Public Health Commons^™

Gender-Biased Sex Selection In South Asia: The Situation And Promising Approaches To Restore Balance, Population Council

Poverty, Gender, and Youth

This project summary indicates that sex ratios at birth in South Asia vary considerably. While the sex ratios at birth in Bangladesh and Pakistan have been normal at the country level (103 and 102.5 males per 100 females, respectively), Nepal is showing signs of disturbed sex ratios at birth, with a sex ratio of 106 males per 100 females, and the situation in India is particularly adverse, with a sex ratio at birth of 110 males per 100 females. In all of these countries, preconditions for a deterioration of the sex ratio at birth are evident. Preferences are expressed for …

Burnout: Absence Of Binding Diagnostic Criteria Hampers Prevalence Estimates, Renzo Bianchi, Irvin Sam Schonfeld, Eric Laurent

Publications and Research

Comments on an article by Jef Adriaenssens et al. (see record 2015-00662-015). In a recent review paper, Adriaenssens et al. concluded that about 26% of emergency nurses (EN) suffer from burnout and described their results as alarming. While commentators applaud Adriaenssens et al. efforts to provide a clearer picture of ill-health in EN, they thought that these authors' conclusions were weakened by a fundamental fact, namely, the absence of consensual, clinically valid diagnostic criteria for burnout. Trying to determine the prevalence of a condition that has no binding diagnostic criteria is problematic. Indeed, depending on how researchers decide to …

Health Literacy Proficiency, Sources Of Health Information, And Perceived Barriers To Health Literacy Among Selected Members Of The Hmong Community In Minnesota, Amanda Vang

All Graduate Theses, Dissertations, and Other Capstone Projects

The purpose of this study was to determine health literacy proficiency, sources of health information, and perceived barriers to health literacy among selected members of the Hmong community in Minnesota. Data for this cross-sectional study were collected using the Short Assessment on Health Literacy-English (SAHL-E) screening tool and a questionnaire. The SAHL-E screening tool and a questionnaire were distributed to 40 Hmong residents in the St. Paul/Minneapolis in Minnesota. When combining the numbers of health literacy scores, a mean of 15.5 was reported. The overall findings of this research assessed that the Hmong community in Minnesota has adequate health literacy …

Relationship Between Modality And The Degree Of Knowledge Retention In Bioterrorism Training, Gaylon Rashun Crawford

Walden Dissertations and Doctoral Studies

A public health workforce must be trained to react quickly, especially in the case of terrorist attack. Political leaders and emergency management experts have often cited inadequate emergency training as a contributing factor in the public health system's failed preparations for a bioterrorist event. As a result of these failures, billions of dollars have been allocated towards correcting infrastructure deficiencies including training for public health nurses (PHNs), who are critical to a communitywide medical response. This quantitative study used Pearson's correlation and a multivariate regression analysis to evaluate the most effective modality of bioterrorism training (BTT) for PHNs working in …

Knowledge Of Overdiagnosis And The Decision To Participate In Breast Cancer Screening, Kimberly T. Nembhard

Walden Dissertations and Doctoral Studies

In 2014, breast cancer was the second leading cause of death among Canadian women, with women over age 50 years making up 82% of the identified cases. To address this issue, the Ontario Breast Screening Program developed a media campaign that promoted the benefits of mammogram screening, but not the associated risks (i.e., false-positive, false-negative, radiation exposure, and overdiagnosis). This study was designed to determine whether there was a statistically significant relationship between knowledge of overdiagnosis and participation in mammogram screening. This cross-sectional, correlational study used schema theory supported by the effective health communication model. Forty-one women were invited to …

A Retrospective And Prospective Analysis Of The West African Ebola Virus Disease Epidemic: Robust National Health Systems At The Foundation And An Empowered Who At The Apex, Lawrence O. Gostin, Eric A. Friedman

Georgetown Law Faculty Publications and Other Works

The West African Ebola epidemic is a pivotal moment for the global health system. Just as the depth of the crisis ultimately spurred an unprecedented response, the failures of leadership demand innovative reforms. This analysis offers a template for these reforms, responding to the profound harms posed by fragile national health systems, delays in the international response, deficient resource mobilization, ill-defined responsibilities, and insufficient coordination. The scope of the reforms must address the failures evident in the Ebola response, as well as entrenched weaknesses that enabled the epidemic to reach its heights, transforming the existing inchoate, organically developed global health …

3 Critical Challenges For Global Health Security, Lawrence O. Gostin

Georgetown Law Faculty Publications and Other Works

International institutions are poised to make one of the most momentous decisions about the future of global health security since the formation of the World Health Organization (WHO) in 1948.

