The ‘other’ within: Striving for health equity in the Maldives Eva-Maria

2021 ◽  
Vol 16 (2) ◽  
pp. 18-38
Author(s):  
Eva-Maria Knoll
Keyword(s):  
Public Health ◽  
Health Equity ◽  
Spatial Organization ◽  
Health Inequities ◽  
The Other ◽  
National Consciousness ◽  
The Public ◽  
Making Sense ◽  
Blood Disorder ◽  
Anthropological Fieldwork

Relations within are quintessential in anthropological fieldwork — and in archipelagos in particular. The domestic sea is incorporated in the national consciousness connecting an archipelagic nation but distinguishing individual islands with a strong emphasis on the centre. The Maldivian archipelago displays this spatial organization of a socio-political and economic centre and a dependent island periphery. In the national consciousness, the capital island, Male', contrasts with “the islands” — a distinction which is particularly evident in the public health sphere, where striving for health equity encounters geographical and socio-political obstacles. Using the topic of the inherited blood disorder thalassaemia as a magnifying lens, this paper asks how different actors are making sense of health inequities between central and outer islands in the Maldivian archipelago. Intra-archipelagic and international mobilities add to the complexities of topological relations, experiences, and representations within this multi-island assemblage. Yet, my study of archipelagic health relations is not confined to a mere outside look at the construction of the ‘island other’ within the archipelagic community. It is a situated investigative gaze on disjunctures, connections, and entanglements, reflecting my methodological-theoretical attempt to unravel my own involvement in island–island relations and representations — my being entangled while investigating entanglements.

scholarly journals Health inequities and technological solutions during the first waves of the COVID-19 pandemic in high-income countries

2021 ◽  
pp. 175797592098418
Author(s):  
Muriel Mac-Seing ◽  
Robson Rocha de Oliveira
Keyword(s):  
Public Health ◽  
Health Equity ◽  
Vulnerable Populations ◽  
Health Inequities ◽  
High Income ◽  
Control Measures ◽  
Health Priorities ◽  
Economic Systems ◽  
And Control ◽  
Political Decisions

The COVID-19 pandemic has resulted in massive disruptions to public health, healthcare, as well as political and economic systems across national borders, thus requiring an urgent need to adapt. Worldwide, governments have made a range of political decisions to enforce preventive and control measures. As junior researchers analysing the pandemic through a health equity lens, we wish to share our reflections on this evolving crisis, specifically: (a) the tenuous intersections between the responses to the pandemic and public health priorities; (b) the exacerbation of health inequities experienced by vulnerable populations following decisions made at national and global levels; and (c) the impacts of the technological solutions put forward to address the crisis. Examples drawn from high-income countries are provided to support our three points.

Development of a probabilistic model for quantitative risk assessment of COVID-19 in Brazil

2021 ◽  
pp. 2150069
Author(s):  
Paulo Gabriel Santos Campos de Siqueira ◽  
Alexandre Calumbi Antunes de Oliveira ◽  
Heitor Oliveira Duarte ◽  
Márcio das Chagas Moura
Keyword(s):  
Public Health ◽  
Risk Assessment ◽  
Health System ◽  
Probabilistic Model ◽  
Public Health System ◽  
The Other ◽  
Quantitative Risk Assessment ◽  
The Public ◽  
Business As Usual ◽  
Excessive Number

We have developed a probabilistic model to quantify the risks of COVID-19 explosion in Brazil, the epicenter of COVID-19 in Latin America. By explosion, we mean an excessive number of new infections that would overload the public health system. We made predictions from July 12th to Oct 10th, 2020 for various containment strategies, including business as usual, stay at home (SAH) for young and elderly, flight restrictions among regions, gradual resumption of business and the compulsory wearing of masks. They indicate that: if a SAH strategy were sustained, there would be a negligible risk of explosion and the public health system would not be overloaded. For the other containment strategies, the scenario that combines the gradual resumption of business with the mandatory wearing of masks would be the most effective, reducing risk to considerable category. Should this strategy is applied together with the investment in more Intensive Care Unit beds, risk could be reduced to negligible levels. A sensitivity analysis sustained that risks would be negligible if SAH measures were adopted thoroughly.

