Women's Health Commons^™

Predictors Of Intention To Use Contraception, Given Alcohol Consumption, Among Women In Southeast Alaska, Donna Louise Hebbeler

Loma Linda University Electronic Theses, Dissertations & Projects

Fetal alcohol exposure is a serious public health problem and is 100% preventable. Traditionally, FASD prevention programs and research recommendations have targeted peri-conceptual or pregnant women. Another approach to the prevention of FASD involves preventing pregnancy in women who use alcohol. The purpose of this cross sectional study was to identify factors that predicted women’s intention to use contraception using the theory of planned behavior (TPB), to determine if predictors of the theoretical constructs varied in women depending on alcohol use, and to examine interactions between alcohol use and TPB constructs. Qualitative data was gathered to triangulate with the quantitative …

Thought Suppression Change In Cancer Patients And Survivors After Writing, Erin O'Carroll Bantum

Loma Linda University Electronic Theses, Dissertations & Projects

Breast cancer is a debilitating and many times fatal disease that will affect approximately 215,990 women in the United States alone this year. Treatment for breast cancer can involve many physically and psychologically straining features. The illness perception theory states that individuals form illness representations to make sense of health threats and illness. These representations contain a number of individual, specific attributes about the illness identity, and cause, time-line, consequences of, and cure/control of the illness. Many women who have experienced breast cancer have also been found to be keeping their thoughts inside. Thought suppression has been linked to many …

Update - March 2005, Loma Linda University Center For Christian Bioethics

Update

In this issue:

-- Review and Critique of Statements on Abuse and Family Violence
-- Seventh-day Adventist Statements on Women's Issues
-- Response to "A Statement on Women's Issues"
-- Seventh-day Adventist Statements on Abuse, A Statement on Abuse and Family Violence
-- Seventh-day Adventist Statements on Abuse, A Statement on Family Violence
-- Seventh-day Adventist Statements on Abuse, Statements on Child Sexual Abuse
-- Editorial

Motivated Breast Cancer Screening Behavior And Its Cultural Antecedents, Patricia M. Flynn

Loma Linda University Electronic Theses, Dissertations & Projects

Discrepancies in breast cancer screening behavior exist among various ethnic groups in the United States (Jacobs & Lauderdale, 2001), with Latino American women reporting particularly low screening rates in comparison to Anglo American women (ACS, 2002). Research indicates that behavior is in part influenced by aspects of culture and relevant psychological processes (Betancourt & Lopez, 1993; Betancourt & Fuentes, 2001). This study was designed to investigate the relations among cultural values, attributions regarding the causes for not screening, related emotions, expectancy that screening leads to early detection and value incentive of early detection as determinants of breast cancer screening intention …

Ethnic Identity And Body Ideal In Adolescent Girls, Erin E. Ramirez

Loma Linda University Electronic Theses, Dissertations & Projects

Adolescence is a period characterized by physical growth and maturation (Cobb, 1995). This normal biological process moves most American girls away from the thin ideal body shape that is dominant within the United States. Ethnic differences in ideal body size have in fact been found in several studies; but they have been shown based on ethnic group membership, not ethnic identification. The specific relationship of ethnic identity and body ideal for Mexican American, African American, and Anglo American adolescent females has not been clearly defined; Lopez, Blix, and Blix (1995) have hinted at the role of ethnic identification (through the …

Female Genital Cutting Among The Somali Of Kenya And Management Of Its Complications, Guyo W. Jaldesa, Ian Askew, Carolyne Njue, Monica Wanjiru

Reproductive Health

The Somali community living in Kenya (and in their native Somalia) has practiced the severest form of female genital cutting (FGC)—infibulation—for centuries. To understand the context within which the practice takes place, and how its complications are managed, the Population Council’s Frontiers in Reproductive Health Program undertook a diagnostic study that confirmed that FGC is a deeply rooted and widely supported cultural practice. Several closely related reasons are used to sustain the practice: religious obligation, family honor, and virginity as a prerequisite for marriage; an aesthetic preference for infibulated genitalia was also mentioned. The study also found that the health …

Clioquinol And Pyrrolidine Dithiocarbamate Complex With Copper To Form Proteasome Inhibitors And Apoptosis Inducers In Human Breast Cancer Cells, Kenyon G. Daniel, Di Chen, Shirley Orlu, Qiuzhi Cui, Fred R. Miller, Q Ping Dou

