The Nizari Ismaili Community and the Internet

The Nizari Ismailis are a global community of Shi'i Muslims living in more than twenty-five countries across Asia, Africa, Europe, North America, and Australasia. They are led by His Highness Karim Aga Khan, forty-ninth in a line of living hereditary imams. Increasingly, Ismailis become aware of the wide diversity within the larger community as well as of the vulnerability of various local groups and their particular traditions, in particular in Central Asia. Internet provides a means to address these concerns albeit that access to internet is as yet unevenly spread

Epidemiology and outcomes of out-of-hospital cardiac arrest in a developing country-a multicenter cohort study.

Background Out-of-hospital cardiac arrest (OHCA) is one of the leading causes of death and disability worldwide. Overall survival after an OHCA has been reported to be poor and limited studies have been conducted in developing countries. We aimed to investigate the rates of survival from OHCA and explore components of the chain of survival in a developing country. Methods We conducted a multicenter prospective cohort study in the emergency departments (ED) of five major public and private sector hospitals of Karachi, Pakistan from January 2013 to April 2013. Twenty-four hour data collection was performed by trained data collectors, using a structured questionnaire. All patients ≥18 years of age, presenting with OHCA of cardiac origin, were included. Patients with do-not-resuscitate status or referred from other hospitals were excluded. Our primary outcome was survival of OHCA patients at the end of ED stay. Results During the three month period, data was obtained from 310 OHCA patients. The overall survival to ED discharge was 1.6 % which decreased to 0 % at 2-months after discharge. More than half (58.3 %) of these OHCA patients were brought to the hospital in a non-EMS (emergency medical service) vehicle i.e. public or private transportation. Patients utilizing non-EMS transportation reached the hospital earlier with a median time of 23 min compared to patients utilizing any type of ambulances which had a delay of 7 min hospital reaching time (median time 30 min). However, patients utilizing ambulances with life-support facilities, as compared to all other types of pre-hospital transportation, had the shortest time to first life-support intervention (15 min). Most of the patients (92.9 %) had a witnessed cardiac arrest out of which only a small percentage (2.3 %) received bystander CPR (cardio pulmonary resuscitation). Median time from arrest to receiving first CPR was 20 min. Only 1 % of patients were found to have a shockable rhythm on first assessment. Conclusion This study showed that the overall survival of OHCA is null in this population. Lack of bystander CPR and weaker emergency medical services (EMS) leading to a delay in receiving life-support interventions were some of the important observations. Poor survival emphasizes the need to standardize EMS systems, initiate public awareness programs and strengthen links in the chain of survival. Electronic supplementary material The online version of this article (doi:10.1186/s12873-016-0093-2) contains supplementary material, which is available to authorized users. Keywords: Out-of-hospital cardiac arrest, Survival, Chain-of-surviva

Two cultures, one identity: formulations of Australian Isma'ili Muslim identity

The Shi'a Imami Nizari Isma'ili Muslims have often been considered the "poster child" for pluralistic integration (Cayo 2008). This ethos has been inculcated within members of the community, with its adherents seeing themselves as a diverse and multi-ethnic collective. Nevertheless, despite this purported pluralism, social research on the Isma'ilis has primarily focused on the diasporic and post-diasporic migrant communities of South Asian descent, the 'first and second-generation immigrants,' in the Euro-American context (Mukadam and Mawani 2006, 2009; Nanji 1983, 1986). The experiences of co-religionists in other contexts have often been neglected. This study examines how members of the self-described geographically and socially isolated Isma'ili community in Australia construct their identity vis-à-vis the larger, global, Isma'ili community, and how they have responded to the potential of identity threat given the arrival of another group of Isma’ilis with a differing migratory history integrating into the extant community. Using the approach of identity process theory, this study examines how salient features of identity are constructed amongst the Australian Isma'ilis, how religion and identity take on multiple meanings within the Australian Isma'ili context, and, finally, sheds light on the self-sufficiency of this community despite geographic and social isolation

Global Position Statement: Stigma, Mental Illness and Diversity

Careif is an international mental health charity that works towards protecting and promoting mental health, wellbeing, resilience and resourcefulness with a special focus towards eliminating inequalities and strengthening social justice. Our principles include working creatively with humility, dignity and balanced partnerships in order to ensure that all cultures and societies play their part in our mission of protecting and promoting mental health and wellbeing. We do this by respecting the traditions of all world societies, whilst believing that culture and traditions can evolve for even greater benefit to individuals and society. Globalisation has created culturally rich and diverse societies. During the past several decades, there has been a steadily increasing recognition of the importance of societal and cultural influences on life and health. Societies are becoming multi-ethnic and poly-cultural in nature worldwide, where different groups enrich each other's lives with their unique culture/s. Cultural transition and acculturation is often discussed as relevant to migrants and mentions the need to integrate, when in fact it is of relevance to all cultures in an ever interconnecting world. It is indeed necessary to be equipped with knowledge about cultures and their influence on mental health and illness. Culturally informed mental health care is rapidly moving from an attitudinal orientation to an evidence-based approach, therefore understanding culture and mental health care becomes greater than a health care issue

Imperial Legacies (Post)Colonial Identities: Law, Space and the Making of Stanley Park, 1859-2001

Stanley Park is the third largest urban park in North America. Located in downtown Vancouver, British Columbia (BC), the 960-acre park was opened by civic authorities in 1888, only two years after the city was incorporated. From early on, Stanley Park became a popular leisure space for Vancouver’s ‘citizens’ and visitors alike. Today, as one of the most frequented tourist destinations in BC, the park remains an important attraction, offering a variety of year round recreational opportunities and drawing approximately 8 million visitors annually (Grant & Dickson 2003, Steele 1985, 1993). Importantly, Stanley Park also occupies a significant geographic and symbolic space in Vancouver’s imaginary. Often described as ‘the foremost symbol of Canada’s most beautiful city’ (Steele 1985: 7), the park is celebrated in Imperial Legacies (Post)Colonial Identities tourist books, brochures, and on visitor websites as a ‘virgin forest’ that reflects a uniquely ‘natural west coast atmosphere,’ including an array of plants, wildlife and ancient trees