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Peer Reviewed

Title: The health and health system of South Africa: historical roots of current public health challenges.
Author: Coovadia H; Jewkes R; Barron P; Sanders D; McIntyre D
Source: Lancet. 2009 Sep 5;374(9692):817-34.
Abstract: The roots of a dysfunctional health system and the collision of the epidemics of communicable and non-communicable diseases in South Africa can be found in policies from periods of the country's history, from colonial subjugation, apartheid dispossession, to the post-apartheid period. Racial and gender discrimination, the migrant labour system, the destruction of family life, vast income inequalities, and extreme violence have all formed part of South Africa's troubled past, and all have inexorably affected health and health services. In 1994, when apartheid ended, the health system faced massive challenges, many of which still persist. Macroeconomic policies, fostering growth rather than redistribution, contributed to the persistence of economic disparities between races despite a large expansion in social grants. The public health system has been transformed into an integrated, comprehensive national service, but failures in leadership and stewardship and weak management have led to inadequate implementation of what are often good policies. Pivotal facets of primary health care are not in place and there is a substantial human resources crisis facing the health sector. The HIV epidemic has contributed to and accelerated these challenges. All of these factors need to be addressed by the new government if health is to be improved and the Millennium Development Goals achieved in South Africa.
Language: English
Keywords:
SOUTH AFRICA | HISTORICAL REVIEW | PUBLIC HEALTH | COLONIALISM | POLITICAL FACTORS | ECONOMIC FACTORS | SOCIAL DISCRIMINATION | SEX DISCRIMINATION | INEQUALITIES | FAMILY LIFE | VIOLENCE | HEALTH SERVICES | HUMAN RESOURCES | POLICY | Developing Countries | Africa, Southern | Africa, Sub Saharan | Africa | Health | Political Systems | Sociocultural Factors | Social Problems | Socioeconomic Factors | Family and Household | Behavior | Delivery of Health Care
Document Number: 342803

Peer Reviewed

Title: On the origin of South America HIV-1 C epidemic [letter]
Author: de Macedo Brigido LF
Source: AIDS. 2009 Feb 20;23(4):543-4.
Abstract: In a recent AIDS issue, two articles present sequence analysis to trace the origin of HIV-1 clade C in South America. The authors correctly point out that the density of clade C infection in south Brazil and its phylogenetic relationship to most isolates observed elsewhere in South America places south Brazil as its probable origin. When tracing the origin of the C viruses circulating in Brazil, both groups focused on phylogenic relationships of available/analyzable material. Although reported in the Epidemiology/Social sector, the authors disconnect their findings to potential social and cultural determinants of HIV dissemination, factors that may actually have played a major role in the introduction of HIV-1 clade C in Brazil. Although the precise African origin of the variant is not known, it was first observed in Ethiopia, but it is observed, along with other variants, in many countries of central and east Africa. It is conceivable that the variant migrated southwards through highland areas (including Burundi and Kenya, the putative origin, ascribed by each group, to the South America and Brazilian clade C epidemic) to dominate the epidemic in the south of the continent. Mozambique is one of the countries in the south of Africa where clade C is predominant. In 1975, Mozambique declared its independence from Portugal and Frelimo, a left-oriented liberation movement, took hold of the government. Its support to liberation movements at South Africa and Rhodesia (now Zimbabwe) resulted in an armed rebel movement supported by the white-ruled neighboring countries, causing a civil war that was associated with an exodus of most of the Portuguese community and Mozambicans of Portuguese heritage. Brazil, a former Portuguese colony, has a large community of Portuguese descendants, a fact that may have facilitate a temporary or permanent destiny for some of these emigrants. According to the official Brazilian demographic data center (IBGE), the number of conceded residency for Portuguese nationals surged five-fold in 1975, returning to 1974 levels by 1981. In some areas of the south of Brazil, as in the coast of the state of Santa Catarina, Portuguese descendents are specially noted. Coincidentally, this area includes cities with the highest proportions of clade C infection. Available molecular data may not provide sufficient support for a direct link of the two epidemics and, apart from a threonine at codon 12, most amino acid signatures listed by Bello et al. [1] are not commonly observed among Mozambique sequences available at GenBank. However, these isolates are recent (1999-2004) and may not reflect the variants circulating in late 1970s. An evolving virus in distinct ethnic groups may make the task of tracing its origins and evolution difficult, especially when based exclusively on available, most of the time fragmental, sequence information. The relationship of Mozambique to Brazil, through a 'Portuguese connection', placed the area as the most feasible origin for the Brazilian clade C epidemic. Social and cultural determinants and tangibility of potential routes of dissemination should be incorporated into these studies to allow a more precise picture of HIV epidemic dynamics. (full-text)
Language: English
Keywords:
SOUTH AMERICA | BRAZIL | AFRICA | CRITIQUE | HISTORICAL REVIEW | EPIDEMIOLOGIC METHODS | GENETIC TECHNIQUES | PERSONS LIVING WITH HIV/AIDS | HIV TRANSMISSION | EPIDEMIOLOGY | HUMAN GEOGRAPHY | CULTURE | GENETICS | Latin America | Americas | Developing Countries | South America, Eastern | Research Methodology | Laboratory Examinations and Diagnoses | Examinations and Diagnoses | Medical Procedures | Medicine | Health Services | Delivery of Health Care | Health | HIV Infections | Viral Diseases | Diseases | Public Health | Geography | Social Sciences | Science | Sociocultural Factors | Biology
Document Number: 341168

