Article by Sandra Y. Oketch Globally, access to sexual reproductive health rights (SRHR services) have been greatly hampered by social exclusion, more so in Africa. In November 2019, Kenya was privileged to host the United Nations summit - International Conference on Population and Development (ICPD 25) - which focused on diversity, abortion care, ending gender based violence, elimination of female genital mutilation, FGM, ending unmet need for family planning, comprehensive sexuality education, mental health and psychosocial support, HIV prevention for adolescent girls and women. Women and other minority groups experience social exclusion when women and girls get abortions, when girls fail to undergo traditional practices of some communities, like the FGM, and are considered outcasts, and when individuals identify as Lesbian, Gay, Bisexual, or Transgender, LGBT. There exists high maternal morbidity and mortality in women due to unsafe abortion practices. In Kenya, abortion is illegal and only legalized in instances where the health care provider assesses that the life or health of the...
Article by Diya Chadha This election cycle’s candidates are comprised of a diverse group, with representation of people from different racial/ethnic groups, sexual identities, religious backgrounds, geographic backgrounds, and more. They fall into different categories when it comes to where they stand on the democratic “spectrum” as well. More than ever before though, we’ve seen a strong contingent of very liberal, democratic socialist candidates for the presidency, in addition to politics in general. Because of the increasingly leftist policies that they’re proposing (especially when compared to the current state of U.S. politics), it has been interesting to see just how the candidates opt to speak about abortion and reproductive healthcare access, both as a women’s rights issue and a healthcare one. Interestingly, as progressive of a group as the candidates seem to be, they’re really failing when it comes to the way they talk about abortion in the explicit sense. At the last democratic debate, only two of the eight candidates asked...
Article by: Diya Chadha Abortion and reproductive healthcare access at large have definitely been key areas of contention and policy focus under the Trump administration. Notably, the reform of Title X under the domestic gag rule and the passing of “heartbeat bills” in nearly 15 states have imposed serious limitations on women’s access to healthcare in the country. And, as much as we hail Supreme Court decisions to function as laws of the land, working to remedy some of the outdatedness of the Constitution, it is simply unreasonable to throw complete faith into the institution given how unorthodox politics have become. As can be seen with those aforementioned policy changes, it is clear that the legislative climate has become increasingly restrictive and less progressive, arguably working in the opposite direction of how it traditionally changes over time. Naturally, the interested portion of the public has been looking towards the 2020 candidates to see how they aim to combat the seemingly growing...
This summer I worked as a Legislative Assistant on the Government Relations, Advocacy, and Community Engagement (GRACE) team at the Anti-Defamation League (ADL) in Washington, DC. The mission of the ADL is to stop the defamation of the Jewish people and secure justice and fair treatment for all. Among the organization's core policy issues is protecting religious freedom by ensuring separation of Church and State. The ADL advances separation of Church and State by filing amici briefs in nearly every religious freedom case. Moreover, the ADL supports legislation such as the Do No Harm Act that ensures religious freedom cannot be misused to discriminate. Throughout my internship, I had the opportunity to attend hearings, write blog posts, and write public comments in response to different issues related to religious freedom such as LGBTQ equality and access to healthcare. Throughout college, my policy interests have been focused on domestic and global women’s health issues. My passion for reproductive health is rooted in...
Part 3: Mama, LLC In Part 2 of this Pelvic Health Physical Therapy, we were introduced to Dr. Laura Keyser, a physical therapist who specializes in maternal and child health. She also is the co-founder of Mama, LLC. Dr. Keyser was able to share some aspects of her work at Mama, LLC and to inform us of some projects the firm is working on. Mama, LLC is a physical therapy and public health consulting firm that specializes in domestic and international women’s and girl’s health. Mama, LLC partners with humanitarian organizations, professional organizations, educational institutions, and for-profit groups to meet maternal and women’s health needs around the world. The firm’s work includes but is not limited to education efforts, promotion and advocacy, research, and rehabilitation capacity building. When asked about her work at Mama, LLC, Dr. Keyser reports: “We see the health concerns of women and girls around the world as experiences on the same continuum. While women in low income, low resource settings...
