PH417 : International and Multicultural Women’s Health and Social Issues
Team#2: Country Profile
Points: 185 (Paper 145 points, Small group discussion 35 points, Reflection 5 points)
Objective: The purpose of this assignment is to provide you and your team members with an opportunity to gain an indepth understanding of one country’s story. Through collaborating on research and writing for a selected country this assignment provides the opportunity for you to improve on the following skills: data collection and analysis, written and oral presentation skills, and practice using web-based word processing software.
Guidelines : Each team will complete and submit one well-integrated paper totaling approximately 20-
28 pages (5-7 pages each). Each team member is responsible for answering a majority of the questions in 2 of the topic sections below. There will be an in-class small group discussion, which will allow for you to practice participating in and facilitating peer-discussion groups.
I. Topics
1.
Demography (week 4)
Please do not just report the research, but answer the questions: How does the following information influence health of the residence? How does this information influence the way the country works and how people live in the country? a.
Population data:
 Total population size (Use “10 million” not “10,000,000” format)
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Age distribution
– Population pyramid & percent breakdown by gender and age
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Population growth rate
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Population density (# of people per square mile) &Urban/rural distribution – percent distribution
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What are the major ethnic and religious groups - give types and percentages of each.
 Describe how all this information influences the country’s health outcomes e.g. productivity/politics. b.
Vital statistics:
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Life expectancy of males and females
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Mortality (death) rates –by gender, age, other factors important in your country
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Percent of population without access to clean water, sanitation, medical care, etc. c.
Health statistics
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Describe the major types of diseases experienced by the population in your country.
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Give the top five causes of death in country.
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Explain if and why women might be increased risk for any of these diseases? d.
Health services:
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Types of medical services available
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Access to health care system described by the number of doctors, clinics, hospitals, etc. and percentage of population with access to these medical services.
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Describe if/how women experience gender-based barriers/discrimination to treatment or lack of access.
2.
Health Traditions (week 3)
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What are the cultural-bound illnesses? (Illness that are recognized within a specific culture) o What are the symptoms/results? o What causes this illness? o How are these illness treated? o How does one know they are cured?
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Description of traditional and western medical services used by the residence.
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What role do women have in health care practices and traditions?
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What role do men have in health care practices and traditions?
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Who cares for children when they are sick?
3.
Individual actions(s)/effort(s) to address the health needs of women (week 4)
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Find a story (case study) of one woman or organization at the local level in your country who faced personal challenges and helped other women successfully address an issue related to the topics in this paper. Since this is a local woman or grassroots organization this should be a community development effort and not relief.
4.
Political conditions, policies & other institutional support for women (week 5)
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What is the percent of women who participate in voting in government elections?
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What is the percent of women who hold official government positions (elected or appointed)?
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What government policies that support women and attempt to improve their health or discriminate against them and adversely affect their health? o Discuss how successful (or not) these policies have been and why or why they have/not been.
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What government programs are available to support women and attempt to improve their health or discriminate against them and adversely affect their health? o Discuss how successful (or not) these programs have been and why or why they have/not been
5.
Childhood & Education (week 6)
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How are girl children treated inside and outside the home? o What are the cultural norms for girl children?
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What are the government policies vs. cultural traditions for women attending school?
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Percent of women attending and/or completing different levels of school (compared to men), i.e., primary school, secondary school, university (BA), post graduate (MA, PhD, etc.) and effects on opportunities for women.
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What are the adult literacy rates for women and men?
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What is the computer availability: % computers in households, % of population with Internet access?
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When is a girl a woman? o Are there any rights of passage she goes through for this?
6.
Marriage Traditions (weeks 7-8)
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Describe marriage laws and how they may affect women vs. men differently in their daily life.
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Describe marriage customs and how they may affect women vs. men differently.
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Average age at marriage for both men & women – If different describe why this may be.
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Describe divorce laws and/or customs and how they affect women vs. men in daily life.
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Percent married and divorce rates and if there is a difference from women compared with men.
7.
Pregnancy and birthing practices and customs (week 8)
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Infant mortality rate (IMR) and maternal mortality rate (MMR)
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What are the most common beliefs surrounding pregnancy? o Describe education practices, prenatal & postnatal care, naming traditions, celebrations
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What are the most common birthing practices?
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How many births are attended by a trained professional or in a clinic/hospital?
 What is the father’s role in the birth? Childrearing?
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What happens to the mother and child in out-of-wedlock-pregnancies?
8.
Women’s work (week 9)

