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Full-Text Articles in Medicine and Health Sciences

Population Council-Led Partnership Influences National And Global Efforts To End Female Genital Mutilation/Cutting, Population Council Oct 2020

Population Council-Led Partnership Influences National And Global Efforts To End Female Genital Mutilation/Cutting, Population Council

Research Utilization and Impact Briefs

The Evidence to End FGM/C program has filled critical data gaps, bolstered local capacity, and strengthened stakeholder relationships over the past five years. Through a collaborative, African-led approach, the program informed high-level national policy dialogue in several countries, including Kenya and Nigeria, and contributed to UNFPA’s new global estimates of girls at risk for FGM/C.


Practice-Based Learning: Medico-Legal Evidence Collection As Part Of Post-Rape Care In Refugee Contexts, Michael Gaitho, Ronald Kotut, Anne Ngunjiri, Jane T. Thiomi, Josephine Ngebeh, Chi-Chi Undie Sep 2020

Practice-Based Learning: Medico-Legal Evidence Collection As Part Of Post-Rape Care In Refugee Contexts, Michael Gaitho, Ronald Kotut, Anne Ngunjiri, Jane T. Thiomi, Josephine Ngebeh, Chi-Chi Undie

Reproductive Health

Health care providers collect an array of documentation and specimens to support criminal investigations. Such documentation and specimens are referred to as “medico-legal” or “forensic” evidence, and in the case of rape, include a survivor’s documented injuries and emotional state at the time of examination, as well as samples and specimens from the survivor’s body or clothing. For survivors of rape and defilement who want to obtain legal justice, medico-legal evidence is critical. In African countries, health providers and the police are depended upon to ensure such evidence is collected, but medico-legal evidence collection can present challenges. Evidence-based interventions are …


Practice-Based Learning: Establishing Simple Monitoring Systems To Support Sgbv Programming In Refugee Settings, Chi-Chi Undie, Josephine Ngebeh, Jane Harriet Namwebya, Michael Gaitho, George Odwe, Nachela Chelwa, Harriet Birungi, Michael Mbizvo Sep 2020

Practice-Based Learning: Establishing Simple Monitoring Systems To Support Sgbv Programming In Refugee Settings, Chi-Chi Undie, Josephine Ngebeh, Jane Harriet Namwebya, Michael Gaitho, George Odwe, Nachela Chelwa, Harriet Birungi, Michael Mbizvo

Reproductive Health

Implementers of sexual and gender-based violence programs in refugee settings are typically eager to learn about the extent to which their programs are making a difference in the lives of those they serve. Basic monitoring information can help address this imperative without unduly burdening program implementers with time-consuming evaluations. The Sauti/VOICE project is guiding adaptation and implementation of evidence-based SGBV interventions in refugee contexts. These interventions are implemented by UNHCR partners in eight countries in the East, Horn, and Great Lakes region of Africa. Although Sauti/VOICE is primarily focused on integrating tested SGBV interventions into refugee contexts, monitoring the implementation …


Asking And Telling: An Assessment Of The Feasibility Of Screening Children For Sexual Violence In Kenyan School And Health Facility Contexts, Chi-Chi Undie, Margaret Mak'anyengo Aug 2020

Asking And Telling: An Assessment Of The Feasibility Of Screening Children For Sexual Violence In Kenyan School And Health Facility Contexts, Chi-Chi Undie, Margaret Mak'anyengo

Reproductive Health

Although sexual violence against children is increasingly prevalent in Kenya, documented and tested interventions for proactively identifying child survivors and providing them with care are currently nonexistent. This study aimed to determine the feasibility of screening children for SV in both school and health facility settings, and of providing child survivors identified through this process with access to care. The four-component intervention, implemented from January through April 2017, involved parent dialogues; student sensitization; provider training to administer a child-friendly screening tool and respond to child survivors; and SV screening, paired with SV service provision. As noted in this report, the …


Domestic Work, Sexual Abuse, And Exploitation In Tanzania, James K. Matheka, Elizabeth Shayo, Annabel Erulkar Jun 2020

Domestic Work, Sexual Abuse, And Exploitation In Tanzania, James K. Matheka, Elizabeth Shayo, Annabel Erulkar