Peer Reviewed

Title: Pill scare: communication conundrum.
Author: Edouard L
Source: Journal of Family Planning and Reproductive Health Care. 2009 Apr;35(2):121-2.
Abstract: Adverse publicity for combined oral contraceptives (COCs) has led to pill scares on numerous occasions such as reproductive cancers in 1983 and venous thromboembolism (VTE) in 1995. Misinformation should be avoided, especially through the correct interpretation of relative risk to avoid confusion and decrease unnecessary anxiety. Reassurance is usually important, as the absolute risk is infinitely small. The popular media are very effective for the prompt dissemination of information, and authoritative statements are useful for improving communications with providers, patients and public.
Language: English
Keywords:
ALGERIA | HISTORICAL REVIEW | ORAL CONTRACEPTIVES, COMBINED | ORAL CONTRACEPTIVES, SIDE EFFECTS | MISINFORMATION | FEAR | RISK ASSESSMENT | CANCER | THROMBOEMBOLISM | INFORMATION DISTRIBUTION | PUBLIC HEALTH | Africa, North | Africa | Developing Countries | Oral Contraceptives | Contraceptive Methods | Contraception | Family Planning | Contraceptive Safety | Safety | Health | Communication | Emotions | Psychological Factors | Behavior | Evaluation | Neoplasms | Diseases | Embolism | Vascular Diseases
Document Number: 341650

Title: Gender and migration: West Indians in comparative perspective.
Author: Foner N
Source: International Migration. 2009 Jun;47(1):3-29.
Abstract: This article explores gender issues in West Indian migration by taking a comparative -cross-national -perspective. The focus is on the three major West Indian migration movements of the mid- and late-twentieth and early twenty-first centuries -to the United States, Britain, and Canada. A comparative approach has a number of benefits for the study of West Indian migration. It not only points to similarities and contrasts in gender-related patterns among West Indian migrants in the United States, Britain, and Canada but also forces us to try to account for them. It brings out, in an especially dramatic way, the role of the context of reception and the receiving country's immigration policies in shaping male-female differences in West Indian migration flows as well as immigrant adaptation. The comparative analysis of the three migrations in this article explores the reasons for and patterns of West Indian migration as they relate to gender, including the practice of leaving children behind in the Caribbean, as well as aspects of the labour market incorporation of West Indian men and women when they have arrived and settled in the migrant destination. More specifically, the comparisons raise some intriguing questions. Why, for example, did West Indian women comprise a greater proportion of the migrations to the United States and Canada than to Britain? Why were West Indian women more likely to work in caregiving jobs in private homes in the United States and Canada than in Britain? And have the dynamics of transnational motherhood differed in the North American and British contexts?
Language: English
Keywords:
CARIBBEAN | CANADA | UNITED KINGDOM | UNITED STATES OF AMERICA | HISTORICAL REVIEW | COMPARATIVE STUDIES | DOMESTIC WORKERS | MIGRATION | GENDER ISSUES | MIGRATION POLICY | FAMILY RELATIONSHIPS | Developing Countries | Americas | Developed Countries | North America, Northern | Europe, Western | Europe | North America | Studies | Research Methodology | Labor Force | Human Resources | Economic Factors | Population Dynamics | Demographic Factors | Population | Sociocultural Factors | Population Policy | Social Policy | Policy | Political Factors | Family Characteristics | Family and Household
Document Number: 341298

Title: Does health aid matter?
Author: Mishra P; Newhouse D
Source: Journal of Health Economics. 2009 Jun 13;
Abstract: This paper examines the relationship between health aid and infant mortality, using data from 118 countries between 1973 and 2004. Health aid has a beneficial and statistically significant effect on infant mortality: doubling per capita health aid is associated with a 2 percent reduction in the infant mortality rate. For the average country, this implies that increasing per capita health aid by US$1.60 per year is associated with 1.5 fewer infant deaths per thousand births. The estimated effect is small, relative to the 2015 target envisioned by the Millennium Development Goals. It implies that achieving the MDG target through additional health aid alone would require a roughly 15-fold increase in current levels of aid.
Language: English
Keywords:
GLOBAL | RESEARCH REPORT | HISTORICAL REVIEW | HEALTH | ESTIMATION TECHNIQUES | FOREIGN AID | INFANT MORTALITY | GOALS | GOVERNMENT FINANCING | RESOURCE ALLOCATION | PROGRAM EFFECTIVENESS | Research Methodology | Financial Activities | Economic Factors | Mortality | Population Dynamics | Demographic Factors | Population | Planning | Organization and Administration | Program Evaluation | Programs
Document Number: 342295

7.
Peer Reviewed

Title: Public-sector maternal health programmes and services for rural Bangladesh.
Author: Mridha MK; Anwar I; Koblinsky M
Source: Journal of Health, Population, and Nutrition. 2009 Apr;27(2):124-38.
Abstract: Achieving Millennium Development Goal 5 in Bangladesh calls for an appreciation of the evolution of maternal healthcare within the national health system to date plus a projection of future needs. This paper assesses the development of maternal health services and policies by reviewing policy and strategy documents since the independence in 1971, with primary focus on rural areas where three-fourths of the total population of Bangladesh reside. Projections of need for facilities and human resources are based on the recommended standards of the World Health Organization (WHO) in 1996 and 2005. Although maternal healthcare services are delivered from for-profit and not-for-profit (NGO) subsectors, this paper is focused on maternal healthcare delivery by public subsector. Maternal healthcare services in the public sector of Bangladesh have been guided by global policies (e.g., Health for All by the Year 2000), national policies (e.g., population and health policy), and plans (e.g., five- or three-yearly). The Ministry of Health and Family Welfare (MoHFW), through its two wings-Health Services and Family Planning-sets policies, develops implementation plans, and provides rural public-health services. Since 1971, the health infrastructure has developed though not in a uniform pattern and despite policy shifts over time. Under the Family Planning wing of the MoHFW, the number of Maternal and Child Welfare Centres has not increased but new services, such as caesarean-section surgery, have been integrated. The Health Services wing of the MoHFW has ensured that all district-level public-health facilities, e.g., district hospitals and medical colleges, can provide comprehensive essential obstetric care (EOC) and have targeted to upgrade 132 of 407 rural Upazila Health Complexes to also provide such services. In 2001, they initiated a programme to train the Government's community workers (Family Welfare Assistants and Female Health Assistants) to provide skilled birthing care in the home. However, these plans have been too meagre, and their implementation is too weak to fulfill expectations in terms of the MDG 5 indicator-increased use of skilled birth attendants, especially for poor rural women. The use of skilled birth attendants, institutional deliveries, and use of caesarean section remain low and are increasing only slowly. All these indicators are substantially lower for those in the lower three socioeconomic quintiles. A wide variation exists in the availability of comprehensive EOC facilities in the public sector among the six divisions of the country. Rajshahi division has more facilities than the WHO 1996 standard (1 comprehensive EOC for 500,000 people) whereas Chittagong and Sylhet divisions have only 64% of their need for comprehensive EOC facilities. The WHO 2005 recommendation (1 comprehensive EOC for 3500 births) suggests that there is a need for nearly five times the existing national number of comprehensive EOC facilities. Based on the WHO standard 2005, it is estimated that 9% of existing doctors and 40% of nurses/midwives were needed just for maternal healthcare in both comprehensive EOC and basic EOC facilities in 2007. While the inability to train and retain skilled professionals in rural areas is the major problem in implementation, the bifurcation of the MoHFW (Health Services and Family Planning wings) has led to duplication in management and staff for service-delivery, inefficiencies as a result of these duplications, and difficulties of coordination at all levels. The Government of Bangladesh needs to functionally integrate the Health Services and Family Planning wings, move towards a facility-based approach to delivery, ensure access to key maternal health services for women in the lower socioeconomic quintiles, consider infrastructure development based on the estimation of facilities using the WHO 1996 recommendation, and undertake a human resource-development plan based on the WHO 2005 recommendation.
Language: English
Keywords:
BANGLADESH | RURAL AREAS | HISTORICAL REVIEW | MATERNAL HEALTH SERVICES | PUBLIC SECTOR | HEALTH POLICY | OBSTETRICS | EMERGENCY SERVICES | NEEDS | COORDINATION | HUMAN RESOURCES | TRAINING PROGRAMS | Developing Countries | Asia, Southern | Asia | Geographic Factors | Population | Maternal-Child Health Services | Primary Health Care | Health Services | Delivery of Health Care | Health | Macroeconomic Factors | Economic Factors | Policy | Political Factors | Sociocultural Factors | Medicine | Organization and Administration | Education
Document Number: 341938

