Conditions of precarity, irregularity, and illegality are often associated with informality. Yet the functional and analytical value of informality as a condition and process underpinning the ...migration industry and infrastructure has yet to be fully investigated. This paper considers first, how is informality constructed within national space and across national spaces (i.e., transnationally) during migration? Second, in the context of migration, what does informality reveal of the binaries associated with legality/illegality and morality/immorality? Third, what does inhabiting informality as a “negotiated space” achieve for the various stakeholders who are involved in mediating migration? We address these questions through a study of how foreign domestic workers (FDWs) migrate from Myanmar to work in Singapore. Although FDWs can secure legal documents from Singapore (the receiving country), the government of Myanmar (the sending country) considered migration for domestic work illegal until it lifted a ban on such migration in April 2019. Even so, the government will to formalise and enforce legal migration in Myanmar has been lagging, alongside a lack of traction for multi‐stakeholder collaboration in this direction. Through discussing informality during the recruitment, training, and deployment stages, we draw attention to how informal brokers experience “moral ambivalence,” a condition that can be seen as a resource that illuminates new political and social subjectivities, as well as a means for the brokers to manage risks and uncertainties during migration.
Through a study of foreign domestic worker migration from Myanmar to Singapore, this paper examines the functional and analytical value of informality. The paper demonstrates that informality undergirds formal processes and discusses how informal brokers use moral ambivalence to legitimise their role.
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BFBNIB, DOBA, FZAB, GIS, IJS, IZUM, KILJ, NLZOH, NUK, OILJ, PILJ, PNG, SAZU, SBCE, SBMB, UILJ, UKNU, UL, UM, UPUK
While considerable attention has been given to the impact of migration on left-behind families, such research focuses on the children of migrants, rather than older members of the family who play ...crucial roles in maintaining familyhood in place and across borders. Through a multi-sited study of foreign domestic migration between Singapore and Myanmar for eldercare work, we draw attention to the care circulations connecting elderly employers in Singapore with the families of the foreign domestic workers (FDWs), in particular ageing parents in Myanmar. We interviewed 28 current and former FDWs, as well as 10 ageing parents (n = 38), of which there were 7 care dyads (i.e. domestic worker and parent/s). We underline the fraught relations of care and familyhood that are re/constructed by the domestic workers to give meaning to the eldercare work they do abroad, while also drawing out the ways in which left-behind parents both receive and provide care as a result of their daughters' migration. Our paper extends conceptualisation of the 'care slot' by eliciting the multidirectional aspects of caregiving and care receiving in a transnational context, and with respect to ageing and intergenerational familyhood across borders and the life course.
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BFBNIB, DOBA, IZUM, KILJ, NUK, PILJ, PNG, SAZU, UILJ, UKNU, UL, UM, UPUK
Genital Ulcer Disease (GUD) carries a significant disease burden globally. With limited access to diagnostics, the 2001 World Health Organization (WHO) sexually transmitted illnesses (STI) guidelines ...proposed a syndromic management algorithm that required a clinical decision to determine the management of GUD. We assessed the diagnostic accuracy of this algorithm.
We conducted a systematic review (Prospero: CRD42020153294) using eight databases for publications between 1995 and January 2021 that reported primary data on the diagnostic accuracy of clinical diagnosis to identify aetiological agents of GUD. Titles and abstracts were independently assessed for eligibility, and data were extracted from full texts for sensitivity/specificity. A hierarchical logistic regression model was used to derive pooled sensitivity and specificity. We used GRADE to evaluate the certainty of evidence.
Of 24,857 articles, 151 full texts were examined and 29 included in the analysis. The majority were from middle-income countries (14/29 (48%) lower middle, 10/29 (34%) upper middle). We pooled studies where molecular testing was using to confirm the aetiology of GUD: 9 studies (12 estimates) for herpes, 4 studies (7 estimates) for syphilis, and 7 studies (10 estimates) for chancroid. The pooled sensitivity and specificity of GUD for the detection of herpes was 43.5% 95% confidence interval (CI): 26.2-62.4, and 88.0% (95% CI: 67.0-96.3), respectively (high certainty evidence); and for syphilis were 52.8% (95% CI: 23.0-80.7), and 72.1% (95% CI: 28.0-94.5) (moderate certainty evidence); and for chancroid were 71.9% (95% CI: 45.9-88.5) and 53.1% (95% CI: 36.6-68.9) (moderate certainty evidence), respectively.
