The challenge of global elimination policies : a case study of malaria and other diseases of poverty

Malaria is a priority disease on the global public health agenda, with between 800 thousand and one million deaths reported annually. The endemic areas most affected by this parasitic disease have high poverty rates across broad population groups. Children and pregnant women suffer the biggest impacts from this disease, which is transmitted by Anopheles spp. mosquitoes. About 90 countries worldwide report indigenous cases with active transmission. Enormous efforts are ongoing to alleviate the disease burden and its devastating effect on health in vulnerable populations. This research presents a combination of methodological, ontological, and axiological approaches in order to further understand the intrinsic and extrinsic components of malaria which affect the dynamics of transmission and control measures. Limitations are inherent in the ability of the researcher, and this document is unlikely to fully present all factors and determinants which interact in the complex system of malaria. Nonetheless, it reflects a major effort to combine paradigms from positivism to historical constructivism. The purpose of this work is to contribute to the understanding of this phenomenon and compare qualitative and quantitative evidence in malaria-endemic areas of Colombia and the Americas. Additional effort is made to reconstruct the trajectories and experiences of control and prevention and recognize elements to improve models of control, considering the specific contexts where malaria and other diseases of poverty persist. In Chapters I and II, the realities and nature of the problem are defined, specifically to establish paradigms as well as ontological, epistemological, axiological and methodological questions, while the objective of the research is defined in terms of variables such as time, people and places. The analysis process begins with a narrative review of gray literature and indexed texts covering the historical transformations of concepts of control, elimination and eradication of malaria. The compilation of sources interprets the effect of political, economic, social and cultural structures on trends of malaria and diseases of poverty. Additionally, the problem of elimination of infectious diseases is followed from a “biologist model” to a more inclusive and broad bio-socio-political context. Malaria is a complex phenomenon, and control/ elimination /eradication strategies should not underestimate the importance of partial achievements from interventions implemented over time. The search for "magic bullets" is a constant and continual process of recognition by all involved actors, including researchers, academic and public-private institutions, as well as sustained active participation by the affected communities. The detailed description of this process is presented in Chapter III, Concepts evolution of malaria control, elimination and eradication. Historical Review, as submitted to the Journal of Malaria. vii In order to correlate and triangulate the primary and secondary evidence, field work to identify epidemiological markers of advancement and a narrative review on the status of elimination of malaria in Colombia and Latin America are analyzed. These findings are reported in Chapter IV, Proportion of fever attributable to malaria in Colombia: Potential indicators for tracking progress towards malaria elimination. A cross-sectional survey descriptive study, conducted in two regions of Colombia, aimed to identify risk factors (epidemiological and socio-demographic) and baseline characteristics related to the dynamics of malaria transmission. These two regions shared similar structural problems with other malaria endemic regions of Latin America. The field results are strongly correlated with the narrative review. Part of the problem is explained through the primary productive sector, which consists of farmers, miners, fishermen, and migrants/displaced persons, reflecting social injustice and inequalities between regions under the same public policies. Poor governance and reduced infrastructure investment for the health and education sectors, combined with scarce development models for rural and peri-urban areas, produce inadequate living conditions which perpetuate diseases of poverty and high rates of maternal and infant mortality. Information systems for early prediction of outbreaks and epidemics are inadequate or non-existent. Recording of cases on a weekly basis and monitoring of therapeutic failures and insecticide resistance are poorly documented. The proportion of asymptomatic individuals, despite the low reported rates, remains a clinical and epidemiological problem. In the objectives of the Millennium Development Goals, the concepts of elimination particularly focused interest on public health programs. In the case of Colombia, other diseases of poverty can be used as epidemiological markers of the goals achieved. Using the example of endemic goiter, the policy of salt iodization has been adapted as the most cost effective strategy for elimination. By 1998, Colombia declared the country free of goiter. Unfortunately, the lack of monitoring and evaluation programs has hindered appropriate follow up to ensure continued iodization of salt. This study indicates that the disease is still prevalent in school children and pregnant women. In Chapter V, entitled Historical review of the current sanitary policy of goiter elimination in Colombia, 1990-2012, a review on the control policy addresses the decline from a constructivism paradigm. In Chapter VI, the impact of this research to improve the policy of elimination, considering local examples which are widely generalizable to other endemic areas in the same region of the Americas, is presented. New research questions for additional operational research and the development of novel interventions which impact on the incidence of disease are articulated. In conclusion, these results confirm the need to define mechanisms for monitoring and evaluation of programs for elimination. Given the complexity of the health problems, strategies of control must consider reducing inequities, social injustice, and, importantly, the gender component, which are consequences of violence in Colombia

