In search of common ground for interdisciplinary collaboration and communication: mapping the cultural politics of religion and HIV/AIDS in Sub-Saharan Africa

Includes bibliographical references (leaves 204-223).This exploratory study applies a cultural studies and interdisciplinary approach to the discourses that emerge in the discursive gap at the interface of religion and public health, a gap most readily seen in the context of HIV/AIDS and in literature addressing sub-Saharan Africa. The combination of the different, often divergent discursive frameworks of religion and public health, and the idea of the linguistic construction of HIV/AIDS, prompts this theoretical response. The empirical data for developing these theoretical judgements are based on personal involvement in the African Religious Health Assets Programme (ARHAP), an international, multi-institutional research collaborative that is focused on the intersection between religion and public health

Health system’s barriers hindering implementation of public-private partnership at the district level: a case study of partnership for improved reproductive and child health services provision in Tanzania

Abstract Background Public-private partnership (PPP) has been suggested as a tool to assist governments in lower to middle income countries fulfil their responsibilities in the efficient delivery of health services. In Tanzania, although the idea of PPP has existed for many years in the health sector, there has been limited coordination, especially at a district level – which has contributed to limited health gains or systems strengthening obviously seen as a result of PPP. Methods This case study was conducted in the Bagamoyo district of Tanzania, and employed in-depth interviews, document reviews, and observations methods. A stakeholder analysis was conducted to understand power distribution and the interests of local actors to engage non-state actors. In total 30 in-depth interviews were conducted with key informants that were identified from a stakeholder mapping activity. The initial data analysis guided further data collection in an iterative process. The provision of Reproductive and Child Health Services was used as a context. This study draws on the decision-space framework. Results Study findings reveal several forms of informal partnerships, and the untapped potential of non-state actors. Lack of formal contractual agreements with private providers including facilities that receive subsidies from the government is argued to contribute to inappropriate distribution of risk and reward leading to moral hazards. Furthermore, findings highlight weak capacity of governing bodies to exercise oversight and sanctions, which is acerbated by weak accountability linkages and power differences. Disempowered Council Health Services Board, in relation to engaging non-state actors, is shown to impede PPP initiatives. Conclusion Effective PPP policy implementation at a local level depends on the capacity of local government officials to make choices that would embrace relational elements dynamics in strategic plans. Orientation towards collaborative efforts that create value and enable its distribution is argued to facilitate healthy partnership, and in return, strengthen a district health system. This study highlights a need for new social contracts that will support integrative collaboration at the local level and bring all non-state actors to the centre of the district health system

Analyzing community responses to HIV and AIDS : operational framework and typology

This paper presents a framework for analyzing the community response to HIV and AIDS. On the basis of a review of the literature, six criteria are proposed for characterizing such community responses: (1) the types of organizations and structures implementing the response, (2) the types of activities or services implemented and the beneficiaries of these, (3) the actors involved in and driving community responses, (4) the contextual factors that influence community responses, (5) the extent of community involvement in the response, and (6) the extent to which community responses involve wider partnerships and collaboration.Disability,Civil Society,Community Development and Empowerment,HIV AIDS,Health Monitoring&Evaluation

Commentary “The sexualized-body-inversion hypothesis revisited: Valid indicator of sexual objectification or methodological artifact?”

A commentary on The sexualized-body-inversion hypothesis revisited: Valid indicator of sexual objectification or methodological artifact? by Schmidt, A. F., and Kistemaker, L. M. (2015). Cognition 134, 77-84. doi: 10.1016/j.cognition.2014.09.003 Recent objectification research found results consistent with the sexualized body-inversion hypothesis (SBIH): People relied on analytic, “object-like” processing when recognizing sexualized female bodies and on configural processing when recognizing sexualized male bodies (Bernard et al., 2012). Specifically, Bernard et al. (2012) showed that perceivers were better at recognizing sexualized male bodies when the bodies were presented upright than upside down, whereas this pattern did not emerge for sexualized female bodies; thus, male bodies were recognized configurally similar to other human stimuli whereas female bodies were recognized analytically, similarly to most objects (see Kostic, 2013 for an exact replication). Based on two studies, Schmidt and Kistemaker (2015) concluded that Bernard et al. (2012)\u27s findings were: (i) due to a symmetry confound; (ii) not due to target\u27s sexualization. This commentary challenges these conclusions

Commentary “The sexualized-body-inversion hypothesis revisited: Valid indicator of sexual objectification or methodological artifact?”