Algorithms requiring a clinical diagnosis to determine and treat the aetiology of GUD have poor sensitivities for syphilis and herpes simplex virus, resulting in significant numbers of missed cases. There is an urgent need to improve access to affordable and efficient diagnostics (e.g., point-of-care tests) to be incorporated into GUD algorithms to better guide appropriate management.
PROSPERO, identifier: CRD42020153294.
Female condom (FC) has been available for over 30 years, but it still lacks wide acceptability. To overcome misdirection and invagination occurring in FC and to provide a wider area of protection, ...Wondaleaf
(WL), a new-generation adhesive FC, was recently invented. This pioneering study sought to assess the acceptability and functional performance of WL among Malaysian women.
A mixed method survey was conducted in three cities of Malaysia, recruiting sexually active heterosexual women, aged 18-50, by snowball sampling method. Participants were provided with WL and initially surveyed to rate its performance in five coital usages over 2 months. After that, the participants underwent a second survey to rate their satisfaction and acceptability toward WL. Descriptive statistics on clinical failure rates were tabulated with correlational analysis performed to identify major variables contributing to WL's functional performance and acceptability.
Out of the 51 enrolled participants, 31 women completed the required surveys. WL's total clinical failure rate was 2.60% (out of 155 condom uses) with above-average ratings of functional performance. The ease of use significantly correlated with ratings of no slippage and no misdirection. The confidence in WL's safety features significantly correlated with a sense of empowerment and protection.
WL has a relatively low risk of clinical failures and an overall favorable acceptability among Malaysian women. However, this study also showed that its future usage largely depends on partner acceptability. It may have the potential of complementing the existing barrier toward contraceptive use. Further studies are needed to understand the global acceptability of WL.
Low-paid domestic work abroad is particularly devalued in Myanmar's traditional culture but an increasing number of women from Myanmar are taking up such work. Negative perceptions of domestic worker ...migration in Myanmar-rationalizing as well as reinforced by a government ban on women's migration as domestic labor (from 2014-2019)-entrenches gender inequalities in the country and individualizes the risks that women encounter during migration. The stigma attached to paid domestic work is extended to a transnational context during migration to Singapore. This article contributes geographical perspectives to the literature on migration risk by highlighting the scalar and transnational dimensions of risk, as well as the entanglement of the public and private spheres. The article also proposes the concept of "multiple intersectional domains" to capture how intersectional identities crosscut with particular social locations to produce cumulative disadvantage during migration. The Myanmar government's lack of recognition and protection for migrant domestic workers, alongside the "hidden" geographies of domestic work in Singapore, result in structural conditions that entrench risks across multiple intersectional domains thereby enacting slow violence on such migrants. The article draws on qualitative multisited field work conducted in Myanmar and Singapore between 2018 and 2019.
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BFBNIB, DOBA, IZUM, KILJ, NUK, PILJ, PNG, SAZU, UILJ, UKNU, UL, UM, UPUK
BackgroundThe integration of holistic and effective end-of-life (EOL) care into cancer management has increasingly become a recognized field. People living with terminal cancer and their caregivers ...face a unique set of emotional, spiritual, and social stressors, which may be managed by psychosocial interventions.ObjectivesThis study aimed to explore the types and characteristics of psychosocial interventions at the EOL for adult cancer patients and their caregivers and to identify gaps in the current literature.MethodsA systematic search was conducted through MEDLINE (Ovid) and CINAHL from January 1, 2011, to January 31, 2021, retrieving 2453 results. A final 15 articles fulfilled the inclusion criteria, reviewed by 2 independent reviewers. Ten percent of the original articles were cross-checked against study eligibility at every stage by 2 experienced researchers.ResultsMost interventions reported were psychotherapies, with a predominance of meaning or legacy-related psychotherapies. Most interventions were brief, with significant caregiver involvement. Most studies were conducted in high-income, English-speaking populations.ConclusionThere is robust, although heterogeneous, literature on a range of psychosocial interventions at the EOL. However, inconsistencies in the terminology used surrounding EOL and means of outcome assessment made the comparison of interventions challenging.Implication for PracticeFuture studies will benefit from increased standardization of study design, EOL terminology, and outcome assessment to allow for a better comparison of intervention efficacy. There is a need for increased research in psychosocial interventions among middle- to low-income populations exploring social aspects, intimacy, and the impact of COVID-19.
