Reproductive Health Matters articles from May 2005

Reproductive Health Matters archives from May 2005

Implementing ICPD: what's happening in countries.(EDITORIAL)
May 1, 2005... In 1994, governments gave themselves 20 years to implement the ICPD Programme of Action. It was a wise decision. Anything less would have been far too short to achieve the goals espoused. Anything more would have risked it being forgotten,...

Strategy to accelerate progress towards the attainment of international development goals and targets related to reproductive health.
May 1, 2005... Abstract: Reproductive and sexual ill-health account for 20% of the global burden of ill-health for women, and 14% for men. The strategy presented in this document is the World Health Organization's first global strategy on reproductive health....

Girls can't wait: why girls' education matters and how to make it happen now: briefing paper for the UN Beijing +10 review and appraisal.
May 1, 2005... Without achieving gender equality for girls in education, the world has no chance of achieving many of the ambitious health, social and development targets it has set for itself. (UN Secretary-General Kofi Annan, March 2005) THIS is the...

Norway at ICPD+10: international assistance for reproductive health does not reflect domestic policies.
May 1, 2005... Abstract: Norway has a long history of good reproductive health care, with some of the world's best reproductive health indicators. Early reduction of maternal mortality, good services for abortion, contraception and sexually transmitted...

Women's perceptions of reproductive health in three communities around Beirut, Lebanon.
May 1, 2005... Abstract: The aim of this study was to elicit definitions of the concept of reproductive health among women in three communities around Beirut, Lebanon, as part of the reproductive health component of a larger Urban Health Study. The...

Women in Arab countries: challenging the patriarchal system?
May 1, 2005... Abstract: Progress in the empowerment of Arab women was found to be low in a 2002 report. Yet Arab women's status is not reflected in continuing high fertility, which in 2000 had dropped sharply in one generation to 3.4. This paper discusses...

The sexual and reproductive health of young people in the Arab countries and Iran.
May 1, 2005... Abstract: This article reviews the sexual and reproductive health situation of young people aged 10-24 in the Arab states and Iran, based on published and unpublished literature and interviews with 51 key informants working mostly in NGOs and...

A strategic assessment of the reproductive health and responsible parenthood programme of Buenos Aires, Argentina.
May 1, 2005... Abstract: Since 1991, Argentina has had provincial reproductive health laws, a far-reaching national programme and strong public consensus in support of reproductive health policies. Nevertheless, the challenges of strengthening public...

The population and reproductive health programme in Brazil 1990-2002: lessons learned: a report to the John D and Catherine T MacArthur Foundation.
May 1, 2005... Abstract: The story of Brazil's evolution in sexual and reproductive health and rights during the 1990s documents not only a decade of change in the population field, but the powerful role of social movements in a democracy. Between October and...

Sexual and reproductive health and rights in the United Kingdom at ICPD+10.
May 1, 2005... Abstract: At the mid-point of the Programme of Action of the 1994 International Conference on Population and Development, we reviewed the situation in the UK in key areas. In recent years, greater attention has been paid to sexual health at a...

Global progress in abortion advocacy and policy: an assessment of the decade since ICPD.(International Conference on Population and Development)
May 1, 2005... Abstract: The 1994 International Conference on Population and Development (ICPD) Programme of Action represented a positive step toward legitimising abortion as a component of basic reproductive health services. This paper reviews how the ICPD...

Orphans and vulnerable children: official opening of the 13th International Conference on AIDS and STIs in Africa, 2003, Nairobi.
May 1, 2005... I am obviously delighted to have the privilege of participating in this opening session of ICASA. But I am also aware that the speaking list is lengthy. So quite frankly, I'm going to scrap the remarks I intended to make--primarily on financial...

We are cracking open some taboos--what about the remaining ones?
May 1, 2005... THE ICPD Programme of Action was a watershed. In retrospect, and with the prevailing political situation in the world, it is even more astonishing than it seemed then that consensus was actually reached over the issues discussed in Cairo. Over...

ICPD goals: essential to the millennium development goals.(COMMENTARY)(International Conference on Population and Development)
May 1, 2005... THE year 2005 is a pivotal year for ensuring that sexual and reproductive health are fully addressed in the implementation and monitoring of the Millennium Development Goals (MDGs), listed in Box 1. When the MDGs were developed following the...

Thinking beyond ICPD+10: where should our movement be going? *.(ROUNDTABLE)(International Conference on Population and Development in Cairo)
May 1, 2005... Abstract: In this roundtable discussion, three long-time international activists in the field of reproductive and sexual rights discuss the challenges facing the feminist women's health movement ten years after the 1994 International Conference...

