Background: There is an increased awareness among women of child bearing age on the forms of contraceptives in South Africa. Despite this, there has been a steady rise in the number of induced abortions conducted in the country. The aim and objectives of this study was to understand the contraceptive choices of the women requesting termination of pregnancy as well as their knowledge, attitude and practice toward contraceptives in one of the District Hospitals in Western Cape, South Africa. Methods: This was a cross sectional descriptive study which was conducted in Mitchell's Plain District Hospital, among women seeking induced abortion. Women aged 18 years and older seeking elective Termination of Pregnancy were included in the study. Convenience sampling method was used to select the participants women attending the clinic and who were willing to participate. Researcher-administered questionnaires were used as a data collection tool, and the data analyzed using SPSS version 25. Correlation between socio-demographic factors and contraceptive uptake was made using chi-square and Fisher's tests. Results: Most of the participants were between the ages of 26-39 years, single, unemployed and did not have matric education. There was an acceptable knowledge on contraceptives in terms of types, sources and side effects. However, there was low uptake of contraceptives (17%) prior to falling pregnant. The most common barriers to contraceptives use were side effects, no time to visit the clinic and low level of education. Conclusion: Findings from this study showed that awareness and knowledge of contraceptives does not necessarily translate to practice. In the future, it would be worthwhile to conduct a qualitative in-depth study on decision-making and behavior of all women around contraceptives.

The aim of the present thesis is to determine whether the Tea Party candidatesʼ attitudes towards selected controversial issues influenced their electoral success and the success of the Tea Party movement as a whole. The thesis consists of two parts, theoretical and empirical. In the theoretical part the author focuses on the historical perspective of the political and party system in the United States of America, bipartism and position of third parties in the system. It also includes a brief analysis of the Democratic and Republican parties. Next, the author examines the Tea Party phenomenon - its genesis, structure, purposes and ideals. The subsequent section deals with three controversial issues, i.e. abortion, LGBT rights, and race, which reflect an ideological cleavage among the american public. The empirical part presents a case study entitled The influence of controversial issues on the (non)success of the Tea Party candidates, which deals with attitudes of the House and Senate Tea Party candidates who won the 2010 congressional elections towards the above- mentioned controversial issues.

Government began legislating abortion in the mid nineteenth century and has controlled access to this service for women ever since. With the creation of hospital boards after WWII, state control over access became further entrenched. Regulations and restrictions since Roe v. Wade limit the availability of abortion services for women served by Medicaid and other social assistance programs. The existence of a class bias around access can be seen throughout the topic's history and legislation has unfairly targeted and therefore disproportionately affects poor women. The data show that these restrictions have no impact on the number of unintended pregnancies over the last 20 plus years. Without the ability to personally fund the procedure, poor women do not enjoy the same choices as women in other social classes. In the next decade, we are likely to experience more of the same without having a realistic conversation about Medicaid funding of abortion.