Peer Reviewed

Title: Trends in three decades of HIV/AIDS epidemic in Thailand by nonparametric backcalculation method.
Author: Punyacharoensin N; Viwatwongkasem C
Source: AIDS. 2009 Jun 1;23(9):1143-52.
Abstract: OBJECTIVES: To reconstruct the past HIV incidence and prevalence in Thailand from 1980 to 2008 and predict the country's AIDS incidence from 2009 to 2011. METHODS: Nonparametric backcalculation was adopted utilizing 100 quarterly observed new AIDS counts excluding pediatric cases. The accuracy of data was enhanced through a series of data adjustments using the weight method to account for several surveillance reporting issues. The mixture of time-dependent distributions allowed the effects of age at seroconversion and antiretroviral therapy to be incorporated simultaneously. Sensitivity analyses were conducted to assess model variations that were subject to major uncertainties. Future AIDS incidence was projected for various predetermined HIV incidence patterns. RESULTS: HIV incidence in Thailand reached its peak in 1992 with approximately 115,000 cases. A steep decline thereafter discontinued in 1997 and was followed by another strike of 42,000 cases in 1999. The second surge, which happened concurrently with the major economic crisis, brought on 60,000 new infections. As of December 2008, more than 1 million individuals had been infected and around 430,000 adults were living with HIV corresponding to a prevalence rate of 1.2%. The incidence rate had become less than 0.1% since 2002. The backcalculated estimates were dominated by postulated median AIDS progression time and adjustments to surveillance data. CONCLUSION: Our analysis indicated that, thus far, the 1990s was the most severe era of HIV/AIDS epidemic in Thailand with two HIV incidence peaks. A drop in new infections led to a decrease in recent AIDS incidence, and this tendency is likely to remain unchanged until 2011, if not further.
Language: English
Keywords:
THAILAND | RESEARCH REPORT | HISTORICAL REVIEW | ESTIMATION TECHNIQUES | DATA ADJUSTMENT | AIDS | HIV INFECTIONS | EPIDEMICS | INCIDENCE | PREVALENCE | Developing Countries | Asia, Southeastern | Asia | Research Methodology | Viral Diseases | Diseases | Measurement
Document Number: 342452

10.

Peer Reviewed

Title: Sweeping changes in marriage, cohabitation and childbearing in Central and Eastern Europe: new insights from the developmental idealism framework Transformations radicales du mariage, de la cohabitation et de la cohabitation et de la procreation en Europe Centrale et Orientale: de nouvelles perspectives a partir de la conception ideationnelle du developpement.
Author: Thornton A; Philipov D
Source: European Journal of Population. 2009 May;25(2):123-156.
Abstract: In Central and Eastern Europe following the political transformations of the late 1980s and early 1990s, there were dramatic declines in marriage and childbearing, significant increases in nonmarital cohabitation and childbearing, and a movement from reliance on abortion to a reliance on contraception for fertility limitation. Although many explanations have been offered for these trends, we offer new explanations based on ideational influences and the intersection of these ideational influences with structural factors. We focus on the political, economic, social, and cultural histories of the region, with particular emphasis on how countries in the region have interacted with and been influenced by Western European and North American countries. Our explanations emphasize the role of developmental models in guiding change in the region, suggesting that developmental idealism influenced family and demographic changes following the political transformations. Developmental idealism provides beliefs that modern family systems help to produce modern political and economic accomplishments, and it helps establish the importance of freedom and equality as human rights in both the public and private spheres. The disintegration of the governments and the fall of the iron curtain in the late 1980s and early 1990s brought new understanding about social, economic, and family circumstances in the West, increasing consumption aspirations and expectations which clashed with both old economic realities and the dramatic declines in economic circumstances. In addition, the dissolution of the former governments removed or weakened systems supporting the bearing and rearing of children; and the legitimacy of the former governments and their programs was largely destroyed, thereby removing government support for old norms and patterns of behavior. In addition, the attacks of previous decades on the religious institutions in the region had in many places left these institutions weak. During this period, many openly reached out to embrace the values, living standards, and economic, political, and familial systems of the West. And, the thirst for freedom-and its considerable expansion-operated in personal and familial as well as political and economic realms. These dramatic changes combined together to produce the many changes occurring in family and demographic behavior.
Language: English
Keywords:
EUROPE, CENTRAL | EUROPE, EASTERN | HISTORICAL REVIEW | MARRIAGE PATTERNS | CONSENSUAL UNION | FERTILITY DECLINE | SOCIAL CHANGE | POLITICAL FACTORS | ECONOMIC CONDITIONS | SOCIALISM | CONTRACEPTIVE USAGE | VALUE ORIENTATION | Developing Countries | Europe | Developed Countries | Marriage | Nuptiality | Demographic Factors | Population | Fertility Changes | Fertility | Population Dynamics | Sociocultural Factors | Macroeconomic Factors | Economic Factors | Political Systems | Contraception | Family Planning | Psychological Factors | Behavior
Document Number: 340171

11.

