Women In Urban Slums Research Articles

Study to assess determinants of domestic violence among women in urban slum of Mumbai

Violence against women could be physical, mental or sexual. It reflects inequities between men and women and compromises health, dignity, security & autonomy of the victims. The present study was carried out at the Urban Health Centre & included all married women in the reproductive age, to study various factors associated with violence, and the decision making power of the women. Objectives: 1. To identify socio-cultural and demographic factors related to domestic violence. 2. To assess health status of these women. 3. To assess decision making power of women and its relationship with domestic violence. Methodology: A cross-sectional, descriptive, epidemiological study was carried out at Urban Health Centre, Govandi , field practice area affiliated to the Department of Preventive & Social Medicine, Topiwala National Medical College, Mumbai, during the period from 1 st February 2008 - 31 st March 2008. Study population included married women who experienced domestic violence, in the age group 15-45 years, attending general OPD (n = 105). Women were enquired about the type of violence faced by them , their perpetrators, the perceived risk factors and their decision making power in the family. Data was analyzed using SPSS 11.5. Results : Women who experienced violence were included in the study (n=105). Most of them (82.86%) were Muslims, illiterate(53.34%) and were in the age group 26 - 35 years(57.14%). The violence faced by them was mostly Verbal(71.42%) and Physical violence (48.57%), with perpetrators being mostly their husbands' and Mother- in - law. These women did not have any power in decision making in the family.

Reproductive Health and Morbidity among Women in Urban Slum of Lucknow: A Case Study

There is a growing recognition that gynaecological morbidity is much higher among the women of urban slums. Community-based studies of the prevalence and nature of reproductive health problems that can provide information to health-planners and policy-makers regarding appropriate strategies to improve women's reproductive health are much needed. Yet, information on the levels and patterns of problems related to reproductive health experienced by women in India is sparse. Therefore, against this backdrop, the present study has been conducted to know the several aspects of reproductive health among the women in an urban slum‘Sikandarnagar Basti’ of Lucknow. In the course of this anthropological study, extensive field work has been done in the year 2010– 2011. It includes both the primary as well as secondary sources of data. The sample of 100 ever-married women has been selected through simple random sampling. All the respondents have been interviewed intensively. Along with it, observation, case study method and photography have been used extensively for data collection. The study reveals that a large proportion of women in Sikandarnagar Basti are suffering from several reproductive health problems, but they experience morbidity silently, and are reluctant to seek care or to visit clinics and hospitals, as in the context of health, disease and treatment. The belief in supernatural agency was predominant in the society. Along with it, poverty, lack of education and unawareness were the hindrance in improving their health status and making the situation more critical.

Perception and Practices Regarding Menstruation in Women of Reproductive Age Group in Urban Slums

Background: There are various beliefs and practices which exist in the domain of reproductive health of women. Menstruation is one such area. Menstruation is a monthly cyclical change entirely of a women's body and yet it influences the quality of her life in her household, her interaction with the family, and her relation with the world outside her household. Menstruation is influenced by various beliefs&taboos. Perception and practices regarding menstruation are of considerable importance for reproductive health. Poor practices increase vulnerability to reproductive tract infection. Objectives: To identify the gap between perception&practices during menstruation and know superstition and beliefs regarding the same. Material and Method: This cross-sectional descriptive study was conducted amongst 300 reproductive age group 15-44 yrs group women in urban slums of Agra to determine their perceptions, problems, and practices on menstruation. Stratified simple random sampling technique was used for collecting information from the women of reproductive age group from the area attached to urban health center of Department of Social and Preventive Medicine, Agra. Results: The correct perception regarding household work was found in about half (48%) of the women surveyed, and in practice it was 58%.Two thirds of the women had correct perception about dietary belief and taboos and only 35% women avoided certain foods. Out of 207 married women 33.3% had correct perception about intercourse during menstruation period, while in practice it was only15.2%.Out of 31 women who were involved in this activity during menstruation 16 were using condom. Conclusion: It was found that half of the women had adequate knowledge regarding menstruation while practice was influenced by various beliefs and taboos. It is necessary to increase IEC (information, education and communication) for better perception, for discarding unhealthy practices and for adopting healthy practices. Counseling can be initiated early for the adolescent girls. Counseling is also required for the elderly women who perpetuate the tradition and practices in the family.

