Brown America: An Acknowledgement of this Nation’s Roots America was, is, and always will be…“brown”

This concept paper addresses the hyperbole and irrational fear related to the demographic projection often termed as the “browning of America.” The “browning” is a term that refers to a growing “non-white” population in the United States. The case is made for how, from the inception of its creation, the United States culture and society were built upon foundational roots originating from the Indigenous people of the American continent with added elements comprised of many cultures from various regions of the world. Rather than embracing the perspective of a demographic “browning,” the position taken in this paper rejects a white supremacist orientation that negates yet appropriates the contributions of multiple cultures to U.S. culture. Examples of how United States language, culture, and customs are derived from various “non-white” cultures and traditions attest to how those descended from the European Diaspora have been assimilated into a pluralistic “brown” worldview. For this reason, the position taken is that the United States always was, still is, and forever will be, “brown.” Yet, the generational trauma held by a significant portion of European Americans and coupled by their dislocation undermines their capacity to experience healthy psycho-social integration. For this reason, this paper touches upon the psychological and sociological etiology of a white supremacist orientation and the cost for the lack of knowledge and attribution to the sources of the unique nature of U.S. culture.

Nursing home hospital transfers in the terminally ill: night shift nurses matter!

BackgroundFrench demographic projection expects an increasing number of older, dependent patients in the next few years. A large proportion of this population lives in nursing homes and their transfer to hospitals at the end of life is an ongoing issue.ObjectiveThis study explored the factors influencing the transfer of patients living in nursing homes to hospital at the end of life.DesignWe used a mixed-methods questionnaire developed by an expert group and assessing different characteristics of the nursing homes.ParticipantsAll the nursing homes in the Rhône-Alpes area (n=680) were surveyed.ResultsWe obtained 466 (68%) answers. We found that a palliative care programme was present in 336 (72%) nursing homes. The majority had a coordinating physician 428 (82%) and a mean number of 6 nurses for 83 beds, with 83 (18%) having a night shift nurse. There was a mean number of 19 deaths per nursing home during the recorded year. The main cause of death was dementia (41%), cancer-related death (13%). Death occurred mostly in the nursing home (14 74%). Night shift nurse attendance was significantly associated with the place of death: 27 deaths occurred in nursing homes with a night shift nurse versus 12 in those without one (p<0001).ConclusionsThe location of the death of frail elderly patients is a major health issue that needs to be addressed. Our results suggests that the presence of a night shift nurse decreases the number of emergency transfers and deaths in the hospital.

Le logement, variable centrale de l’exercice de prospective démographique à l’échelle locale

RésuméCet article présente la façon dont la variable logement peut être mobilisée dans les projections démographiques et comment cela pourrait permettre aux démographes d’être plus impliqués dans le champ de la prospective territoriale à l’échelle locale. Dans le cadre de l’élaboration des plans locaux d’urbanisme et/ou de l’habitat, les démographes sont souvent sollicités pour fixer les évolutions démographiques auxquelles le territoire pourrait être confronté. Le logement est dans ce cas considéré comme une réponse aux perspectives démographiques. Mais au niveau local, le sens de la relation s’inverse : au sein d’un bassin démographique de quelques centaines de kilomètres carrés, la mobilité résidentielle intercommunale est le plus souvent déterminée par les opportunités immobilières. Les petits territoires peuvent donc être, via la politique de logements, des acteurs de leur dynamique démographique. Cette situation conduit à faire du logement, à l’échelle locale, une variable centrale de l’exercice de projection démographique. Elle implique aussi de renouveler les méthodes et de mobiliser, dans la définition des scénarios, les acteurs locaux de l’aménagement du territoire. Le démographe n’est donc plus seulement un prestataire de service, il devient un partenaire de la réflexion prospective sur le territoire, qui est d’ailleurs de plus en plus fréquemment entendue comme un processus itératif qui s’appuie sur les échanges entre les acteurs locaux et les experts.AbstractThis article presents how the housing variable can be mobilized in demographic projections and thus involve the demographer more in the field of territorial prospective at the local level. In the context of drawing up local urban and/or housing plans, demographers are often asked to determine the demographic changes that the local area might face. In this case housing is considered as a response to demographic projections. But at the local level, the direction of the relationship is reversed: within a catchment area of a few hundred square kilometers, inter-municipal residential mobility is most often determined by real estate opportunities. The small local areas can therefore be, via housing policies, actors in their demographic dynamics. This situation makes housing, at the local level, a central variable in the demographic projection exercise. It also involves renewing methods and mobilizing local planning actors in the definition of scenarios. The demographer is no longer just a service provider and becomes a partner for the territorial prospective at the local level. The prospective exercise is more and more frequently understood as an iterative process that relies on the exchanges between the local actors and experts.

Cartographie De L’évolution Démographique Et Atteinte De L’objectif Du Développement Durable Dans Le Secteur De L’eau Dans Le Hollidjé Au Sud- Est Du Bénin

At the end of the Millennium Development Goals in 2015, the issue of access to water has not been fully addressed in developing countries in the face of increasing population. In Benin, despite the efforts made in this sector, rural populations are still faced with difficulties in accessing drinking water. This study aims to contribute to a better cartographic knowledge of the demographic evolution and its implications on the access to drinking water in Hollidjé. The study was carried out in 33 Holli villages in the municipalities of Pobè and Adja-Ouèrè. The censuses of 1979-1992-2002 and 2013 and the base of the water points of the Directorate General of Water of 2015 were used. These data have been processed using SPSS software 23, DEMProj for demographic projection by 2030 and ArcGis 10.1 for data spatialization and mapping. The study shows that Hollidjé is growing at a rate of 6.6% a year, double the national increase (3.50%). With a density of more than 200hbts / km², this territory has a low drinking water supply rate (minus 40% in 2013). By 2030, the Hollidjè population will double. Thus, the equivalent drinking water requirement will be 500 water points. At this pace, the objectives of sustainable development related to drinking water and sanitation may not be achieved if sectoral policies are not implemented.