Thesis (M.A. (Health Social Science))--Mahidol University, 2008. / LICL has E-Thesis 0039 ; please contact computer services.

Thesis (M.A. (Population and Reproductive Health Research))--Mahidol University, 2008. / LICL has E-Thesis 0043 ; please contact computer services.

Thesis (M.A. (Population and Reproductive Health Research))--Mahidol University, 2008. / LICL has E-Thesis 0043 ; please contact computer services.

Thesis (M.A. (Population and Reproductive Health Research))--Mahidol University, 2008. / LICL has E-Thesis 0044 ; please contact computer services.

Thesis (M.A.)--Oregon State University, 2011. / Printout. Includes bibliographical references (leaves 113-120). Also available on the World Wide Web.

India introduced family planning in the ‘50s, legalized abortion in the ‘70s, and accomplished a remarkable drop in maternal mortality and fertility since 1990. Nevertheless, abortions account for a large proportion of maternal deaths, and sterilization is the most frequently used contraception. This thesis aims to identify the means to simplify and increase access to reproductive health in low-resource settings, focusing on abortion and contraception in Rajasthan. A randomized controlled trial compared simplified follow-up, where women assess their abortion outcome at home after early medical abortion, with in-clinic follow-up. Additionally, contraceptive use was compared between study groups post-abortion. In order to explore young women’s opportunities to access reproductive health services in the area, we conducted in-depth interviews with recently-married women. Women in the home-assessment group preferred home-assessment in the future to a greater extent than the women in the clinic follow-up group, who preferred in-clinic follow-up. Complete abortions were reported in 95% of women in the ‘home-assessment group’ and 93% in the ‘in-clinic group’, suggesting that efficacy of simplified follow-up is non-inferior to in-clinic follow-up. A majority (81%) of women carried out the pregnancy test and found it easy to use. Women (96%) were satisfied with their abortion. There were no differences in contraceptive use between study groups at three months; however, women in the ‘in-clinic group’ were most likely to initiate contraception at two weeks. A majority of women preferred the three-month injection, while only 4% preferred sterilization. The recently-married women considered reversible contraception to be unfeasible due to misconceptions and taboos, yet women wanted effective contraception because their current use of traditional methods resulted in unintended pregnancies. Abortions were common, and were procured from private or informal providers. Allowing women to take an active role in reproductive health services can enable simplification of, and access to, reproductive services in low-resource settings as well as in other settings. Simplifying medical abortion, providing contraception ‘intra-abortion’, and offering a context-appropriate and effective means of contraception, creates a great potential to increase access to reproductive health services and can result in a more equal society where women, and men, can attain their sexual and reproductive rights.

Homens e mulheres têm iniciado sua vida sexual, em grande parte, na adolescência e de formas um tanto diferenciadas. As práticas sexuais, nessa fase, têm sido descritas como dinâmicas e em constantes transformações, sendo que seus perfis podem acarretar impacto importante na vida reprodutiva dos adolescentes. Com o intuito de analisar o início da vida sexual de adolescentes, foram realizadas entrevistas domiciliárias com 383 homens e mulheres, não unidos, de 15 a 19 anos de idade, matriculados em uma unidade básica de saúde da família da zona leste do município de São Paulo, correspondendo a uma amostra representativa dos indivíduos deste grupo etário. A análise de regressão logística múltipla identificou como variáveis associadas ao início da vida sexual de adolescentes do sexo masculino a idade, a situação de estudo, a idade materna no primeiro filho, a concordância materna de que adolescentes tenham vida sexual, o fato de que o pai gostaria que seu filho iniciasse a vida sexual independentemente do casamento, o namoro anterior e o namoro atual. Por sua vez, as variáveis associadas ao início da vida sexual entre adolescentes do sexo feminino foram a idade, o tipo de domicílio, o namoro anterior, o namoro atual e a presença de irmão(ã) que tenha vivenciado uma gestação previamente à união. Entre os 164 adolescentes com experiência sexual, foi observada uma convergência na idade em que homens e mulheres tiveram a primeira relação sexual (mediana de 15 anos). No entanto, mesmo que a primeira relação sexual tenha ocorrido em idades similares e igualmente sem planejamento prévio, aspectos importantes do comportamento sexual diferiram entre os adolescentes e deveriam ser lembrados na assistência e promoção de sua saúde reprodutiva e sexual. Assim, as mulheres relataram ter iniciado a vida sexual, principalmente, porque estavam apaixonadas pelo parceiro, que foi, com maior freqüência, seu namorado. Por outro lado, os homens iniciaram sua vida sexual em relacionamentos ocasionais e justificaram como motivação a atração física. A prática contraceptiva foi deixada de lado por 41,5% dos homens e 31,7% das mulheres. Desta forma, os resultados indicaram que os diferenciais de gênero estiveram presentes em todo o processo de iniciação sexual e, ainda, os fatores individuais, tais como o namoro e a idade, e os fatores familiares, tais como os valores e atitudes dos pais e mães acerca da sexualidade, foram marcantes na iniciação sexual dos adolescentes. / Women and men initiate their sexual life in different ways mainly during adolescence. Sexual practices in youth have been described as dynamic and in constant transformation, though its profile should be considered as having an impact in reproductive health. This study aimed to analyse associated factors to the onset of sexual life and to describe the first sexual relationship. Therefore, 383 fifteen to nineteen year-old single males and females enrolled in a family health unit from the east area of the city of São Paulo were interviewed at home. From multiple logistic regression analysis, data showed that associated variables to the onset of sexual life in males were age, schooling insertion, maternal age at first delivery, maternal acceptance that adolescents engage in sexual practices, paternal opinion that son should have the first intercourse independently from a marriage, previous and current dating. On the other hand, associated variables among females were age, house affording, previous and current dating and the presence of a single sibling who had already faced a pregnancy. Among the 164 adolescents who had sexual experience, a convergence in the age males and females initiated their sexual life (median at 15) was observed. Even though the first intercourse occurred at the same age and without planning, important aspects of the sexual behaviour differed between males and females and ought to be taken into consideration in their reproductive and sexual health promotion. Girls said they had the first intercourse because they were in love and it thus occurred majority with a boyfriend. Boys had their first intercourse mainly in occasional relationships and because of physical attraction. Contraceptive practice was observed in 58,5% of the boys and 68,3% of the girls. The results indicated that gender differences were present at the whole sexual initiation process and that individual factors, such as dating and age, and familial factors, such as parents attitudes towards sexuality, were determinants for the sexual initiation of these adolescents.

