Gods Have Names: Addressing the Translation of “God” in the Thai Language and Culture

This article is a practical missiological examination of the word used to reference God in the Thai language. The problem is that the term used in Thai, Phrajao (พระเจ้า), is a generic term that can be used for any number of different gods or royalty and is easily misunderstood. After an examination of the words used for “God” in Chinese and Hindu contexts, the biblical terms for “God” are examined. Although the Bible uses generic terms for God (Elohim and Theos), God has a name. The name of God, Yahweh, was revealed to Moses and used throughout the Old Testament. In the New Testament, the name of Jesus is equated with the creator God. In a polytheistic, non-Christian culture like Thailand, we should emphasize the name of God, with explanation and clarity to avoid confusion, in evangelism and discipleship

Implementing antiretroviral therapy in rural communities: the Lusikisiki model of decentralized HIV/AIDS care.

Health worker shortages are a major bottleneck to scaling up antiretroviral therapy (ART), particularly in rural areas. In Lusikisiki, a rural area of South Africa with a population of 150,000 serviced by 1 hospital and 12 clinics, Médecins Sans Frontières has been supporting a program to deliver human immunodeficiency virus (HIV) services through decentralization to primary health care clinics, task shifting (including nurse-initiated as opposed to physician-initiated treatment), and community support. This approach has allowed for a rapid scale-up of treatment with satisfactory outcomes. Although the general approach in South Africa is to provide ART through hospitals-which seriously limits access for many people, if not the majority of people-1-year outcomes in Lusikisiki are comparable in the clinics and hospital. The greater proximity and acceptability of services at the clinic level has led to a faster enrollment of people into treatment and better retention of patients in treatment (2% vs. 19% lost to follow-up). In all, 2200 people were receiving ART in Lusikisiki in 2006, which represents 95% coverage. Maintaining quality and coverage will require increased resource input from the public sector and full acceptance of creative approaches to implementation, including task shifting and community involvement

When One Parent Goes and the Other Parent Stays: The Inconsistency and Inequity of Guaranteeing Absent Parents Permanent Parental Rights

It is well settled that the right to make decisions concerning the upbringing of one\u27s children is a fundamental right deserving the utmost constitutional protection from unreasonable state interference. It has also become increasingly well settled over the past twenty-five years that this right is not automatically and permanently guaranteed by biology. Rather, parental stature encompasses both rights and responsibilities, and the rights are only guaranteed to a parent who has assumed parental responsibilities. Why then is a responsible custodial parent subject to state interference with his or her parental decisions in the interest of guaranteeing an absent parent, who has abandoned his or her child financially, physically, and emotionally, permanent parental rights? Consider David. David is a divorced single father of an eight- year-old boy. Shortly after David and his wife divorced, his ex-wife left their son Joel in David\u27s custody and moved out of state. Joel was barely one year old at the time. Despite court orders and David\u27s efforts, Joel\u27s mother has failed to pay child support and has made no attempts to visit or communicate with Joel for over six years. At various periods in Joel\u27s life, David has not even possessed a means to contact Joel\u27s mother. While battling the natural obstacles that accompany being a single parent, David is under a court order to notify Joel\u27s mother and the court of any changes in his residence, changes in Joel\u27s school, or substantial medical events in Joel\u27s life. On two occasions, David has had to petition the court for permission to relocate out of state. Now David waits, knowing that the day may come when Joel\u27s mother decides that she wants to reassert her rights to visitation. This idea scares David as a parent, not because he selfishly wants to keep Joel away from his mother, but because he knows that neither he nor Joel would have any control over the terms of reestablished contact, nor would they be able to prevent Joel\u27s mother from subsequently ceasing contact and disappearing once again. If this were to occur, David would be left to explain and comfort and counteract the emotional damage once again. David also lives with uncertainty because he knows that he cannot designate a permanent guardian to raise Joel in the event of his death. Regardless of any testamentary provisions in David\u27s will, the court system would likely award custody of Joel to Joel\u27s mother upon David\u27s death. So, why is it that, despite her complete disregard for court orders and her natural duties as a parent, Joel\u27s mother retains permanent parental rights? Why is the burden left on David, the responsible parent, to continue to comply with court orders, costing him precious time and money? Why does David remain legally obligated to provide information to a woman who does not keep the father and caretaker of her child informed of her whereabouts? Why isn\u27t David considered the best person to decide who should have contact with his son and who would best raise his son in his absence? These are all good questions, for which, unfortunately, the law provides no answers

