odwa atari - Academia.edu (original) (raw)
Papers by odwa atari
African Geographical Review
South Sudan Medical Journal, 2019
Some of the authors of this publication are also working on these related projects: Making Market... more Some of the authors of this publication are also working on these related projects: Making Markets More Inclusive View project The influence of spirituality on health perception and outcomes among three immigrant communities in Ontario, Canada View project
Abstract: This study aimed at establishing the relationship between annoyance scores and modelled... more Abstract: This study aimed at establishing the relationship between annoyance scores and modelled air pollution in “Chemical Valley”, Sarnia, Ontario (Canada). Annoyance scores were taken from a community health survey (N = 774); and respondents ’ exposure to nitrogen dioxide (NO2) and sulphur dioxide (SO2) were estimated using land use regression (LUR) models. The associations were examined by univariate analysis while multivariate logistic regression was used to examine the determinants of odour annoyance. The results showed that odour annoyance was significantly correlated to modelled pollutants at the individual (NO2, r = 0.15; SO2, r = 0.13) and census tract (NO2, r = 0.56; SO2, r = 0.67) levels. The exposure-response relationships show that residents of Sarnia react to very low pollution concentrations levels even if they are within the Ontario ambient air quality criteria. The study found that exposure to high NO2 and SO2 concentrations, gender, and perception of health effec...
Journal of Religion and Health, 2021
The association between religion and health has been the subject of growing interest in academia.... more The association between religion and health has been the subject of growing interest in academia. However, limited reviews of such studies in Canada exist. The paper systematically reviews and synthesizes existing literature on the relationship between spirituality and health in Canada. Available general databases such as: Medline; Web of Science, PubMed, Sociological abstract, Social Service Abstracts, Google scholar, Humanities International Index, JSTOR, CPI.Q Canadian Periodicals, and American Theological Library Association were searched for the period between 2000 and April 2019 inclusive. Collected data were then systematically analysed for common themes about spirituality and health in Canada. In total, 151 articles were found, but only 128 had relevance with the study objectives. Overall, the analysis showed that religion and spirituality do influence health behaviours, and well-being. However, more gender-based studies need to be conducted to tease out the differences in religion/spirituality and health across different genders, and ethnic groups in Canada.
Journal of Adolescent Research, 2021
This article draws on grounded theory and ethnographic fieldwork approaches and applies a politic... more This article draws on grounded theory and ethnographic fieldwork approaches and applies a political ecology of adolescent health (PEAH) framework to examine how school-going adolescent girls and their communities perceive sexual and reproductive health education (SRHE) and menstrual hygiene management (MHM) in the region. Three young girls were purposefully selected from each of 10 government-run mixed primary schools in Juba, South Sudan, as peer research evaluators (PREs) and key informants ( N = 30). Each PRE interviewed and reported on three of their peers about how they talk about and manage menstruation. The findings show that political, socioeconomic, and cultural factors do influence adolescent girls’ and their communities’ perceptions about puberty and menstruation. In general, MHM was culturally constructed, but the results show a disproportionate emphasis on social norms rather than on SRHE, which could have long-lasting health implications for adolescent girls. There is ...
African Geographical Review
Gender differences in the prevalence and determinants of tobacco use among school-aged adolescent... more Gender differences in the prevalence and determinants of tobacco use among school-aged adolescents (11 – 17 years) in Sudan and South Sudan
Within- and between-city contrasts in nitrogen dioxide and mortality in 10 Canadian cities; a sub... more Within- and between-city contrasts in nitrogen dioxide and mortality in 10 Canadian cities; a subset of the Canadian
Journal of Religion and Health, 2020
Background: The association between religion and health has been the subject of growing interest ... more Background: The association between religion and health has been the subject of growing interest in academia. However, limited reviews of such studies in Canada exist. The paper systematically reviews and synthesizes existing literature on the relationship between spirituality and health in Canada. Method: Available general databases such as: Medline; Web of Science, PubMed, Sociological abstract, Social Service Abstracts, Google scholar, Humanities International Index, JSTOR, CPI.Q Canadian Periodicals, and ATLA (American Theological Library Association) were searched for the period between 2000 and April 2019 inclusive. Collected data was then systematically analyzed for common themes about spirituality and health in Canada. Results: In total, 151 articles were found, but only 128 had relevance with the study objectives. Overall, the analysis showed that religion and spirituality do influence health behaviours, and well-being. However, more gender-based studies need to be conducte...