By the end of this year, 5 global commissions will have published major critiques of global health preparedness, all spurred by the Ebola epidemic, which exposed deep flaws in the international system.

Sexual Assaults Among University Students: Prevention, Support, And Justice, Rebecca B. Reingold, Lawrence O. Gostin

Georgetown Law Faculty Publications and Other Works

Sexual assault is common among college-aged women (18 to 25 years), with 1 in 5 reporting having experienced these crimes during their college years. Acute and long-term consequences of sexual assault may include physical trauma, sexually transmitted infections, posttraumatic stress disorder, depression, and substance abuse. Survivors have the option of reporting assaults to the university or to the police, but the goals of these 2 systems—and women’s experiences with them—can be quite different. The criminal justice system’s principal aim is to adjudicate guilt, but the university has the broader purpose of fostering a safe learning environment.

This article explores how …

Jessie Huey Laurence Papers - Accession 5, Jessie Huey Laurence

Manuscript Collection

The Jessie Huey Laurence Papers primarily consist of correspondence, but also included are speeches, program notes, minutes, financial records, photographs, clippings, and scrapbooks relating to her role in the South Carolina Federation of Women’s Clubs (1928-1937); her promotion of a compulsory school attendance bill for South Carolina (1934-1936); the formation of the South Carolina Council for the Common Good (1935); Works Progress Administration (WPA) and Public Works Administration (PWA) projects in South Carolina; and her interest in the Catawba Indians of York County, as chairman of Indian Affairs Committee for the Catawba Chapter of the Daughters of the American Revolution. …

Panel Survey Of Young People In Egypt (Sype) 2014: Generating Evidence For Policy, Programs, And Research, Rania Roushdy, Maia Sieverding

Poverty, Gender, and Youth

The Panel Survey of Young People in Egypt (SYPE), first conducted in 2009 among Egyptian youth aged 10–29, focuses on education, employment, health, family formation, migration, reproductive health, social issues, and civic/political participation. This second round, SYPE 2014, was conducted in the wake of two youth-led revolutions (2011 and 2013). SYPE 2014 attempts to understand changes that occurred among Egyptian youth over the period between the two rounds through targeting the same group of respondents of the 2009 survey in 2014 to accurately document changes and progress in the status of these young people. Preliminary findings indicated: a slight decrease …

Urban Adolescents' Needs Assessment Survey In Bangladesh: Summary, Bied, Bracu, Population Council

Poverty, Gender, and Youth

The Urban Adolescents’ Needs Assessment Survey in Bangladesh was designed to provide a general overview of the experience of urban adolescents, along with specific policy recommendations for adolescent programs. The Population Council, in collaboration with the BRAC Institute of Educational Development, developed this study as part of a broader needs assessment to inform several urban adolescent programs aimed at improving educational outcomes, providing better access to sexual and reproductive health information, and providing counseling and mental health support. The findings have implications for existing and future program strategies to promote adolescent well-being. This document provides a snapshot of the survey …

Adolescent Girls Empowerment Program (Agep): Program Overview, Population Council

Poverty, Gender, and Youth

For Zambian girls, social isolation, economic vulnerability, and lack of appropriate health information and services are critical problems that prevent a healthy transition from girlhood to womanhood. The challenges that girls are confronted with—high rates of gender-based violence, unsafe sex that puts girls at risk for unwanted pregnancy and HIV infection, school dropout, lack of economic resources and income-generating options, lack of agency and participation—are linked together through their root causes. Therefore, the solutions must be interconnected as well. Through the Adolescent Girls Empowerment Program (AGEP), the Population Council and partners are implementing a social, health, and economic asset-building program …

Baseline Survey Instruments: Adolescent Girls Initiative–Kenya, Population Council

Poverty, Gender, and Youth

This document contains various AGI-K survey instruments, including: Household Characteristics Survey (English), Respondent’s Schooling History (English), Respondent’s Work in Last Year (English), Respondent’s Spending in Last Year (English), Respondent’s Savings in Last Year (Kiswahili), Respondent’s Savings in Last Year (English).