Part 2: How Physical Therapists Are Helping Women’s Health on the Global Stage In January, I attended a presentation by Dr. Laura Keyser, a prominent figure in world of pelvic and global health. Keyser has been a physical therapist for 12 years and has developed public health expertise in maternal and child health. She also is the co-founder of Mama, LLC, which is a physical therapy and public health consulting firm that specializes in women’s and girl’s health. I had the wonderful opportunity to pick Dr. Keyser’s brain about global women’s health issues and how she sees physical therapy helping solve those problems. For the past ten years, Dr. Keyser has acted as a consultant to local and international organizations such as Global Strategies, EngenderHealth, the Harvard Humanitarian Initiative, Panzi Hospital and Foundations and HEAL Africa DRC. Through this role she has developed rehabilitation programs and community outreach initiatives in many parts of Africa and south Asia. When asked about her first...
Part 1: An Introduction to Pelvic Health Therapy Services Throughout my studies in Duke’s Doctor of Physical Therapy program, I have become exposed to many different types of physical therapy that I never knew existed. In addition to the more common fields of physical therapy, such as orthopedics and neurological, physical therapists are critical health care providers for premature infants in the NICU, for injured dogs and horses, and for individuals with pelvic floor dysfunction. Pelvic health physical therapists can help treat patients with such as urinary or fecal incontinence, pelvic organ prolapse, dyspareunia (pain during intercourse), pelvic pain, chronic low back pain, sacroiliac joint dysfunction, and a variety of other conditions. To treat some of these conditions, physical therapists help relax spasming of pelvic floor muscles through manual therapy manipulations, strengthen pelvic floor muscles through biofeedback systems and exercise prescription, and re-educate the bladder with strategies such as bowel/bladder diaries or bladder voiding schedules. As such, physical therapists play a vital...
Earlier this month, I looked up from my computer screen and realized that it was December 1st. It felt like 2018 had flown by, almost as fast as it came. As excited as I am to move towards the 2020 elections with the potential for positive change, I think it’s important to take some time to look back at this year’s events that I perceived to be the good, the bad, and the ugly in the larger conversation of reproductive justice. When I think of 2018, I think of multiple, and often emotionally exhausting conversations about sexual and gender-based violence. From the heartbreaking discovery in Northern India that sparked protests throughout the country to the United Nations’ report that 50,000 women a year are killed by intimate partners, news headlines this year have been pretty grim. We all watched in horror as the of the Senate Judiciary Committee hearing unfolded, bringing with it, memories of Anita Hill’s similarly traumatic experience decades...
October 28, 2018 was not merely a day of yellow sunlight and cool fall air, but rather, the origin of a radical transformation of my being facilitated by Progress Period, a menstrual activism club at Duke University. The screen of my phone reported “12:27pm,” lighting anew a sense of urgency beneath my already frantic feet. The event was set to begin at 12:30pm and with the panicked realization that I was indeed going to be late, I barreled down the stairs towards Schiciano Auditorium. At 12:29pm, just as I allowed myself a breath of assured relief that I would make the event on time, I was stopped dead in my tracks.
“Outside the (tampon) box: menstruating isn’t just for women,” declared a flyer taped to the glass door.
Confusion clouded my awareness and my mind raced with questions, relegating my aspirational punctuality to a non-possibility. Among this maelstrom of questions, the loudest bubbled to the surface: Is menstruation not a qualifier of womanhood?...
According to the World Health Organization (WHO), Universal Health Care (UHC) is aimed at ensuring that all people are able to receive medicine and treatment without suffering financial hardships. Kenya is working to implement this healthcare strategy, with the goal of allowing more Kenyans access to healthcare in public health facilities. Additionally, Kenyans will be able to access the same services in private hospitals without digging very deep into their pockets. Despite this bold move by the Kenyan President to create affordable healthcare for all, human resources, finance, essential medical products, technologies and service delivery remain challenges. The story of a woman under the alias of “Dorothy” exemplifies the financial challenge in assessing care at treatment sites. Dorothy was enrolled in a study looking at integrating HPV testing into community health campaigns, and was ultimately referred to a selected health facility in Kisumu where she was booked for treatment. After she received treatment, she further was referred for biopsy testing. But,...