What are the major industries in country (e.g. agriculture, mining, manufacturing, domestic)? o Which industries are most likely to employ women?
 Describe any legal or cultural/religious restrictions on women’s participation in the workplace.
 Women’s vs. men’s work: What are the differences in roles, responsibilities, authority & power between women & men.

Are there wage inequities between men and women (income level comparison)? o What are types of benefits available to women? Do these differ from the types and amount of benefits available to men?
 What are the factors in the workplace that affect women’s health? o Pace of work, sexual harassment, authority and decision-making, assembly line/shift-work, repetitive or monotonous work, hazardous environments, etc. o What are the potential health risks associated with particular types of work performed by women in the selected country, e.g., agriculture, manufacturing, domestic, sex work, etc.?
 What are women’s hours of work and leisure time compared with those of men? Are women allowed time for relaxation/recovery?
II. Paper
Each student should submit 5-7 pages of your own research and analysis of the 2 topics selected above. To optimize your learning experience, each team-member should plan to spend time researching your respective sections each week . Each section should be completed by the week the topic is covered in class and information shared with your team at the end of the class session.
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Make sure the headings of the two sections you have written includes your name. If individual names are not included the paper will be graded as a single team paper.
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Please do not simply present a list of data, but rather tell the full context about the women of the country and the factors that influence their health and well being. o Share how the information you are sharing shapes the lives of the people living in the country.
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Allow enough time to write and share your sections, check for spelling, and edit for redundancies, inconsistencies, and contradictory information , and that the paper flows smoothly.
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I am more interested in reading your work than quotes from sources, so use limited direct quotes.
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The third team paper focuses on human rights violations so be sure this paper focuses on the culture as it relates to women’s health and cultural traditions.
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Please use APA format for the document, in-text citations, and reference list.
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Be sure to upload the assignment as a Word .doc to iLearn before 9:00PM of the due date.
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Please review the Team#2 checklist for grading criteria on iLearn.
P lease remember that information in women’s health and for developing countries can, like all information, be biased. Use your best judgment as to what is quality information , and in the paper describe if the sources may have some bias and what they are .
III. Collaborative Portions: Intro/Conclusion, Analysis
1.
Include an introduction and conclusion for the paper.
2.
Compare the experiences of women in your selected country with US women by:

Comparing how women are valued and treated in country compared to women in the US.
 Comparing women’s equality in the workplace in country compared to women in the US.

Comparing government programs and policies toward women in country and the US.

Comparing grassroots (community and nonprofit organizations) efforts to improv e women’s socioeconomic status compared to efforts in the US.
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IV. Small Group Discussion
During the class session one representative from each country will be grouped together with one member from each of the other countries. In these small groups each member will share the information they learned about their respective country’s culture, customs and health outcomes especially as it relates to women with each other in a roughly 90-minute discussion.

As your country representative (ambassador) you will present to your small group all of the information in the assignment not just the sections you wrote. Please be sure that you are familiar with the full paper.
A questionnaire will be distributed be completed in class based on the information shared by each small group. If you are not present for the discussion and the questionnaire points for this portion of the assignment can not be earned.
V. Reflection
In a 1-2 page write up please reflect on your personal experiences following points:

What personal beliefs and/or knowledge about the country and/or women were challenged by your research?
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Any particular insights that you feel you gained from your research.
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Any questions that were raised through this research.
 Upload to iLearn in the “Team 2 Reflection” drop-box by 9:00PM the day after the presentation.
I hope you enjoy learning about your country!
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