Peer Reviewed

Title: Ronald Freedman on American population growth: A view from 1957.
Source: Population and Development Review. 2008 Mar;34(1):155-167.
Abstract: Half a century ago, in 1957, the American baby boom reached its peak. The period total fertility rate (TFR) had climbed to 3.76-a level wholly unexpected even in the immediate postwar years. In combination with the then prevailing pattern of early childbearing and already fairly low mortality, this yielded an intrinsic rate of natural increase slightly above 2 percent per year. Such a rate implied, even without immigration, a long-run population growth potential unprecedented in US history. How should this demographic upsurge be interpreted? And what was the likely future demographic course of the United States? These were questions of manifest public interest. From the vantage point of the crest of the baby boom, Ronald Freedman addressed them in an essay titled "The planned family and American population growth," which appeared in the March 1957 issue of The Antioch Review. At the time Freedman was already a well-known social demographer, director of the first national fertility survey in the US(Growth of American Families); he was to become a leader in worldwide research on fertility and family planning. His 1957 essay is reproduced below in full. Written in nontechnical language but reflecting the best understanding of the factors underlying US fertility trends, Freedman's commentary provides a compelling narrative for today's readers. (excerpt)
Language: English
Keywords:
UNITED STATES OF AMERICA | HISTORICAL REVIEW | CRITIQUE | DEMOGRAPHERS | POPULATION GROWTH | BIRTH RATE | BABY BOOM | DIFFERENTIAL FERTILITY | CONTRACEPTIVE USAGE | FAMILY SIZE | FAMILY PLANNING | Developed Countries | North America | Americas | Demography | Social Sciences | Science | Sociocultural Factors | Population Dynamics | Demographic Factors | Population | Fertility Measurements | Fertility | Contraception | Family Characteristics | Family and Household
Document Number: 325567

12.

Peer Reviewed

Title: World population, world health and security: 20th century trends.
Author: Bashford J
Source: Journal of Epidemiology and Community Health. 2008;62:187-190.
Abstract: The connection between infectious disease control and national security is now firmly entrenched. This article takes a historical look at another security issue once prominent in debate on foreign policy and international relations, but now more or less absent: overpopulation. It explores the nature of the debate on population as a security question, and its complicated historical relation to the development of world health. (author's)
Language: English
Keywords:
GLOBAL | HISTORICAL REVIEW | OVERPOPULATION | POPULATION DENSITY | NATIONAL SECURITY | PUBLIC HEALTH | Carrying Capacity | Natural Resources | Environment | Population Distribution | Geographic Factors | Population | Political Factors | Sociocultural Factors | Health
Document Number: 324383

14.

Title: Hormonal contraception: present and future.
Author: Benagiano G; Bastianelli C; Farris M
Source: Drugs of today. 2008 Dec;44(12):905-23.
Abstract: The original form of hormonal contraception ("the Pill") has developed into a variety of modalities administered through different routes: oral, intramuscular, subcutaneous, transdermal, intrauterine or intravaginal, and intranasal (abandoned). At present, two separate methods of hormonal contraception exist; one is used to prevent fertilization and the other to prevent pregnancy. From a pharmacological point of view, hormonal methods utilize either a combination of estrogen and progestin or progestin alone. Today all combined methods contain ethynylestradiol, and over the years there has been a substantial reduction in its dosage from almost 80 microg to as low as 15 microg. On the other hand, a variety of progestins are currently utilized that belong to two main chemical families: derivatives of progesterone and derivatives of 19-nortestosterone or gonane. These compounds, developed over a period of 50 years, can be distinguished in four successive "generations". Recent developments include new oral regimens intended to change the 7-day medication-free interval and new commercial preparations; the latter utilize the progestins drospirenone and dienogest. In addition, an oral contraceptive containing chlormadinone has also been marketed. Besides the oral route, contraceptive systems exist or are under development that employ the intramuscular, transdermal and intravaginal routes; they deliver both an estrogen and a progestin. Several patches and vaginal rings are also marketed. A variety of long-acting methods delivering only a progestin are also available. They use the subcutaneous route or are released from an intrauterine system, both of which provide optimal contraceptive protection and, depending on the system, can last up to 5 years (and probably more). Finally, progestin-releasing vaginal rings are under investigation. The second type of hormonal contraception, called "emergency contraception", utilizes progestins and antiprogestins and to be effective should be taken as soon as possible after unprotected intercourse.
Language: English
Keywords:
ITALY | HISTORICAL REVIEW | CONTRACEPTIVE AGENTS, FEMALE | CONTRACEPTIVE METHODS | CONTRACEPTIVE MODE OF ACTION | CONTRACEPTIVE EFFECTIVENESS | CONTRACEPTIVE AGENTS, SIDE EFFECTS | EMERGENCY CONTRACEPTION | MENSTRUATION | Developed Countries | Europe, Southern | Europe | Contraceptive Agents | Contraception | Family Planning | Reproduction
Document Number: 330078

15.