Wayne State University Associated BioMed Central Scholarship

Abstract

Introduction

A physiological feature of many tumor tissues and cells is the tendency to accumulate high concentrations of copper. While the precise role of copper in tumors is cryptic, copper, but not other trace metals, is required for angiogenesis. We have recently reported that organic copper-containing compounds, including 8-hydroxyquinoline-copper(II) and 5,7-dichloro-8-hydroxyquinoline-copper(II), comprise a novel class of proteasome inhibitors and tumor cell apoptosis inducers. In the current study, we investigate whether clioquinol (CQ), an analog of 8-hydroxyquinoline and an Alzheimer's disease drug, and pyrrolidine dithiocarbamate (PDTC), a known copper-binding compound and antioxidant, can interact with copper to form cancer-specific proteasome …

The Role Of Aromatase Inhibitors In Ameliorating Deleterious Effects Of Ovarian Stimulation On Outcome Of Infertility Treatment, Mohamed Fm Mitwally, Robert F. Casper, Michael P. Diamond

Wayne State University Associated BioMed Central Scholarship

Abstract

Clinical utilization of ovulation stimulation to facilitate the ability of a couple to conceive has not only provided a valuable therapeutic approach, but has also yielded extensive information on the physiology of ovarian follicular recruitment, endometrial receptivity and early embryo competency. One of the consequences of the use of fertility enhancing agents for ovarian stimulation has been the creation of a hyperestrogenic state, which may influence each of these parameters. Use of aromatase inhibitors reduces hyperestrogenism inevitably attained during ovarian stimulation. In addition, the adjunct use of aromatase inhibitors during ovarian stimulation reduces amount of gonadotropins required for optimum …

Women's Participation In Disaster Relief And Recovery, Ayse Yonder, Sengul Akcar, Prema Gopalan

Poverty, Gender, and Youth

Too little attention has been given to the gender-differentiated effects of natural disasters, that is, women’s losses relative to men’s, how women’s work time and conditions change (both in terms of care-giving and income-generating work), or how disaster-related aid and entitlement programs include or marginalize affected women. The detailed case studies from three earthquake-stricken areas in India and Turkey that are contained in this issue of SEEDS help fill this information gap. They provide examples of how low-income women who have lost everything can form groups and become active participants in the relief and recovery process. Readers learn how women …

Kutibu Majeraha, Kutia Matumaini: Ushirikiano Wa Watanzania Dhidi Ya Fistula Obstetrikia, Thoraya Ahmed Obaid, Erica Chong

Poverty, Gender, and Youth

This edition of Quality/Calidad/Qualité describes a partnership formed to combat obstetric fistula in Tanzania. The Bugando Medical Center, the Women’s Dignity Project, the Tanzania Midwives Association, and the government cooperated on an extensive program for surgical repair, prevention, and policy research and activities. Lessons learned: 1) Fistula programs need to address social as well as medical issues. 2) Most repairs are successful, making an enormous difference in women’s lives. 3) Relatively little funding is necessary to start up a fistula program. 4) Fistula programs are vehicles for broader conversations about gender and poverty.

Willingness-To-Pay For Services Provided By The Clinical Services Improvement Project (Csi) In Egypt, John H. Bratt, Nahla G. Abdel-Tawab, Magdi A. Ibrahim, Mohammed Edress

Reproductive Health

Willingness-to-pay (WTP) surveys are increasingly used in reproductive health programs to predict the impact of price changes on revenues, utilization, and client profile. The FRONTIERS program worked with the Clinical Services Improvement (CSI) project and the Cairo Demographic Center to carry out a WTP survey in six CSI clinics in Egypt. The survey found that most clients would be willing to pay higher prices for CSI services, and WTP did not vary much by client economic status. However, predictive validity was low when all reasons for client discontinuation were included. WTP surveys have the potential to be useful tools for …

An Assessment Of Trends In The Use Of The Iud In Ghana: National Results Dissemination And Utilization, Ivy Osei, John Gyapong, Monica Wanjiru, Ian Askew

Reproductive Health

The overall aim of this study was to inform the Ghana Health Service, USAID, and other partners involved in providing family planning services in Ghana about future directions that could be taken to reinvigorate the IUD within the context of a family planning service based on the principles of free and informed choice. The Health Research Unit conducted the study, with technical assistance from FRONTIERS and funding from USAID. The findings showed that the declining interest in and use of the IUD as a family planning method could be attributed to several factors, including negative perceptions and false beliefs about …

