International Public Health Commons^™

Promoting Respectful Maternity Care (Rmc) At Birth: Orientation For Community-Based Workshops, Population Council

Reproductive Health

The goal of “Promoting Respectful Maternity Care (RMC) at Birth: Orientation for Community-Based Workshops” is to orient community-health workers on the RMC concept. Objectives of the workshop as indicated in this slide deck are: Outline the current status of maternal health in relation to RMC. Discuss rights-based approaches related to RMC. Discuss selected strategies that reduce disrespect and abuse (D&A). Discuss the role of the community in promoting RMC. Demonstrate knowledge and use of the Alternative Dispute Resolution mechanism. Develop action plans to support the implementation of RMC interventions at the community level. Summary: D&A deters facility-based childbirth and Skilled …

The Global Health Security Agenda In An Age Of Biosecurity, Lawrence O. Gostin, Alexandra Phelan

Georgetown Law Faculty Publications and Other Works

Historically, the Oval Office has been a leader in global health assistance. From the President’s Emergency Plan for AIDS Relief (PEPFAR) and the President’s Malaria Initiative (PMI) under the Bush Administration, to the Global Health Initiative launched by President Obama in 2009. However, unlike PEPFAR and PMI, the Global Health Initiative met an untimely end with the launch of a bold new global health measure by the Obama Administration: the Global Health Security Agenda (GHS Agenda). The GHS Agenda aims to “accelerate progress toward a world safe and secure from infectious disease threats” through a US-led diplomatic collaboration with 30 …

Governing For Health As The World Grows Older: Healthy Lifespans In Aging Societies, Lawrence O. Gostin, Anna Garsia

Georgetown Law Faculty Publications and Other Works

So much of global health governance focuses intensely on a brief moment in the human lifespan—from a safe birth to infant and child survival. Yet, with all the attention to this early window of life (infancy to age five), the opposite end of the life spectrum is comparatively neglected. The Millennium Development Goals (MDGs) do not mention a healthy lifespan or a healthy old age. This inadequate attention to the older years of the life appears to be a glaring omission given the universal challenges posed by aging societies. Aging is a demographic fact in almost all countries, but it …

Unintended Pregnancy By The Numbers: A Look At Kenya, Carol Mukiira, Joyce Mumah, Caroline W. Kabiru, Chimaraoke O. Izugbara

Reproductive Health

This fact sheet summarizes data collated during the development of the STEP UP Country Profile Report on Unintended Pregnancies for Kenya, which presents a range of key evidence aimed at informing readers about the trends, magnitude, determinants, and consequences of unintended pregnancy in Kenya. The data shown in this fact sheet are drawn mainly from the 1993, 1998, 2003 and 2008/09 Kenya Demographic and Health Surveys (KDHS) as well as other secondary sources.

Maternal And Newborn Health Behaviors In Rural Uttar Pradesh: Findings From Learning Phase Baseline Survey 2013, M.E. Khan, Praween Kumar Agrawal, Avishek Hazra, Anvita Dixit, Isha Bhatnagar, Jaleel Ahmad, D.N. Ahmad

Reproductive Health

The Uttar Pradesh Community Mobilization Project (2011–16) aims to develop and scale up evidence-based interventions to improve reproductive, maternal, neonatal, and child health and nutrition health behaviors by an average of 10 percentage points among marginalized populations in Uttar Pradesh, India. The goal is to reduce neonatal mortality by improving maternal and child health behaviors through developing and scaling up a package of family health interventions and strengthening the management of Behavior Change Communication using self-help groups as the platform. The project is being carried out in two phases—a learning phase covering 10 blocks and a scale-up phase covering 100 …

Factors Associated With Risky Sexual Behavior Among Unmarried Most-At-Risk Young People In Cambodia, Siyan Yi, Sovannary Tuot, Kunthearith Yung, Sanh Kim, Chhorvann Chhea, Vonthanak Saphonn

Background: Recent surveys suggest that adolescents and young adults in Southeast Asian nations are at great risks of sexual reproductive health issues. This study explored factors associated with risky sexual behavior (RSB) among unmarried most-at-risk young people in Cambodia. Methods: A two-stage cluster sampling method was used to select 1,204 boys and 1,166 girls aged 10-24 from 252 hotspots in the capital city and seven provinces. A five-item scale was constructed to measure RSB. All variables were entered simultaneously in multivariate logistic regression models if they were significantly associated with RSB in bivariate analyses. Results: Of total, …

Exploring Perceptions And Experiences With Research Ethics In Bolivia, Sarah Sullivan, Armando Basagoitia, Annette Aalborg, Oscar Lanza, Jacqueline Cortez