Building Assets Toolkit: Developing Positive Benchmarks For Adolescent Girls—Instruction Guide, Judith Bruce, Sarah Engebretsen, Kimberly Glazer

Poverty, Gender, and Youth

The Building Assets Toolkit is an approach for developing programs for specific segments of girls that will prepare them to better face the challenges of growing up. It will help program managers understand the needs of the girls in their community, engage stakeholders at different levels and with different viewpoints, and build concrete and meaningful programming for adolescent girls. The toolkit contains all the materials needed to help make a preliminary assessment of the assets a girl should acquire and the age by which she should acquire them. This document contains the Building Assets Toolkit’s List of Contents and Instruction …

Participatory Research Results From Training With The Mabinti Tushike Hatamu Out-Of-School Girls Program: Tanzania 2015, Kelly Hallman, Ilan Cerna-Turoff, Neema Matee

Poverty, Gender, and Youth

The Mabinti Tushike Hatamu (Girls let’s be leaders!) program is designed to test and evaluate strategies for reducing the vulnerability of out-of-school adolescent girls in Tanzania aged 10–19 years to HIV/AIDS, pregnancy, and unfavorable life outcomes. MTH is led by the Tanzania AIDS Commission, implemented by Restless Development, and supported by UNICEF. The Population Council developed a strategy for Restless Development to capture the richness of its activities. The Council designed a training session and a companion toolkit in participatory action research for community volunteers, aged 19–23 years, to use within their girl groups. This report describes the findings from …

Building Assets Toolkit: Developing Positive Benchmarks For Adolescent Girls—Resource Manual, Judith Bruce, Sarah Engebretsen, Kimberly Glazer

Poverty, Gender, and Youth

This document contains the Building Assets Toolkit’s Resource Manual, which includes valuable information about building meaningful program content as well as detailed notes on each asset for use in the toolkit’s “Asset Building Exercise.” This exercise is designed to involve multiple stakeholders in determining what assets girls need in order to survive and thrive. The Building Assets Toolkit is an approach for developing programs for specific segments of girls that will prepare them to better face the challenges of growing up. It will help program managers understand the needs of the girls in their community, engage stakeholders at different levels …

Panel Survey Of Young People In Egypt (Sype) 2014: Generating Evidence For Policies And Programs—Summary Report, Rania Roushdy, Maia Sieverding

Poverty, Gender, and Youth

This document contains the Summary Report to the Panel Survey of Young People in Egypt (SYPE) 2014: Generating Evidence for Policy, Programs, and Research. SYPE, which was first conducted in 2009 among Egyptian youth aged 10–29, focuses on education, employment, health, family formation, migration, reproductive health, social issues, and civic/political participation. The second round, SYPE 2014, was conducted in the wake of two youth-led revolutions (2011 and 2013). SYPE 2014 attempts to understand changes that occurred among Egyptian youth over the period between the two rounds through targeting the same group of respondents of the 2009 survey in 2014 to …

Las Adolescentes Indígenas: Una Prioridad De Hoy Para Un Mejor Futuro Nacional En El 2015, Population Council

Poverty, Gender, and Youth

Esta hoja informativa detalla los problemas prioritarios que enfrentan los adolescentes guatemaltecos y presenta las acciones recomendadas para un mejor futuro nacional. Las áreas prioritarias incluyen la educación primaria y secundaria, la salud reproductiva y los medios de vida. La hoja incluye un ejercicio de cobertura—una herramienta simple, rápida y económica que permite entender a quién están llegando los servicios. Permite además identificar problemas comunes entre organizaciones, comprender el acceso diferenciado, identificar vacíos programáticos y modificar el alcance de los programas.