Peer Reviewed

Title: Cardiovascular disease and global health equity: Lessons from tuberculosis control then and now.
Author: Bukhman G; Kidder A
Source: American Journal of Public Health. 2008 Jan;98(1):44-54.
Abstract: Early 20th-century cardiovascular voluntary organizations in the United States drew strength from the well-established antituberculosis movement. By mid-century, heart disease among the young and tuberculosis had declined in this country. The international fight against tuberculosis has gathered force since the 1990s. Meanwhile, support for international cardiovascular interventions has lagged behind. We trace the divergent path of the international cardiovascular movement and suggest ways in which it could once again learn from the trials and achievements of tuberculosis control.
Language: English
Keywords:
GLOBAL | UNITED STATES OF AMERICA | HISTORICAL REVIEW | CRITIQUE | CARDIOVASCULAR EFFECTS | TUBERCULOSIS | PREVENTION AND CONTROL | INEQUALITIES | CAMPAIGNS | PUBLIC HEALTH | Developed Countries | North America | Americas | Physiology | Biology | Infections | Diseases | Socioeconomic Factors | Economic Factors | Communication Programs | Communication | Health
Document Number: 325760

16.
Peer Reviewed

Title: The World Health Organization and its work. 1993.
Author: Bynum WF; Porter R
Source: American Journal of Public Health. 2008 Sep;98(9):1594-7.
Abstract: In 1948, after its first World Health Assembly, the WHO took action to form a Secretariat in Geneva. It was given space for its initial years in the Palais des Nations, which had been the last home of the League of Nations. As stated in Chapter I of its Constitution, WHO was "to act as the directing and coordinating authority on international health work." This was a much broader scope than any other international agency in the orbit of the UN. (excerpt)
Language: English
Keywords:
GLOBAL | HISTORICAL REVIEW | WHO | ORGANIZATION AND ADMINISTRATION | PUBLIC HEALTH | HEALTH POLICY | HEALTH AND WELFARE PLANNING | INTERNATIONAL AGENCIES | UN | Organizations | Political Factors | Sociocultural Factors | Health | Policy | Social Planning | Economic Factors
Document Number: 328449

17.

Title: Fertility transition: forecast for demography.
Author: Caputo M; Nicotra M; Gloria-Bottini E
Source: Human Biology. 2008 Aug;80(4):359-76.
Abstract: By the end of the 20th century most industrialized nations had undergone the so-called fertility transition, characterized by a reduction in fertility to below replacement level and a delay in age at initiation of child-bearing. An emerging concern is the severe economic and social consequences of this demographic decline. We present an overview of fertility changes in Italy in the second half of the 20th century and a mathematical model that may provide projections for the future of the demographic situation. Starting in 1950 the increment of the number of children born in Italy is initially positive; however, beginning in 1965 the trend suddenly becomes negative, and this negative trend further increased in 1975. A slight improvement is observed in 1980, followed by a stable situation beginning in 1987. Relevant socioeconomic and cultural events in Italy coincide with these variations in the fertility trend. Malnutrition, which had been endemic for centuries in some areas of central and southern Italy, disappeared rather abruptly in early 1960. The improvement in the economic situation was also associated with a decrease in illiteracy and with many sociocultural changes, with the emergence of new demands that decreased propensity for childbearing. The additional deceleration observed in 1975 corresponds to the diffusion of contraceptive procedures. The progression of sociocultural changes has led to a progressive liberation of women from the biological burden of childbearing. Two phenomena seem relevant in this context: women's emerging interest in entering the workforce and the possibility to disconnect sex from childbearing. The social function of feminism has overwhelmed the primary function of survival and diffusion of the species, giving rise to relevant and worrying demographic effects. However, the modern woman has an unconscious memory of her primary biological role, depending on both her genetic structure and cultural heritage, that should bring about a change in the present strong tendency to demographic decline. The basic notion of memory functions is widely recognized in sciences, for example, in the evolutionary theory of Darwin. Here, we introduce into the equations governing population growth a memory mechanism and a perturbation, and we estimate the reactions of the system to perturbations caused by environmental changes and subsequent delayed effects, such as those that appear in the birth rate beginning in 1965 and 1975. The mathematical modeling of the effects of perturbations of the fertility rate in the Italian population, with the introduction of a mathematical memory formalism, suggests that the effect is strongly reduced, with a relaxation time of about 10 years when the fertility rate approaches a stable value.
Language: English
Keywords:
ITALY | HISTORICAL REVIEW | MATHEMATICAL MODEL | DEMOGRAPHIC TRANSITION | FERTILITY DECLINE | SOCIOCULTURAL FACTORS | SOCIOECONOMIC FACTORS | DELAYED CHILDBEARING | FERTILITY DETERMINANTS | Developed Countries | Europe, Southern | Europe | Theoretical Models | Research Methodology | Population Dynamics | Demographic Factors | Population | Fertility Changes | Fertility | Economic Factors | Reproductive Behavior
Document Number: 342321

18.
Title: Fatal misconception: the struggle to control world population.
Author: Connelly M
Source: Cambridge, Massachusetts, Belknap Press, 2008. xiv, 521 p.
Abstract: Rather than a conspiracy theory, this book presents a cautionary tale. It is a story about the future, and not just the past. It therefore takes the form of a narrative unfolding over time, including very recent times. It describes the rise of a movement that sought to remake humanity, the reaction of those who fought to preserve patriarchy, and the victory won for the reproductive rights of both women and men -- a victory, alas, Pyrrhic and incomplete, after so many compromises, and too many sacrifices. (Excerpt)
Language: English
Keywords:
GLOBAL | HISTORICAL REVIEW | LITERATURE REVIEW | CRITIQUE | POPULATION CONTROL | FAMILY PLANNING | INTERVENTIONS | REPRODUCTIVE HEALTH | REPRODUCTIVE RIGHTS | POPULATION POLICY | POPULATION PROGRAMS | FAMILY PLANNING PROGRAMS | FOREIGN AID | INTERNATIONAL AGENCIES | NONGOVERNMENTAL ORGANIZATIONS | Social Policy | Policy | Political Factors | Sociocultural Factors | Programs | Organization and Administration | Health | Human Rights | Financial Activities | Economic Factors | Organizations
Document Number: 328182

19.

20.