Legal harmonization and reproductive tourism in Europe.(ANALYSIS)
May 1, 2005... Abstract: Legislation of ethicol issues illustrates the uneasy mix of ethics and politics. Although the majority bas the political right to express its moral views in the law, a number of important ethical values like autonomy, tolerance and...

Maternal health and HIV.
May 1, 2005... Abstract: The HIV/AIDS epidemic is one of the major factors affecting women's health, with 20 million women living with HIV and more than two million pregnancies in HIV-positive women each year. Most HIV infections in women are in...

Focus on women: linking HIV care and treatment with reproductive health services in the MTCT-Plus Initiative.
May 1, 2005... Abstract: Despite important advances in expanding access to antiretroviral therapy in the countries most heavily affected by HIV/AIDS, there has been little consideration of the connections between HIV prevention, care and treatment programmes...

Syrian women's perceptions and experiences of ultrasound screening in pregnancy: implications for antenatal policy.
May 1, 2005... Abstract: Ultrasound scanning is firmly embedded in antenatal maternity care around the world. This paper reports on a qualitative study carried out in 2003 of 30 Syrian women's perceptions and experiences of routine ultrasound in pregnancy. It...

Resumption of sexual relations following childbirth: norms, practices and reproductive health issues in Abidjan, Cote d'Ivoire.
May 1, 2005... Abstract: Before modern contraceptive methods were available in developing countries, postpartum sexual abstinence formed the backbone of birth spacing. With the changes occurring in African societies, how has post-partum sexual abstinence been...

Why withdrawal? Why not withdrawal? Men's perspectives.
May 1, 2005... Abstract: Withdrawal is an ancient and prevalent form of male contraception which has largely been ignored by family planning programme managers all over the world. The objective of this study was to understand men's perspectives on withdrawal...

AIDS 2004, Bangkok: a human rights and development issue.(CONFERENCE REPORT)
May 1, 2005... THE 15th International AIDS Conference in Bangkok from 11-16 July 2004 once again brought together the wide range of actors involved in fighting the HIV/AIDS epidemic. Researchers, scientists, donors, government leaders, public health...

Women and HIV/AIDS: Confronting the Crisis.(Book Review)
May 1, 2005... Women and HIV/AIDS: Confronting the Crisis Ann Erb-Leoncavallo, Gillian Holmes, Stephanie Urdang, Micol Zarb, Gloria Jacobs, Joann Vanek. Geneva/New York: UNAIDS, UNFPA, UNIFEM, 2004. "HIV/AIDS is no longer primarily striking men." ...

Contraceptive effectiveness of male condoms high.(ROUND UP: Condoms)(Brief Article)
May 1, 2005... Data from two randomised, controlled contraceptive efficacy trials were combined, involving 800 couples who used three latex condom brands exclusively for up to six menstrual cycles. Detailed reports (3,715) on slippage and breakage were...

Better instruction in the use of condoms could reduce breakage and slippage.(ROUND UP: Condoms)(Brief Article)
May 1, 2005... A questionnaire given to 428 single men and women examined incidents of condom breakage and slippage over the previous three months. Breakage and slippage were round to be associated with never receiving instruction on correct condom use, more...

Branded mass media condom campaigns positively affect risk perception.(ROUND UP: Condoms)(Brief Article)
May 1, 2005... For mass media health campaigns to work they need to change perceptions before they can affect behaviour. Questionnaires given to over 2000 15-39 year olds in Kenya asked them about their exposure to generic and branded mass media messages...

Le Visa--Niger's own brand of condom.(ROUND UP: Condoms)(Brief Article)
May 1, 2005... A project to increase condom use in Niger has launched its own brand of condoms designed to appeal specifically to the local market. The product goes under the brand name "Le Visa" chosen for its cross-cultural appeal and the puns associated...

Advertising condoms in Korea.(ROUND UP: Condoms)(Brief Article)
May 1, 2005... In an effort to slow the increase of HIV in Korea, the Korean Centre for Disease Control has launched a campaign to improve the image of condoms. Condom use in the country is only about 12% and the KCDC and the Korea Anti-AIDS Federation are...

More training in condom use needed in the UK.(ROUND UP: Condoms)(Brief Article)
May 1, 2005... This study of 300 men and 300 women attending a genito-urinary (STI) clinic in the UK shows that less than a quarter of all the respondents always used condoms, and 55% of the homosexual and bisexual men. About half the condom users reported...

