39 research outputs found
Selected Issues in Global Health Communications
No full textThis book was written to give scholars an opportunity to examine selected issues in health communication. There are many challenges in health communication, such as the shortage of evaluations on social marketing interventions, the need for a framework to easily apply social marketing practices to campaigns, and the difficulty of applying theory to improve communication. To address these challenges, the four chapters, including an introductory chapter, introduce several health communication topics, including social marketing, the application of theory, and message design to promote social communication. Readers can expect concise topic overviews with clear steps and examples of how to apply the methods discussed in each chapter
Bangladesh Rural Advancement Committee (BRAC): organizational innovation in population, health and development in Bangladesh in the context of the millennium development goals
Get PDFBangladesh has marked strides to make in reaching the Millennium Development Goals (MDGs)for child mortality and maternal health by 2015. Progress and achievements that have been made to date are recognized. However, challenges remain that may impede steady progress towards the
realization of the goals, including social inequality, largely defined by the low status of women, and the rich-poor divide. BRAC’s innovative organizational approach in Bangladesh serves to fill in the gaps left by the public sector, and brings a comprehensive approach to addressing these challenges and encouraging advances in health and development
Abstract A45: Informing community participants of research: Multiple strategies from Project HEAL
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Project HEAL (Health through Early Awareness and Learning) is a community-based participatory research (CBPR) project utilizing a community health advisor (CHA) model that aims to improve cancer screening behaviors among African Americans in 14 churches throughout Prince George's County, Maryland. Participants attend a CHA-led 3-workshop series on cancer early detection that is based on three evidence-based interventions. Follow-up workshops are held at 12- and 24-months to assess project sustainability and health-related behavior change. The success of longitudinal CBPR and implementation studies such as Project HEAL rely heavily on relationship building in the early phases at all participant levels (e.g., pastor, CHA, workshop participant) and relationship maintenance throughout the study period. A key aspect of CBPR studies and maintaining rapport with participants and community members is reporting back findings in a lay accessible, health-literate fashion. Project HEAL utilized multiple strategies and channels to report data and research findings and share project-related news back to project participants: annual reports; PowerPoint presentations delivered at the 12- and 24- month follow-up workshops; and a final testimonial video featuring project pastors, CHAs, and workshop participants. Each piece was developed and implemented with health literacy, lay person accessibility, and various platform preferences (e.g., paper-based, audio [workshop presentation], video) in mind. These methods were successful in maintaining good relationships with workshop participants as shown by the 84% response rate achieved on the final participant survey 24 months after the workshop intervention. We present our experiences to provide guidance for future longitudinal implementation CBPR research in community- and faith-based contexts.
Citation Format: Sherie Lou Zara Santos, Cheryl L. Holt, Mary Ann Scheirer, Muhiuddin Haider, Jimmie Slade, Roxanne Carter. Informing community participants of research: Multiple strategies from Project HEAL. [abstract]. In: Proceedings of the Ninth AACR Conference on the Science of Cancer Health Disparities in Racial/Ethnic Minorities and the Medically Underserved; 2016 Sep 25-28; Fort Lauderdale, FL. Philadelphia (PA): AACR; Cancer Epidemiol Biomarkers Prev 2017;26(2 Suppl):Abstract nr A45.</jats:p
Village-Level Integrated Population Education: a Case Study of Bangladesh.
