BackgroundIt has been suggested that rural–urban migration will have adverse
consequences for older parents left behind.AimsTo describe correlates of outmigration and to estimate any association
between outmigration of children and depression in rural-dwelling older
parents.MethodPopulation-based survey of 1147 parents aged 60 and over in rural Thailand.
We randomly oversampled parents living without children. We defined an
outmigrant child as living outside their parent’s district, and measured
depression as a continuous outcome with a Thai version of the
EURO–D.ResultsOutmigration of all children, compared with outmigration of some or no
children, was independently associated with less depression in parents. This
association remained after taking account of social support, parent
characteristics, health and wealth. Parents with all children outmigrated
received more economic remittances and they perceived support to be as good as
that of those with children close by.ConclusionsOutmigration of children was not associated with greater depression in
older parents and, after taking account of a range of possible covariables,
was actually associated with less parental depression. This could be explained
by pre-existing advantages in families sending more migrants and by the
economic benefits of migration.
Using microdata from the 1970 and 1980 censuses, we specify and test multilevel models of fertility determination for four Southeast Asian societies--Indonesia, Peninsular Malaysia, the Philippines, and Thailand. Social context is indexed by provincial characteristics representing women's status, the roles of children, and infant mortality. These contextual variables are hypothesized to have direct and indirect (through individual socioeconomic characteristics) effects on current fertility. The contextual variables account for a modest but significant share of individual variation in fertility and about one-half of the total between area variation in fertility. The women's status contextual variables, particularly modern sector employment, have the largest and most consistent effect on lowered fertility. The results based on the other contextual variables provide mixed support for the initial hypotheses.
Unsafe abortion continues to impact negatively on women’s health in countries with restrictive abortion laws. It remains one of the leading causes of maternal mortality and morbidity. Paradoxically, modern contraceptive prevalence remains low and the unmet need for contraception continues to mirror unwanted pregnancy rates in many countries within sub-Saharan Africa. This qualitative study assessed women’s knowledge; their expectation and experiences of the methods employed for abortion; and their health care-seeking decisions following a complicated abortion. Women who presented with abortion complications were purposively sampled from seven health facilities in south-west Nigeria. In-depth interviews were conducted by social scientists with the aid of a semi-structured interview guide. Coding schemes were developed and content analysis was performed with WEFTQDA software. Thirty-one women were interviewed. Misoprostol was used by 16 women; 15 women used other methods. About one-fifth of respondents were aged ≤ 20 years; almost one-third were students. Common reasons for terminating a pregnancy were: “too young/still in school/training”; “has enough number of children”; “last baby too young” and “still breastfeeding”. Women had little knowledge about methods used. Friends, nurses or pharmacists were the commonest sources of information. Awareness about use of misoprostol for abortion among women was high. Women used misoprostol to initiate an abortion and were often disappointed if misoprostol did not complete the abortion process. Given its clandestine manner, women were financially exploited by the abortion providers and only presented to hospitals for post-abortion care as a last resort. Women’s narratives of their abortion experience highlight the difficulties and risks women encounter to safeguard and protect their sexual and reproductive health. To reduce unsafe abortion therefore, urgent and synergized efforts are required to promote prompt access to family planning and post-abortion care services.
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