Peer Reviewed

Title: Spain: Short on children and short on family policies.
Author: Delgado M; Meil G; Zamora Lopez F
Source: Demographic Research. 2008 Jul 1;19(27):1059-1104.
Abstract: Spain's total fertility rate has more than halved since 1975, when it was 2.8, to the present 1.3 (the lowest rate on record, 1.2, was reached in 1995). At the same time, the mean age at first childbirth has grown continually, seriously hindering any sustained recovery of fertility. Cohort fertility, in turn, has declined uninterruptedly since the 1941 cohort, and according to all estimates, this will drop to 1.6 for women born in the 1960s. A downturn in nuptiality, which has not been offset by a rise in consensual unions, along with the prevalence of contraceptives and abortion, have contributed substantially to falling fertility. Underlying this decrease is the profound cultural, social, and economic change that has raised the perceived costs of leaving the parental home and having children. The lack of any explicit family policy or transfers to compensate for such costs has reinforced that perception. (author's)
Language: English
Keywords:
SPAIN | RESEARCH REPORT | HISTORICAL REVIEW | FERTILITY CHANGES | FERTILITY DETERMINANTS | FERTILITY DECLINE | CONTRACEPTION | ABORTION | PREVALENCE | SOCIAL CHANGE | ECONOMIC FACTORS | FAMILY POLICY | Europe, Southwestern | Europe | Developed Countries | Fertility | Population Dynamics | Demographic Factors | Population | Family Planning | Fertility Control, Postconception | Measurement | Research Methodology | Sociocultural Factors | Social Policy | Policy | Political Factors
Document Number: 327673 Notification

21.

Peer Reviewed

Title: Operationalising human rights for sexual and reproductive health: Celebrations, achievements and challenges.
Author: Edouard L
Source: Journal of Family Planning and Reproductive Health Care. 2008;34(1):5-7.
Abstract: As far back as the 16th century, a girl from Lyon in France justified her premarital sexual activities by arguing that "Paris est au Roi et mon corps est a moi" (Paris belongs to the King and my body belongs to me). This approach fits in the long line of events demonstrating that government has no business in the bedrooms of the nation. The prominence of the women's movement led to major developments for sexual and reproductive health and rights with increasing involvement of parties as disparate as the United Nations (UN) Special Rapporteur on the Right to Health, professional medical associations and Amnesty International. Concerns for sexual and reproductive health, and specially the HIV epidemic, led to efforts to examine the relevance of human rights. With the special anniversaries in 2008 of numerous landmarks in the international human rights movement, it is apt to review the current status and implementation of those agreements as pertaining to sexual and reproductive health. (excerpt)
Language: English
Keywords:
FRANCE | UNITED STATES OF AMERICA | HISTORICAL REVIEW | CRITIQUE | WOMEN | HUMAN RIGHTS | REPRODUCTIVE RIGHTS | REPRODUCTIVE HEALTH | SEXUALITY | FAMILY PLANNING | PRIMARY HEALTH CARE | HEALTH POLICY | PROMOTION | LEGISLATION | Europe, Western | Europe | Developed Countries | North America | Americas | Demographic Factors | Population | Political Factors | Sociocultural Factors | Health | Personality | Psychological Factors | Behavior | Health Services | Delivery of Health Care | Policy | Marketing | Economic Factors
Document Number: 323388

22.

Title: The enigma of yellow fever in East Africa.
Author: Ellis BR; Barrett AD
Source: Reviews In Medical Virology. 2008 Sep-Oct;18(5):331-46.
Abstract: Despite a safe and effective vaccine, there are approximately 200,000 cases, including 30,000 deaths, due to yellow fever virus (YFV) each year, of which 90% are in Africa. The natural history of YFV has been well described, especially in West Africa, but in East Africa yellow fever (YF) remains characterised by unpredictable focal periodicity and a precarious potential for large epidemics. Recent outbreaks of YF in Kenya (1992-1993) and Sudan (2003 and 2005) are important because each of these outbreaks have involved the re-emergence of a YFV genotype (East Africa) that remained undetected for nearly 40 years and was previously unconfirmed in a clinically apparent outbreak. In addition, unlike West Africa and South America, YF has yet to emerge in urban areas of East Africa and be vectored by Aedes (Stegomyia) aegypti. This is a significant public health concern in a region where the majority of the population remains unvaccinated. This review describes historical findings, highlights a number of disease indicators, and provides clarification regarding the natural history, recent emergence and future risk of YF in East Africa.
Language: English
Keywords:
AFRICA, EASTERN | KENYA | RESEARCH REPORT | HISTORICAL REVIEW | EPIDEMIOLOGY | YELLOW FEVER | TRANSMISSION | GEOGRAPHIC FACTORS | RISK ASSESSMENT | Developing Countries | Africa, Sub Saharan | Africa | Public Health | Health | Viral Diseases | Diseases | Infections | Population | Evaluation
Document Number: 328631

23.