Utilization of Antenatal care among pregnant women of Urban Slums of Dhaka City, Bangladesh

Maternal health services have a potentially critical role in the improvement of reproductive health. The use of health services is related to the availability, quality and cost of the services, as well as to social structure, health beliefs and the personal characteristics of the users. Antenatal care (ANC) is an important determinant of high maternal mortality rate and one of the basic components of maternal care on which the life of mothers and babies depend. It is a key strategy for reducing maternal mortality, but millions of women in developing countries do not receive it. Extracting 3549 women from the 2006-2007 Urban Health Survey, this study assessed the utilization of antenatal care and its related factor in urban slums for pregnant women. A Cross-sectional survey was carried out large, medium and small urban squatter settlements of Dhaka City. Two hundred married women in the age range 15-49 years were interviewed. Socio-demographic characteristics of women who received and who did not receive antenatal care in their previous pregnancy were assessed by frequency distribution and bivariate analysis. Antenatal care used in any of the previous pregnancy among women under study was 861(64.3%). Education and ANC is significantly related suggesting that the higher the level of education the higher is the likelihood of receiving ANC during pregnancy because educated women are aware about the importance of ANC during pregnancy. There is a strong association between the income of the respondents and ANC received by the respondents. This study indicates that overall knowledge about antenatal care was found to be better among women who had utilized antenatal care as compared to women who did not receive antenatal care.. There is also a need to evaluate the services provided by government health facilities and to find out why women are not utilizing the government health services though these services are available at subsidized rate.

Safe Motherhood Practices Among Women of Urban Slums in Bangladesh

In this article we examine the prevalence and factors associated with the utilization of safe motherhood practices among slum-dwelling women of Bangladesh using the 2006 Bangladesh Urban Health Survey data. Overall, the utilization of maternal health care services was very low. The binary logistic regression analyses yielded significantly increased skilled services utilization for women with higher education levels, nonworking women, non-Muslims, women undergoing their first pregnancy, women who had lived in the slum longer, and amongst the rich. Awareness should be created through information, education, and communication programs, and services should be provided with minimum cost to promote safe motherhood practices among the urban poor in Bangladesh.

The waist circumference measurement: a simple method for assessing the abdominal obesity.

Excess abdominal fat is an independent predictor of the risk factors and the morbidity of obesity related diseases such as type 2 diabetes, hypertension, dyslipidaemia and cardiovascular diseases. The Waist Circumference (WC) is positively correlated with the abdominal fat. Hence, the waist circumference is a valuable, convenient and a simple measurement method which can be used for identifying the individuals who are at an increased risk for the above mentioned diseases. To assess the abdominal obesity by measuring the waist circumference among the women who were aged 20 years and above in an urban slum of Chennai, India.To identify the socio -demographic factors which were associated with the abdominal obesity in the above study population. A community based and a cross sectional study was carried out in an urban slum of Chennai, India. The present study was undertaken in an urban slum of Chennai city, among the women who were aged 20 years and above. One slum was selected randomly and the households in the slum were sampled by a systematic random sampling method. A pre-designed and a pre-tested questionnaire was used to collect the information regarding the socio-demographic profile of the women. Their waist circumference was measured by using a flexible inch tape. As per the World Health Organization (WHO), the International Obesity Task Force (IOTF) and the International Association for the Study of Obesity (IASO)(2000), the following cut off values for the waist circumference were used to assess the abdominal obesity for women: WC<80cms - normal and WC ≥ 80cms-abdominal obesity. It was done by using the Statistical Package For Social Science (SPSS ), version 11.5. The prevalence was expressed in percentage and the Chi square test was used to find its association with the factors. In the study population, the prevalence of abdominal obesity (WC ≥ 80 cms) was 29.8% (95% Confidence Interval [CI] 25.9-34 %). A significant association was found between the age, religion, a higher socio-economic status and the abdominal obesity. No significant association was noted between the educational status, occupation, marital status, type of family and the abdominal obesity. Abdominal obesity among the urban slum women is on the rise. The abdominal obesity was found to be significantly higher among the slum women with increasing age and in those who belonged to the muslim religion and to a higher socio-economic status.

Socioeconomic Factors Associated With Contraceptive Use and Method Choice in Urban Slums of Bangladesh

This article explores the socioeconomic factors affecting contraceptive use and method choice among women of urban slums using the nationally representative 2006 Bangladesh Urban Health Survey. Both bivariate and multivariate statistical analyses were applied to examine the relationship between a set of sociodemographic factors and the dependent variables. Overall, the contraceptive prevalence rate was 58.1%, of which 53.2% were modern methods. Women's age, access to TV, number of unions, nongovernmental organization membership, working status of women, number of living children, child mortality, and wealth index were important determinants of contraceptive use and method preference. Sex composition of surviving children and women's education were the most important determinants of contraceptive use and method choice. Programs should be strengthened to provide nonclinical modern methods free of cost among the slum dwellers. Doorstep delivery services of modern contraceptive methods may raise the contraceptive prevalence rate among the slum dwellers in Bangladesh.