Culture and mental health

During the development of this essay we are going to analyze the characteristic elements of modern culture and the ways the illness or mental pathology appears in the humans immersed in the culture, and the way that psychology responds to the emergence of this pathologies in a period dominated by capitalism. It intends to make an articulation of concepts such as mental health, mental pathologies, subjectivity and culture

How the general audiovisual law of Andalucía was produced: from the committee for the management and promotion of the sector (moisa) to de draft of the law

Tras la aprobación de la Ley General Audiovisual en España, las diferentes Comunidades Autónomas consideraron necesaria la adaptación de la misma en sus respectivos territorios. En el caso de Andalucía, el Parlamento dio luz verde a finales de 2012 a una Proposición no de Ley para iniciar el debate sobre el sector. Con este fin, se planificó la creación de una Mesa para la Ordenación e Impulso del sector audiovisual (M.O.I.S.A.), paso previo a la elaboración del Anteproyecto de la Ley Audiovisual de Andalucía. De esta forma, la M.O.I.S.A. se constituyó en diciembre de 2013, iniciándose la ronda de reuniones el 5 de febrero de 2014, lo que se prolongó durante tres semanas consecutivas. Los encuentros sirvieron para desarrollar un proceso de debate entre la Dirección General de Comunicación Social de la Junta de Andalucía y más de cincuenta entidades vinculadas al sector audiovisual. El resultado quedó plasmado en un documento firmado en julio de 2014 por las diferentes entidades participantes y que sirvió para sentar las bases del Plan de Ordenación e Impulso del Sector Audiovisual (P.O.I.S.A.) y el Anteproyecto de Ley Audiovisual de Andalucía. En el presente trabajo, nos proponemos realizar un análisis cualitativo e interpretativo de todo este proceso y de los textos legales que resultaron del mismo, ofreciendo un estudio comparativo respecto a la Ley General de Comunicación Audiovisual.After the General Audiovisual Law was passed in Spain, different Autonomous Communities, as regions are administratively called, decided to adapt it according to their own criteria. In Andalusia, the Government launched a Law Project at the end of 2012 to start with a public debate within the sector. The first step was the set up of the Committee for the Management and Promotion of the Audiovisual Sector (MOISA), created to develop the Audiovisual Bill. The Committee was established at the end of 2013 and started a round of meetings during February 2014. More than fifty audiovisual companies and associations discussed with the General Directorate of Social Communication of the Andalusia Government about the main issues and problems in the audiovisual sector. All this work was the base for the Plan of Management and Promotion of the Audiovisual Sector (P.O.I.S.A in Spanish) and the Audiovisual Bill of Andalusia. In this paper, we will approach, from a qualitative and interpretative perspective, the public process and the importance of the legal text. We will also go through a comparative study between the General Audiovisual Law and the Audiovisual Bill in Andalusia

Cultural pluralism and diversity on public television: an analysis of the use of sign language on the BBC and TVE

The United Kingdom and Spain represent two distinct models of media pluralism, and their two different approaches have traditionally been the subject of comparative studies. This article extends this comparison to the question of cultural pluralism through the study of sign language on public television as a mechanism of representation and accessibility for Deaf viewers. Through a content analysis, this study examines the proportion of signed news programming on the BBC and TVE and describes the main features of each broadcaster’s use of sign language. The findings reveal parallels and deficiencies in the incorporation of sign language and demonstrate that signed programming must increase to ensure universal accessibility

The Philippines: External Shocks, Adjustment Policies and Impact on Selected Development Concerns, 1973-1985

With the objective of designing and implementing more effective policies and programs in the light of external shocks, this paper assesses the impact of economic crisis and adjustment policies on basic economic and social concerns particularly on vulnerable income groups. The development path implied in this article is a strategy that is expansionary within the limits set by external finance and other policy considerations.vulnerable groups, adjustment policies

The Philippines: External Shocks, Adjustment Policies and Impact on Selected Development Concerns, 1973-1985

With the objective of designing and implementing more effective policies and programs in the light of external shocks, this paper assesses the impact of economic crisis and adjustment policies on basic economic and social concerns particularly on vulnerable income groups. The development path implied in this article is a strategy that is expansionary within the limits set by external finance and other policy considerations.vulnerable groups, adjustment policies