The Role of Citizen Science in Promoting Health Equity

2021 ◽  
Vol 43 (1) ◽  
Author(s):  
Lisa G. Rosas ◽  
Patricia Rodriguez Espinosa ◽  
Felipe Montes Jimenez ◽  
Abby C. King
Keyword(s):  
Public Health ◽  
Citizen Science ◽  
Health Equity ◽  
Healthy Eating ◽  
Mobile Applications ◽  
Health Inequities ◽  
Annual Review ◽  
Publication Date ◽  
Scientific Process

While there are many definitions of citizen science, the term usually refers to the participation of the general public in the scientific process in collaboration with professional scientists. Citizen scientists have been engaged to promote health equity, especially in the areas of environmental contaminant exposures, physical activity, and healthy eating. Citizen scientists commonly come from communities experiencing health inequities and have collected data using a range of strategies and technologies, such as air sensors, water quality kits, and mobile applications. On the basis of our review, and to advance the field of citizen science to address health equity, we recommend ( a) expanding the focus on topics important for health equity, ( b) increasing the diversity of people serving as citizen scientists, ( c) increasing the integration of citizen scientists in additional research phases, ( d) continuing to leverage emerging technologies that enable citizen scientists to collect data relevant for health equity, and ( e) strengthening the rigor of methods to evaluate impacts on health equity. Expected final online publication date for the Annual Review of Public Health, Volume 43 is April 2022. Please see http://www.annualreviews.org/page/journal/pubdates for revised estimates.

scholarly journals Biological Tools to Deal with Pollution : Selected Advances and Novel Perspectives

2014 ◽  
Vol 3 (1) ◽  
pp. 57
Author(s):  
Abdelaziz Ghanemi ◽  
Besma Boubertakh
Keyword(s):  
Public Health ◽  
Raw Materials ◽  
Economic Benefits ◽  
The Other ◽  
Environment And Public Health ◽  
The Public ◽  
Other Hand ◽  
Metabolic Properties ◽  
Living Organisms ◽  
The Impact

Pollution  represents  a  problem  common  to economy and  public  health. Indeed, the public health, because of the  divers’  type of pollutions, is facing divers challenges for which urgent solutions are required.The biology provides approaches not only to deal with the pollution, but also to  obtain  economic  benefits. Some living  organisms  have  particular metabolisms  that allow  them  to  assimilate  and  metabolite  the polluting agents  and thus reduce the  impact  they have on both environment  and public health.  On  the other  hand,  the  metabolic  properties  of  specific organisms make  the  polluting  elements raw materials to  synthesize  other elements that are benefits  for  economy  and  non-toxic  for  the  ecology and  the  biohealth. Yet, other options such as the regulations and laws are  required  to improve the efficiency of these approaches.

scholarly journals A glossary of theories for understanding power and policy for health equity

2020 ◽  
pp. jech-2019-213692 ◽  
Author(s):  
Patrick Harris ◽  
Fran Baum ◽  
Sharon Friel ◽  
Tamara Mackean ◽  
Ashley Schram ◽  
...  
Keyword(s):  
Public Health ◽  
Health Equity ◽  
Public Policies ◽  
Health Inequities ◽  
Institutional Dynamics ◽  
The Creation ◽  
Distribution Of Power ◽  
Improve Health

Progressing public policies that improve health equity requires understanding and addressing the creation, use and distribution of power. This glossary provides an overview of some of the most relevant conceptualisations of the dynamics of power in policy with implications for health equity. The aim is to provide an accessible overview of the different theories and perspectives behind power for public health focused policy researchers and advocates. The Glossary demonstrates how the broad literature on power in policy deepens understanding of the institutional dynamics that creates and maintains health inequities.