Health & Place
This paper draws on a qualitative study (n = 52) and applies a political ecology of health framew... more This paper draws on a qualitative study (n = 52) and applies a political ecology of health framework to examine men's perceptions of women's reproductive health in South Sudan. The findings suggest that political practices of place making configure men's views of women's reproductive roles in this new nation state. In particular, masculinity intertwines with fears of losing traditional culture, and with lingering concerns about sovereignty to underpin men's deep aversion to modern family planning methods. In addition, the use of tribal militia to control territory and leverage political power places women's reproduction at the centre of South Sudan's post-secession politics. Improving health in such a fragile environment may require more than rebuilding the health infrastructure and guaranteeing financial access to health care.
South Sudan Medical Journal, 2019
Introduction: Conflict in South Sudan has displaced 2.3 million people, of whom 789,098 (35%) hav... more Introduction: Conflict in South Sudan has displaced 2.3 million people, of whom 789,098 (35%) have taken refuge in Uganda – a country that allows refugees to work, own property, start their own businesses and access public health services. In this context, refugees have identified livelihoods and primary health care as key priorities for their wellbeing. Objective: Building on previous research in South Sudan and Uganda, the objective of our current work is exploring how income-generating livelihood activities and other interventions can be used to support primary health care for South Sudanese refugees in Kiryandongo District, Uganda. Methods: We drew on existing secondary data and five scoping visits to the refugee settlements in Kiryandongo and northern Uganda to formulate our approach. Results: In Kiryandongo District, primary health care and livelihoods can best be supported by an integrated combination of 1) providing standardised training to local Village Health Teams (VHTs);...
Midwifery
Conflict of Interestwe do no have any conflict of interest to declare Ethical Approval-This study... more Conflict of Interestwe do no have any conflict of interest to declare Ethical Approval-This study used secondary data from Demographic and Health Survey (DHS) collected in more than 90 countries and are freely available to the public. The Rwanda DHS survey undergo ethical review by the Ministry of Health in Rwanda. Further information about ethical clearance can be found on: https://dhsprogram.com/what-we-do/survey/survey-display-468.cfm Funding Sourceswe did not receive funding from any organization to analyse the Rwanda DHS data and prepare the manuscript
Journal of health care for the poor and underserved, 2015
This paper reports findings of a qualitative study and draws on the political ecology of health f... more This paper reports findings of a qualitative study and draws on the political ecology of health framework to examine the links between housing and health among people living with HIV/AIDS (PLWAs) in Northern Malawi in a wider context in which the epidemic has overburdened the country's hospitals, thereby transferring the responsibility for care from government to families. The findings suggest that poor housing conditions, rooted in colonial and postcolonial policy failure, may undermine the amount, as well as the quality, of palliative care available to PLWAs. It was also found that the high cost of renting, discrimination, and poor landlord-tenant relationships imposed significant financial and emotional burden on PLWAs, thereby undermining their ability to meet dietary needs, stay healthy, and adhere to treatment. Furthermore, customary norms around property inheritance hampered women's housing security and their ability to cope with the disease. The paper concludes by ma...
Environmental health : a global access science source, Jan 9, 2011
Health impacts of poor environmental quality have been identified in studies around the world and... more Health impacts of poor environmental quality have been identified in studies around the world and in Canada. While many of the studies have identified associations between air pollution and mortality or morbidity, few have focused on the role of health care as a potential moderator of impacts. This study assessed the determinants of health care access and utilization in the context of ambient air pollution in Sarnia, Ontario, Canada. Residents of Sarnia participated in a Community Health Study administered by phone, while several ambient air pollutants including nitrogen dioxide (NO2), sulphur dioxide (SO2) and the volatile organic compounds benzene, toluene, ethylbenzene, mp- and o-xylene (BTEX) were monitored across the city. Land Use Regression models were used to estimate individual exposures to the measured pollutants and logistic regression models were utilized to assess the relative influence of environmental, socioeconomic and health related covariates on general practitione...
Journal of Exposure Science and Environmental Epidemiology, 2015
The independent and joint effects of within-and between-city contrasts in air pollution on mortal... more The independent and joint effects of within-and between-city contrasts in air pollution on mortality have been investigated rarely. To examine the differential effects of between-versus within-city contrasts in pollution exposure, we used both ambient measurements and land use regression models to assess associations with mortality and exposure to nitrogen dioxide (NO 2) among 735,600 adults in 10 of the largest Canadian cities. We estimated exposure contrasts partitioned into within-and between-city contrasts, and the sum of these as overall exposures, for every year from 1984 to 2006. Residential histories allowed us to follow subjects annually during the study period. We calculated hazard ratios (HRs) adjusted for many personal and contextual variables. In fully-adjusted, random-effects models, we found positive associations between overall NO 2 exposures and mortality from nonaccidental causes (HR per 5 p.p.b.