Plan de negocios para la creación de la empresa de maquillaje l0 Style

154 Páginas.La marca de maquillaje IO STYLE surge por la necesidad de brindarle a la mujer un contacto directo con los productos al ser maquillada en el punto de venta, complementada con asesoría personalizada por maquilladores profesionales de acuerdo a rasgos físicos y tendencias, buscando una decisión de compra que logre equilibrio entre lo que aconseja el maquillador y el sentir cuando maquillan con IO STYLE. Ser maquillada durante la compra tendrá efecto positivo para la marca, debido a que comprará más de lo que pensaba, enfatizaremos en la presencia de agentes revitalizantes, valor agregado del producto que al aplicarlo cumple diferentes funciones de manera que ahorren tiempo y dinero

El Estrés Percibido en trabajadores agrarios en la empresa Alimer

El siguiente trabajo consta de un estudio de investigación que se ha llevado a cabo en la empresa hortofrutícola Alimentos del Mediterraneo (Alimer) situada en la población de Cieza (Murcia). En el cual han participado 122 trabajadores y trabajadoras de la empresa. Cuyo objetivo principal ha sido conocer si los empleados y empleadas tenían estrés percibido y una comparación entre el estrés que sufren por un lado las mujeres y por otro los hombres. Para ello se ha llevado a cabo la utilización de un test denominado Escala de Estrés Percibido adaptada al español por Eduardo Remor. Con la finalidad de conocer cómo se han sentido los participantes durante el último mes en su jornada laboral dentro de la cooperativa y poder dar una visión más específica del estrés percibido en este tipo de sector.The following work consists of a research study that has been carried out in the fruit and vegetable company Alimentos del Mediterraneo (Alimer) located in the town of Cieza (Murcia). In which 122 workers of the company have participated. Whose main objective has been to know if the employees had perceived stress and a comparison between the stress suffered on the one hand by women and on the other by men. To this end, the use of a test called the Perceived Stress Scale adapted to Spanish by Eduardo Remor has been carried out. In order to know how the participants have felt during the last month in their working day within the cooperative and to be able to give a more specific vision of the perceived stress in this type of sector

Aproximaciones terapéuticas con sujetos criminales, una mirada desde la responsabilidad ética del sujeto

Durante el tiempo de trabajo en el proyecto de la secretaría de Gobierno: “Intervención social en cárceles” (Julio del 2006 - Abril del 2008) cada día de intervención con estos sujetos que se encontraban pagando por sus crímenes, rondaba en mí una pregunta que iba más allá de la necesidad de explicar sus conductas o de la necesidad de caracterizar su comportamiento

Implicancias de retiro de la confianza para una trabajadora gestante

La resolución elegida para el presente informe permite analizar hechos relacionados a la modalidad de contratación del personal de confianza en el Sector Público y la posible vulneración de derechos fundamentales como el derecho al trabajo y el derecho a la igualdad y no discriminación de trabajadora gestante. Para ello, es relevante estudiar la normativa existente en el Perú con respecto a las modalidades y requisitos para ingresar a laborar en el Sector Público en especial en la designación de cargo de confianza. De la misma manera, se debe analizar los argumentos presentados por la jurisprudencia laboral con respecto a esta especial modalidad de contratación “cargo de confianza” relacionada a “trabajadora gestante”. En la misma medida, es necesario recurrir a los instrumentos internacionales que dan relevancia a la protección de los derechos de la mujer en campo laboral y proscriben todo acto que vulnere derechos fundamentales, por lo cual, exigen a los Estados miembros el deber de garantizar la especial situación de madre trabajadora en una posible situación de vulneración de derechos fundamentales como el derecho al trabajo y el derecho a la igualdad y no discriminación. Finalmente, concluimos si se cumplió la normativa que exige el acceso y designación del cargo de confianza en el Sector Público y si el empleador tuvo motivo distinto al estado de gestación de la trabajadora para el término de la relación laboral.The resolution chosen for this report makes it possible to analyze facts related to the modality of hiring trusted personnel in the Public Sector and the possible violation of fundamental rights such as the right to work and the right to equality and nondiscrimination of pregnant workers. For this, it is relevant to study the existing regulations in Peru regarding the modalities and requirements to enter to work in the Public Sector, especially in the designation of a position of trust. In the same way, the arguments presented by the labor jurisprudence with respect to this special hiring modality "trust position" related to "pregnant worker" should be analyzed. To the same extent, it is necessary to resort to international instruments that give relevance to the protection of women's rights in the labor field and proscribe any act that violates fundamental rights, for which reason, they require Member States to have the duty to guarantee the special situation of a working mother in a possible situation of violation of fundamental rights such as the right to work and the right to equality and nondiscrimination. Finally, we will conclude if the regulations that require access and designation of the position of trust in the Public Sector were complied with and if the employer had a reason other than the state of pregnancy of the worker for the termination of the employment relationship