No full textThere are a number of ways to integrate population education into the programs of rural development organizations. These methods should be grouped on the basis of an underst and ing of the existing structural and process properties of 'integration' in all levels of an organization. Problems of promoting family planning behavior through integrated population education indicate the wide variety of structural properties that can produce integrated services at different levels of the organization. On the basis of empirical observation, it is pointed out that an integrated concept was not fully operationalized at the program level, especially in local level organizations in Bangladesh. This was due to lack of appropriate linkages between the structural and process aspects of integration in the organization. The objectives of the study are: (1) To examine the multi-sector approach for Integrated Population Education Activities as outlined by the higher level authority. (2) To identify the properties of structural and process aspects of integration as practiced by the higher level authorities and to explore their relationships at the village level. (3) To develop a hypothesis for an Integrated Population Education Policy Framework for the local level organization based on the above findings. The case study method was adopted for this study. Data were gathered through field visits, personal interviews, observations and examination of the organizational records, reports and memos. For this purpose, the researcher visited Bangladesh for a period of four months, from January to April, 1979. Local Area: Rangunia; Organization: Mother's Club, under Ministry of Labor and Social Welfare. Rangunia, in the district of Chittagong, has a l and area of 134 square miles, with 180,122 population, of which 94,431 are male and 85,681 are female (village-level statistics: Bureau of Statistics, Government of Bangladesh, 1978). It has 11 unions, eight of which have been selected for the organization of Mothers' Clubs. These unions, under the project-programs, cover roughly an area of 96 square miles, with 130,912 population (Department of Social Welfare Report, 1975). With the range of experiences that I have had in Rangunia, I can assert that the "issue at h and " is not measuring people's unacceptability of family planning behavior; it is the characteristics of the administrative system in regard to its relationship, both with the external environment, e.g., bureaucratic hierarchies, and with the centralized power structure. Development may be the best contraceptive but there may not be enough relevant development in the short-run or medium-run, given the resource and other constraints facing Bangladesh. The central question is whether it is possible to identify selected aspects of economic development (in the case of Mothers' Clubs, selected aspects of income-generating activities) that have a special significance for fertility reduction and which deserve number one priority, just as the Government of Bangladesh has declared that the population problem is number one.PhDSocial sciences educationUniversity of Michiganhttp://deepblue.lib.umich.edu/bitstream/2027.42/157752/1/8017276.pd
Effects of conflict, displacement, and migration on the health of refugee and conflict-stricken populations in the Middle East
Get PDFThe global refugee crisis has reached an all-time high, with over 68 million innocent people forced to flee their homes due to violence, famine, governmental instability, or genocide. As a result of the struggles and traumas encountered by war and migration, millions of refugees suffer from acute and life-threatening physical and mental health illnesses. However, these diseases and internal-battles are often overlooked, leaving most conflict-stricken countries and refugee camps ill-equipped and unable to cope. Rather than settling into more humane and healthy living conditions, upon migration, most refugees are faced with realities that deny them a dignified and fulfilling life. More often than not, refugee camps and host countries accommodate a deplorable lifestyle that provides minimal and inadequate health-care, extreme and life-threatening poverty, and inhumane and unsanitary living conditions-exasperating the rate and risk of morbidity and mortality amongst refugee populations. This research paper aims to analyze the harsh conditions that refugees and conflict-stricken populations are currently forced to endure, as well as the effects of those conditions on the spread of communicable and non-communicable diseases, the development and growth of neonatal disorders, and the overall rise in mental illness. The paper also aims to suggest specific measures that can be taken in order to prevent the increase in morbidity and mortality rates amongst vulnerable refugee populations and recommend steps that international bodies and non-governmental organizations can take in order to solve the refugee health crisis
Firearms: Ownership, Laws & and The Case for Community Mobilization
Get PDFThe United States (U.S.) currently ranks number one in the world in both the quantity of privately owned guns and the rate of private gun ownership. These privately owned firearms, which include rifles, shotguns and handguns, are predominantly owned by middle-aged, 35-54, white men, but the gaps have been steadily closing over the years, especially depending on the type of firearm, in all areas including gender, age, race, education level, political affiliation and geographic location. Gun violence is a leading cause of injury death in the U.S. In examining gun violence and potentially reducing its incidence, this article reviews gun ownership, access and utilization in the U.S., outcomes of gun violence, and the impact of community involvement in reducing gun violence. Specific areas of focus include the current state of background checks, with a focus on mental illness, and the role of medical professionals in guiding gun policy development. Gun violence continues to negatively impact the safety of individuals, families and communities. This article will emphasize the importance of social mobilization in enacting meaningful changes in gun policy and the development of relationships among healthcare professionals, social workers, and community members so as to further reduce and/or prevent gun violence
The Case for Microcredit: Does IT Improve Maternal and Child Health and Wellbeing?
Get PDFThere are about three billion people, half of the worlds population, living on the income of less than two dollars a day. Among these poor communities, one child in five does not live to see his or her fifth birthday. One study in 2006 showed that the ratio of the income between the 5% richest and 5% poorest of the population is 74 to 1 as compared to the ratio in 1960, which was 30 to 12. To enhance international development, the United Nations Organization (UNO) announced the millennium development goals, aimed to eradicate poverty by 2015. According to the World Banks (1990) definition of poverty, A condition of life so characterized by malnutrition, illiteracy, and disease as to be beneath any reasonable definition of human decency. The complexity of poverty demands an equally multidimensional solution emphasizing on reducing unemployment, infant mortality, maintaining essential healthcare, sanitation, food, nutrition basic hygiene, and establishing gender equality. Researchers posit that it is possible to achieve the above development goals, if disposable income (especially of the poor) is increased.One of the main avenues of increasing disposable income of the poor in developing nations is through the use of microfinance and microcredit
Universal Health Coverage and Environmental Health: An Investigation in Decreasing Communicable and Chronic Disease by Including Environmental Health in UHC
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