Gender and Health: The case for gender-sensitive health policy and health care delivery

There is growing national and international recognition that gender is an important indicator of health differences. The United Kingdom is in danger of falling behind many other countries that are beginning to recognise the crucial importance of gender to the development of effective health policy and practice. This briefing paper sets out some of the reasons why those involved in the gender and health partnership (GAHP) believe that it is time to place gender at the heart of the equalities agenda in health, and why it is important to ensure gender sensitivity in health policy, medical research and services. This briefing paper refers to the United Kingdom; however, Scotland is in the process of producing guidelines specifically on mainstreaming gender in health policy and service delivery

Local Stellar Kinematics from RAVE data - VII. Metallicity Gradients from Red Clump Stars

We investigate the Milky Way Galaxy's radial and vertical metallicity gradients using a sample of 47,406 red clump stars from the RAVE DR4. This sample is more than twice the size of the largest sample in the literature investigating radial and vertical metallicity gradients. The absolute magnitude of Groenewegen (2008) is used to determine distances to our sample stars. The resulting distances agree with the RAVE DR4 distances Binney et al. (2014) of the same stars. Our photometric method also provides distances to 6185 stars that are not assigned a distance in RAVE DR4. The metallicity gradients are calculated with their current orbital positions ($R_{gc}$ and $Z$) and with their orbital properties (mean Galactocentric distance, $R_{m}$ and $z_{max}$), as a function of the distance to the Galactic plane: d[Fe/H]/d$R_{gc}=$-$0.047\pm0.003$ dex/kpc for $0\leq |Z|\leq0.5$ kpc and d[Fe/H]/d$R_m=$-$0.025\pm0.002$ dex/kpc for $0\leq z_{max}\leq0.5$ kpc. This reaffirms the radial metallicity gradient in the thin disc but highlights that gradients are sensitive to the selection effects caused by the difference between $R_{gc}$ and $R_{m}$. The radial gradient is flat in the distance interval 0.5-1 kpc from the plane and then becomes positive greater than 1 kpc from the plane. The radial metallicity gradients are also eccentricity dependent. We showed that d[Fe/H]/d$R_m=$-$0.089\pm0.010$, -$0.073\pm0.007$, -$0.053\pm0.004$ and -$0.044\pm0.002$ dex/kpc for $e_p\leq0.05$, $e_p\leq0.07$, $e_p\leq0.10$ and $e_p\leq0.20$ sub-samples, respectively, in the distance interval $0\leq z_{max}\leq0.5$ kpc. Similar trend is found for vertical metallicity gradients. Both the radial and vertical metallicity gradients are found to become shallower as the eccentricity of the sample increases. These findings can be used to constrain different formation scenarios of the thick and thin discs.Comment: 18 pages, including 16 figures and 6 tables, accepted for publication in PAS

Energy Pricing Policy and Environmental Quality in Nigeria: A Dynamic CGE Approach

The fuel subsidy policy as a policy had been argued to hamper efforts at environmental sustainability. Thus, this study investigates the extent to which the removal of fuel subsidy influences the level of carbon emissions in Nigeria over a 5 year period. It adopts the recursive dynamic version of the PEP Computable General Equilibrium (CGE) model based on the 2006 Nigerian Social Accounting Matrix (SAM). Simulating a partial, gradual and complete removal of import tariff on imported petrol indicates reduction of ..

Familial adenomatous polyposis coli: A case report

A 25-year-old man was admitted with a 6-month history of rectal bleeding, anal discharge and alteration in bowel habits. He gave a family history of a great grandmother who died of unknown causes but had a colostomy, and a grandmother who died of Carcinoma of the oesophagus. Both relatives were on maternal side. On examination he had a low rectal mass, which was obliterating the anal orifice. Colonoscopy was not possible but rectal biopsy revealed a well-differentiated carcinoma of the rectum. Abdomino- perineal resection was done. During surgery, he was found to have multiple polyps. Colonoscopy through the colostomy and biopsy confirmed the presence of multiple benign polyps involving the entire colon up to the caecum. After counselling, the patient had total colectomy and an ileostomy done. Subsequent screening of family members revealed a 28-yearold sister who had occasional painless rectal bleeding. The 28 year-old sister of the patient above had colonoscopy done and was found to have adenomatous polyps involving most of the colon up to the caecum. A near- total colectomy and ileorectal anastomosis was done and cautery of the rectal polyps. She is being followed up with 6-monthly proctoscopy and is doing well

The use of culturally themed HIV messages and their implications for future behaviour change communication campaigns: The case of Botswana

The ‘ABC' approach promoted at the beginning of the HIV/AIDS epidemic in Botswana has failed to yield significant behaviour change. Formative research was conducted in urban, semi-urban and rural areas to explore how the use of sociocultural messages depicted in posters elicited people's response to HIV/AIDS-related behaviours.The research interrogated values and practices underpinning Tswana philosophy in relation to parentchild communication, voluntary counselling and testing, condom use and faithfulness. A total of 206 individuals aged 15 - 49 years were purposively interviewed.The results showed that this campaign was perceived as an activation of positive Batswana culture to modify harmful norms, values and social practices, drawing upon those cultural aspects favouring more positive behaviour.We conclude that behaviour change communication should promote links to cultural values and principles.This can be achieved by: communication in other languages in order to reach all groups in Botswana; providing opportunities for venturing into other ways of communicating HIV/AIDS messages to Batswana in light of literacy skills; and using communication media that is developed on the basis of cultural approaches and focuses on segmented population groups. Keywords: culture, culturally themed messages, values, practices, risk-related behaviours Journal of Social Aspects of HIV/AIDS Vol. 3 (2) August 2006: 466-47

A comprehensive study of the open cluster NGC 6866

We present CCD $UBVRI$ photometry of the field of the open cluster NGC 6866. Structural parameters of the cluster are determined utilizing the stellar density profile of the stars in the field. We calculate the probabilities of the stars being a physical member of the cluster using their astrometric data and perform further analyses using only the most probable members. The reddening and metallicity of the cluster were determined by independent methods. The LAMOST spectra and the ultraviolet excess of the F and G type main-sequence stars in the cluster indicate that the metallicity of the cluster is about the solar value. We estimated the reddening $E(B-V)=0.074 \pm 0.050$ mag using the $U-B$ vs $B-V$ two-colour diagram. The distance modula, the distance and the age of NGC 6866 were derived as $\mu = 10.60 \pm 0.10$ mag, $d=1189 \pm 75$ pc and $t = 813 \pm 50$ Myr, respectively, by fitting colour-magnitude diagrams of the cluster with the PARSEC isochrones. The Galactic orbit of NGC 6866 indicates that the cluster is orbiting in a slightly eccentric orbit with $e=0.12$. The mass function slope $x=1.35 \pm 0.08$ was derived by using the most probable members of the cluster.Comment: 14 pages, including 16 figures and 7 tables, accepted for publication in MNRAS. Table 4 in the manuscript will be published electronicall