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This fact sheet details the priority problems facing Guatemalan adolescents and presents recommended actions for a better national …

Panel Survey Of Young People In Egypt (Sype) 2014: Generating Evidence For Policy, Programs, And Research—Appendix, Rania Roushdy, Maia Sieverding

Poverty, Gender, and Youth

This document contains the Appendix to the Panel Survey of Young People in Egypt (SYPE) 2014: Generating Evidence for Policy, Programs, and Research, consisting of 39 Indicator Tables. SYPE, which was first conducted in 2009 among Egyptian youth aged 10–29, focuses on education, employment, health, family formation, migration, reproductive health, social issues, and civic/political participation. The second round, SYPE 2014, was conducted in the wake of two youth-led revolutions (2011 and 2013). SYPE 2014 attempts to understand changes that occurred among Egyptian youth over the period between the two rounds through targeting the same group of respondents of the 2009 …

Understanding Factors Influencing Adverse Sex Ratios At Birth And Exploring What Works To Achieve Balance: The Situation In Selected Districts Of Nepal, Mahesh Puri, Anand Tamang

Poverty, Gender, and Youth

The goal of this study is to identify programs and sociocultural factors underlying disparities in sex ratios at birth in some parts of Nepal, by comparing the situation in districts with high and normal sex ratios at birth and among under-5 children. Findings are expected to inform the design of programs intended to raise the value of girls in general and counter the practice of gender-biased sex selection in particular. The study was conducted in two adjoining hill districts of the western development region of Nepal, namely Kaski (where sex ratios are adverse) and Tanhaun (where sex ratios are normal). …

Is Agep Building Assets For Vulnerable Girls In Zambia? Preliminary Research Findings, Population Council

Poverty, Gender, and Youth

The Adolescent Girls Empowerment Program (AGEP) is a randomized controlled trial that evaluates a multisectoral program intended to increase girls’ social, health, and economic resources. AGEP involves over 10,000 vulnerable girls aged 10–19 in Zambia. The girls participate in weekly girls’ group meetings (safe spaces), receive vouchers for health services, and open savings accounts. AGEP operates in ten sites—five urban and five rural—across four provinces in Zambia. The AGEP evaluation is based on the randomization of girls to participate in one of four arms of the program: 1) safe spaces only, 2) safe spaces + health voucher, 3) safe spaces …

Anneau Vaginal À Progestérone: Évite Les Grossesses, Population Council

Reproductive Health

Cette fiche de renseignements fournit des informations sur l’utilisation de l’anneau contraceptif vaginal à la progestérone pour prévenir la grossesse. L'anneau vaginal à progestérone (AVP) offre une nouvelle manière de fournir un moyen de contraception. Il a été prouvé qu'il s'agit d'une méthode contraceptive sûre et efficace pour les femmes qui allaitent. Utilisé par ces femmes, l'AVP évite les grossesses en inhibant la croissance folliculaire et, par conséquent, empêchant l'ovulation; renforçant les effets inhibiteurs de l'allaitement maternel sur l'ovulation; étendant l'aménorrhée post-partum; et épaississant la glaire cervicale, et donc en empêchant les spermatozoïdes d'atteindre l'ovule. L'AVP donc étend la gamme …

Delivering Contraceptive Vaginal Rings, Population Council

Reproductive Health

To bolster sustainable contraceptive delivery and use, USAID recently proposed a renewed focus, articulating five key areas to address unmet need for family planning: Method Choice, Total Market Approach, Family Planning Workforce, Social and Behavior Communication Change, and Strengthened Supply Systems. In its Delivering Contraceptive Vaginal Rings project, the Population Council has entered into a cooperative agreement with USAID to introduce two new modern contraceptive methods in developing markets: the progesterone contraceptive vaginal ring (PCVR), a three-month ring designed specifically for spacing while breastfeeding, and an investigational one-year contraceptive vaginal ring—the Nestorone®/EthinylEstradiol contraceptive vaginal ring (NES/EE CVR)—that can be used …

Marie Stopes International's Sifpo Project—Strengthening International Family Planning Organizations, October 2010–September 2015, Population Council

Reproductive Health

The Population Council was a partner in the Strengthening International Family Planning Organizations (SIFPO) project implemented by Marie Stopes International. SIFPO’s mandate was to increase use of voluntary family planning (FP) services globally by strengthening selected international FP organizations with global reach and an extensive, multicountry network of FP clinics for achieving maximum program impact and synergies. This report outlines the Council’s role within the project: evaluate effectiveness of MSI’s FP programs to identify successful best practices and approaches; assist MSI to disseminate the findings of some or all evaluations; strengthen MSI’s internal research and metrics capacity with thematic workshops …