Factors related to knowledge and perception of women about smoking: a cross sectional study from a developing country

BackgroundSmoking rates among women are currently low, but they are the fastest growing segment of cigarette smoking population in developing countries. We aimed to assess the knowledge and perceptions towards smoking and to identify the factors related with level of knowledge and perceptions among adult women in urban slums.MethodsThis was a cross sectional study conducted on 250 adult (≥18 years of age) women attending primary care clinics in three slums of Karachi, Pakistan. A pre-tested and structured, interviewer administered questionnaire was used for data collection. Factors associated with level of understanding about smoking were analyzed with chi-square test.ResultsMost of the women knew that smoking has adverse effects on women and children's health but the knowledge of specific health effects was limited. About one third of the women knew that active smoking can cause lung disease, but only a small percentage (7%) knew that it could lead to heart disease. None of the women were aware that smoking contributes to infertility and osteoporosis. A small proportion of women were aware that smoking can lead to low birth weight (7%), congenital anomalies (5%) and less than 1% of women knew that it contributes to pregnancy loss, still birth and preterm delivery. The understanding of passive smoking affecting children's lung was low (20%) and a similar proportion voiced concern about the bad influence of maternal smoking on children. Educated women had better knowledge of health effects of smoking. Education was associated with having better knowledge about effects on women health in general (p = 0.02) and specific effects like lung (p = 0.03) and reproductive health effects (p < 0.001). Education was also associated with knowledge regarding effects on fetus (p < 0.001) and children (p < 0.005). Although most of the women disliked being around smokers, more than one third thought that smoking decreases boredom (39%), tension (38%) and also helps to relax (40%). A large proportion (48%) of women had the misconception that smoking helps to reduce weight.ConclusionsThis study reveals that women are aware of the general ill effects of smoking but fail to identify smoking to be associated with female maladies particularly those who were illiterate and had lower levels of education. Understanding and attitudes needs to be improved by increasing health awareness and education of women in these urban communities with special emphasis on the effects of smoking on women's health.

Untreated reproductive morbidities among ever married women of slums of Rajkot City, Gujarat: the role of class, distance, provider attitudes, and perceived quality of care.

It is a common problem in India for women in the reproductive age group to suffer from reproductive illnesses and not seek care. This paper is an attempt to assess untreated reproductive morbidities and to study factors affecting treatment-seeking behavior among ever married women of urban slums. We selected 1,046 women of the reproductive age group (15-49 years) using two-stage cluster sampling for a community-based, cross-sectional study. From this sample, 593 responses reporting reproductive morbidity were analyzed for treatment-seeking behavior and its correlates. Information was collected on demographics, socioeconomic status, self-reported reproductive morbidity, and treatment-seeking patterns, along with reasons for not utilizing available health services, all using a pretested, structured interview schedule. Univariate and multivariate analyses were done in SPSS 15.0. In our sample, 57% of women had at least one reproductive morbidity; of these, only one third sought health care. Women belonging to the Scheduled Castes/Scheduled Tribes caste group (OR = 3.92, 95% CI 1.44-10.64), at a distance of more than 2 km from a health facility (OR = 2.67, 95% CI 1.28-5.58), and whose duration of illness was more than 1 year (OR = 14.44, 95% CI 3.66-56.87) accessed fewer reproductive health services compared to their counterparts. The present study found that a lower sense of need, the cost of care, and societal barriers were the reasons for not seeking care. Providers' poor attitudes, poor quality of services, and long waiting times were found to be the reasons for not utilizing health facilities. The determinants for accessing reproductive health care were resources available at the household level, social factors, the availability of services, and behaviors related to health. Government facilities remained underutilized.

O427 Unintended pregnancy and awareness of emergency contraception among women of urban slums

O427 Unintended pregnancy and awareness of emergency contraception among women of urban slums

C-reactive protein, obesity, and insulin resistance in postmenopausal women in urban slums of North India

Summary Background and aims C-reactive protein (CRP) and its associations to obesity and insulin resistance have been poorly researched in women. The present investigation was undertaken to determine the prevalence of elevated CRP and its associations with obesity and insulin resistance in urban Asian Indian postmenopausal women belonging to a low socio-economic strata. Methods and results In this cross-sectional study, we assessed multiple measures of obesity and body composition, blood glucose, lipids, fasting insulin levels and CRP in postmenopausal women. Overweight, abdominal obesity, fasting hyperinsulinemia, impaired fasting glucose and diabetes were present in 23.7%, 28%, 24.6%, 24.3%, and 12.2% women, respectively. Strikingly, low levels of high-density lipoprotein cholesterol (HDL-C) and high CRP levels were present in 90.1% and 44.7% women, respectively. CRP was found to correlate on with abdominal obesity ( p = 0.01) and percentage body fat ( p = 0.06). Particularly, no association of elevated CRP levels with insulin resistance and HDL-C levels were observed. Conclusion According to our data, postmenopausal Asian Indian women are at a high risk for development of cardiovascular disease. Unlike in western populations, however, important risk factors, e.g. insulin resistance, CRP and low HDL-C are not interrelated, and may contribute independently to cardiovascular risk.

