Suchergebnisse

The interlocking issues of gender, unpaid work and multiple forms of representation or lived experiences with social policy are complex. The study 'Who Benefits: Women, Unpaid Work and Social Policy', supported by Status of Women Canada, and guided by an advisory group consisting of women's and anti-poverty organizations was based in Saskatchewan, Canada. The study interrogated how mothers on social assistance (SA) defined and understood unpaid caregiving work with small children; and the impact of social welfare policy guidelines that pushed SA recipients to find paid employment. Using action research and original, creative methods to gather data, the research simultaneously created a non-threatening environment for discussion, information-sharing, support and knowledge creation among participants. Overall, findings in the study resonate with other published studies on low-income women and unpaid work. Unique to this study particularly, were the action research process and outcomes which provided ways to address the needs of the study participants and to catalyze participant-led actions. The study assisted the 28 participants in linking their unpaid work with social policy and finally, in taking socio-political action. Actions included meetings with government, press conferences, and an uptake of recommendations by advisory group organizations. Independent of the research, the participants continued to meet after the study concluded.

BACKGROUND: Global obesity estimates show a steadily increasing pattern across socioeconomic and geographical divides, especially among women. Our analysis tracked and described obesity trends across multiple equity dimensions among women of reproductive age (15-49 y) in 11 sub-Saharan African (SSA) countries during 1994-2015. METHODS: This study consisted of a cross-sectional series analysis using nationally representative demographic and health surveys (DHS) data. The countries included were Cameroon, Comoros, Congo, Cote d'Ivoire, Ghana, Kenya, Lesotho, Nigeria, Senegal, Zambia and Zimbabwe. The data reported are from a reanalysis conducted using the WHO Health Equity Assessment Toolkit that assesses inter- and intra-country health inequalities across socioeconomic and geographical dimensions. We generated equiplots to display intra- and inter-country equity gaps. RESULTS: There was an increasing trend in obesity among women of reproductive age across all 11 SSA countries. Obesity increased unequally across wealth categories, place of residence and educational measures of inequality. The wealthiest, most educated and urban dwellers in most countries had a higher prevalence of obesity. However, in Comoros, obesity did not increase consistently with increasing wealth or education compared with other countries. The most educated and wealthiest women in Comoros had lower obesity rates compared with their less wealthy and less well-educated counterparts. CONCLUSION: A window of opportunity is presented to governments to act structurally and at policy level to reduce obesity generally and prevent a greater burden on disadvantaged subpopulation groups in sub-Saharan Africa.

BACKGROUND: Global obesity estimates show a steadily increasing pattern across socioeconomic and geographical divides, especially among women. Our analysis tracked and described obesity trends across multiple equity dimensions among women of reproductive age (15–49 y) in 11 sub-Saharan African (SSA) countries during 1994–2015. METHODS: This study consisted of a cross-sectional series analysis using nationally representative demographic and health surveys (DHS) data. The countries included were Cameroon, Comoros, Congo, Cote d'Ivoire, Ghana, Kenya, Lesotho, Nigeria, Senegal, Zambia and Zimbabwe. The data reported are from a reanalysis conducted using the WHO Health Equity Assessment Toolkit that assesses inter- and intra-country health inequalities across socioeconomic and geographical dimensions. We generated equiplots to display intra- and inter-country equity gaps. RESULTS: There was an increasing trend in obesity among women of reproductive age across all 11 SSA countries. Obesity increased unequally across wealth categories, place of residence and educational measures of inequality. The wealthiest, most educated and urban dwellers in most countries had a higher prevalence of obesity. However, in Comoros, obesity did not increase consistently with increasing wealth or education compared with other countries. The most educated and wealthiest women in Comoros had lower obesity rates compared with their less wealthy and less well-educated counterparts. CONCLUSION: A window of opportunity is presented to governments to act structurally and at policy level to reduce obesity generally and prevent a greater burden on disadvantaged subpopulation groups in sub-Saharan Africa.

Abstract
Increased interest among leaders and practitioners in the field of emergency preparedness in the concept of whole community resilience can create new ways reaching the community. This paper explores one approach to community-engaged preparedness education. By drawing on the fields of emergency management and simulation–based instructional design, we describe an approach to preparedness events with broad community participation. We describe the education methodology used to plan the event and the core concepts related to simulation-based education. We offer key principles for event planners to engage a diverse group of participants ranging from youth, pre-professional healthcare students, practicing healthcare professionals, and staff from local community organizations. Our experience through seven years of events offers a proof of concept available to local communities; community organizational leaders concerned with the resilience for their own organizations; and academic organizations preparing our citizens to deal with the challenges of living and serving in a world of increasing risk of disaster.

Scholarship on the health impacts of resource extraction displays prominent gaps and apparent corporate and neocolonial footprints that raise questions about how science is produced. We analyze production of knowledge, on the health impacts of mining, carried out in relation to the Canadian International Resources and Development Institute (CIRDI), a university-based organization with substantial extractive industry involvement and links to Canada's mining-dominated foreign policy. We use a "political ecology of knowledge" framework to situate CIRDI in the context of neoliberal capitalism, neocolonial sustainable development discourses, and mining industry corporate social responsibility techniques. We then document the interactions of specific health disciplinary conventions and knowledges within CIRDI-related research and advocacy efforts involving a major Canadian global health organization. This analysis illustrates both accommodation and resistance to large-scale political economic structures and the need to directly confront the global North governments and sectors pushing extractive-led neoliberal development globally. Resumen La investigación sobre los impactos en la salud de la extracción de recursos naturales delata brechas importantes y huellas corporativas y neocoloniales, que plantean dudas acerca de cómo se produce la ciencia. Analizamos la producción de conocimiento sobre los impactos en la salud de la minería en relación con el Instituto Canadiense de Desarrollo y Recursos Internacionales (CIRDI, siglas en inglés), una organización universitaria que cuenta con participación sustancial de la industria extractiva y tiene vínculos con la política exterior de Canadá, la cual es dominada por intereses mineros. Utilizamos un marco de "ecología política del conocimiento" para situar a CIRDI en el contexto del capitalismo neoliberal, los discursos neocoloniales de desarrollo sostenible y las técnicas de responsabilidad social corporativa de la industria minera. Luego, documentamos las interacciones entre ...