BACKGROUND:As it is common with the most devastating events in the world, women always seem to be at the most disadvantage position. This situation manifested during the period of COVID-19 lockdown throughout the world and Africa in particular. The purpose of this study is to explore Domestic Violence (DV) cases in African during the COVID-19 lockdown. METHODS:Data for this study were gleaned from an electronic literature search using various databases PubMed and BioMed Central, Web of Science, etc. Key search words were gender DV during and after COVID-19. A total of 68 records were identified during the search. However, only 46 of these sources met the inclusion criteria. RESULTS:From the review done in selected African countries which include Egypt, South Africa, Kenya, Nigeria, Ghana and Zimbabwe; it was discovered that COVID-19 lockdown across these countries worsens the already existing cases of DV. The study also noted that generally, the response of the government has been very poor in terms of dealing with DV cases in the period of COVID-19 lockdown. CONCLUSION:The study concluded that despite the failures of government in tackling the DV pandemics, NGOs have been very active in championing the cause of those violated while also trying to provide succour to victims. Thus, the study recommended that countries in Africa need to join international initiatives in prioritising DV cases while trying to deal with the virus itself. Thus, one disease should not be traded for another.
This study a utilized phenomenological hermeneutic design. Fourteen Iranian family caregivers of patients with COVID-19 who were isolated at home were included in the study using purposive sampling. In-depth unstructured interviews were conducted via WhatsApp. Sampling continued until data saturation. Interviews were transcribed and analyzed using Van Manen's approach. Three primary themes and eight subthemes emerged. The primary themes included: "captured in a whirlpool of time", "resilient care' and "feeling helpless". It seems that the families of patients with COVID-19 attempt to resist the pressures of this disease with religious practices and problem solving. However, due to the nature of the disease and its severity, they sometimes feel ashamed or lonely and are afraid of losing their loved ones. It is recommended that psychiatric nurses should develop programs in the form of comprehensive spiritual care packages or psychological support and utilize multiple media channels to deliver these.
Aim: To explore the prevalence of anemia in three cohorts of women, namely, married yet to be mothers, married and are mothers, and currently pregnant, to ascertain the patterns in anemia in women. Methods: We analyzed a sample of 130,965 married women from four Demographic Health Surveys: 2000, 2005, 2009 and 2015. The primary focus for the analysis was married women aged 15 to 49 years. In the absence of a longitudinal data that followed the same women over the periods, a synthetic cohort of the women of that age-group was constructed to get women aged 15 to 64 years over the four surveys. Women who were aged 15 to 19 years in 2000 were the same as those 30 to 34 years in 2015, while those aged 45 to 49 years in 2000 were the same as 60 to 64 years in 2015. Results: Logistic regression revealed that young mothers were significantly more infected (p < .001). Pregnancy affected anemia in the women (p < .001). Being younger and richer were associated with odds ratios of 0.599 (95% confidence interval, CI: [0.560, 0.640]) and 0.765 (95% CI: [0.726, 0.807]) for anemia, respectively. Being pregnant had odds ratio of 1.642 (95% CI: [1.439, 1.872]) for anemia. Conclusion: Public health strategies should target social deprivation at the household level while addressing maternal health issues. An analysis of data on unmarried women and their children is recommended.
Involving faith-based organizations in community health promotion has gained widespread interest and has been a successful approach in addressing various health disparities in vulnerable communities. However, there is comparatively little evidence regarding sexual health promotion among faith-based organizations. Some agencies have responded to the challenge of reducing teen pregnancy with broad-based initiatives involving many different sectors of the community including faith-based organizations. Focus groups with key church leaders (n = 25) from zip codes with identified birth rates of 95 or higher were conducted to explore their perception of teen pregnancy among their communities. Purposive and snowball sampling were utilized. Recruitment was conducted through calls, email, and flyers. This study identified the barriers that church leaders encounter in their efforts to address teen pregnancy in their communities. Common themes that emerged include church education, parent support and communication, cultural barriers, availability of resources, awareness of services, and the need for comprehensive sexual education. Findings and recommendations to help those working in the faith community overcome identified barriers are addressed. Recent decreases in teen birth rates should not lead to complacency; rather they should inspire public health practitioners to do more, especially when some communities have not experienced the same success. Collaborating with faith-based organizations is one method to consider when considering community prevention efforts.