Delayed application of condoms is common in Australia.(ROUND UP: Condoms)(Brief Article)
May 1, 2005... Seven focus group discussions with heterosexual men and women aged 18-25 in Australia revealed that both withdrawal and delayed application of condoms are widespread. Delayed application divided into two categories--after limited unprotected...

Condom use can speed up regression of HPV-associated lesions.(ROUND UP: Condoms)(Brief Article)
May 1, 2005... A study of over 100 women with cervical intraepithelial neoplasia (CIN, a precursor of cervical cancer) and their male sexual partners indicates that consistent condom use can speed up regression of HPV-associated lesions and infection. The CIN...

Mortality for babies born with HIV in relation to mothers' risk of death.(ROUND UP: HIV/AIDS)
May 1, 2005... This study pools data from seven mother-to-child-transmission (MTCT) intervention studies in an attempt to analyse mortality risk factors for children born to HIV-infected mothers. Overall, 378 (11%) of the 3468 children included in these...

HIV and infant feeding: global guidelines and local realities.(ROUND UP: HIV/AIDS)
May 1, 2005... Recent WHO guidance on HIV and infant feeding says: "Breastfeeding is normally the best way to feed an infant. A woman with HIV, however, can transmit the virus to her child during pregnancy, labour or delivery, or through breastfeeding. It is...

Trends in HIV prevalence in sub-Saharan Africa reviewed.(ROUND UP: HIV/AIDS)(Brief Article)
May 1, 2005... Trends in HIV prevalence can be obtained using data from the same population at different time points. This survey of data from over 300 antenatal clinics in 22 countries in sub-Saharan Africa considers trends between 1997 and 2003. The median...

Changing behaviour and reduction of HIV prevalence in Tanzania.(ROUND UP: HIV/AIDS)(Brief Article)
May 1, 2005... In the Bukoba urban area of Kagera, Tanzania, the prevalence of age-adjusted HIV-1 has slowly fallen from 24.2% in 1987 to 18.2% in 1993 and then to 13.3% in 1996. This follow-up of the Kagera AIDS Research Project used in-depth interviews,...

Partner reduction, including concurrent partnerships, essential for HIV prevention.(ROUND UP: HIV/AIDS)
May 1, 2005... It is difficult to ascertain the relative importance of reduction in the number of sexual partners as opposed to other forms of safer sex but it is common sense that with fewer sexual partners, HIV transmission is less likely to occur. Much of...

Coordinating funds against HIV/AIDS is proving difficult.(ROUND UP: HIV/AIDS)
May 1, 2005... The Global Fund to fight AIDS, Tuberculosis and Malaria has distributed significant amounts of money worldwide via Country Coordinating Mechanisms (CCM), whose role is to apply for grants from the fund, and principal recipients within each...

Medecins sans Frontieres challenges WHO conclusions about global AIDS treatment.(ROUND UP: HIV/AIDS)
May 1, 2005... The recently released WHO "3 x 5" progress report congratulates itself on progress made in the drive to fight the HIV pandemic. But only 700,000, or 12%, of the nearly six million people in need of antiretroviral (ARV) treatment in developing...

Integrating HIV services can improve all primary health care indicators.(ROUND UP: HIV/AIDS)
May 1, 2005... Primary health care--the delivery of basic preventative and curative services--should be a top priority item in all health care services, dealing with all major infectious and non-infectious causes of morbidity and mortality. Where HIV is a...

Rapid HIV testing piloted in Swaziland.(ROUND UP: HIV/AIDS)(Brief Article)
May 1, 2005... The University of Swaziland became the first site of a new rapid HIV testing procedure, testing over 1,000 new students in less than two days in August 2004. The test involves a pinprick of blood put onto a card. If no line develops within one...

Cameroon government suspends trial of AIDS drug amid ethical concerns.(ROUND UP: HIV/AIDS)
May 1, 2005... Clinical trials of an anti-AIDS drug being tested on sex workers by the US pharmaceutical company Gilead have been suspended after controversy over how the trials were being conducted. A statement by the Cameroon government refers to...

More people entitled to post-exposure prophylaxis in the US.(ROUND UP: HIV/AIDS)
May 1, 2005... Post-exposure prophylaxis using antiretroviral drugs against HIV is known to prevent infection if it is started within 72 hours of exposure to the virus. In the US, the use of such prophylaxis has until recently been restricted to health care...