Bakgrund: I Sverige definieras begreppet upprepade missfall som att en kvinna har fått tre eller flera missfall i följd och det uppskattas drabba ca en procent av världens alla par i fertil ålder. Då detta är en liten grupp kvinnor kan det vara svårt för den drabbade kvinnan att veta var hon kan vända sig med sina funderingar och vad hon har rätt till för vidare hjälp. Vid flera upprepade missfall växer behovet av att få svar på vad som sker och varför samtidigt som behovet av stöd och förståelse från sina närstående blir större. Tillgången till utredning och behandling ser olika ut men med hjälp från barnmorskans och vårdens sida kan lämplig planering utifrån kvinnan situation utvecklas. Syfte: Syftet med denna studie är att undersöka kvinnans upplevelse av upprepade missfall och belysa hennes behov under och tiden efter missfallet. Metod: Metoden för denna uppsats var en kvalitativ metasyntes med metaetnografisk analysmetod. Totalt kvalitetsgranskades 29 artiklar varav 16 gick igenom kvalitetsgranskningen och sammanställdes till ett resultat. Resultat: Sju kategorier med nyckelbegrepp bildades. Kategorierna som identifierades var missfallsprocessen, utrymme för sorg, undvikande beteende, partnerrollen, socialt stöd, förväntningar på vården och att bli gravid igen. Slutsats: Då alla kvinnor är olika varierar upplevelsen och behoven vid en missfallsprocess. Genom att ha kunskap om vad kvinnan går igenom både fysiskt- och psykiskt vid upprepade missfall bidrar det till en ökad förståelse för vad kvinnan behöver, både från sin omgivning men även från vårdens sida. Klinisk tillämpbarhet: Studien skulle kunna bidra till att utforska möjligheten att ändra på kriterierna för utredning vid upprepade missfall. Studien skulle även kunna leda till en förbättring av kunskapsläget både för individen, samhället och vården gällande hur bemötandet av denna grupp av kvinnor ser ut. Barnmorskor kan som yrkesgrupp stödja och hjälpa denna grupp kvinnor genom uppföljning i samband med att de kommer i kontakt med barnmorskemottagningen för att meddela att graviditeten har slutat i ännu ett missfall. Vidare kan etableringen av stödgrupper inom vården vara ett bra stöd för kvinnor som är med om upprepade missfall och dessa grupper skulle potentiellt ledas och samordnas av en barnmorska som innehar kompetens inom området upprepade missfall. / Background: In Sweden, the concept of recurrent miscarriage is defined as a woman having three or more miscarriages in succession and it is estimated to affect about one percent of all couples of childbearing age worldwide. Since this is a small group of women, it can be difficult for the effected woman to know where she can turn with her thoughts and what she is entitled to regarding further help. After enduring multiple recurrent miscarriages, the need to get some answers and at the same time the need to receive support and understanding from their close surroundings increases. The access to further investigation and treatment is different depending on where you are but with some help from a midwife and other healthcare providers, an appropriate plan based on the woman's situation can be developed. Purpose: The aim of this essay was to investigate the experiences of women who have endured recurrent miscarriages and their further needs that occurred during and the time after the miscarriage. Methods: The method used in this essay was a qualitative metasynthesis with metaethnographic analysis method. In total, 29 articles were collected of which 16 of them went through the quality review and were compiled to a result. Results: seven categories containing of key concepts were formed. The categories identified were the process of miscarrying, room for griefing, avoiding behavior, the partners role, social support, expectations of the healthcare and becoming pregnant again. Conclusion: Due to the fact that all women are different, the experiences and needs during a miscarrying process varies. By having the knowledge of what the woman goes through both physically and mentally during recurrent miscarriages, it contributes to a greater understanding of what the woman needs, both from her surroundings but also from the healthcare. Clinical applicability: This essay could help to explore the possibilities of modifying the criteria for an investigation of recurrent miscarriages. The essay could also lead to improvement of the knowledge situation for the individual, the society and the care providers regarding how this group of women wants to be treated. Midwives as a profession could help to support this group of women by initiating contact with the women when or after she has contacted the midwife clinic to announce another pregnancy loss. Furthermore, the establishment of support groups for women with recurrent miscarriages could be helpful and supportive for these women. The support groups could potentially be coordinated by a midwife with specific knowledge about recurrent miscarriage.

Every year about half a million women die from complications of pregnancy, parturition and puerperium, most of which are preventable. The purpose of this thesis was to chart the distribution and decline in maternal mortality in Sweden between 1751 and 1980, and furthermore to characterize positive (predisposing) factors and negative (protective) factors of maternal mortality. Maternal mortality declined from 900 to 6.6 per 100,000 live births in these 230 years. Maternal deaths accounted for 10070 of all female deaths in the reproductive ages between 1781 and 1785, but only 0.2.0/0 between 1976 and 1980. However, in the 19th century 40-450/0 of the female deaths in the most active childbearing ages were maternal deaths. The children left motherless had an extremely high mortality. Indirect maternal deaths and puerperal sepsis accounted for the bulk of maternal deaths in the rural areas. Only a minority of maternal deaths occurred in lying-in hospitals. Midwifery services in rural areas and antiseptic techniques were most effective in preventing maternal deaths during the late 19th century. The changing distribution ofage and parity amongst the parturients had a definite impact on the mortality decline, enhanced by time, contributing to 500/0 of the mortality decline over the last 15 years. The expontential decline of cause-specific mortality and case fatality rates during the last 40 years is furthermore explained by the emergence ofmodern medicine - antibiotics, antenatal and obstetric care. The earlier serious problem of illegal abortions was eradicated by legislation and changes in hospital practice. The maternal mortality decline has levelled out during the 1970s, the relative importance of embolism as a cause of death is increasing. Advanced age and intercurrent disease are the most difficult risk factors to overcome. To conclude, this study indicates that the reason why maternal mortality has declined faster than otherhealth indices is that the major part of the maternal deaths can be prevented by medical technology, including family planning, antenatal and obstetric care. This experience should be of interest to developing countries where high rates of maternal mortality prevails.