The aim of the present study was to explore the potential relationships between menopausal symptoms, sleep quality, hot flash, and depressive symptoms in postmenopausal women. A cross-sectional study was designed with 150 healthy postmenopausal women (45-60 years of age) who had referred to the menopausal clinic in Babol. The participants completed the following instruments throughout the study: the Beck Depression Inventory for depressive symptoms, the Modified Blatt-Kupperman Menopausal Index for measuring menopausal symptoms, and the NEO-FFI for identifying the personality traits. After controlling all the covariates, high depressive symptoms were found to be associated with moderate/sever menopausal symptoms, poor sleep quality, and the average and high level of neuroticism. The results also demonstrated that the risk of depressive symptoms was lower in menopausal women with high level extroversion, high level agreeableness, and the average and high level of conscientiousness. The findings of the present study indicated that personality traits, menopausal symptoms, and poor sleep quality in particular can partially account for depression in Iranian menopausal women. It is highly imperative that effective health education or implement appropriate strategies to improve the quality of life for these women.
Purpose We explored the perspectives of program coordinators and community leaders from Community-based-organizations (CBOs) and Faith-based-organizations (FBOs) to determine how information on human papillomavirus (HPV) vaccination and biobanking is understood and supported within medically underserved communities, and identified strategies for introducing evidence-based programs (EBP) on HPV vaccination and biobanking within underserved communities. Methods The EPIS framework guided discussions in four focus groups with program coordinators ( n = 27) and one-on-one interviews with community leaders ( n = 15) from CBOs and FBOs. Results Participants reported that community members were aware of HPV vaccination but did not know of the link between HPV infection and cancers. Awareness for biobanking was low. HPV vaccination and biobanking were not priority health concerns among community members due to other health issues. However, HPV vaccination and biobanking were considered sensitive health topics. For HPV vaccination, sensitivity was due to concerns that HPV vaccination promoted sex among adolescents, while for biobanking, sensitivity was due to historical abuses of people of color by the medical community. Participants reported that program coordinators’ awareness of HPV vaccination and biobanking depended on their organizations’ mission. Neither were considered a priority health concern due to lack of funding. Few EBP were available on HPV vaccination and biobanking. Recommendations on culturally-appropriate strategies for engaging community members on HPV vaccination and biobanking EBP are discussed. Conclusion Given the promise of HPV vaccination and the Precision Medicine Initiative to reduce cancer disparities, findings elucidate factors to be considered when implementing EBP on HPV vaccination and biobanking into medically underserved communities.
The purpose of this study was to evaluate the association between non-nutritive sweetener (NNS) consumption and stress and anxiety, among a sample of college students. Two-hundred and twenty-seven students from a large mid-western university participated in this cross-sectional study. Students completed an online survey that evaluated NNS using a validated food frequency questionnaire. Stress and anxiety were evaluated using previously validated instruments. Most students reported very low/low/average concern for stress (63.9%), and had low/moderate anxiety (82.3%). Participants experiencing high and very high levels of stress had significantly higher NNS consumption compared to those with a very low and low risk, and concern for stress (p < .046; d = 0.28). There was no difference however for NNS intake and anxiety. Reduction of artificial sweetener intake may be associated with stress levels among college students. However, more research is needed to examine any causal relationship between artificial sweetener intake and stress.