Peer Reviewed

Title: Reproductive and sexual rights: do words matter? [editorial]
Author: Gruskin S
Source: American Journal of Public Health. 2008 Oct;98(10):1737.
Abstract: The 1994 Cairo International Conference on Population and Development helped governments, the organs and agencies of the United Nations system, and nongovernmental organizations move beyond the confines of traditional family planning approaches. This watershed event fostered and defined subsequent international and national reproductive and sexual health policies and programs as well as global efforts to realize reproductive and sexual rights. However, moving beyond history, or the "archeology of Cairo" (as a participant at a meeting I recently attended called it), are we now simply using the language of the Cairo conference with little attention to the conceptual and operational implications of its words? Has the politically charged notion of rights with its attendant government responsibility and accountability succumbed to the less controversial notion of health? As the public health community recognized even before the Cairo consensus, barriers to reproductive and sexual health operate on a number of levels-including legal, social, cultural, political, financial, attitudinal, and practical -- and interact in complex ways. What rights add to this mix is a framework for programming and for action and a legal rationale for government responsibility-not only to provide relevant services but also to alter the conditions that create, exacerbate, and perpetuate poverty, deprivation, marginalization, and discrimination as these affect reproductive and sexual health. By fixing attention on the responsibility and accountability of governments to translate their international-level commitments into national and subnational laws, policies, programs, and practices that promote and do not hinder reproductive and sexual health, the actions of governments are open to scrutiny to determine their influences-both positive and negative-on reproductive and sexual health, including barriers that affect the availability, accessibility, acceptability, and quality of reproductive and sexual health services, structures, and goods. Despite the framework that the Cairo conference helped put into place, work falling under the rubric of reproductive and sexual rights now includes everything from the provision of abortion services to the reduction of maternal mortality -- as though simply working on these issues is equal to working on rights. Consequently, one has to ask this: Are reproductive, and even sexual, rights becoming synonymous with reproductive, and sexual, health? Those who understand their work to be in the area of reproductive and sexual rights sorely need to discuss whether their efforts are aligned with the politics that underlie the words of the Cairo conference or whether, bluntly speaking, the politics are a historical artifact and it is simply time to move on. Bringing the political back into reproductive and sexual rights would require going beyond the technical dimensions of addressing reproductive and sexual health issues to the application of the norms and standards that are engaged by a human rights discourse. This includes attention to the basics of reproductive and sexual rights: the efforts that exist to ensure the sustained participation of affected communities; how discrimination that affects both vulnerability to ill health and access and use of services is being tackled; the extent to which any legal, political, and financial constraints are being addressed; how rights considerations are brought into policy and program design, implementation, and evaluation; and the existence of mechanisms that require government as well as intergovernmental and nongovernmental institution accountability. And so yes, in a word, words do matter. And they matter for the actions they inspire. (full-text)
Language: English
Keywords:
EGYPT | CRITIQUE | FAMILY PLANNING PROGRAMS | GOVERNMENT PROGRAMS | HISTORICAL REVIEW | POLITICAL FACTORS | PUBLIC HEALTH | REPRODUCTIVE RIGHTS | UN | Developing Countries | Africa, North | Africa | Family Planning | Programs | Organization and Administration | Sociocultural Factors | Health | Human Rights | International Agencies | Organizations
Document Number: 328533

24.

Peer Reviewed

Title: Using human rights to improve maternal and neonatal health: History, connections and a proposed practical approach.
Author: Gruskin S; Cottingham J; HIlber AM; Kismodi E; Lincetto O
Source: Bulletin of the World Health Organization. 2008 Aug;86(8):589-593.
Abstract: We describe the historical development of how maternal and neonatal mortality in the developing world came to be seen as a public-health concern, a human rights concern, and ultimately as both, leading to the development of approaches using human rights concepts and methods to advance maternal and neonatal health. We describe the different contributions of the international community, women's health advocates and human rights activists. We briefly present a recent effort, developed by WHO with the Harvard Program on International Health and Human Rights, that applies a human rights framework to reinforce current efforts to reduce maternal and neonatal mortality. (author's)
Language: English
Keywords:
DEVELOPING COUNTRIES | HISTORICAL REVIEW | MATERNAL HEALTH | NEONATAL MORTALITY | MATERNAL MORTALITY | HUMAN RIGHTS | Health | Infant Mortality | Mortality | Population Dynamics | Demographic Factors | Population | Political Factors | Sociocultural Factors
Document Number: 327981

25.

Peer Reviewed

Title: China: Policy and practice of MCH since the early 1990s.
Author: Guo Y; Zakus D; Liang H
Source: Maternal and Child Health Journal. 2008 Mar;12(2):139-148.
Abstract: Since the socioeconomic reforms in China in the late 1970s the improvement of maternal and child health (MCH), which was once considered one of the great achievements of China after 1949, has slowed and some indicators show that the situation in some regions, especially in rural areas, is getting worse instead of better. This article will focus on policy and policy-related issues in the delivery of MCH services. It will cover historical changes in policy and their effects, especially in the financing of MCH. In addition, it will also touch upon new practices of MCH in the new cooperative medical scheme (NCMS) in present-day rural China. (author's)
Language: English
Keywords:
CHINA | CRITIQUE | HISTORICAL REVIEW | MATERNAL-CHILD HEALTH SERVICES | DELIVERY OF HEALTH CARE | GOVERNMENT | HEALTH POLICY | POLICY DEVELOPMENT | GOVERNMENT FINANCING | Asia, Eastern | Asia | Developing Countries | Primary Health Care | Health Services | Health | Political Factors | Sociocultural Factors | Policy | Planning | Organization and Administration | Financial Activities | Economic Factors
Document Number: 324355

26.
Peer Reviewed

Title: Historical keyword: Family planning.
Author: Hall LA
Source: Lancet. 2008 Mar 8;371:805.
Abstract: "Family planning" was a rather late coinage for the practice of using contraceptives. The deliberate control of conception within marriage by artificial means for reasons of economy and health had been advocated since the early 19th century. Neo-Malthusians accepted the Reverend Thomas Robert Malthus's doctrine that population unless controlled would outrun agricultural resources, but moved on from his remedies of late marriage and self-control to suggest that human ingenuity might enable sexual enjoyment without procreation. The titles of their works do not suggest wild carnality-Illustrations and Proofs of the Principle of Population and The Law of Population-while terms such as "precautionary means" and "prudential limitation" struck a similarly dour note of gloomy forethought, possibly to counter the prevalent belief that contraception was all about self-indulgence. A radical shift came with the advent of the term "birth control", usually attributed to the pioneering US reformer Margaret Sanger (1883-1966), who also used the phrase "family limitation", which foregrounded the notion of contraception as being about "family values". This idea of control over reproduction as a positive act was further emphasised by British campaigner Marie Stopes (1880-1958), who set up her own Society for Constructive Birth Control as a rival to what she perceived as the fuddy-duddy economic arguments of the Malthusian League. The shift to family planning occurred in the late 1930s, when the British National Birth Control Association became the Family Planning Association, locating the movement firmly in concerns about family wellbeing. Contemporary progressive thinkers were also arguing for the social benefits of planning more generally. The think-tank Political and Economic Planning was established and key individuals were involved with both groups. Although rhetorically a useful term, family planning somewhat misrepresents the rather more contingent process by which individual families are created. Studies suggestthat forethought and long-term planning are not necessarily the most salient elements involved. The rise in sex outside of marriage and the extensive resort to postcoital contraceptives have perhaps transformed the term for the 21st century. However, its importance has not diminished, especially in those countries where contraceptive choices for women are curtailed. (full text)
Language: English
Keywords:
GLOBAL | UNITED KINGDOM | CRITIQUE | HISTORICAL REVIEW | FAMILY PLANNING | CONTRACEPTION | TERMINOLOGY | SOCIAL CHANGE | Developed Countries | Europe, Western | Europe | Sociocultural Factors
Document Number: 325232

27.