Delivery-related complications and early postpartum morbidity in Dhaka, Bangladesh

Objective To describe delivery-related complications and postpartum morbidity of women living in slum areas of Dhaka, Bangladesh. Method From November 1993 to May 1995, 1506 women were interviewed regarding delivery-related complications and postpartum morbidities. Operational definitions were applied to maternal reports to categorize serious delivery-related complications and postpartum morbidity. Corroborating information was identified from medical records for facility-based deliveries and physical examinations by female physicians 14 to 22 days postpartum. Result Thirty-six percent of women described serious delivery-related complications and 75% of women reported postpartum morbidity. There were two maternal deaths among 1471 live births. When maternal reports were related to corroborating information, the proportion of women's reports of serious complications and morbidity appears reasonably accurate for some conditions. Conclusion A large proportion of urban slum women in Dhaka experience serious delivery-related complications and/or postpartum morbidity. Information on delivery practices that contribute to morbidity and factors that influence appropriate care seeking is needed.

Comparison of the Level of Awareness of Family Planning Measures in the Urban and Urban-slum Women

The present study was done for the comparison of the level of awareness of family planning measures in the urban and urban-slum of Jammu (Jammu and Kashmir State). The sample of the study was divided into two groups i.e. urban women and urban-slum women. The sample size consisted of 30 women; 15 women from urban community and 15 women from urban-slum community in the age group of 25-35 years were selected for the purpose. Purposive sampling technique was used for selecting the sample. The data was collected with the help of Interview schedule. Findings of the study indicate that women from the urban as well as urban-slum community were aware about the family planning measures but in urban areas majority of the women used pills IUD where as in urban-slum community majority of the men used family planning measures like condom. The failure rate of family planning measures was high in the urban-slum community. Women from the urban community had good attitude regarding the use of contraceptives and they were satisfied as per their view the use of these measures was considered not only best for spacing the children but also had helpful in maintaining a healthy and tension free life. The result also reveals that each and every family planning methods had some side effects. (authors)

Environmental Risk Factors Associated With RTI/STD Symptoms Among Women in Urban Slums

To link environmental factors with prevalence of RTI/STD symptoms among women in the urban slums of Dhaka, Bangladesh and also to investigate if there are differences in levels of RTI/STD prevalence among the slums. Fourteen slums from Dhaka city were the secondary units for this study, households were selected according to systematic sampling. One woman from each selected household was interviewed and a total of 3000 women forms the sample. Several RTI/STD symptoms were prompted to them and their reported prevalence in the last on year was documented in structured questionnaires. Almost 65% women were found to have reported at least one RTI/STD symptom in the last one year. Final parsimonious model using multilevel logistic regression of prevalence of RTI/STD symptoms on various correlates found two environmental factors to be significant. Women were more likely to report symptoms if their houses were located more than 10 yards away from the toilet, and they did not practice proper garbage disposal habits. However, age of the woman was the most significant predictor of RTI/STD symptoms, older women having reporting more symptoms compared to women aged below 19. Most slums had similar level of RTI/STD prevalence, only one slum had significantly lower ones. Environmental factors seem to have significant correlationship with reporting of RTI/STD symptoms in the urban slums. Tackling women's reproductive health is more a multisectoral approach than establishment of health clinics alone.

The role of son preference in reproductive behaviour in Pakistan.

The sex of surviving children is an important determinant of reproductive behaviour in South Asia in general and Pakistan in particular. This cohort study evaluates the role of the sex of children on reproductive intentions and subsequent behaviour of women in urban slums of Karachi, Pakistan. The analysis is based on two rounds of surveys conducted in 1990-91 and 1995 of a cohort of married women aged 15-49 years. The results show that pregnancies became increasingly unwanted as the number of surviving sons increased. The sex of surviving children was strongly correlated with subsequent fertility and contraceptive behaviour. However, rather than an exclusive son preference, couples strove for one or more sons and at least one surviving daughter. The policy implications of the link between overt son preference and low status of women are discussed.