Background Osteoporosis is one of the diseases that can be prevented by correcting health behaviors during adolescence. Objective This study was conducted to evaluate the effect of education on preventive behaviors of osteoporosis including physical activity, calcium intake and practice (primary outcomes) and knowledge and attitude related to osteoporosis (secondary outcomes) in adolescents. Method A search was done in Cochrane Library, PubMed, Embase, Web of Sciences, Scopus, Google Scholar, SID and Magiran regardless of the time limit. To evaluate the quality of selected controlled trials, Cochrane collaboration' instrument was used for assessing the risk of bias. RevMan software was used to analysis and report the data. Results Of 2159 articles retrieved, 20 of them were reviewed and 18 of them entered the mete-analysis. The meta-analysis showed significant differences between the education and control groups in terms of calcium intake (SMD = 0.78, 95%CI = 0.55 to 1.02, P < 0.00001), practice (SMD = 0.54, 95%CI = 0.41 to 0.68, P < 0.0001), knowledge (SMD = 1.76, 95%CI = 1.10 to 2.42, P < 0.00001) and attitude (SMD = 0.96, 95%CI = 0.53 to 1.40, P < 0.0001) mean score in adolescents but education is not effective on average minute/week of physical activity per week (MD = 31.94, 95%CI = −6.53 to 70.40, P = 0.10), mean score of physical activity (MD = 2.66, 95%CI = −0.55 to 5.88, P = 0.10) and percent of students participated in the physical activity (OR = 1.45, 95%CI = 0.30 to 6.91, P = 0.64). Conclusion Education is effective in improving their knowledge and attitudes toward osteoporosis. It can also improve some health-related behaviors for bone health such as sufficient dairy calcium intake but it has not been effective in establishing a regular exercise program.
Background Latino preschool children have higher rates of obesity than children from other racial/ethnic backgrounds. Few effective, culturally-tailored obesity prevention interventions exist that have focused on Latino preschool children, and even fewer have published results of the process evaluation. The purpose of this paper was to monitor reach, fidelity, and completeness of implementation to determine whether ANDALE, a promising promotora-led, home-based pilot study to prevent obesity in Latino preschool children, was implemented as planned. Methods Guided by a logic model, we assessed reach, implementation fidelity and completeness through descriptive analyses of multiple data sources. Reach was assessed through attendance records. Fidelity was assessed via observation checklist and completeness was assessed via survey with both parents and promotoras in a subsample of 12 families. Results Promotoras recruited participants primarily through their own social networks and delivered the intervention to 50 families (mother-child dyads); the majority were of Mexican-origin, low-acculturation, dual-parent households. Nearly all (98%) families completed the whole 10-week intervention. Results demonstrated completeness and fidelity of implementation were acceptable in a subsample of 12 families. In sum, 75% of families in the subsample met the criteria (≥75%) for overall implementation of essential program elements (i.e., reach, completeness, and fidelity). Conclusion Evidence suggests that ANDALE was delivered with high levels of completeness and fidelity in this sample of Latino families with preschool-aged children. These results support implementation of ANDALE in a large, randomized trial.
BACKGROUND:Vitamin A supplementation in children aged 6 months to 5 years has been shown to reduce mortality. The efficacy of neonatal supplementation with vitamin A to reduce mortality in the first 6 months of life is plausible but not established. We aimed to assess the efficacy of neonatal oral supplementation with vitamin A to reduce mortality between supplementation and 6 months of age. METHODS:We undertook an individually randomised, double-blind, placebo-controlled trial in Haryana, India. We identified pregnant women through a surveillance programme undertaken every 3 months of all female residents in two districts of Haryana, India, aged 15-49 years, and screened every identified livebirth. Eligible participants were neonates whose parents consented to participate, were likely to stay in the study area until at least 6 months of age, and were able to feed orally at the time of enrolment. Participants were randomly assigned to receive oral capsules containing vitamin A (retinol palmitate 50,000 IU plus vitamin E 9·5-12·6 IU) or placebo (vitamin E 9·5-12·6 IU) within 72 h of birth. Randomisation was in blocks of 20 according to a randomisation list prepared by a statistician not otherwise involved with the trial. Investigators, participants' families, and the data analysis team were masked to treatment allocation. The primary outcome was mortality between supplementation and 6 months of age. Analysis included all participants assigned to study groups. This trial is registered with ClinicalTrials.gov, number NCT01138449, and the Indian Council of Medical Research Clinical Trial Registry, number CTRI/2010/091/000220. FINDINGS:Between June 