Throughout the literature varying opinions exist concerning the health outcomes, service utilization and patient satisfaction as they relate to maternal and infant care given by physicians versus midwifery care. This study looks at the following question; what differences are there in health outcomes, service utilization, and patient satisfaction, between women who are cared for by either physicians or midwives and vaginally deliver a singleton healthy baby in hospital? This study employs a secondary analysis of data from the TOMIS II study. The TOMIS II data was collected from 250 women in each of five hospital sites in Ontario in 2002. The analysis showed that, except for the breastfeeding, all of the measures of maternal and infant health outcome did not statistically differ between physician-care and midwifery care. With respect to service utilization, the results indicated that family physician visits, length of stay, and utilization of the Healthy babies, Healthy Children (HBHC) resulted in statistically significant lower service utilization by mothers in the midwifery group, while the other measures were found not to be different. Patient satisfaction measures revealed that women receiving midwifery services were much more satisfied with their care than were women receiving physician-based services. Five conclusions were drawn from this study; midwifery care is a viable option for maternity care in Ontario for low-risk birth mothers; the utilization of midwives reduces the total amount of services being used in the health care system; women are more satisfied with their care when they have midwives participating in all parts of their care; health policy in Ontario should focus its efforts to expand midwifery to make it a viable option for maternal and infant care to all healthy women; health care policy should support publicly funded midwifery in each of the jurisdictions in Canada, as a cost-effective approach to care with comparable outcomes. / Thesis / Master of Social Work (MSW)

Published Article / The 2012 residents of Huis Welgemoed, a residence for female students at Central University of Technology, Free State Bloemfontein Campus have reported a high prevalence of infections of the vagina and the urinary tract. They assume that this problem is associated with poor hygienic conditions in the toilets of their residence. However, this assumption may not be entirely true, as other factors may also contribute to their problem. Previous studies have shown that there is an evident relation of vaginitis and urinary tract infections (UTI) among students and the practices of personal hygiene or the level of toilet sanitation in their residences. Especially in facilities where the students have complained about the hygiene state of their residence toilets as unsatisfactory. This preliminary study has shown that the residence conforms to the standards set out by the S.A. requirements for toilets in student housing of 1 toilet per 6 students and that the cleaning materials and methods used by staff are adequate. Interestingly, the authors have found that a lack of knowledge around UTI's and VI's regarding basic prevention strategies is most probably the cause of the high incidence of these two types of infections.

BACKGROUND: Recent epidemiological data indicate that one-third of the U.S. adult population is obese. As a result, healthcare professionals and policy makers are looking to identify creative methods to address this critical health concern. One way that may show promise to promote positive health changes is to convert mechanical energy produced through exercise into stored electricity via energy harvesting (EH) exercise. Previous research has linked pro-environmental attitudes with increased participation in sustainable behaviors. Other research has examined associations between consumption of fruits and vegetables and exercise participation. However, little research examines the association between exercise behavior and environmental concern. And more specifically, EH exercise. OBJECTIVE: To identify if EH exercise can act as a motivating factor to increase exercise participation. METHODS: Phase 1: Qualitative data were collected through a series of one-hour focus groups with ENERGIA Studio members who participate in EH exercise. Four focus groups were completed with 1-5 participants per group (n=12). Topics examined included: 1) perceived effect of EH exercise on the environment and its ability to act as a motivating factor to increase exercise participation; 2) participation in sustainable behaviors and attitudes toward energy conservation and environmental concerns; and 3) perceived benefits of and barriers to fruit and vegetable consumption and exercise participation. Data were used to inform a survey to examine the relationship between how environmental concern influences exercise and dietary practices. Phase 2: Fifteen participants from UMass Permaculture who had irregular exercise participation and pro-environmental beliefs completed an online survey. RESULTS: Significant results were found for associations between: environmental concern and sustainable and organic fruit and vegetable purchasing (p=0.008; p=0.048) among non-exercisers; health concern and organic purchasing (p=0.015) among exercisers; and sustainable practices and fruit and vegetable intake (X2 (1, 12) = 5.285, p=0.022) among non-exercisers. No significant results were found between environmental concern and EH exercise self-efficacy or exercise and fruit and vegetable intake. CONCLUSIONS: This study provides additional research examining how environmental concern may affect dietary and exercise habits. Using the threat of the environment may serve as a potential motivator to increase EH exercise participation and fruit and vegetable intake.