US refusal to fund HIV programmes for sex workers undermines women's rights.(ROUND UP: HIV/AIDS)
May 1, 2005... The US "Global AIDS Act" which sets out US priorities in funding the fight against HW, tuberculosis and malaria specifically prohibits funding of programmes that promote the "legalisation or practice of prostitution': The origin of this clause...

Misinformation on nevirapine safety puts developing country PMTCT programmes at risk.(ROUND UP: HIV/AIDS)
May 1, 2005... In mid-December 2004, three "exclusive" Associated Press stories created widespread doubts about the use of nevirapine to prevent HW in many of the 1,800 babies now infected perinatally with HIV around childbirth. The allegations that went...

New heat-resistant aspirator for early abortions and treatment for incomplete abortion.(ROUND UP: Service Delivery)(Brief Article)
May 1, 2005... Manual vacuum aspiration (MVA) is a low-cost, simple technique which has given women access to safe and effective uterine evacuation for over 30 years. This essential reproductive health technology is now improved by the introduction of the...

Introducing a new model of antenatal care to Thailand.(ROUND UP: Service Delivery)(Brief Article)
May 1, 2005... Models of antenatal care in developing countries are based on those used in developed countries despite the differences in access to resources. A large WHO multicentre trial has suggested that fewer visits--a median of five per pregnancy...

Providing reproductive health care in Afghanistan.(ROUND UP: Service Delivery)
May 1, 2005... The Shuhada organisation was set up in 1989 by an Afghan exile in Pakistan to attempt to address the health and education needs of Afghan women and girls. It has grown to encompass four hospitals, 12 clinics, 60 schools and many other...

Developing a strategy to reduce maternal deaths: Sri Lanka.(ROUND UP: Service Delivery)
May 1, 2005... Sri Lanka has a long history of social welfare reform and is a success story in terms of reducing maternal mortality starting in the 1930s. The strategies used have included legislation, expansion of services and improving access, with...

Poor, rural women missing out on antenatal care in north India.(ROUND UP: Service Delivery)(Brief Article)
May 1, 2005... A study of over 11,000 rural women in rural north India showed that only around 40% received any type of antenatal check-up during their last pregnancy. Of these, the majority received predominantly tetanus toxoid vaccination and a supply of...

Maternal mortality ratio reduced by half in Egypt.(ROUND UP: Service Delivery)(Brief Article)
May 1, 2005... In 1992-93 the maternal mortality ratio in Egypt was 174 to 100,000 live births. By 2000 using a combination of strategies, it had dropped to less than half that figure, 84 to 100,000. Increased access to family planning resulted in a doubling...

New health care system fails Arab Israeli women.(ROUND UP: Service Delivery)(Brief Article)
May 1, 2005... Arab Israeli women are subject to unique social stresses deriving from their status as part of an ethno-political minority and from their position as women in a patriarchal community. Collectively, their health profiles are poorer than Jewish...

Using participatory women's groups to reduce neonatal mortality in Nepal.(ROUND UP: Service Delivery)
May 1, 2005... In a rare randomised, controlled trial of community-based strategies, this study clearly shows that participatory intervention can improve birth outcome in a poor rural population. Twelve pairs of matched areas ("clusters") in the Makwanpur...

Post-partum morbidity in Karachi women.(ROUND UP: Service Delivery)(Brief Article)
May 1, 2005... 525 women living in a poor neighbourhood of Karachi, Pakistan, who were 6-8 weeks postpartum after a live birth, were interviewed to assess their perception of and response to postpartum symptoms. Over half the women reported at least one...

Midwives discuss their approach to elective caesarean section.(ROUND UP: Service Delivery)
May 1, 2005... Midwives across the world have been discussing the rising number of caesarean sections, whether this is something they should be concerned about and what action they should take to help women come to the right decision about their delivery....

Second opinion rarely prevents unnecessary caesarean sections.(ROUND UP: Service Delivery)(Brief Article)
May 1, 2005... The WHO recommends a target of 15% caesarean sections, a figure which is now exceeded in many countries. This has led to increasing research on why caesarean rates are rising and how to prevent unnecessary caesareans. A study in Egypt of over...

Investigating the consequences of repeated caesarean section.(ROUND UP: Service Delivery)(Brief Article)
May 1, 2005... One of the main indications for caesarean section is a previous caesarean section. As the number of caesarean sections rises, including as a patient choice, multiple caesarean sections will become increasingly common. Whereas a second vaginal...