Union Health And Family Welfare Centers In Chittagong And Munshiganj: Are They Ready To Provide 24-Hour Normal Delivery Services? (Brief), Population Council

Reproductive Health

To date, the Directorate General of Family Planning (DGFP) of Bangladesh’s Ministry of Health and Family Welfare has established approximately 3,900 Union Health and Family Welfare Centers (UHFWCs) in rural areas providing: family planning; menstrual regulation; vaccinations; and general, reproductive, and maternal health services six days a week. About 1,500 UHFWCs have been upgraded with the necessary staff and equipment to provide normal delivery services round-the-clock in rural areas. In rural areas, public-sector health facilities, including UHFWCs, contribute to only 12 percent of institutional deliveries. Until now, Family Welfare Visitors (FWVs) posted at UHFWCs performed only 0.3 percent of deliveries. …

Progesterone Vaginal Ring: Prevents Pregnancy, Population Council

Reproductive Health

This fact sheet provides information about how the progesterone vaginal contraceptive ring works to prevent pregnancy. The progesterone vaginal ring (PVR) offers a novel way of delivering safe and effective contraceptives for lactating women. When used by such women it prevents pregnancy by inhibiting follicular growth, hence preventing ovulation; reinforcing the inhibitory effect of breastfeeding on ovulation; extending postpartum amenorrhea; and thickening the cervical mucus, thus inhibiting sperm from meeting the egg. The PVR expands the range of contraceptives available to lactating women and has the potential to contribute to improving maternal and infant health.

Progesterone Vaginal Ring: Safe For Mothers And Babies, Population Council

Reproductive Health

This fact sheet provides basic information on the safety and effectiveness of the progesterone vaginal contraceptive ring. It works as a contraceptive by reinforcing the inhibitory effect of breastfeeding on ovulation and extending postpartum amenorrhea. The PVR is an effective and safe contraceptive for mothers, their babies, and their sexual partners. This method vastly expands the range of contraceptive choices available for nursing women.

Progesterone Vaginal Ring: Beneficial Role In Birth Spacing, Population Council

Reproductive Health

As a result of growing urbanization and changing social norms concerning the role of women in developing countries, the duration of exclusive breastfeeding and its impact as a contraceptive strategy has been reduced. This has given rise to the need for a contraceptive method that can extend the infertile period following delivery, especially in countries where access to other contraceptives is limited and where longer duration of breastfeeding is a social norm and a major benefit to infant health. This project brief provides information on the progesterone vaginal ring (PVR), which can enhance the effect of breastfeeding on birth spacing. …

Union Health And Family Welfare Centers In Chittagong And Munshiganj: Are They Ready To Provide 24-Hour Normal Delivery Services?, Md. Noorunnabi Talukder, Ubaidur Rob, A.K.M. Zafar Ullah Khan, Forhana Rahman Noor, Shongkour Roy, Afsana Fatema Noor

Reproductive Health

To date, the Directorate General of Family Planning (DGFP) of Bangladesh’s Ministry of Health and Family Welfare has established approximately 3,900 Union Health and Family Welfare Centers (UHFWCs) in rural areas providing: family planning; menstrual regulation; vaccinations; and general, reproductive, and maternal health services six days a week. About 1,500 UHFWCs have been upgraded with the necessary staff and equipment to provide normal delivery services round-the-clock in rural areas. Yet, Family Welfare Visitors (FWVs) posted at UHFWCs perform only 0.3 percent of deliveries. This means that UHFWCs and FWVs are not optimally utilized to increase the rate of institutional deliveries. …

Introduction Of Dmpa In Public Health Facilities Of Uttar Pradesh And Rajasthan: An Evaluation, M.E. Khan, Anvita Dixit, Jaleel Ahmad, G. Pillai

Reproductive Health

India is committed to achieving the goals of FP2020, which, besides substantially increasing new contraceptive users, also demands adopting a rights-based approach and ensuring easy access, choice, and good quality services. The contraceptive method mix in India has been dominated by female sterilization for a long time. No new contraceptive method has been added to the national family welfare program for decades. Use of injectable contraceptives was approved in 1994 in the private sector, but is still not part of the national program. Recently some initiatives have been taken to make Depo Medroxyprogesterone Acetate (DMPA) available through the public sector …