abstract: This dissertation examines associations between religious affiliation, religious community context and health of women and their children in Mozambique focusing on the following issues: (1) attending prenatal consultations and delivering children in a health facility; (2) women's symptoms of STDs; and (3) under-five mortality. Estimation of random intercept Poisson regression for the outcome about attending prenatal consultations demonstrated a favorable effect of affiliation to Catholic or Mainline Protestant and Apostolic religious groups. The concentration of Zionist churches in the community had a negative influence. Random intercept logistic regression was used to estimate the relationship between religion and institutional child delivery. Affiliation to Catholic or Mainline Protestant denominations as well as concentration of Catholic or Mainline Protestant churches in the community had some beneficial effect on giving birth in health clinics. The presence of Zionist churches in the community had some negative effect and that of other groups no significant influence. Random intercept logistic regression was also employed for investigating the influence of religion on women's symptoms of STDs. Belonging to the Catholic or Mainline Protestant church had some protective effect on reporting symptoms of STDs. There was no effect of religious context, except that the concentration of Other Pentecostal churches had a positive effect on reporting symptoms of SDTs. Event-history analysis was conducted for examining relationships between maternal religious affiliation with under-five mortality. Affiliation to Catholic or Mainline Protestant churches and to Apostolic denominations increased the odds of child survival, although, the influence of having a mother belonging to Catholic or Mainline Protestant churches lost statistical significance after accounting particularly for the average level of education in the community, for the period of 5 years preceding the survey date. Taken together, the results in this dissertation show some protective effect of religion that varies primarily by denominational group to which women are affiliated. They also indicate that religious community context may have some negative effect on health of women and children. The nature of the effect of religious community context varies with the type of outcome considered and the type of religious mixture in the community. / Dissertation/Thesis / Ph.D. Social Science and Health 2011

Este estudo pretende refletir sobre as escolhas de métodos contraceptivos feitas por mulheres em idade fértil, usuárias de uma unidade de saúde básica na cidade de Curitiba, e sobre as concepções que estas têm de seu corpo e sua fisiologia reprodutiva. Trata-se de um trabalho etnográfico no qual procedeu-se à observação participante e entrevistas com 21 mulheres ao longo de três meses. As lógicas do ponto de vista biomédico, do ponto de vista das políticas da saúde e do ponto de vista das mulheres que fazem uso de tecnologias contraceptivas se justapõem aqui, demonstrando como a reprodução, que possui uma concepção biológica e também social, pode ser traduzida por estas diferentes visões de mundo. Observa-se que as tecnologias contraceptivas, mesmo modificando o comportamento reprodutivo, parecem não ter modificado o papel tradicional feminino, mas elas têm permitido que estas mulheres tenham um maior controle de seu corpo e de suas vidas. Ao escolher um método contraceptivo, estas mulheres atuam como agentes que moldam suas próprias vidas reprodutivas, apesar de restritas às opções do serviço público de saúde. Estas opções podem não ser necessariamente adequadas às concepções reprodutivas das mulheres, mas este estudo mostra que elas buscam respaldo na autoridade médica e no modelo biomédico, ao mesmo tempo em que o processam de um modo que seja coerente com sua lógica – o que pode ser percebido através das imagens gráficas do aparelho reprodutor. Estas imagens gráficas não refletem a aceitação crescente dos métodos contraceptivos injetáveis, mas trazem à reflexão como uma nova opção oferecida pelo serviço público de saúde vem fazendo com que as mulheres repensem a relação com seu corpo em busca de segurança contraceptiva e autonomia. Também está evidenciado o fato de a visão biomédica não possuir a habilidade de entender o outro ou outra lógica diferente da sua, nem sabe relativizar seus conhecimentos, o que acaba criando dificuldades no relacionamento e atendimento dos usuários dos serviços de saúde. / This study intends to discuss the choices of contraceptive methods made by women in fertile age who use the public health service in Curitiba, and the representations these women have about their bodies and their reproductive physiology. It is an ethnographic work in which participant observation and interviews with 21 women were made during three months. The logics of the biomedical, health politics and the women’s point of view who use contraceptive technologies are overlaid here, showing how reproduction, which has a biological conception as well as a social one, can be translated by these different world views. We can observe that the contraceptive technologies, even modifying reproductive behavior, do not seem to change the traditional female role, but they have allowed these women to have more control over their bodies and their lives. By choosing a contraceptive method, these women act like agents that shape their own reproductive lives, despite the limited options of the public service. These options may not be necessarily adequate to women’s reproductive conceptions, but this study shows they seek support on medical authority and on the biomedical model at the same time they process it in a coherent way to their own logic - what can be observed through the graphic images of the reproductive system. These graphic images do not reflect the increasing acceptance of the injectable contraceptive methods, but they make us think how a new option offered by the public health system has been making women think about their relationship with their body in search of contraceptive safety and autonomy. It is also evident that the biomedical view does not have the ability to understand the other or another logic apart of its own, nor knows how to make its knowledge relative, which creates difficulties in relating and attending users of the health systems.