Doctors in Chile deliver adolescent education in schools.(ROUND UP: Service Delivery)(Brief Article)
May 1, 2005... CEMERA (Centro de Medicina Reproductiva y Desarrollo Integral de la Adolescencia) has worked with the Ministry of Education over seven years to provide a comprehensive programme in schools in Santiago, Chile, teaching basic information about...

Improving medical students' confidence in dealing with sexual health.(ROUND UP: Service Delivery)(Brief Article)
May 1, 2005... The teaching of sexual and reproductive health to medical undergraduates is often restricted to genitourinary medicine and gynaecology, meaning that they are poorly equipped on graduation for dealing with sexual health issues. In an effort to...

South African men have poor understanding of fertility and infertility.(ROUND UP: Service Delivery)(Brief Article)
May 1, 2005... In Africa, infertility has traditionally been seen as a female problem, with little attention paid to the experiences of men who are infertile. This study interviewed 27 men from diverse backgrounds attending an infertility clinic for the first...

Text messages to promote daily oral contraceptive use in the UK.(ROUND UP: Service Delivery)(Brief Article)
May 1, 2005... In a scheme to promote consistent use of the contraceptive pill, South Birmingham Primary Care Trust is paying an agency to text daily messages to 300 women aged 15-25, reminding them to take their pill, using a medium which is relevant to the...

No reason for limiting use of emergency contraception.(ROUND UP: Service Delivery)(Brief Article)
May 1, 2005... There bas been concern that, despite the established safety and value of emergency contraception (EC), repeat use of the method could have associated risks. However, repeat use is lower than perhaps feared, with most studies showing only around...

Portuguese women learn about misoprostol from Women on Waves.(ROUND UP: Service Delivery)(Brief Article)
May 1, 2005... The Women on Waves ship visited Portuguese waters in September 2004 to call attention to the consequences of illegal abortion, to give information and sexual health education, and to catalyse a change in the restrictive abortion laws of...

Reproductive rights and adults with learning disabilities.(ROUND UP: Service Delivery)(Brief Article)
May 1, 2005... In this "clinical conundrum", three professionals (a family planning consultant, a training manager for a national sexual health charity and an ethicist) and two mothers of learning-disabled children offer their viewpoints on a real-life...

High level of abortion-related deaths in Russia linked to late abortion.(ROUND UP: Service Delivery)(Brief Article)
May 1, 2005... Abortion-related deaths occur at a far higher level in Russia than elsewhere in Europe with a case-fatality ratio of 6.3 to 100,000 known legal and illegal abortions. The deaths mainly occur after abortions performed at 13-21 weeks (53%) and...

UK cervical cancer screening saves up to 5,000 women a year.(ROUND UP: Service Delivery)(Brief Article)
May 1, 2005... It bas been suggested that the financial and psychosocial costs of the UK national cervical screening programme are too great to justify the reduction in mortality achieved. An analysis of trends in mortality before 1988, when the programme was...

Ovarian tissue transplant leads to successful birth.(ROUND UP: Service Delivery)(Brief Article)
May 1, 2005... A cancer patient who was made infertile by chemotherapy has become the first woman to give birth after ovarian tissue transplant. Ovarian tissue taken from the ovaries can be frozen and later transplanted to the body without losing its ability...

Information about women's health disappearing in the US.(ROUND UP: Service Delivery)(Brief Article)
May 1, 2005... A report from the US National Council for Research on Women recently concluded that "vital data [regarding women's health and economic status] has been deleted, buried, altered, or bas otherwise gone missing from government web sites and...

Training paralegals in adolescent reproductive rights in Ghana.(ROUND UP: Law and Policy)(Brief Article)
May 1, 2005... The Federation of Women Lawyers (FIDA) and the African Youth Alliance (AYA) have recently completed a weeklong training event in Ghana where 35 people, including youth and community leaders, were trained in paralegal advocacy in adolescent...

FDA uses stalling tactics to delay approval of over-the-counter emergency contraception in US.(ROUND UP: Law and Policy)
May 1, 2005... The fight in the US to gain approval for over-the-counter status for emergency contraceptives (EC) has been long and drawn out. Over four years ago, the Centre for Reproductive Rights filed a citizen's petition on behalf of many health care and...

Mexican government authorises emergency contraception.(ROUND UP: Law and Policy)(Brief Article)
May 1, 2005... Mexico's Department of Health has approved the use of emergency contraception as part of federal family planning guidelines. (1) (1.) Castillo EE. Mexican government authorizes use of morning-after pill. Associated Press. 23 January 2004.