Background: In Bolivia, there is increasing interest in the necessity of incorporating research ethics into study designs and procedures, but there is minimal data on the perceptions and experiences of Bolivian health science faculty, researchers, and national health administrators on research ethics. The Touro University California (TUC) Public Health Program is partnering with Bolivian universities to develop a comprehensive Research Education Ethics Program. In 2013, The Universidad Mayor de San Andrés received a National Institute of Health/Fogarty International Center Planning Grant award to develop the program. The two central aims of this program needs assessment are to describe the …

The Sustainable Action Against Hiv And Aids In Communities (Sahacom): Impacts On Health And Quality Of Life Of People Living With Hiv In Cambodia, Siyan Yi, Pheak Chhoun, Samantha Brant, Kelley Kita, Samedy Suong, Kouland Thin, Sovannary Tuot

This study evaluated the impacts of the Sustainable Action against HIV and AIDS in Communities (SAHACOM) Project on health and quality of life of people living with HIV (PLHIV). Outcome indicators from baseline documentation (2010) were compared to those obtained at midterm (2012) and end line (2014). Results showed that HIV prevalence among pregnant women aged 15–24 attending antenatal care decreased from 0.5% at baseline to 0.3% at midterm and end line. Proportion of PLHIV who were on antiretroviral therapy (ART) 12 months after the initiation of the treatment increased from 85% at baseline and midterm to 89.5% at end …

Cultural Factors Associated With Utilization Of Antenatal Care Services In Rural India, Anjali Om

UROP Posters

Despite vast economic growth in developing countries in the past few years, infant mortality continues to plague underdeveloped regions, particularly rural regions of India. Many of these deaths are caused by a lack of education and motivation in regard to utilization of antenatal and neonatal care services to prevent and treat consequences of unhygienic umbilical cord care.

For years, high incidences of neonatal tetanus have plagued rural areas of India as a result of cultural practices that encourage topical applications of cow dung to cut umbilical stumps either directly or by using ghee heated with cow dung to warm umbilical …

Using Quantitative Disease Dynamics As A Tool For Guiding Response To Avian Influenza In Poultry In The United States Of America, K. M. Pepin, E. Spackman, J. D. Brown, K. L. Pabilonia, Lindsey P. Garber, J. Todd Weaver, D. A. Kennedy, Kelly A. Patyk, K. P. Huyvaert, Ryan S. Miller, Alan B. Franklin, Kerri Pedersen, T. L. Bogich, P. Rohani, Susan A. Shriner, Colleen T. Webb, S. Riley

United States Department of Agriculture Wildlife Services: Staff Publications

Wild birds are the primary source of genetic diversity for influenza A viruses that eventually emerge in poultry and humans. Much progress has been made in the descriptive ecology of avian influenza viruses (AIVs), but contributions are less evident from quantitative studies (e.g., those including disease dynamic models). Transmission between host species, individuals and flocks has not been measured with sufficient accuracy to allow robust quantitative evaluation of alternate control protocols. We focused on the United States of America (USA) as a case study for determining the state of our quantitative knowledge of potential AIV emergence processes from wild hosts …

Health Policy And The Syrian Chemical Weapons Crisis, David P. Fidler

Articles by Maurer Faculty

For health policy, armed conflicts constitute one of the most severe emergency contexts in which health, well-being, and determinants of health are threatened. The Syrian civil war has proved no different, as health experts re­peatedly lament the humanitarian debacle the Syrian conflict has become. The main distinguishing feature of the Syrian civil war has been the large-scale use of chemical weapons in August 2013. This essay analyzes the chemical weapons crisis and its diplomatic resolution from a health policy perspective, with particular attention on whether the handling of this crisis created positive health policy “spillover” opportunities for more effectively addressing …

Factors Influencing The Decision And Ability To Seek Health Services Among Hiv/Aids Patients In Tanzania, Savitri Grover

Masters Theses & Specialist Projects

Understanding the barriers to treatment for individuals with HIV/AIDS in developing countries could have a major impact on their ability to seek healthcare services. The purpose of this study is to quantitatively analyze the effect of daily activities and structural factors, which act as barriers to seeking health services for individuals living with HIV/AIDS in Tanzania.