Cooperation, Conflict, and Reaction

2001 ◽  
Author(s):  
John T. Cumbler
Keyword(s):  
Public Health ◽  
New England ◽  
The Other ◽  
Potential Conflict ◽  
Stream Pollution ◽  
The Public ◽  
Public Health Officials ◽  
The One ◽  
The Right

When James Olcott spoke before Connecticut farmers for “anti-stream pollution,” he urged the public to mobilize to stop water pollution by “ignorant or reckless capitalists.” In identifying the “ignorant and reckless capitalists,” Olcott focused the attention of the farmers on industrial waste and the role of manufacturers in their search for profits in causing pollution. Although manufacturers and the courts argued that industrialization brought wealth and prosperity to New England and hence was a general good, Olcott challenged this idea. He saw the issue as a conflict between industrialization and its costs on the one hand and the public good on the other. Concern over industrial pollution and the potential conflict between it and public health had already arisen in Massachusetts. Although the Massachusetts State Board of Health realized that the interests of the “capitalists” and those of the public health officials might be in conflict, in 1872 it hoped that with improved knowledge, “a way will be eventually found to joining them into harmonious relations,” much as Lyman believed science and technology would resolve the conflict between fishers and mill owners. The board's interest in “harmonious relations” also reflected a realization that at least for the last several years, the courts had seen pollution as an inevitable consequence of civilization and had been favorable toward industrialists, especially if no obvious alternative to dumping pollution existed. In 1866, William Merrifield sued Nathan Lombard because Lombard had dumped “Vitriol and other noxious substances” into the stream above Merrifield's factory, “corrupting” the water so badly that it destroyed his boiler. Chief Justice Bigelow ruled that Lombard had invaded Merrifield's rights. “Each riparian owner,” the judge wrote, “has the right to use the water for any reasonable and proper purpose. . . . An injury to the purity or quality of the water to the detriment of the other riparian owners, constitutes in legal effect, a wrong.” In 1872, Merrifield again went to court, claiming the City of Worcester regularly dumped sewage into Mill Brook, by which the waters became greatly corrupted and unfit to use.”

scholarly journals The Economic Impact of Herpes Zoster Vaccine Disparities in Elderly United States Blacks

2018 ◽  
Vol 15 (10) ◽  
pp. 2128
Author(s):  
La’Marcus Wingate ◽  
Keisha Stubbs ◽  
Iman Ahmed ◽  
Rachel Mayaka ◽  
Mary Maneno ◽  
...  
Keyword(s):  
Public Health ◽  
United States ◽  
Herpes Zoster ◽  
Decision Tree ◽  
Economic Impact ◽  
Health Equity ◽  
Economic Costs ◽  
Zoster Vaccine ◽  
The Public ◽  
Lost Productivity

There are persistent disparities with regard to receipt of herpes zoster vaccine among elderly blacks, but no data is available regarding the public health or economic impact of these disparities. A decision tree was constructed with multiple Markov nodes in order to estimate the preventable cases of herpes zoster occurring among elderly blacks due to disparities in receipt of herpes zoster vaccine and to quantify the economic costs associated with these disparities. The model was constructed to examine the number of herpes zoster cases occurring among elderly blacks from the age of 60 to 84 over a 20 year period and also calculated costs due to herpes zoster complications and lost productivity. Achievement of health equity would prevent over 34,500 cases of herpes zoster from occurring in the future and avert over $180 million in lost productivity and treatment costs as a result of these cases of herpes zoster. These results help to show that thousands of cases of herpes zoster could be prevented if blacks were vaccinated at the same frequency as whites and help to show the benefit of implementing viable strategies to achieving this goal.

Using Litigation to Make Public Health Policy: Theoretical and Empirical Challenges in Assessing Product Liability, Tobacco, and Gun Litigation

2004 ◽  
Vol 32 (4) ◽  
pp. 556-564 ◽  
Author(s):  
Timothy D. Lytton
Keyword(s):  
Public Health ◽  
Health Policy ◽  
Public Health Policy ◽  
Product Liability ◽  
Gun Violence ◽  
The Other ◽  
The Public ◽  
Proper Role ◽  
Liability Claims

In recent years, a number of prominent scholars have touted the use of litigation as an effective tool for making public health policy. For example, Stephen Teret and Michael Jacobs have asserted that product liability claims against car makers have played a significant role in reducing automobile-related injuries, Peter Jacobson and Kenneth Warner have argued that litigation against cigarette manufacturers has advanced the cause of tobacco control, and Phil Cook and Jens Ludwig have suggested that lawsuits against the firearms industry can reduce gun violence. Critics have attacked this use of litigation as doing more harm than good to public health and as a misuse of the courts. This debate involves two distinct controversies: one over whether the public health benefits of litigation outweigh its costs and the other over the proper role of courts within our system of government.

