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Decades of neglect have left India’s public health system with a very weak arsenal to fight and eliminate contagious diseases

The closings and quarantines prompted by the coronavirus outbreak have given some families more time together.

Following Donald Trump’s declaration of a federal state of emergency, every state had also declared a state of emergency over COVID-19.

Current Census estimates place its population at a 100-year low

The U.S. government is trying to build, at great speed, a three-legged stool to prevent long-lasting economic depression from the Coronavirus outbreak

Presidential campaign may be severely affected with the COVID-19 pandemic disrupted the public life in different ways, but history shows U.S. can manage the election during rough times

Adolescent girls and young women (AGYW) in Uganda are at risk of early sexual debut, unwanted pregnancy, violence, and disproportionally high HIV infection rates, driven in part by transactional sex. This paper examines the extent to which AGYW’s participation in transactional sex is perceived to be coerced. We conducted 19 focus group discussions and 44 in-depth interviews using semi-structured tools. Interviews were audio recorded, and transcribed verbatim. Data were analysed using a thematic analysis. While AGYW did not necessarily use the language of coercion, their narratives describe a number of coercive aspects in their relationships. First, coercion by force as a result of “de-toothing” a man (whereby they received money or resources but did not wish to provide sex as “obligated” under the implicit “terms” of the relationships). Second, they described the coercive role that receiving resources played in their decision to have sex in the face of men’s verbal insistence. Finally, they discussed having sex as a result of coercive economic circumstances including poverty, and because of peer pressure to uphold modern lifestyles. Support for income-generation activities, microfinance and social protection programmes may help reduce AGYW’s vulnerability to sexual coercion in transactional sex relationships. Targeting gender norms that contribute to unequal power dynamics and social expectations that obligate AGYW to provide sex in return for resources, critically assessing the meaning of consensual sex, and normative interventions building on parents’ efforts to ascertain the source of their daughters’ resources may also reduce AGYW’s vulnerability to coercion.

Abstract: Public health and built environment design have a long-intertwined history of promoting a healthy quality of life. They emerged with the common goal of preventing infectious disease outbreaks in urban areas and improving occupants’ living conditions. In recent years, however, the two disciplines have become less engaged and with each developing a distinct focus. To respond to this disconnection, a systematic review was conducted to identify the connection and divergence between public health and built environment design and planning. This paper aims to establish a context for understanding the connections, synergies, and divergence between public health and built environment design disciplines. Further, the four main health factors in the built environment are identified and explained: physical, physiological, biological, and psychological factors. Finally, future trends to reconnect public health with build environment design are then outlined.

range of life experiences conspire to affect a woman’s mental health in Nairobi, Kenya

Importance   Millions of low-income children in the United States reside in substandard or unaffordable housing. Relieving these burdens may be associated with changes in asthma outcomes. Objectives   To examine whether participation in the US Department of Housing and Urban Development’s (HUD) rental assistance programs is associated with childhood asthma outcomes and to examine whether associations varied by program type (public housing, multifamily housing, or housing choice vouchers). Design, Setting, and Participants   This survey study used data from the nationally representative National Health Interview Survey linked to administrative housing assistance records from January 1, 1999, to December 31, 2014. A total of 2992 children aged 0 to 17 years who were currently receiving rental assistance or would enter a rental assistance program within 2 years of survey interview were included. Data analysis was performed from January 15, 2018, to August 31, 2019. Exposures   Participation in rental assistance provided by HUD. Main Outcomes and Measures   Ever been diagnosed with asthma, 12-month history of asthma attack, and 12-month history of visiting an emergency department for the treatment of asthma among program participants vs those waiting to enter a program. Overall participation was examined, and participation in public or multifamily housing was compared with participation in housing choice vouchers. Results   This study included 2992 children who were currently participating in a HUD program or would enter a program within 2 years. Among children with an asthma attack in the past year, participation in a rental assistance program was associated with a reduced use of emergency departments for asthma of 18.2 percentage points (95% CI, −29.7 to −6.6 percentage points). Associations were only found after entrance into a program, suggesting that they were not confounded by time-varying factors. Statistically significant results were found for participation in public or multifamily housing (percentage point change, −36.6; 95% CI, −54.8 to −18.4) but not housing choice vouchers (percentage point change, −7.2; 95% CI, −24.6 to 10.3). No statistically significant evidence of changes in asthma attacks was found (percentage point change, −2.7; 95% CI, −12.3 to 7.0 percentage points). Results for asthma diagnosis were smaller and only significant at the 10% level (−4.3; 95% CI, −8.8 to 0.2 percentage points). Conclusions and Relevance   Among children with a recent asthma attack, rental assistance was associated with less emergency department use. These results may have important implications for the well-being of low-income families and health care system costs.