Improving The Ghanaian Safe Motherhood Programme, Ivy Osei, Bertha Garshong, Gertrude Banahene, John Gyapong, Placide Tapsoba, Ian Askew, Clement Ahiadeke, Richard Killian, Edward Bonku, Perle Combary, William Sampson

Reproductive Health

Prior to the Ghana Ministry of Health scaling up the country’s Safe Motherhood program, they requested support from the Population Council’s USAID-funded Frontiers in Reproductive Health program to undertake an operations research study to evaluate and compare the cost-effectiveness of two training approaches and other performance improvement interventions. The study measured and compared changes in provider knowledge and skills and the costs of implementing a three-week residential vs. self-paced learning (SPL) approach. The SPL approach costs more per trainer than the traditional residential approach, both in financial costs alone and when opportunity costs are added, however, a cost-effectiveness analysis showed …

Systematic Screening To Integrate Reproductive Health Services In India, N.P. Das, Urvi Shah, Varsha Chitania, Pratibha Patel, M.E. Khan, Anurag Mishra, James R. Foreit

Reproductive Health

This study, conducted in large public clinics and small health posts in the city of Vadodara, India, tested the effectiveness of a systematic screening technique in integrating reproductive health services at the provider level. The objective was to determine if women screened during clinic visits received more services, appointments, and referrals per visit than women who were not screened. Results show that in experimental group clinics the number of services per visit increased while control clinics experienced a slight decrease; the effect of systematic screening was smaller in health posts than in clinics. In experimental posts, services per visit increased …

Nursing Staff Dynamics And Implications For Maternal Health Provision In Public Health Facilities In The Context Of Hiv/Aids, Loveday Penn-Kekana, Duane Blaauw, Khin San Tint, Desiree Monareng, Jane Chege

Reproductive Health

This study, carried out in Limpopo, KwaZulu-Natal, and Mpumalanga provinces in South Africa, aimed to document nursing staff dynamics in maternal health services, and to explore the factors associated with these dynamics. The study found that a high percentage of nursing staff working in public facilities were demotivated, burnt out, and were considering leaving the facility where they were working. A range of factors, both financial and nonfinancial, were associated with nurses considering going overseas: inadequate pay, poor promotion, feeling unsupported by management, and having bad relationships at work were all associated with lack of organizational commitment. As a result …

Feasibility Of Introducing A Comprehensive Package Of Antenatal Care Services In Rural Public Clinics In South Africa, Jane Chege, Ian Askew, Nzwakie Mosery, Mbali Ndube-Nxumalo, Busi Kunene, Mags Beksinska, Janet Dalton, Ester Snyman, Wilem Sturm, Preshny Moodley

Reproductive Health

The Maternal, Child and Women’s Health Unit, in collaboration with the Population Council’s FRONTIERS in Reproductive Health (FRONTIERS) program, the Reproductive Health Research Unit of the University of Witwatersrand, and the Department of Medical Microbiology and Infectious Diseases of the Nelson Mandela School of Medicine, University of Natal, developed and then pilot-tested this revised model in KwaZulu-Natal, South Africa. The project’s objective was to develop and test an improved and integrated antenatal care program for public-sector clinics that would increase the range and quality of services received by pregnant women and improve their reproductive health behavior and status. Various problems, …

Using Systematic Screening To Increase Integration Of Reproductive Health Services Delivery In Senegal, Diouratie Sanogo, Ricardo Vernon, James R. Foreit, Awa M. Coll-Seck, Colonel Adama Adoye, Laty G. Ndoye, Cheikh Bamba Diop, Balla Mbacke Mboup, Omar Sarr

Reproductive Health

This study tested the systematic screening technique to increase the integration of reproductive health services in Senegal. The study took place in four urban health posts in the city of Dakar and three rural health posts in the district of Kebemer. A before and after design tested the hypothesis that the use of the systematic screening tool would result in more services received per client visit. In Dakar, services per visit increased significantly by 20 percent, while in Kebemer, services per visit also increased significantly by 35 percent. The study also examined several techniques to improve provider compliance with the …

African American Breast Cancer Health Disparities, Theresa Lynn Gaul

Honors Program Theses

Health disparities are "the differences in the incidence, prevalence, mortality, and burden of cancer and related adverse health conditions that exist among specific population groups in the United States" (National Cancer Institute [NCI], 2002). Racial and ethnic minorities experience serious disparities in health access and outcomes. Disparities in the burden of death and illness experienced by African Americans in particular, as compared with our nation's population as a whole, are particularly striking. There are a variety of factors contributing to these inequalities. The purpose of this report is to examine these factors and the consequential effects on the African American's …