A commentary on The sexualized-body-inversion hypothesis revisited: Valid indicator of sexual objectification or methodological artifact? by Schmidt, A. F., and Kistemaker, L. M. (2015). Cognition 134, 77-84. doi: 10.1016/j.cognition.2014.09.003 Recent objectification research found results consistent with the sexualized body-inversion hypothesis (SBIH): People relied on analytic, “object-like” processing when recognizing sexualized female bodies and on configural processing when recognizing sexualized male bodies (Bernard et al., 2012). Specifically, Bernard et al. (2012) showed that perceivers were better at recognizing sexualized male bodies when the bodies were presented upright than upside down, whereas this pattern did not emerge for sexualized female bodies; thus, male bodies were recognized configurally similar to other human stimuli whereas female bodies were recognized analytically, similarly to most objects (see Kostic, 2013 for an exact replication). Based on two studies, Schmidt and Kistemaker (2015) concluded that Bernard et al. (2012)\u27s findings were: (i) due to a symmetry confound; (ii) not due to target\u27s sexualization. This commentary challenges these conclusions

Market Share of Faith-inspired Health Care Providers in Africa: Comparing Facilities and Multi-purpose Integrated Household Survey Data

This paper relies on facilities and household survey data to estimate the ‘market share’ of faith-inspired institutions (FIIs) in the provision of health care services in Africa. While estimates based on facilities data, especially for hospitals, often suggest that the market share of FIIs is at 30 percent to 40 percent, estimates from household surveys are typically at less than ten percent. A number of potential explanations for these large differences are provided. Both types of estimates suffer from limits, but observing the two types of estimates alongside one other provides a more balanced view of the market share of FIIs in health care systems as a whole than is the case for any single type of measure

Increased funding for AIDS-engaged (faith-based) civil society organizations in Africa?

This paper considers the evidence on the comparative extent to which faith-based civil society organizations (FB-CSOs) have benefited from increased funding related to the HIV/AIDS response in Africa. First, we review the literature on whether FB-CSOs have benefited from such funding, and find the arguments vigorous, but the evidence inconclusive. Next, we rely on a survey carried out in six Southern African countries to compare the profile and sources of funding of FB-CSOs against the broader collection of CSOs (non-religious or ‘secular’). It is important to be aware of the at times artificial distinctions made between faith-based and ‘secular’ structures, given the often integrated presence of religion in the lives of civil society actors and their institutions – especially in Africa. However, it is still useful to consider this particular distinction – impacting as it does on current policy discussions and strategies for civil society engagement. While the data of this particular study is mostly representative of a cluster of well-established ‘CSOs’, the evidence suggests that these FB-CSOs have been able to benefit as much as other CSOs from enhanced funding opportunities. We conclude, with a discussion of the challenges that remain for supporting smaller and less formal FB-CSOs and initiatives operating at a local community level

Layers of evidence: discourse and typologies of faith-inspired community response to HIV/AIDS in Africa

This paper has two objectives. The first is to provide a review of the discourses about the religious response to HIV/AIDS in Africa that have emerged from the recent literature, how these discourses has changed over time (from religiophobia to a cautious recognition of the comparative value of faith-inspired interventions), and the conflicting typologies of faith-inspired initiatives that they have inspired. Noting the limits of the existing typologies, the second objective is to suggest conceptually some of the ways in which typologies could be combined in order to be made more useful from an operational point of view