Title: Reclaiming the ABCs: the creation and evolution of the ABC approach.
Author: Hardee K; Gribble J; Weber S; Manchester T; Wood M
Source: Washington, D.C., Population Action International, 2008. [16] p.
Abstract: This report was developed through review of the early literature on HIV/AIDS policies and programs in non-industrialized countries and of media material promoting prevention of heterosexual transmission of HIV in those countries. Material from the early days of the epidemic was difficult to obtain. Most materials were long ago archived or are in personal files in "basements". While the report focuses on the experiences of three countries, it also examines the early responses of international organizations to HIV in many other developing countries. Additional data were obtained using a snowball sampling technique through which the authors contacted people who had worked in HIV/AIDS prevention strategies. The pool of respondents is not intended to be exhaustive, but the respondents provide important voices of those working in the developing world at the beginning of the epidemic.
Language: English
Keywords:
UNITED STATES OF AMERICA | DEVELOPING COUNTRIES | UGANDA | LITERATURE REVIEW | HISTORICAL REVIEW | CROSS-CULTURAL COMPARISONS | CLASSIFICATION | INTERNATIONAL AGENCIES | POLICYMAKERS | ABSTINENCE, BE FAITHFUL, CONDOM USE | FOREIGN AID | HIV PREVENTION | CONDOM USE | INTERNATIONAL COOPERATION | USAID | Developed Countries | North America | Americas | Africa, Eastern | Africa, Sub Saharan | Africa | Comparative Studies | Studies | Research Methodology | Organizations | Political Factors | Sociocultural Factors | Administrative Personnel | Organization and Administration | Sex Behavior | Behavior | Financial Activities | Economic Factors | HIV Infections | Viral Diseases | Diseases | Risk Reduction Behavior | Government Agencies
Document Number: 329878

28.

Peer Reviewed

Title: Communal violence in Gujarat, India: Impact of sexual violence and responsibilities of the health care system.
Author: Khanna R
Source: Reproductive Health Matters. 2008 May;16(31):142-152.
Abstract: Situations of chronic conflict across the globe make it imperative to draw attention to its gendered health consequences, particularly the violation of women's reproductive and sexual rights. Since early 2002 in Gujarat, western India, the worst kind of state-sponsored violence against Muslims has been perpetrated, which continues to this day. This paper describes the history of that violence and highlights the mental and physicial consequences of sexual and gender-based violence and the issues that need to be addressed by the police, the health care system and civil society. It draws upon several reports, including from the International Initiative for Justice and the Medico Friend Circle, which documented the reproductive, sexual and mental health consequences of the violence in Gujarat, and the lacunae in the responses of the health system. The paper calls for non-discrimination to be demonstrated by health personnel in the context of conflict and social unrest. Their training should include conflict as a public health problem, their roles and responsibilities in prevention, treatment and documentation of this "disease", and focus on relevant medico-legal methodology and principles, the psychological impact of sexual assault on victims, and the legal significance of medical evidence in these cases. (author's)
Language: English
Keywords:
INDIA | RESEARCH REPORT | HISTORICAL REVIEW | WOMEN | VIOLENCE AGAINST WOMEN | RAPE | REPRODUCTIVE RIGHTS | HEALTH SERVICES | HEALTH SERVICES ADMINISTRATION | POLICE | CIVIL SOCIETY | HINDUISM | ISLAM | RELIGIOUS ASPECTS | Developing Countries | Asia, Southern | Asia | Demographic Factors | Population | Domestic Violence | Crime | Social Problems | Sociocultural Factors | Human Rights | Political Factors | Delivery of Health Care | Health | Management | Organization and Administration | Corrections Officers | Government | Economic Factors | Religion
Document Number: 327198

29.

Peer Reviewed

Title: Gender, caste and matchmaking in Kerala: A rationale for dowry.
Author: Kodoth P
Source: Development and Change. 2008 Mar;39(2):263-283.
Abstract: The matrilineal castes of northern Kerala consider dowry demeaning and resort to it only in 'exceptional' circumstances. In local discourse, dowry is transacted when women are considered 'old' by the standards of the marriage market, where over-age is a condition reached usually on account of what is considered a deficit of a normative conception of femininity. Dowry is practised openly only by poor and socially vulnerable households, as the relatively affluent could mask dowry with hidden compensations. This article explores the ways in which gender mediates matchmaking and generates a residual category of women for whom dowry is openly negotiated. Open negotiation on the margins of the marriage market expose the terms of exchange in 'respectable' society, where matchmaking strategies reveal the emphasis placed on conjugality and on caste in the social construction of women's interests and identity. Up to the mid-twentieth century, matrilineal women derived their identity from their natal families. The political economy of marriage in Kerala brought a new emphasis to bear on conjugality and on caste, which generated new restrictions on women and produced a rationale for dowry. (author's)
Language: English
Keywords:
INDIA | HISTORICAL REVIEW | RESEARCH REPORT | SOCIOMETRICS | WOMEN | MARRIAGE PATTERNS | DOWRY | CASTE | GENDER RELATIONS | ANTHROPOLOGY, CULTURAL | SOCIOECONOMIC FACTORS | MATRIARCHY | Developing Countries | Asia, Southern | Asia | Measurement | Research Methodology | Demographic Factors | Population | Marriage | Nuptiality | Social Class | Socioeconomic Status | Economic Factors | Gender Issues | Sociocultural Factors | Anthropology | Social Sciences | Science | Family Characteristics | Family and Household
Document Number: 326352


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