Factors influencing place of delivery : evidence from three south-Asian countries

Background High maternal mortality is still a significant public health challenge in many countries of the South-Asian region. The majority of maternal deaths occur due to pregnancy and deliveryrelated complications, which can mostly be prevented by safe facility delivery. Due to the paucity of existing evidence, our study aimed to examine the factors associated with place of delivery, including women's preferences for such in three selected South-Asian countries. Methods We extracted data from the most recent demographic and health surveys (DHS) conducted in Bangladesh (2014), Nepal (2016), and Pakistan (2017-18) and analyzed to identify the association between the outcome variable and socio-demographic characteristics. A total of 16,429 women from Bangladesh (4278; mean age 24.57 years), Nepal (3962; mean age 26.35 years), and Pakistan (8189; mean age 29.57 years) were included in this study. Following descriptive analyses, bivariate and multivariate logistic regressions were conducted. Results Overall, the prevalence of facility-based delivery was 40%, 62%, and 69% in Bangladesh, Nepal, and Pakistan, respectively. Inequity in utilizing facility-based delivery was observed for women in the highest wealth quintile. Participants from Urban areas, educated, middle and upper household economic status, and with high antenatal care (ANC) visits were significantly associated with facility-based delivery in all three countries. Interestingly, watching TV was also found as a strong determinant for facility-based delivery in Bangladesh (aOR = 1.31, 95% CI:1.09-1.56, P = 0.003), Nepal (aOR = 1.42, 95% CI:1.20-1.67, P<0.001) and Pakistan (aOR = 1.17, 95% CI: 1.03-1.32, P = 0.013). Higher education of husband was a significant predictor for facility delivery in Bangladesh (aOR = 1.73, 95% CI:1.27-2.35, P = 0.001) and Pakistan (aOR = 1.19, 95% CI: 0.99-1.43, P = 0.065); husband's occupation was also a significant factor in Bangladesh (aOR = 1.30, 95% CI:1.04-1.61, P = 0.020) and Nepal (aOR = 1.26, 95% CI:1.01-1.58, P = 0.041). Conclusion Our findings suggest that the educational status of both women and their husbands, household economic situation, and the number of ANC visits influenced the place of delivery. There is an urgent need to promote facility delivery by building more birthing facilities, training and deployment of skilled birth attendants in rural and hard-to-reach areas, ensuring compulsory female education for all women, encouraging more ANC visits, and providing financial incentives for facility deliveries. There is a need to promote facility delivery by encouraging health facility visits through utilizing social networks and continuing mass media campaigns. Ensuring adequate Government funding for free maternal and newborn health care and local community involvement is crucial for reducing maternal and neonatal mortality and achieving sustainable development goals in this region

Psychology and Economics: Evidence from the Field

The research in Psychology and Economics (a.k.a. Behavioral Economics) suggests that individuals deviate from the standard model in three respects: (1) nonstandard preferences, (2) nonstandard beliefs, and (3) nonstandard decision making. In this paper, I survey the empirical evidence from the field on these three classes of deviations. The evidence covers a number of applications, from consumption to finance, from crime to voting, from charitable giving to labor supply. In the class of nonstandard preferences, I discuss time preferences (self-control problems), risk preferences (reference dependence), and social preferences. On nonstandard beliefs, I present evidence on overconfidence, on the law of small numbers, and on projection bias. Regarding nonstandard decision making, I cover framing, limited attention, menu effects, persuasion and social pressure, and emotions. I also present evidence on how rational actors -- firms, employers, CEOs, investors, and politicians -- respond to the nonstandard behavior described in the survey. Finally, I briefly discuss under what conditions experience and market interactions limit the impact of the nonstandard features.

Baicalein as Promising Anticancer Agent: A Comprehensive Analysis on Molecular Mechanisms and Therapeutic Perspectives

Despite significant therapeutic advancements for cancer, an atrocious global burden (for example, health and economic) and radio- and chemo-resistance limit their effectiveness and result in unfavorable health consequences. Natural compounds are generally considered safer than synthetic drugs, and their use in cancer treatment alone, or in combination with conventional therapies, is increasingly becoming accepted. Interesting outcomes from pre-clinical trials using Baicalein in combination with conventional medicines have been reported, and some of them have also undergone clinical trials in later stages. As a result, we investigated the prospects of Baicalein, a naturally occurring substance extracted from the stems of Scutellaria baicalensis Georgi and Oroxylum indicum Kurz, which targets a wide range of molecular changes that are involved in cancer development. In other words, this review is primarily driven by the findings from studies of Baicalein therapy in several cancer cell populations based on promising pre-clinical research. The modifications of numerous signal transduction mechanisms and transcriptional agents have been highlighted as the major players for Baicalein’s anti-malignant properties at the micro level. These include AKT serine/threonine protein kinase B (AKT) as well as PI3K/Akt/mTOR, matrix metalloproteinases-2 & 9 (MMP-2 & 9), Wnt/-catenin, Poly(ADP-ribose) polymerase (PARP), Mitogen-activated protein kinase (MAPK), NF-κB, Caspase-3/8/9, Smad4, Notch 1/Hes, Signal transducer and activator of transcription 3 (STAT3), Nuclear factor erythroid 2-related factor 2 (Nrf2)/Kelch-like ECH-associated protein-1 (Keap 1), Adenosine monophosphate-activated protein kinase (AMPK), Src/Id1, ROS signaling, miR 183/ezrin, and Sonic hedgehog (Shh) signaling cascades. The promise of Baicalein as an anti-inflammatory to anti-apoptotic/anti-angiogenic/anti-metastatic medicinal element for treating various malignancies and its capability to inhibit malignant stem cells, evidence of synergistic effects, and design of nanomedicine-based drugs are altogether well supported by the data presented in this review study

99 Cent: Price Points in E-Commerce

Basu (2006) argues that the prevalence of 99 cent prices in shops can be explained with rational consumers who disregard the rightmost digits of the price. This bounded rational behaviour leads to a Bertrand equilibrium with positive markups. We use data from an Austrian price comparison site and find results highly compatible with Basu’s theory. We can show that price points - in particular prices ending in 9 - are prevalent and have significant impact on consumer demand. Moreover, these price points are sticky; neither the price-setter itself wants to change them neither the rivals do underbid these prices, if they represent the cheapest price on the market