Assignment-Global Health
This is the book that is required for this course. Introduction to Global Health (1st Edition), K. H. Jacobsen, Jones and Bartlett Publisher © 2008 ISBN: 0763751596
Read Figure 3-5 at the top of page 47 of the text. The chart shows a scatter plot diagram of life expectancy versus GDP (Gross Domestic Product). Because GDP is a commonly used barometer to measure the economic health and vitality of a nation it is usually indicative of the standard of living of the average citizen in that nation. As you will see, the average life expectancy in years tends to trend upwards as the GDP increases. This basically means that the more rich a nation is the longer its citizens can expect to live.
Read Table 4-7 on page 75 of the text. The table shows the percentage of births that are attended by a skilled health professional for selected nations. Under these figures the per capita death rate for the mother and infant are each listed separately for all nations as well. It is very clear from the data that the death rate reduces dramatically as the percentage of births attended by skilled health personnel is increased, so there seems to be an inverse correlation. What also becomes clear is that the nations that have a higher percentage of child births attended by skilled personnel are the richer nations and are also likely to have the lowest rate of mother and infant deaths during child birth.
Read Figure 4-10 on page 81 of the text. The chart displays a scatter plot diagram of female adult literacy rate versus total fertility. There is also an inverse correlation in this chart, meaning that as the adult literacy rate increases their total fertility number decreases. This seems to indicate that on average as a woman's education and literacy increases she is likely to have fewer children than a woman who has no education and cannot read. Women who are the least educated may not be able to understand and fully comprehend the consequences of having many children or they simply may not be able to make as intelligent of a choice about their family planning.
Now read "Population Planning Policy" on page 88 of the text. The passage illustrates some nation's attempts at family planning on a national scale. China's one-child policy is underscored and some of its positives and negatives are highlighted as well as the attempted distribution of contraceptives in many African nations as well as Asian, Latin American and Caribbean nations.
1. Devise and explain a population planning policy that takes into account a nations GDP (Gross Domestic Product), literacy rates, and percentage of skilled health professionals who attend child births, among other factors you may deem relevant. Feel free to select any nation you wish. (Approximately 2 pages in length, single spaced)
2. What are some other economic and social indicators that you should look for when creating a population planning policy for a nation? (Approximately 2 pages in length, single spaced)
3. Explain how a tailored approach in population planning is best since it is designed to fit the nation it is trying to help. Be sure to talk about the positives and negatives of a population planning policy. Go into great depth about why a nation would want to adopt a population planning policy and what could be the consequences of not doing so. What are some unintended consequences of implementing such a plan? (Approximately 3 pages in length, single spaced)