24, 2010, and July 1, 2012 we screened 47,777 neonates and randomly assigned 44,984 to receive vitamin A (22,493) or placebo (22,491). Between supplementation and 6 months of age, 656 infants died in the vitamin A group compared with 726 in the placebo group (29·2 per 1000 vs 32·3 per 1000; difference -3·1 per 1000, 95% CI -6·3 to 0·1; risk ratio 0·90, 95% CI 0·81 to 1·00). We noted no significant interactions between the intervention effect and sex on mortality at 6 months (p=0·409). Supplementation with 50,000 IU vitamin A within the first 72 h of life was generally safe and well tolerated, with the exception of a small excess risk of transient bulging fontanelle (205 cases in the vitamin A group confirmed by physician vs 80 cases in the placebo group, risk ratio 2·56 [95% CI 1·98-3·32]). INTERPRETATION:The findings of this study, done in a population in which vitamin A deficiency is a moderate public health problem, are consistent with a modest reduction in mortality between supplementation and 6 months of age. These findings must be viewed together with similar trials in other populations to enable determination of appropriate public health policy. FUNDING:Bill & Melinda Gates Foundation to WHO.
As the journal’s new Co-Editors in Chief, we are pleased to announce that with the October 2021 issue, the journal is renamed Community Health Equity Research and Policy (CHERP). Here we want to share with you a little about our backgrounds and reasons for the title change and our vision for the journal going forward. We are both Professors in the Community Health Education Program in the Department of Health Promotion and Policy at the University of Massachusetts Amherst (UMass). One of us (Aline) has wide-ranging experience using innovative and collaborative research methodologies, including narrative and arts-based approaches, with expertise in sexual and reproductive health, rights, and justice. She is a trained and experienced facilitator of digital storytelling workshops and uses the process in public health research, intervention, and advocacy contexts, working in diverse communities both nationally and internationally. The other (Kate) brings extensive mixed-methods (quantitative and qualitive) research experience focusing on understanding and addressing health inequalities, with particular expertise on the social determinants of health, faithbased organizations, community-based participatory research, immigrants’ healthcare access, Latino populations, and Latin America. Prior to joining UMass in 2020, she was Senior Policy Researcher at the RAND Corporation and Professor at the Pardee RAND Graduate School, where she retains adjunct affiliations. As we assume our roles as Co-Editors in Chief, we express gratitude to our colleagues from UMass, Professors Emeriti George Cernada and David Buchanan, who preceded us as editors of the journal from 1981–2015 (George) and 2016– 2021 (David). Through their leadership, the journal became known for its emphasis on the systematic application of social science and health education theories and methodologies to address pressing public health concerns, particularly in countries outside the United States (U.S.). We build on this foundation and are excited to take the journal in some important new directions. First, we reorient the journal around the concept of health equity, being inclusive of community health, health policy, and public health and health care systems. We believe this broader focus attends to the need for new and creative thinking to identify multi-sectoral solutions to persistent health inequities. It also leverages the unique combination of our respective expertise as editors, as well as that of our department at UMass, Health Promotion and Policy, which combines programs in Community Health Education and Health Policy and Management. Usually, these foci are distinct departments within Schools of Public Health. Having them in the same department means that we can more synergistically collaborate to advance community health equity. The Center for Community Health Equity Research, housed within our School of Public Health and Health Sciences at UMass and where we both are core faculty, is a prime example of how we do this. The Center seeks to address the gap between academic research and practice by diversifying the healthcare workforce and engaging in community-partnered, culture centered, and multidisciplinary research to investigate the social production of health disparities. Supported by the Center, we will bring this same integrated vision to the journal. Second, we aim to increase submissions about research with communities in the U.S. experiencing health inequalities. Certainly, there are important contextual differences to consider when addressing health equity in the U.S. However, there is much to be learned through crossfertilization of ideas and experiences that can contribute to a better understanding of how to achieve global health equity. Third, we will emphasize environmental and structural changes as long-lasting solutions to inequities and will highlight community-partnered and participatory approaches to understanding and addressing health inequities. Since the journal’s inception, partnership approaches in community health have grown and generated best practices for more community-driven health research agendas. We welcome
