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- All Subjects: public health
- Creators: Maienschein, Jane
Additionally, the World Health Organization, or WHO, developed three treatment plans for prevention of MTC transmission of HIV, globally available as of 2010 (WHO, 2010). The goal of the WHO was to globally standardize care of HIV-positive pregnant women and their infants in order to decrease the global prevalence of HIV. The first plan was called Option A, then came Option B, and lastly Option B+. While preventative medication has been available for over twenty years and at least one of these theoretically effective treatment plans has been implemented and is readily available in each country of sub-Saharan Africa, the overall prevalence of MTC transmission of HIV in sub-Saharan Africa has continued to be notably high compared to other countries. Thus, the aim of this thesis is to explore some of the significant obstacles to implementation of the WHO’s treatment plans in sub-Saharan Africa that contribute to that high prevalence. I also suggest possible solutions to those barriers in order to effectively decrease the prevalence of MTC transmission of HIV.
Methods: Social and cultural barriers influencing endometriosis reporting and management in LMICs were examined through a systematic literature review. Online databases yielded a list of relevant studies. Then, use of MAXQDA, a qualitative data analysis software program, helped to extract and code specific text segments from each study that pertain to the research topic. In-context analysis of coded segments revealed the most common trends, which were organized into broader themes.
Results: Findings demonstrated that social and cultural ideas regarding vaginal bleeding influenced the lack of disease reporting and management of endometriosis in LMICs. Socioeconomic challenges include a lack of hygiene and sanitation measures and education regarding menstruation and vaginal bleeding. Also, many diseases associated with the abnormal vaginal bleeding are often disregarded and not prioritized in clinical settings. It also became clear that cultural taboos regarding menstruation and vaginal bleeding often create feelings of anxiety and fear in women and girls throughout communities in LMICs. However, further research is needed to examine the ways in which women in those communities treat symptoms of irregular vaginal bleeding related to endometriosis.
Conclusions: Socioeconomic, gender, and sex-related factors may influence the ways in which endometriosis is reported and treated and may affect the way the related diseases are understood. Evidence-based policies using a culturally competent understanding of abnormal vaginal bleeding in LMICs may help positively affect the reproductive health of women and girls in such areas.
Florence Rena Sabin had successful careers as both a researcher and public health reformer. When Johns Hopkins University Medical School opened, accepting women and men on the same basis, Sabin was one of the first to enter. After the successful completion of her MD degree, Sabin went on to become the first female faculty member and later full-time professor at Johns Hopkins. From 1924-1925, she was the first woman elected president of the American Association of Anatomists, the first woman elected to the National Academy of Sciences in 1925, and the first woman to become a full member of the Rockefeller Institute. Her research on the brain, the lymphatic system, and immunology was revolutionary, and her vast scientific knowledge and convincing personality greatly contributed to the passage of much needed public health reform legislation during her retirement years in Colorado.