The Scientific World JOURNAL, 2011
Spatial monitoring campaigns of volatile organic compounds were carried out in two similarly size... more Spatial monitoring campaigns of volatile organic compounds were carried out in two similarly sized urban industrial cities, Windsor and Sarnia, ON, Canada. For Windsor, data were obtained for all four seasons at approximately 50 sites in each season (winter, spring, summer, and fall) over a three-year period (2004, 2005, and 2006) for a total of 12 sampling sessions. Sampling in Sarnia took place at 37 monitoring sites in fall 2005. In both cities, passive sampling was done using 3M 3500 organic vapor samplers. This paper characterizes benzene, toluene, ethylbenzene,o, and (m+p)-xylene (BTEX) concentrations and relationships among BTEX species in the two cities during the fall sampling periods. BTEX concentration levels and rank order among the species were similar between the two cities. In Sarnia, the relationships between the BTEX species varied depending on location. Correlation analysis between land use and concentration ratios showed a strong influence from local industries. U...
Journal of Vocational Education & Training, 2014
The Republic of South Sudan, recently emerging from the longest civil war in contemporary African... more The Republic of South Sudan, recently emerging from the longest civil war in contemporary African history, has set goals towards post-conflict reconstruction in many areas of social services. However, the educational infrastructure continues to struggle, and many stakeholders in government and international and local organisations are not sufficiently aware of the needs, challenges and opportunities that face the implementation of technical and vocational education and training (TVET) in the country. Preparing future generations of youth and adults with in-demand technical skills and retraining ex-combatants to enter a peacetime workforce is essential to the development and growth of South Sudan. As a first step towards creating the foundation necessary for post-conflict training, we collected and analysed qualitative data from focus groups, in-depth interviews, field observations, and archival documents and identified three interrelated elements that require attention for the effective development of TVET: political climate, curriculum and delivery options. The resulting findings offer a starting point for addressing some of the key constraining factors for the important job of TVET development in South Sudan.
African Geographical Review
South Sudan Medical Journal, 2019
Some of the authors of this publication are also working on these related projects: Making Market... more Some of the authors of this publication are also working on these related projects: Making Markets More Inclusive View project The influence of spirituality on health perception and outcomes among three immigrant communities in Ontario, Canada View project
Abstract: This study aimed at establishing the relationship between annoyance scores and modelled... more Abstract: This study aimed at establishing the relationship between annoyance scores and modelled air pollution in “Chemical Valley”, Sarnia, Ontario (Canada). Annoyance scores were taken from a community health survey (N = 774); and respondents ’ exposure to nitrogen dioxide (NO2) and sulphur dioxide (SO2) were estimated using land use regression (LUR) models. The associations were examined by univariate analysis while multivariate logistic regression was used to examine the determinants of odour annoyance. The results showed that odour annoyance was significantly correlated to modelled pollutants at the individual (NO2, r = 0.15; SO2, r = 0.13) and census tract (NO2, r = 0.56; SO2, r = 0.67) levels. The exposure-response relationships show that residents of Sarnia react to very low pollution concentrations levels even if they are within the Ontario ambient air quality criteria. The study found that exposure to high NO2 and SO2 concentrations, gender, and perception of health effec...
Journal of Religion and Health, 2021
The association between religion and health has been the subject of growing interest in academia.... more The association between religion and health has been the subject of growing interest in academia. However, limited reviews of such studies in Canada exist. The paper systematically reviews and synthesizes existing literature on the relationship between spirituality and health in Canada. Available general databases such as: Medline; Web of Science, PubMed, Sociological abstract, Social Service Abstracts, Google scholar, Humanities International Index, JSTOR, CPI.Q Canadian Periodicals, and American Theological Library Association were searched for the period between 2000 and April 2019 inclusive. Collected data were then systematically analysed for common themes about spirituality and health in Canada. In total, 151 articles were found, but only 128 had relevance with the study objectives. Overall, the analysis showed that religion and spirituality do influence health behaviours, and well-being. However, more gender-based studies need to be conducted to tease out the differences in religion/spirituality and health across different genders, and ethnic groups in Canada.