Background: Screen-time (ST) is the time spent on digital media. The American Academy of Pediatrics recommends the daily ST of less than an hour for preschoolers. However, increased ST among preschoolers is becoming a public health concern. Objective: This study assessed the multi-theory model (MTM)'s applicability in explaining the ST behavior change among preschoolers through parents. Methods: A quota sample of 72 parents was drawn from Northern India. Data were analyzed using multiple regression. Results: Behavioral confidence (p < 0.001) and changes in the physical environment (p < 0.001) significantly predicted the initiation of reducing ST. The sustenance of limiting ST was significantly predicted by the emotional transformation (p < 0.001), practice for change (p < 0.001), and changes in the social environment (p = 0.001). Conclusions: The study highlights the usability of the MTM model in designing and testing interventions for parents to limit ST among their children.
Background Educational film is a communication tool that helps to present complex information simply and clearly, keeping audiences interested for longer and helping to reinforce important learning. Medical Aid Films produces educational films targeted at communities and health workers, with a focus on maternal and child health (MCH) content. Pilot work suggests that film screenings have attracted male as well as female viewers and have started to increase male involvement in MCH care. We explored stakeholder perspectives and gender-specific responses to educational films screened in a rural district of Serenje, Zambia. Methods A qualitative study using focus group discussions and in-depth interviews with men and women who had viewed the films at least once, and key informant interviews with health workers who helped deliver the film screenings. Thematic framework analysis was used to derive themes and subthemes, and illustrative quotes are used to substantiate interpretation of the findings. Results Men’s and women’s perspectives are clustered around the influence of the films on knowledge and behavior in relation to MCH topics and male involvement and overall community responses to the films. The three themes summarizing key informant perspectives relate to their impressions of the influence of the films on male involvement in MCH and their views on using film to deliver heath information. Conclusion Educational films have the potential to improve women’s and men’s knowledge and awareness of MCH topics, including healthy nutrition and welfare of women during pregnancy, the need to seek skilled care during pregnancy and for childbirth, and the importance of male involvement in supporting the care of women and children. Before widespread implementation, decisions must be made about whether and how to integrate the films with community health education programs, the needs, values, and preferences of men and women and how to present and deliver the film content in a way that maximizes participation of men and women in MCH but does not undermine women’s rights, autonomy, or safety.
This ethnographic study of one United States university's sexual health resources explores the role of peer relationships in sexual health promotion to understand how these relationships shaped students' interactions with campus sexual health resources. Through analysis of seventeen semi-structured interviews with students, five policy interviews with providers and university personnel, and participant-observation of peer health educator training, the authors examine how trust in peer relationships can serve as a form of social capital to influence sexual health information sharing. The article introduces the term "peer administrator" to describe student actors who sit at the intersection of friend and official resource and explores the importance of these mentoring relationships for sexual health promotion. The analysis also considers how more individualistic models of public health promotion limit the impact of peer relationships and concludes with a discussion of how universities might imagine new forms of sexual health promotion among students.
The feasibility of vein bypass surgery to the arteries of the foot was studied in a diabetic population with critical ischaemia; whether or not such reconstruction leads to an independent lifestyle was assessed 1 year later. Thirty-three reconstructions were performed on 32 limbs in 31 patients. The mortality and reoperation rates within 1 month were both 6 per cent. Primary and secondary patency, limb salvage and survival rates at 1 year were 76, 89, 89 and 82 per cent respectively. Good results in the form of combined survival, patency, limb salvage, walking ability, relief of pain and residence at home were achieved in 64 per cent of patients after 1 year. Reconstructive vascular surgery to the foot in diabetics is feasible and affords two-thirds of patients an independent lifestyle 1 year after surgery.