Submitted by Maria Creuza Silva (mariakreuza@yahoo.com.br) on 2014-07-21T13:33:08Z No. of bitstreams: 1 Dissertação Maria Cristina Camargo. 2000.pdf: 8022402 bytes, checksum: 296a0873d8b8c457742e9945fb83eb7c (MD5) / Approved for entry into archive by Maria Creuza Silva (mariakreuza@yahoo.com.br) on 2014-07-21T13:55:22Z (GMT) No. of bitstreams: 1 Dissertação Maria Cristina Camargo. 2000.pdf: 8022402 bytes, checksum: 296a0873d8b8c457742e9945fb83eb7c (MD5) / Made available in DSpace on 2014-07-21T13:55:22Z (GMT). No. of bitstreams: 1 Dissertação Maria Cristina Camargo. 2000.pdf: 8022402 bytes, checksum: 296a0873d8b8c457742e9945fb83eb7c (MD5) / Este estudo teve como objetivos identificar, descrever e analisar as principais causas da morte materna, do sub-registro e da sub-informação, no período de janeiro a dezembro de 1998. Trata-se de um estudo descritivo e de validação. O método utilizado neste estudo, conhecido por ―RAMOS‖, utiliza todas as possíveis fontes de informações, no rastreamento dos óbitos maternos. Foram estudados 128 casos de óbitos de mulheres em idade fértil, sendo que oito foram óbitos maternos dos quais apenas 3 haviam sido declarados no sistema oficial. O sub-registro encontrado foi de 12,5% e a classificação incorreta das causas maternas respondeu por 50%, totalizando 62,5% de sub-informação. Calcularam-se os coeficientes de mortalidade geral, específicos e proporcionais segundo grupo de causas, idade e município de residência. A análise da composição da mortalidade revelou uma heterogeneidade dos padrões de mortalidade entre os municípios selecionados. A taxa de mortalidade materna oficial foi de 61,6/100.000 nascidos vivos, e a taxa corrigida foi de 164,3/100.000 nascidos vivos, 2,7 vezes maior que a primeira. Os resultados indicam que 3/4 das mortes maternas ocorreram no puerpério precoce, e 1/4 durante a gravidez. As principais causas responsáveis foram às obstétricas diretas (62,5%). / The purpose of this study were as follows: to identify, describe and analyze the main causes for maternal mortality and the related under-recording and under-information from January through December 1998. A descriptive and validation-type study was conducted. The methodology used, known as ―RAMOS‖, utilizes any possible source of information for tracking the maternal deaths. One hundred twenty-eight cases of female deaths occurred during reproductive age; a total number of eight deaths were maternal ones, however just three of them had been recorded accordingly on the official information system. The under-recording rate was 12.5%, while the incorrect classification for maternal deaths was equivalent to fifty percent, thus totalizing an under-information rate equivalent to 62.5%. The specific and proportional coefficients for general mortality were calculated based on mortality cause, age and municipality of residence. The analysis of the composition of mortality revealed a heterogeneous pattern for mortality rates among the selected municipalities. The official maternal mortality rate was equivalent to 61.6/100.000 live birth, while the adjusted rate was equivalent to 164.3/100.000 live birth, which is 2.7 times higher than the former one. The results indicate that ¾ of maternal deaths occurred during early puerperium, while ¼ took place during pregnancy. The main causes were directly related to the obstetrical condition (62.5%).