Journal of Adolescent Research, 2021
This article draws on grounded theory and ethnographic fieldwork approaches and applies a politic... more This article draws on grounded theory and ethnographic fieldwork approaches and applies a political ecology of adolescent health (PEAH) framework to examine how school-going adolescent girls and their communities perceive sexual and reproductive health education (SRHE) and menstrual hygiene management (MHM) in the region. Three young girls were purposefully selected from each of 10 government-run mixed primary schools in Juba, South Sudan, as peer research evaluators (PREs) and key informants ( N = 30). Each PRE interviewed and reported on three of their peers about how they talk about and manage menstruation. The findings show that political, socioeconomic, and cultural factors do influence adolescent girls’ and their communities’ perceptions about puberty and menstruation. In general, MHM was culturally constructed, but the results show a disproportionate emphasis on social norms rather than on SRHE, which could have long-lasting health implications for adolescent girls. There is ...
African Geographical Review
Gender differences in the prevalence and determinants of tobacco use among school-aged adolescent... more Gender differences in the prevalence and determinants of tobacco use among school-aged adolescents (11 – 17 years) in Sudan and South Sudan
Within- and between-city contrasts in nitrogen dioxide and mortality in 10 Canadian cities; a sub... more Within- and between-city contrasts in nitrogen dioxide and mortality in 10 Canadian cities; a subset of the Canadian
Journal of Religion and Health, 2020
Background: The association between religion and health has been the subject of growing interest ... more Background: The association between religion and health has been the subject of growing interest in academia. However, limited reviews of such studies in Canada exist. The paper systematically reviews and synthesizes existing literature on the relationship between spirituality and health in Canada. Method: Available general databases such as: Medline; Web of Science, PubMed, Sociological abstract, Social Service Abstracts, Google scholar, Humanities International Index, JSTOR, CPI.Q Canadian Periodicals, and ATLA (American Theological Library Association) were searched for the period between 2000 and April 2019 inclusive. Collected data was then systematically analyzed for common themes about spirituality and health in Canada. Results: In total, 151 articles were found, but only 128 had relevance with the study objectives. Overall, the analysis showed that religion and spirituality do influence health behaviours, and well-being. However, more gender-based studies need to be conducte...
Health & Place
This paper draws on a qualitative study (n = 52) and applies a political ecology of health framew... more This paper draws on a qualitative study (n = 52) and applies a political ecology of health framework to examine men's perceptions of women's reproductive health in South Sudan. The findings suggest that political practices of place making configure men's views of women's reproductive roles in this new nation state. In particular, masculinity intertwines with fears of losing traditional culture, and with lingering concerns about sovereignty to underpin men's deep aversion to modern family planning methods. In addition, the use of tribal militia to control territory and leverage political power places women's reproduction at the centre of South Sudan's post-secession politics. Improving health in such a fragile environment may require more than rebuilding the health infrastructure and guaranteeing financial access to health care.
South Sudan Medical Journal, 2019
Introduction: Conflict in South Sudan has displaced 2.3 million people, of whom 789,098 (35%) hav... more Introduction: Conflict in South Sudan has displaced 2.3 million people, of whom 789,098 (35%) have taken refuge in Uganda – a country that allows refugees to work, own property, start their own businesses and access public health services. In this context, refugees have identified livelihoods and primary health care as key priorities for their wellbeing. Objective: Building on previous research in South Sudan and Uganda, the objective of our current work is exploring how income-generating livelihood activities and other interventions can be used to support primary health care for South Sudanese refugees in Kiryandongo District, Uganda. Methods: We drew on existing secondary data and five scoping visits to the refugee settlements in Kiryandongo and northern Uganda to formulate our approach. Results: In Kiryandongo District, primary health care and livelihoods can best be supported by an integrated combination of 1) providing standardised training to local Village Health Teams (VHTs);...