African-American (AA) women are at higher risk of breast cancer mortality than women of other races. Factors influencing breast cancer risk, including exogenous environmental exposures, and debate around timing of exposure and dose-response relationship, can cause misunderstanding. Collaboration with priority populations encourages culturally relevant health messaging that imparts source reliability, influences message adoption, and improves understanding. Through six focus groups with AA individuals in rural and urban counties in the southeastern United States, this study used a community-engaged participatory approach to design an innovative visual tool for disseminating breast cancer information. Results demonstrated that participants were generally aware of environmental breast cancer risks and were willing to share new knowledge with families and community members. Recommended communication channels included pastors, healthcare providers, social media, and the Internet. Participants agreed that a collaboratively designed visual tool serves as a tangible, focused “conversation starter” to promote community prevention and education efforts.
Critical writers opposed the dogma accepted by most experimental social psychologists that controlled laboratory experiments provide the best means for examining human social life. What this volume aims to achieve is to refresh and restate the theoretical and methodological concerns that have been gathering momentum with increasing interest in critical alternatives. Almost all the things that have previously been taught to constitute ‘good’ psychology are now implicated as being inappropriate, outdated and the subject of strong criticism. The hope is that such challenges will lead to a revitalized form of social psychology that may ultimately enhance people’s understanding of the complexities of human social life. This requires being prepared to look at social psychology from a broad perspective and stand outside the dogma that surrounds the customs and practices of mainstream social psychology. Critical scholars believe that there is reason to become deeply concerned when others hold themselves, or their methods, as being diviners of ‘truth’, and are deeply unconvinced of claims that demand that truth be unitary and universally agreed on. Critical social psychologists pursue a more modest research agenda, which respects the importance of multiple truths rather than the blind pursuit of Truth; it seeks not merely to establish differences between groups or statistical relationships between variables, but is interested also in examining the social and psychological meaning of events. To review and critique the problems with traditional psychology and social psychology, this book is organized into six substantive chapters. The first Chapter examines and critiques three historical experimental research examples-Asch’s experiment on impression, Milgram’s shocking experiment on obedience and the field experiment by Shotland and Straw with in social psychology. In experiments, some degree of artificial interventions is manipulated, some behaviors are controlled, and deceptions of subjects are common, all of which minimize the relevance of the experimental procedures and outputs. Accordingly, Tuffin critiques the basic methods and logic of hard sciences/experimental procedures to the study of human social life. Human subjects are not passive receptors but are able to both act and react. Human beings under the scrutiny of experimental situations react to all aspects of that situation, not simply the aspects the experimenter has focused on. Tuffin claims that the dominance of experimentalism is unwarranted in terms of a series of concerns that operate methodologically and ethically. At the level of method, he largely denounces the experimental method as being contrived and artificial, failing to show relevance and application beyond the situation in which the data was derived, which is ultimately inappropriate for the study of human beings. Ethically, experimental research often fails to respect the welfare of those who volunteer their time in the name of psychological research. Chapter two emphasizes the theoretical and methodological critique, beginning with aspects of social psychology’s history, and moving to examine the philosophy of science known as positivism. This chapter introduces the three core foundations of the philosophy of science: ontology, epistemology and methodology. These notions of philosophy are concerned with aspects of reality, knowledge and ways of generating knowledge and are closely linked; ontological assumptions having a direct impact on fundamental aspects of epistemology, which in turn have important implications for the choice of methods. Positivism and empiricism are both views that rely on a sensory-mediated ontology, and require that phenomena be directly observable and measurable in order to be considered as knowledge. Criticisms of this philosophical position include the idea that positivism fosters methods that overlook the social nature of knowledge, and that this is an inappropriate guiding philosophy for social psychology as it is unable to take account of the interpretive, meaning-making International Quarterly of Community Health Education