The Choice on Termination of Pregnancy Act (no 92 of 1996) was implemented during 1997. This study attempted to investigate professional nurses' attitudes towards rendering these services in the Carletonville area of South Africa. The research results, obtained from questionnaires completed by professional nurses, indicated that most professional nurses would prefer:  women to be at least 16 years of age to access these services  not to allow repeated terminations of pregnancy to the same women  to administer pills rather than to use vacuum aspirations  to work in these services by choice only  to have better equipment, more resources and more staff members in units offering these services  more support from their families, friends, managers and communities Some professional nurses experienced guilt, depression, anxiety and religious conflicts as a result of the nature of their work. / Health Studies / M.A. (Health Studies)

The Choice on Termination of Pregnancy Act (no 92 of 1996) was implemented during 1997. This study attempted to investigate professional nurses' attitudes towards rendering these services in the Carletonville area of South Africa. The research results, obtained from questionnaires completed by professional nurses, indicated that most professional nurses would prefer:  women to be at least 16 years of age to access these services  not to allow repeated terminations of pregnancy to the same women  to administer pills rather than to use vacuum aspirations  to work in these services by choice only  to have better equipment, more resources and more staff members in units offering these services  more support from their families, friends, managers and communities Some professional nurses experienced guilt, depression, anxiety and religious conflicts as a result of the nature of their work. / Health Studies / M.A. (Health Studies)

This study investigated factors contributing to adolescent mothers' non-utilisation of contraceptives in the Piet Retief (Mkhondo) area. Contraceptives, emergency contraceptives and termination of pregnancy services are available free of charge. Nevertheless the number of adolescent mothers continues to increase in this area. Structured questionnaires were completed by 107 adolescent mothers. Most respondents (70,0%) received no sex education prior to their pregnancies, and were not knowledgeable about contraceptives. Subsequent to the birth of their babies, only 59,81% used contraceptives, risking further pregnancies. Adolescents, from the age of 12, should receive sex education. Availability of contraceptives during weekends could help adolescents to postpone their pregnancies. Health education should be given to the mothers in the Piet Retief (Mkhondo) area so that they can provide more effective sex education (including contraception) to their daughters. / Health Studies / M.A. (Health Studies)

L’Inde est confrontée à la problématique des avortements sexo-sélectifs, où il est observé depuis déjà plusieurs décennies un déséquilibre entre le nombre de filles et de garçons âgé(e)s entre 0 à 6 ans. Et ce, malgré l’adoption en 1994 du Pre-Conception and Pre-Natal Diagnostic Techniques (Prohibition of Sex Selection) Act qui régule les techniques médicales de détermination et de sélection du sexe afin d’éradiquer la pratique du foeticide féminin. Nous observons par conséquent un problème social d’application des lois. Cette recherche s’intéresse à l’effectivité du droit, qui repose dans la comparaison du sens et de l’utilité assignés à une norme par l’Etat, et la réception sociale qui en découle sur le plan instrumental et symbolique. Il s’agit alors d’explorer ici à la fois les effets visés par le droit, et leur réception au sein de la sphère sociétale. Cette étude analyse de ce fait les usages étatiques du droit qui tentent d’influencer l’univers symbolique des représentations collectives et les objectifs juridiques concrets mis en place pour conformer le comportement des sujets vis-à-vis de la sélection sexuelle prénatale. Une observation documentaire et des entrevues semi-dirigées font état de la réception sociale de ce discours officiel contre la pratique du foeticide féminin. Par cette lecture, nous comprenons que le droit étatique entre en conflit avec un système de représentations sociales qui inculque une préférence pour le fils pour des raisons économiques, sociales et culturelles. / For many decades now, India has been facing the issue of sex-selective abortion in which there has been a noticeable imbalance between the number of boys and girls aged 0 to 6 years old. And this, in spite of the 1994 Pre-Conception and Pre-Natal Diagnostic Techniques (Prohibition of Sex Selection) Act which regulates sex selection and determination technologies so as to eradicate female foeticide. We can thus note that there is a social problem of putting laws into effect. This research focuses on legal efficiency by outlining the meaning and utility assigned to State norms as well as their social reception on an instrumental and symbolic level. The aim is thus to explore the effects intended by the implementation of such laws and their reception by society. This study analyses the strategic legal appeal of the State in order to influence collective representations and to comply individual’s behaviour regarding sex selective abortions. Literature review and semi-structured interviews demonstrate the social reception of this official discours against female foeticide. We conclude that State law enters in direct confrontation with a social representation system that induces a preference for sons for economic, social and cultural reasons.

The diploma thesis analyses news coverage of some of the most important reforms conducted by the Polish conservative government. It focuses on public media services: Czech News Agency and the main news, Události, of the Czech Television, and the time period of years 2015 - 2018. The work consists of two parts. Theoretical part zeroes in on the description of theoretical concepts, general description of mentioned public media services and their foreign news coverage, particular types of agency and TV news. Separate chapter summarizes the differences between the Czech News Agency and the Czech Television, their purpose and news production itself. Another chapter concentrates on Poland - its political system and historical background of the last decades. The current situation in the country since 2015 is also outlined - the results of the last elections, current government and its reforms and intended changes. The reform of justice, reform of media and a plan to almost ban the abortions are described in details. These three reforms are the bases of Author's analysis. The practical part describes in detail results of both quantitative and qualitative methods chosen for this work. It is researched how often the chosen newsrooms were informing about the above mentioned reforms, what priority did they give them,...