The Sinner’s Prayer: An Inappropriate Ritual for Thai Christian Culture and a Suggested Replacement

The practice of encouraging seekers to say the sinner’s prayer has become commonplace in Thailand. However, the practice is relatively recent and has developed out of Western individualistic assumptions. It is not an explicitly biblical practice and has serious practical problems, producing decisions for Christ that often do not result in a long-term commitment to Christianity. The practice also runs counter to many Thai cultural norms and can be harmful to evangelism and discipleship in Thailand. This article suggests a different approach, the prayer challenge

Dry supplementary feeding programmes: an effective short-term strategy in food crisis situations.

Malnutrition is frequently a predominant problem in disasters, and supplementary feeding programmes (SFPs) are often set up in food emergencies. This review analyses the effectiveness of such programmes in crisis situations in Liberia, Burundi and Goma (Congo), concluding that it is feasible to enrol large numbers of children in SFPs and achieve proportions of recovery above 75% if these programmes are implemented as a short-term measure in emergency situations. However, satisfactory SFP results do not necessarily indicate improved nutritional status of the whole population

Nevirapine-Induced Heratotoxicity: Incidence, Risk Factors and Associated Mortality in a Primary Care ART Programme in South Africa

CROI 200

Structural Optimisation: Biomechanics of the Femur

A preliminary iterative 3D meso-scale structural model of the femur was developed, in which bar and shell elements were used to represent trabecular and cortical bone respectively. The cross-sectional areas of the bar elements and the thickness values of the shell elements were adjusted over successive iterations of the model based on a target strain stimulus, resulting in an optimised construct. The predicted trabecular architecture, and cortical thickness distribution showed good agreement with clinical observations, based on the application of a single leg stance load case during gait. The benefit of using a meso-scale structural approach in comparison to micro or macro-scale continuum approaches to predictive bone modelling was achievement of the symbiotic goals of computational efficiency and structural description of the femur.Comment: Accepted by Engineering and Computational Mechanics (Proceedings of the ICE

Who Am I? Self-Portraiture as a Means of Self-Exploration and Expression of Identity

Using visual and written narrative, I relate my own journey of self-discovery while exploring the use of self-portraiture in the arts. Self-portraiture is an important method through which artists express their personalities, beliefs, and ideas. My research begins by examining the history of self-portraiture – how other artists participate in self-portraiture and how their self-portraiture relates to their identity. I then examine my identity as it has formed through my personal history by reflecting on my childhood, adolescence, and college life. I also explore my interest in identity as it has emerged throughout my life and in my artwork. My project concludes with an exhibit of twelve self-portraits that explore facets of my identity

The Effect of Complete Integration of HIV and TB Services on Time to Initiation of Antiretroviral Therapy: A Before-After Study.

Studies have shown that early ART initiation in TB/HIV co-infected patients lowers mortality. One way to implement earlier ART commencement could be through integration of TB and HIV services, a more efficient model of care than separate, vertical programs. We present a model of full TB/HIV integration and estimate its effect on time to initiation of ART

From GenderMag to InclusiveMag: An Inclusive Design Meta-Method

How can software practitioners assess whether their software supports diverse users? Although there are empirical processes that can be used to find “inclusivity bugs” piecemeal, what is often needed is a systematic inspection method to assess software’s support for diverse populations. To help fill this gap, this paper introduces InclusiveMag, a generalization of GenderMag that can be used to generate systematic inclusiveness methods for a particular dimension of diversity. We then present a multicase study covering eight diversity dimensions, of eight teams’ experiences applying InclusiveMag to eight under-served populations and their “mainstream” counterparts