Health Equity: 10/15/09

Thursday, October 15, 2009

[EQ] Gender Equity in Health -The Shifting Frontiers of Evidence and Action

Gender Equity in Health
The Shifting Frontiers of Evidence and Action

Editor : Gita Sen, Piroska Östlin
ISBN: 978-0-415-80190-4 - Published by: Routledge
Publication Date: 29th September 2009

Website: http://www.ebookstore.tandf.co.uk/html/moreinfo.asp?bookid=536972444

And http://www.routledgesociology.com/books/Gender-Equity-in-Health-isbn9780415801904

‘….This volume brings together leading researchers from a variety of disciplines to examine three areas: health disparities and inequity due to gender, the specific problems women face in meeting the highest attainable standards of health, and the policies and actions that can address them.

This volume brings together experts from a variety of disciplines, such as medicine, biology, sociology, epidemiology, anthropology, economics and political science, who focus on three areas:
- health disparities and inequity due to gender,
- the specific problems women face in meeting the highest attainable standards of health, and
- the policies and actions that can address them.

Highlighting the importance of intersecting social hierarchies (e.g. gender, class and ethnicity) for understanding health inequities and their implications for health policy, contributors detail and recommend policy approaches and agendas that incorporate, but go beyond commonly acknowledged issues relating to women’s health and gender equity in health….”

Contents:

1. Gender as a Social Determinant of Health: Evidence, Policies and Innovations Gita Sen and Piroska Östlin

2. The Social Body: Gender and the Burden of Disease Rachel Snow

3. Inequalities and Intersections in Health: A Review of the Evidence Aditi Iyer, Gita Sen and Piroska Östlin

4. Gendered Health Outcomes of an "Endless" War on Terror Rosalind Petchesky and Melissa Laurie

5. Gender, Health and Poverty in Latin America Karina Batthyany and Sonia Corrêa

6. Gender Norms and Empowerment: ‘What Works’ to Increase Equity for Women and Girls Helen Keleher

7. Challenging Gender in Patient-Provider Interactions Veloshnee Govender and Loveday Penn-Kekana

8. Exploring the Gendered Dimensions of Human Resources for Health Asha George

9. Accountability to Citizens on Gender and Health Ranjani K. Murthy

10. Gender Mainstreaming in Health: The Emperor’s New Clothes? T.K.S. Ravindran and A. Kelkar-Khambete

Go to:

Website: www.ebookstore.tandf.co.uk
Select “Title” in the drop-down menu under “eBooks Search”
Type in: Gender Equity in Health
If the book appears in the results, click “More” following the brief description.
You should be taken to a page where you can click on an image of the book and view the first 30 pages.

Piroska Östlin, Ph.D, Associate Professor
Karolinska Institutet
Department of Public Health Sciences - Division of Global Health (IHCAR)
Stockholm, Sweden

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[EQ] New research report on silicosis and TB amongst gold miners in South Africa

The Hidden Epidemic Among Former Miners:
Silicosis, Tuberculosis and The Occupational Diseases in Mines and Works Act in the Eastern Cape, South Africa

Health Systems Trust, Jaine Roberts, Deputy Director

September 2009

A full copy of the report can be downloaded from: http://www.hst.org.za/publications/855

“….The aim of the research was to assess current and historical surveillance of the pneumoconioses in former miners, in particular silicosis, silico-tuberculosis, and tuberculosis, and to assess the functioning of the Occupational Diseases in Mines and Works Act (ODMWA) surveillance and compensation system which is a responsibility of the Department of Health.

The research also aimed to assess the impact of the burden of lung disease and disability on the public health system and on the labour-sending communities from which the miners come and to which they return.

Content

Chapter One introduces and gives contextual background to the research. Key considerations are the migrant labour system, disease latency, the centralization of services, and the lack of health surveillance in rural areas.

Chapter Two provides a detailed description of the applicable legislation in the form of the Occupational Diseases in Mines and Works Act 78 of 1973 as Amended (ODMWA). This chapter includes a short history of the emergence of silicosis and the development of the first occupational lung disease legislation in the early part of the twentieth century.

Chapters Three and Four are, in essence, a literature review of the available data and evidence to date from recent research studies on silicosis and tuberculosis in both miners and former miners. Chapter Three, focusing on silicosis, assesses the silicosis prevalence research that has been undertaken in the past decade amongst both in-service and former miners, and includes a two year review of autopsy data from the National Institute for Occupational Health. Chapter Four, focusing on tuberculosis, starts with a summary assessment of the historical intersection of mining and tuberculosis in South Africa, and presents a review of recent studies on tuberculosis in miners and former miners, as well as presenting some data from autopsy records.

Chapters Five to Fifteen comprise the main body of the research report, and present the findings of the current research. Chapter Five describes the research design and methods of the study, as well as detail on the operational planning and fieldwork. It is noted that a methodology is generally not a straight line from A to Z, one that is pre- Summary of Report determined, but rather that research methods are adjusted as initial and pilot research findings are revealed.

Chapter Six sets out basic demographic information on the sample of former miners (n=205) This includes age range, marital status, numbers of dependent children and receipt of state grants.

Chapter Seven presents the occupational labour history of the former miners, giving detail on type of underground work, length of service, retention of documentation, provision to them while employed of information on health risks, and the means used to address such health risks. Throughout the report quantitative data is presented alongside qualitative data.

Chapter Eight describes the experiences of former miners in terms of their medical surveillance history while in mine service, medical surveillance at the time of exit from mine service, and medical surveillance subsequent to leaving mine service. A section of this chapter focuses on those former miners who departed mine service from 1996 onwards when the new Mine Health and Safety Act took effect. The intention here was to assess the legal requirement of full Exit Medical Examinations on departure from mine service.

Chapter Nine presents findings on levels of knowledge of the ODMWA amongst the former miners both through mine employment and departure, as well as any knowledge gained subsequently through their local public and private health services. Chapter Ten describes the current health status of the former miners, and their interactions with both public and private sector health facilities.

Chapter Eleven is an extension of the focus on health status in, specifically, presenting the findings on Tuberculosis amongst the sample of former miners, both in mine service and subsequent to leaving mine service. Within this chapter on tuberculosis further findings are presented from a sub-sample (n=14) of former miners who were in-patients in a dedicated TB hospital.

Chapter Twelve describes the socio-economic status of the sample of former miners. It presents findings on the substantial reliance on state provided social security in the form of state Old Age Pensions, Child Support Grants and temporary TB disability grants, as well as on some marginal income generating activities. Findings on experience of hunger are also presented, as well as information on those study participants who died during the course of the research fieldwork. Chapter Twelve also includes a section which presents some concluding remarks from the former miners themselves.

Chapter Thirteen presents the findings of the health sector survey and interviews. This includes health sector experience of the presentation of former miners at health facilities, an assessment of knowledge of silicosis and of the ODMWA amongst health personnel, and an assessment of the functioning of the ODMWA.

Chapter Fourteen presents the conclusions of all the chapters, and concludes the report.

Chapter Fifteen presents the recommendations from the conclusions of the research.

Jaine Roberts, Deputy Director Research Programme

Health Systems Trust - jaine@hst.org.za

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