The study is based on the hypothesis that (1) Individuals living with HIV/AIDS who face both personal and structural barriers have poor health compared to those not facing the barriers. (2) Individuals living with HIV/AIDS demonstrate different decisions and abilities to seek health services …

On Head Lice And Social Interaction In Archaic Andean Coastal Populations, Bernardo Arriaza, Vivien Standen, Karl Reinhard, Aduto Araújo, Jörg Heukelbach, Katharina Dittmar

Karl Reinhard Publications

Archaic mummies from northern Chile were examined for the presence of Pediculus humanus capitis. The excellent preservation of mummies and louse nits/eggs permitted a study of the degree of head lice infestation. We studied 63 Chinchorro mummies (ca. 5000–3000 years B.P.) from the Arica-Camarones coast. An area of 2 cm × 2 cm on each mummy’s head was systematically inspected for louse nits/eggs. Hairs with nits/eggs and lice were collected and analyzed using optic and scanning electronic microscopy. About 79% (50/63) of the mummies resulted positive for pediculosis, with an average of 2.1 nits/ eggs/cm2 per positive individual. Microscopic …

Chronic Malnutrition In Guatemala, Nicholas Bishop, Susan Mcilvaine

CwiC-PH

Poster includes:

• What is chronic malnutrition and what causes it?
• Why address malnutrition?
• Addressing the problem

Household Wealth And Neurocognitive Development Disparities Among School-Aged Children In Nepal., Shivani A Patel, Laura E Murray-Kolb, Steven C Leclerq, Subarna K Khatry, James M. Tielsch, Joanne Katz, Parul Christian

Global Health Faculty Publications

BACKGROUND: Wealth disparities in child developmental outcomes are well documented in developed countries. We sought to (1) describe the extent of wealth-based neurocognitive development disparities and (2) examine potential mediating factors of disparities among a population-based cohort of children in rural Nepal.

METHODS: We investigated household wealth-based differences in intellectual, executive and motor function of n = 1692 children aged between 7 and 9 years in Nepal. Using linear mixed models, wealth-based differences were estimated before and after controlling for child and household demographic characteristics. We further examined wealth-based differences adjusted for three sets of mediators: child nutritional status, home …

Dental Hygienists' Knowledge Of Hiv, Attitudes Towards People With Hiv And Willingness To Conduct Rapid Hiv Testing, Anthony J. Santella, B Krishnamachari, Susan H. Davide, Marilyn Cortell, Winnie Furnari, B Watts, Sarah C. Hayden

Publications and Research

This study was aimed to determine the dental hygienists' knowledge of HIV, attitudes towards people living with HIV and willingness to conduct rapid HIV testing.

Wash Education: Need For More Than Water Treatment For Floating Villages In Cambodia, Kevin Curry

2013 New England Association for Asian Studies Conference

Point of use (POU) water treatment systems are widely used around the world to provide microbiologically safe drinking water in developing countries. Work done in Cambodia by Brown et al. (2007) and Liang et al. (2010) have documented ceramic and biosand filters as cost effective point of use treatment systems capable of removing over 95% E. coli bacteria when properly used and maintained. Bridgewater State University and Water for Cambodia (WfC) explored using BioSand filters (BSF) to provide microbiologically safe drinking water for people in the Moat Khla floating village on the Tonle Sap Lake in Siem Reap Province. All …

Care In Columbia: What We Can Glean From South American Medicine, Neil Flannery Haidorfer, Robert Simmons, Drph, Mph, Mches, Cph

CwiC-PH

The information presented is the product of a two month international rotation at Medellin General Hospital and the non-profit pediatric clinic, Santa Ana through an academic affiliation with La Universidad CES in Medellin, Antioquia. The goal of the rotation was to obtain an understanding of healthcare in Columbia and identify potential practices that could be utilized in the U.S.

La Situación De Las Cataratas En La Ciudad De Buenos Aires: Un Estudio De Caso En El Hospital Ramos Mejía / The Situation Of Cataracts In The City Of Buenos Aires: A Case Study In Ramos Mejía Hospital, Katie Elizabeth Kessler

Independent Study Project (ISP) Collection

Background: When a person has cataracts his or her lens becomes clouded by proteins, causing diminished vision. Though cataracts cause poor vision or in more serious cases blindness, what is special about cataracts is that they are treatable. Surgery replaces the clouded lens with a new artificial lens called an intraocular lens. In Argentina in 2006 only 10% of cataract surgeries were realized in the public sector, and the Ministry of Health of the Nation decided to develop a program called Program Eye Health and the Prevention of Blindness to fight these and other inequities in the realm of visual …

The Pertinence Of Maternal Education On Child Immunization In Rural Uttarakhand: More Than Just Increased Rates, Sarah Banerji

Independent Study Project (ISP) Collection

Child immunization rates in India continue to remain low, despite the 1985 implementation of a Universal Immunization Program that provides free basic immunizations to all children. There are numerous logistical factors that contribute to the low rates of immunization, but rates are made further worse by a lack of parental awareness and education about immunization, especially in village communities. This study examines the maternal understanding of immunization in rural Uttarakhand, both in villages in which an NGO has been working to improve maternal immunization education and in villages with no NGO involvement. It finds a positive correlation between increased immunization …