Poverty, Gender, and Youth

Domestic work is characterized by excessive working hours, extremely low pay or no pay at all, and conditions that make the profession exploitive in many cases. Evidence is emerging that domestic work is a feeder profession for sex work. One study of more than 2,000 commercial sex workers in Ethiopia found that 42 percent were former domestic workers. However, little is known about transitions to commercial sex work or commercial sexual exploitation in Tanzania. The objective of the research detailed in this brief was to expand the understanding of child domestic workers and commercial sex workers/girls who are commercially sexually …


When And How Does Law Effectively Reduce The Practice Of Female Genital Mutilation/Cutting?, Josephine Wouango, Susan L. Ostermann, Daniel Mwanga Apr 2020

When And How Does Law Effectively Reduce The Practice Of Female Genital Mutilation/Cutting?, Josephine Wouango, Susan L. Ostermann, Daniel Mwanga

Reproductive Health

Female genital mutilation/cutting (FGM/C) is recognized globally as carrying risks to both the physical and psychological health of girls and women and is widely considered a violation of human rights. An estimated 200 million girls and women in 30 countries have undergone FGM/C and as many as 30 million girls younger than 15 years of age are at risk. A common policy response to FGM/C is to call for the enactment and enforcement of criminal prohibitions on the practice. Yet, compliance with laws is complex: it can be motivated and undercut by moral, social, religious, and incentive-based factors. The study …


Measurement Of Female Genital Mutilation/Cutting Status: Perspectives From Healthcare Providers, Policymakers, Programme Implementers, And Researchers, Dennis Matanda Apr 2020

Measurement Of Female Genital Mutilation/Cutting Status: Perspectives From Healthcare Providers, Policymakers, Programme Implementers, And Researchers, Dennis Matanda

Reproductive Health

Among practicing communities, female genital mutilation/cutting (FGM/C) is a highly sensitive and emotionally charged issue, and open discussion is often considered taboo. Not only may it be difficult to motivate people to discuss the topic, but the validity of their responses may be questionable. These factors make research on FGM/C challenging and hence the need for careful consideration of research methodologies. There is a need for proper documentation of the strengths and limitations of the various data-collection methodologies to assist in generating reliable data for programmatic efforts toward FGM/C abandonment. This working paper describes a study undertaken to highlight methodological …


Understanding Barriers To Clinical Management Of Rape (Cmr) Services Among Survivors Of Rape In Crisis Settings In Borno State, Osasuyi Dirisu Mar 2020

Understanding Barriers To Clinical Management Of Rape (Cmr) Services Among Survivors Of Rape In Crisis Settings In Borno State, Osasuyi Dirisu

Reproductive Health

Sexual and gender-based violence (SGBV) is a global public health concern disproportionately affecting women, with negative consequences for their health, well-being, human rights, and equality. SGBV includes any act perpetrated against an individual that is against that person’s will and is predicated upon gender norms and unequal power relationships. SGBV occurs in crisis settings where vulnerability is increased, and social and legal sanctions are reduced. Internally Displaced Persons are vulnerable to SGBV during times of conflict as well as in post-conflict settings due to resultant losses of socioeconomic opportunities in addition to housing, security, lack of institutional protection, and familial …


Exploring Changes In Female Genital Mutilation/Cutting: Shifting Norms And Practices Among Communities In Fafan And West Arsi Zones, Ethiopia, Getaneh Mehari, Asabneh Molla, Ayantu Mamo, Dennis Matanda Mar 2020

Exploring Changes In Female Genital Mutilation/Cutting: Shifting Norms And Practices Among Communities In Fafan And West Arsi Zones, Ethiopia, Getaneh Mehari, Asabneh Molla, Ayantu Mamo, Dennis Matanda

Reproductive Health

Globally, more than 200 million women and girls have undergone FGM/C. More than half of these girls and women live in three high-prevalence countries: Egypt, Ethiopia, and Indonesia. Given the increase in population growth, recent estimates show that the number of girls and women subject to FGM/C will continue to rise in the coming years unless sufficient efforts are undertaken to encourage abandonment of the practice. A descriptive analysis of changes in FGM/C prevalence over time in Ethiopia shows that the percentage of women aged 15–49 years who report undergoing FGM/C has been declining. Despite the decline, the FGM/C prevalence …


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 Feb 2020

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 Feb 2020

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 …