scholarly journals Isolation of Candidatus Bartonella rousetti and Other Bat-associated Bartonellae from Bats and Their Flies in Zambia

Pathogens ◽  
2020 ◽  
Vol 9 (6) ◽  
pp. 469
Author(s):  
Yongjin Qiu ◽  
Masahiro Kajihara ◽  
Ryo Nakao ◽  
Evans Mulenga ◽  
Hayato Harima ◽  
...  
Keyword(s):  
Public Health ◽  
Phylogenetic Analysis ◽  
The Other ◽  
Fruit Bats ◽  
Public Health Importance ◽  
Insectivorous Bats ◽  
The Public ◽  
Bat Flies

Bat-associated bartonellae, including Bartonella mayotimonensis and Candidatus Bartonella rousetti, were recently identified as emerging and potential zoonotic agents, respectively. However, there is no report of bat-associated bartonellae in Zambia. Thus, we aimed to isolate and characterize Bartonella spp. from bats and bat flies captured in Zambia by culturing and PCR. Overall, Bartonella spp. were isolated from six out of 36 bats (16.7%), while Bartonella DNA was detected in nine out of 19 bat flies (47.3%). Subsequent characterization using a sequence of five different genes revealed that three isolates obtained from Egyptian fruit bats (Rousettus aegyptiacus) were Ca. B. rousetti. The isolates obtained from insectivorous bats (Macronycteris vittatus) were divided into two previously unclassified bat-associated bartonellae. A phylogenetic analysis of the six genotypes of Bartonella gltA sequences from nine pathogen-positive bat flies revealed that three genotypes belonged to the same clades as bat-associated bartonellae, including Ca. B. rousetti. The other three genotypes represented arthropod-associated bartonellae, which have previously been isolated only from ectoparasites. We demonstrated that Ca. B. rousetti is maintained between bats (R. aegyptiacus) and bat flies in Zambia. Continuous surveillance of Bartonella spp. in bats and serological surveys in humans in Africa are warranted to evaluate the public health importance of bat-associated bartonellae.

scholarly journals Tuberculosis and Diabetes Mellitus Comorbidity among the Ageing Population: A Threat to the Public Health System of Nepal

2018 ◽  
Vol 16 (2) ◽  
pp. 110-117 ◽  
Author(s):  
Bijay Maharjan ◽  
Hom Nath Chalise ◽  
Mamta Thapa
Keyword(s):  
Public Health ◽  
Diabetes Mellitus ◽  
Risk Factors ◽  
Health System ◽  
Public Health System ◽  
The Other ◽  
Diabetic Patients ◽  
Ageing Population ◽  
The Public ◽  
The Future

Ageing population is attributable to the growing trend of diabetes mellitus. Diabetic patients are three times greater risk of developing tuberculosis. The review aims to describe the state of tuberculosis and diabetes mellitus comorbidity, risk factors for the comorbidity from the perspective of the ageing in Nepal. It is a systematic narrative review of literature in Google Scholar and Pubmed. At first, title and abstract of an article was reviewed for relevance, and then full article was reviewed for validity. The secondary data was retrieved from the Central Bureau of Statistics of Nepal and WHO, and analysed in the Ms-Excel. In Nepal, the population is ageing. The risk factors associated with diabetes are escalating. On the other hand, tuberculosis is endemic and about 45% of the Nepalese people are infected with tuberculosis bacteria. These circumstances have laid the foundation that fosters tuberculosis and diabetes co-epidemic in the future. The clinical management of patients with the comorbid condition is a difficult task because diabetes and tuberculosis interact with each other, one worsening the other. The upsurge of the co-morbidity needs the provision of more health services threatening the public health system of Nepal. It is fundamental to create a mechanism to integrate diabetes and tuberculosis program such as screening, diagnosis and management of the both diseases at the all levels of health service delivery. Furthermore, increase awareness of healthy lifestyle and the prevention of the risk factors for tuberculosis and diabetes could reduce the occurrence of the comorbidity in the future.

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