Midwifery
Conflict of Interestwe do no have any conflict of interest to declare Ethical Approval-This study... more Conflict of Interestwe do no have any conflict of interest to declare Ethical Approval-This study used secondary data from Demographic and Health Survey (DHS) collected in more than 90 countries and are freely available to the public. The Rwanda DHS survey undergo ethical review by the Ministry of Health in Rwanda. Further information about ethical clearance can be found on: https://dhsprogram.com/what-we-do/survey/survey-display-468.cfm Funding Sourceswe did not receive funding from any organization to analyse the Rwanda DHS data and prepare the manuscript
Journal of health care for the poor and underserved, 2015
This paper reports findings of a qualitative study and draws on the political ecology of health f... more This paper reports findings of a qualitative study and draws on the political ecology of health framework to examine the links between housing and health among people living with HIV/AIDS (PLWAs) in Northern Malawi in a wider context in which the epidemic has overburdened the country's hospitals, thereby transferring the responsibility for care from government to families. The findings suggest that poor housing conditions, rooted in colonial and postcolonial policy failure, may undermine the amount, as well as the quality, of palliative care available to PLWAs. It was also found that the high cost of renting, discrimination, and poor landlord-tenant relationships imposed significant financial and emotional burden on PLWAs, thereby undermining their ability to meet dietary needs, stay healthy, and adhere to treatment. Furthermore, customary norms around property inheritance hampered women's housing security and their ability to cope with the disease. The paper concludes by ma...
Environmental health : a global access science source, Jan 9, 2011
Health impacts of poor environmental quality have been identified in studies around the world and... more Health impacts of poor environmental quality have been identified in studies around the world and in Canada. While many of the studies have identified associations between air pollution and mortality or morbidity, few have focused on the role of health care as a potential moderator of impacts. This study assessed the determinants of health care access and utilization in the context of ambient air pollution in Sarnia, Ontario, Canada. Residents of Sarnia participated in a Community Health Study administered by phone, while several ambient air pollutants including nitrogen dioxide (NO2), sulphur dioxide (SO2) and the volatile organic compounds benzene, toluene, ethylbenzene, mp- and o-xylene (BTEX) were monitored across the city. Land Use Regression models were used to estimate individual exposures to the measured pollutants and logistic regression models were utilized to assess the relative influence of environmental, socioeconomic and health related covariates on general practitione...
Journal of Exposure Science and Environmental Epidemiology, 2015
The independent and joint effects of within-and between-city contrasts in air pollution on mortal... more The independent and joint effects of within-and between-city contrasts in air pollution on mortality have been investigated rarely. To examine the differential effects of between-versus within-city contrasts in pollution exposure, we used both ambient measurements and land use regression models to assess associations with mortality and exposure to nitrogen dioxide (NO 2) among 735,600 adults in 10 of the largest Canadian cities. We estimated exposure contrasts partitioned into within-and between-city contrasts, and the sum of these as overall exposures, for every year from 1984 to 2006. Residential histories allowed us to follow subjects annually during the study period. We calculated hazard ratios (HRs) adjusted for many personal and contextual variables. In fully-adjusted, random-effects models, we found positive associations between overall NO 2 exposures and mortality from nonaccidental causes (HR per 5 p.p.b.
The Scientific World JOURNAL, 2011
Spatial monitoring campaigns of volatile organic compounds were carried out in two similarly size... more Spatial monitoring campaigns of volatile organic compounds were carried out in two similarly sized urban industrial cities, Windsor and Sarnia, ON, Canada. For Windsor, data were obtained for all four seasons at approximately 50 sites in each season (winter, spring, summer, and fall) over a three-year period (2004, 2005, and 2006) for a total of 12 sampling sessions. Sampling in Sarnia took place at 37 monitoring sites in fall 2005. In both cities, passive sampling was done using 3M 3500 organic vapor samplers. This paper characterizes benzene, toluene, ethylbenzene,o, and (m+p)-xylene (BTEX) concentrations and relationships among BTEX species in the two cities during the fall sampling periods. BTEX concentration levels and rank order among the species were similar between the two cities. In Sarnia, the relationships between the BTEX species varied depending on location. Correlation analysis between land use and concentration ratios showed a strong influence from local industries. U...
Journal of Vocational Education & Training, 2014
The Republic of South Sudan, recently emerging from the longest civil war in contemporary African... more The Republic of South Sudan, recently emerging from the longest civil war in contemporary African history, has set goals towards post-conflict reconstruction in many areas of social services. However, the educational infrastructure continues to struggle, and many stakeholders in government and international and local organisations are not sufficiently aware of the needs, challenges and opportunities that face the implementation of technical and vocational education and training (TVET) in the country. Preparing future generations of youth and adults with in-demand technical skills and retraining ex-combatants to enter a peacetime workforce is essential to the development and growth of South Sudan. As a first step towards creating the foundation necessary for post-conflict training, we collected and analysed qualitative data from focus groups, in-depth interviews, field observations, and archival documents and identified three interrelated elements that require attention for the effective development of TVET: political climate, curriculum and delivery options. The resulting findings offer a starting point for addressing some of the key constraining factors for the important job of TVET development in South Sudan.