L’être humain est de plus en plus souvent inscrit dans des contextes où lui est accessible un savoir nouveau sur sa vie biologique (e.g., gènes, épigénome, neurones, microbiote). À portées de mains ou de clics, des médiations toujours plus nombreuses (e.g. tests génétiques prédictifs en matière de santé ; « récréatifs », relatifs à l’« ancestralité biogéographique », microbiote intestinal ou à l’« âge épigénétique » ; applications dites de « self-tracking ») mettent l’usager en relation avec des formats d’information de plus en plus diversifiés (e.g., SNP’s, diagnostics, probabilités exprimées sous forme de pourcentages de développer des maladies ou d’autres conditions : réponses de l’organisme à certains pathogènes et molécules, résistance à certaines pathologie, et d’autres propriétés qui seraient influencées par la génétique, comme la longévité ou les facultés cognitives). La découverte de ces données biologiques éprouve la personne et la confronte à de nouvelles inquiétudes qu’elle doit traverser.Menée sur base de trois terrains situés dans le champ de la santé (consultation médicale, usage du web en matière de santé, et usage d’auto-tests tests génétiques), cette recherche contribue à la compréhension de ce phénomène de société. Elle s’applique en particulier à préciser la variété des façons dont la personne intègre ces données nouvelles qui s’accompagnent d’une prétention à un réalisme fort. Dans certains cas, ces technologies fournissent à l’individu une image objectivante de son « identité ». L’approche préconisée s’articule à un questionnement anthropologique singulier : Comment la personne s’arrange-t-elle de situations dans lesquelles elle est mise en relation non plus seulement avec d’autres humains mais au premier titre avec des données objectivantes relatives à son intériorité biologique ? Cette question anthropologique invite à porter au moins autant d’attention à ce qui nous relie à autrui et à notre environnement (deux questions classiquement situées au cœur du projet de la sociologie), qu’aux façons dont l’humain assure une continuité avec lui- même dans des situations où le vivant pose question. Cette recherche démontre que la conduite effectivement adoptée par les usagers des trois médiations examinées est irréductible à l’attente d’autonomie souvent promue comme prise en charge de sa santé relevant d’un plan d’action orienté vers un but à atteindre. Soutenue par des outils sociologiques qui sous-tendent une conception plurielle du sujet et de l’action, cette recherche attire l’attention sur des dynamiques peu traitées dans les sciences sociales de la santé. L’examen attentif du maintien du sujet mis à l’épreuve de ces nouveaux savoirs jette une lumière nouvelle sur l’habileté de l’humain à évoluer entre une pluralité de positions, de définitions de ce qu’il se passe et/ou de qui il est afin de s’arranger de ces découvertes qui insécurisent son état de sujet. Plutôt que de considérer le caractère ambivalent, équivoque et parfois carrément ambigu de la conduite de l’usager comme un échec de l’analyse, ce travail contribue à une approche de la composition dans le rapport à soi et à autrui. / More than ever before humans have access to new knowledge about their biological life (e.g., genes, biochemical marks influencing phenotypes, neurons, microbiota). This knowledge is progressively transfered out of laboratories and into commercial markets. Then, by means of an ever-increasing number of readily available mediations (e.g. direct-to-consumer (epi)genomic tests (DTC GT), health-related uses of the Internet, direct-to-consumer genomic tests, self-tracking applications on smartphones) layusers are connected to an increasingly diverse array of data (e.g., online diagnostics, genomic predispositions, probabilities, SNP’s). My doctoral thesis develops an investigation of the practices whereby individuals ensure continuity with others/themselves when confronted to new knowledge related to their biology. Knowing the so-called “real” or potential biological endowment of oneself but also of others has tremendous social, political and ethical consequences. These new reflexive technologies grant individuals with an objectifying image of their “identity”. These new objectifying data related to the biological self puts the subject to test. They confront them to inquietudes they have to cope with.Built on three fieldworks located in the field of health (the classic medical examination, health-related information on the Internet, health-related direct-to-consumer genomic tests), this research fosters a better understanding of this social phenomenon. My investigation specifically seeks to clarify the variety of ways that allow individuals to integrate these new data marked with a strong degree of realism. The approach set forth in this research revolves on a specific anthropological question: how human beings find arrangements with situations in which they are not only confronted to others but also with objectifying data related to their biological life? This anthropological problematic invites us to bring at least as much attention to what connects us with others than to the specific ways individuals ensure continuity with themselves in contexts where the “living” raises question. My research demonstrates that the conduct actually adopted by users of the three mediations studied is irreducible to the expected liberal autonomy often promoted in the literature as “management of one’s health”. A careful analysis of the subject’s consistence facing this new knowledge highlights social dynamics that have received little attention in the field of social sciences of health. The fieldworks carried out provide new insights on the human ability to bring together different positions or definitions of what is happening and/or who you are in order to arrange with these discoveries that challenge their subject consistency. Rather than considering the equivocal features and sometimes the outright ambiguity of the conducts as a failure of the analysis, this research effort contributes achieving a better understanding of the pervasiveness of composition in our relationship to our self and the others in social contexts related to biology

This bachelor’s thesis is a quantitative study examining the factors influencing the Green Purchase Intention of (green) skincare among European consumers. The underpinning theory for this paper was the Theory of Planned Behavior and its influencing constructs such as Attitude, Subjective Norm, and Perceived Behavioral Control, as well as various selected determinants such as Environmental Concern, Environmental Knowledge, Health Concern, Injunctive Norm, Descriptive Norm, Electronic Word-of-Mouth, Price Sensitivity, Availability, and Perceived Consumer Effectiveness. The determinants were selected after conducting a literature review that primarily consisted of secondary data in the form of research articles dealing with the same research area of Green Purchase Intention. In order to collect primary data relevant to this study, an online survey in the form of a questionnaire was employed. Overall, 385 respondents from various European countries took part in this study. The survey sample was statistically tested using the SPSS AMOS and SPSS software. This was done in order to utilize the data collected fully. Therefore, two hypothesis models were constructed for this study. The results of Model 1, which were tested using SPSS AMOS denoted that Attitude had a significant relationship with Green Purchase Intention of green skincare products. The results of Model 2, which were tested using SPSS showed that Environmental Concern, Environmental Knowledge, Health Concern, and Perceived Consumer Effectiveness had a significant positive relationship with Green Purchase Intention. Thus, as a result, this study offers findings that manufacturers and retailers of green skincare could use to advance their marketing strategies. Primarily, it can be argued that green skincare brands should focus on targeting consumers who are already environmentally conscious rather than trying to gain over consumers with no environmental knowledge and concern. However, we do not deem our results sufficient enough to allow us to provide further managerial contributions.