit responses from both victims and perpetrators. Of the 1,084 respondents: 518 were male, 566 were female, the majority were White (91.8%), and in the 18-21 age range. Unwanted sexual activity, rape, and violence were significantly related to alcohol consumption on the college campus studied. These data indicated that alcohol was involved in: a) unwanted sexual activity--both from the victim's perspective (85.7%) and from the …

The Beneficial Effects Of Volunteering For Older Volunteers And The People They Serve: A Meta-Analysis, Kevin M. Gorey

Social Work Publications

The current political-economic climate, which is generally supportive of both private and public sector down-sizing, increasingly demands that human service workers assess, engage, and creatively use consumer strengths and resources. This meta-analysis of thirty-seven independent studies provided the means of inferring not only that elder volunteers' sense of well-being seemed to be significantly bolstered through volunteering, but also that such relatively healthy older people represent a significant adjunct resource for meeting some of the service needs of more vulnerable elders, as well as those of other similarly vulnerable groups such as disabled children. Averaging across studies, 85 percent of the …

Integrating Rti Case Management Within Lgu Health Centers: An Intervention Study, Marilou P. Costello, Carmeli Marie Chaves, Chona R. Echavez, Jesus Encena, Jocelyn Ilagan, Orlando Pagulayan

Reproductive Health

In 1994, the Philippines’ Department of Health began assessing the feasibility of syndromic management—utilizing flowcharts and algorithms—for reproductive tract infections (RTIs) in the country’s public health facilities. This intervention, in seven primary health care clinics, trained service providers on RTI case management, improved clinical facilities and laboratories, provided supportive supervision and TA, along with developing training materials. Clinical case management was observed for a six month period. The project also included a cost analysis.

Privies And Privilege: Health And Sanitation In 19th-Century Buffalo, New York, Jacqueline Colleen Denmon

Dissertations, Theses, and Masters Projects

No abstract provided.

Surveillance For Waterborne-Disease Outbreaks -- United States, 1995-1996, Deborah A. Levy, Michelle S. Bens, Gunther F. Craun, Rebecca L. Calderon, Barbara L. Herwaldt

Journal Articles: Epidemiology

PROBLEM/CONDITION: Since 1971, CDC and the U.S. Environmental Protection Agency have maintained a collaborative surveillance system for collecting and periodically reporting data that relate to occurrences and causes of waterborne-disease outbreaks (WBDOs).

REPORTING PERIOD COVERED: This summary includes data for January 1995 through December 1996 and previously unreported outbreaks in 1994.

DESCRIPTION OF THE SYSTEM: The surveillance system includes data about outbreaks associated with drinking water and recreational water. State, territorial, and local public health departments are primarily responsible for detecting and investigating WBDOs and for voluntarily reporting them to CDC on a standard form.

RESULTS: For the period 1995-1996, …

The Structural Response And Performance Of General Hospitals In A Managed Care Environment, Denise M. Mccollum

Theses and Dissertations

The study purpose is to link hospital structure, represented by each hospital’s professional contingent, service mix, and inpatient capacity; and its environment, characterized by the penetration of managed care enrollees. The secondary purpose is to test the relationship between hospital structural change and subsequent hospital performance.

The study employs a non-experimental panel design, with a sample of 1882 community hospitals (service type: general medical and surgical). Environmental variables are measured for the base year 1989. Hospital structural variables are measured for 1989 and 1994, with change variables computed. Performance variables are measured for 1989 and 1995, with change computed for …

Diagnostic Evaluation Of Fine Needle Aspiration Cytology In The Management Of Palpable Breast Lesions, S. H. Shah, Naila Kayani, S. H. Hasan, I. N. Soomro, Shahid Pervez, A. S. Hussainy

Department of Pathology and Laboratory Medicine

A total of 113 fine needle aspirates of the breast masses were evaluated in which the subsequent biopsy or mastectomy specimen were also available for histological examination. The age ranged from 16 to 80 years with a mean of 42 years. In benign conditions the mean age was 34.7 years while in malignant cases it was 48 years. The cytological diagnoses were compared with the histological results which revealed that the specificity and sensitivity of fine needle aspiration cytology in the palpable breast lesions was 86.1% and 89.2% respectively with a positive predictive value of 93% and efficiency of 88.2%. …

Human Dental Microwear Caused By Calcium Oxalate Phytoliths In Prehistoric Diet Of The Lower Pecos Region, Texas, Dennis Danielson, Karl Reinhard

Karl Reinhard Publications

Recent research demonstrates that silica phytoliths of dietary origin are associated with microwear of human teeth. Previous research has shown that severe enamel microwear and dental wear characterizes Archaic hunter-gatherers in the lower Pecos region of west Texas. Calcium oxalate crystals are especially common in Archaic coprolites. The vast majority are derived from prickly pear and agave, which were the dietary staples in west Texas for 6,000 years. The calcium oxalate phytoliths are harder than enamel. Therefore, calcium oxalate crystals are the most likely source of previously documented dental microwear and wear in the lower Pecos region.Am J Phys Anthropol …

Oral Performances As Ritual: Animating The Invisible In Mormon Women's Miscarriage Stories, Kristin Leifson Ballif

Theses and Dissertations

This thesis is comprised of ten Mormon women's miscarriage stories and it is their stories that are used as the text for my analysis. The purpose of the study is to provide a space for these women to share their experiences and to reveal their cultural values and beliefs. Because the women are all Mormon, there are some distinctive cultural and religious values that are shared within their stories and it is these aspects that are analyzed and discussed within the text.

Women need to be able to share their miscarriage stories so as to alleviate feelings of isolation and …

O Estado Atual Do Controle Do Diabetes, Da Dislipidemia E Da Hipertensão [Portuguese], Paulo A. Lotufo

Paulo A Lotufo

No abstract provided.