China makes sex-selective abortions a crime.(ROUND UP: Law and Policy)(Brief Article)
May 1, 2005... China has outlawed the selective abortion of female fetuses to try to correct the imbalance in the ratio of boys to girls, which has grown since the one-child policy was introduced. Ultrasound has made it easier to know a baby's sex in advance,...

Doctors in Jamaica call for changes to abortion legislation.(ROUND UP: Law and Policy)(Brief Article)
May 1, 2005... Faced with a rising incidence of death and morbidity in women having unsafe abortions, the Medical Council of Jamaica intends to present a policy statement within six months to the Ministry of Health to facilitate the review of abortion...

UK guidelines advise against caesarean section on demand.(ROUND UP: Law and Policy)(Brief Article)
May 1, 2005... The National Institute for Clinical Excellence (NICE), a UK advisory body, has recently published new guidelines relating to caesarean section. One of its main messages is that maternal request on its own is not an indication for a caesarean....

Homosexual men and lesbian women tortured because of their sexuality.(ROUND UP: Law and Policy)(Brief Article)
May 1, 2005... Men suspected of engaging in "debauchery" (homosexual activity) in Egypt are breaking the law. As part of a crackdown, suspects are being subjected to anal examinations which purportedly confirm homosexual activity, a claim that has no...

Challenging the ethics of posthumous sperm retrieval in Israel.(ROUND UP: Law and Policy)(Brief Article)
May 1, 2005... In October 2003, the Israeli Attorney General published guidelines allowing posthumous sperm retrieval for the purpose of later insemination or in vitro fertilisation by the surviving female partner. The basic premise of the guidelines is that...

Vietnam youth dialogue with policymakers.(ROUND UP: Law and Policy)(Brief Article)
May 1, 2005... In Vietnam, 52% of the population are under age 25. While pre-marital sex is increasing, premarital contraceptive use is very low. Vietnam also has one of the highest abortion rates in the world; 30% of abortions are among young unmarried...

Constitutional challenge in Colombia seeks to change abortion law.(ROUND UP: Law and Policy)(Brief Article)
May 1, 2005... An estimated 24% of all pregnancies in Colombia are terminated by abortion. Nearly 30% of women who have abortions surfer complications, making unsafe abortion the third leading cause of material mortality. Colombia's restrictive abortion law...

Beijing+10: women's human rights and gender equality prevail.(ROUND UP: Law and Policy)(Brief Article)
May 1, 2005... The 49th Session of the UN Commission on the Status of Women (CSW) or Beijing+10, ended in March 2005 with ten resolutions and a political declaration reaffirming governments' commitment to the Beijing Declaration and Platform of Action, Fourth...

Safety of breast implants still unclear.(ROUND UP: Research)
May 1, 2005... Safety of breast implants still unclear The overwhelming majority of breast implant surgery is performed for cosmetic reasons alone, with only about one fifth performed for reconstruction after mastectomy or to correct poor breast...

Half of us live where the fertility rate is below replacement level.(ROUND UP: Research)(Brief Article)
May 1, 2005... The world population is still growing rapidly, but the total fertility rate (TFR) has declined sharply. By the end of 2003, over half the world's population lived in a country or region where the fertility rate was below 2.1, the replacement...

Reproductive spans contracting in India.(ROUND UP: Research)(women opt for earlier sterilization)(Brief Article)
May 1, 2005... Data from the most recent National Family Health Survey has shown a compression of the reproductive span, the time from first marriage to menopause or sterilisation, of women in Andhra Pradesh, India. Although the median age at which women...

Primary health care nurses in South Africa want to be included in policymaking.(ROUND UP: Research)(Brief Article)
May 1, 2005... Over the last eight years, South Africa has introduced a number of new national health policies and implemented a free health care system. This study questioned a group of nurses in a busy urban primary health care clinic about their...

Women's perspectives on antenatal care in rural Zimbabwe.(ROUND UP: Research)
May 1, 2005... A change in antenatal care policy in rural areas of Zimbabwe has resulted in the previous mean of 14 visits per pregnancy being reduced to only five goal-oriented visits. Using focus group discussions and individual interviews, 44 women and 24...

Death in childbirth more likely than a primary education for Sudanese women.(ROUND UP: Research)(Brief Article)
May 1, 2005... With over 20 years of war in southern Sudan, the country ranks at file bottom of the list for many key development indicators. One in nine women dies in pregnancy or childbirth, 95,000 children die before their fifth birthday, and only one in...