Background
The integration of holistic and effective end-of-life (EOL) care into cancer management has increasingly become a recognized field. People living with terminal cancer and their caregivers ...face a unique set of emotional, spiritual, and social stressors, which may be managed by psychosocial interventions.
Objectives
This study aimed to explore the types and characteristics of psychosocial interventions at the EOL for adult cancer patients and their caregivers and to identify gaps in the current literature.
Methods
A systematic search was conducted through MEDLINE (Ovid) and CINAHL from January 1, 2011, to January 31, 2021, retrieving 2453 results. A final 15 articles fulfilled the inclusion criteria, reviewed by 2 independent reviewers. Ten percent of the original articles were cross-checked against study eligibility at every stage by 2 experienced researchers.
Results
Most interventions reported were psychotherapies, with a predominance of meaning or legacy-related psychotherapies. Most interventions were brief, with significant caregiver involvement. Most studies were conducted in high-income, English-speaking populations.
Conclusion
There is robust, although heterogeneous, literature on a range of psychosocial interventions at the EOL. However, inconsistencies in the terminology used surrounding EOL and means of outcome assessment made the comparison of interventions challenging.
Implication for Practice
Future studies will benefit from increased standardization of study design, EOL terminology, and outcome assessment to allow for a better comparison of intervention efficacy. There is a need for increased research in psychosocial interventions among middle- to low-income populations exploring social aspects, intimacy, and the impact of COVID-19.
The integration of holistic and effective end-of-life (EOL) care into cancer management has increasingly become a recognized field. People living with terminal cancer and their caregivers face a ...unique set of emotional, spiritual, and social stressors, which may be managed by psychosocial interventions.
This study aimed to explore the types and characteristics of psychosocial interventions at the EOL for adult cancer patients and their caregivers and to identify gaps in the current literature.
A systematic search was conducted through MEDLINE (Ovid) and CINAHL from January 1, 2011, to January 31, 2021, retrieving 2453 results. A final 15 articles fulfilled the inclusion criteria, reviewed by 2 independent reviewers. Ten percent of the original articles were cross-checked against study eligibility at every stage by 2 experienced researchers.
Most interventions reported were psychotherapies, with a predominance of meaning or legacy-related psychotherapies. Most interventions were brief, with significant caregiver involvement. Most studies were conducted in high-income, English-speaking populations.
There is robust, although heterogeneous, literature on a range of psychosocial interventions at the EOL. However, inconsistencies in the terminology used surrounding EOL and means of outcome assessment made the comparison of interventions challenging.
Future studies will benefit from increased standardization of study design, EOL terminology, and outcome assessment to allow for a better comparison of intervention efficacy. There is a need for increased research in psychosocial interventions among middle- to low-income populations exploring social aspects, intimacy, and the impact of COVID-19.
Background: Female condom (FC) has been available for over 30 years, but it still lacks wide acceptability. To overcome misdirection and invagination occurring in FC and to provide a wider area of ...protection, WondaleafR (WL), a new-generation adhesive FC, was recently invented. This pioneering study sought to assess the acceptability and functional performance of WL among Malaysian women. Methods: A mixed method survey was conducted in three cities of Malaysia, recruiting sexually active heterosexual women, aged 18-50, by snowball sampling method. Participants were provided with WL and initially surveyed to rate its performance in five coital usages over 2 months. After that, the participants underwent a second survey to rate their satisfaction and acceptability toward WL. Descriptive statistics on clinical failure rates were tabulated with correlational analysis performed to identify major variables contributing to WL's functional performance and acceptability. Results: Out of the 51 enrolled participants, 31 women completed the required surveys. WL's total clinical failure rate was 2.60% (out of 155 condom uses) with above-average ratings of functional performance. The ease of use significantly correlated with ratings of no slippage and no misdirection. The confidence in WL's safety features significantly correlated with a sense of empowerment and protection. Conclusion: WL has a relatively low risk of clinical failures and an overall favorable acceptability among Malaysian women. However, this study also showed that its future usage largely depends on partner acceptability. It may have the potential of complementing the existing barrier toward contraceptive use. Further studies are needed to understand the global acceptability of WL. Keywords: female condom, Wondaleaf, functional performance, acceptability, Malaysian women, contraceptives methods
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