PubMed Health⌕ Search

Biomedical subjects

C A Nathanson

Publications and source records attributed to C A Nathanson.

At least 19 recordsLinked to original sources
PubMed1999

Social movements as catalysts for policy change: the case of smoking and guns.

Social movements organized around perceived threats to health play an important role in American life as advocates for change in health policies and health behaviors. This article employs a framework drawn from social movement and related sociological theories to compare two such movements: the smoking/tobacco control movement and the gun control movement. A major purpose of the article is to identify specific social movement ideologies and actions that are more or less likely to facilitate achievement of the movement's health policy objectives. The article concludes that the success of health-related social movements is associated with (1) the articulation of a socially (as well as scientifically) credible threat to the public's health, (2) the ability to mobilize a diverse organizational constituency, and (3) the convergence of political opportunities with target vulnerabilities.

Attitude to Health↗
PubMed1992

Dysmenorrhea and use of oral contraceptives in adolescent women attending a family planning clinic.

OBJECTIVES: This study examined the prevalance of dysmenorrhea in female adolescents and the effect of experiencing a reduction in dysmenorrhea on oral contraceptive use. STUDY DESIGN: This was a prospective panel study in which 308 adolescent women at an inner-city family planning clinic were interviewed about their experiences with dysmenorrhea and their oral contraceptive use at three points in time over a 6-month period. A chi 2 test and multiple logistic regression analysis were done. RESULTS: The overall prevalence of dysmenorrhea in this population was 79.6%; 18.2% reported severe dysmenorrhea. Those who had severe dysmenorrhea and also experienced the reduction of dysmenorrhea as a result of oral contraceptives were eight times more likely to be consistent oral contraceptive users (p less than or equal to 0.02). CONCLUSIONS: It is important to screen female adolescents for dysmenorrhea, provide them with information about the beneficial side effects of oral contraceptives, and follow up these young women to make sure they are experiencing the alleviation of their symptoms.

Adolescent↗
PubMed1992

Partner-specific condom use among adolescent women clients of a family planning clinic.

Because inconsistent condom use could put adolescent women at an increased risk for sexually transmitted diseases, it is important to understand when and with whom they use condoms. This study examined partner-specific condom use over time among adolescent women. The data were from a clinic-based, prospective study of 308 adolescent women who had at least one sex partner during a 6-month follow-up. Their condom use was examined with three types of partners: exclusive, nonexclusive primary, and nonexclusive secondary. Predictors of consistent condom use (using condoms 100% of the time with a specific partner) were explored in a multiple logistic regression analysis. Consistent condom use was more likely to occur in shorter relationships (less than 3 months) and with partners who preferred condoms for contraception. It was no more likely to occur with nonexclusive partners than with exclusive partners, and it was somewhat less likely to occur among consistent oral contraceptive users. These findings emphasize the importance of educating adolescent women to introduce and maintain condom use with all partners.

Adolescent↗
PubMed1991

Adolescent women's contraceptive decision making.

A modified rational decision model incorporating salient events and social influences (particularly from sexual partners) is used to analyze adolescent women's consistent use of oral contraceptives (OCs) over a six-month period. Data are taken from a panel study of 308 clients of an inner-city family planning clinic. Expected OC use was computed for each subject on the basis of subjective expected utility (SEU) theory, and is found in multivariate analyses to be a significant predictor of actual OC use. In addition, variables representing baseline and follow-up partner influences, the salience of pregnancy for the subject, and positive side effects of OCs during the first months of use are found to predict OC use. Partner's support of OC use during follow-up and positive side effects of OCs are found to predict OC use among subjects for whom OC use was not the expected decision according to baseline SEU. Implications of the findings for models of adolescents' contraceptive behavior and for clinicians are discussed.

Adolescent↗
PubMed1989

Components of change in adolescent fertility, 1971-1979.

This article disaggregates change in adolescent fertility between 1971 and 1979 into four components: change in marriage patterns, in nonmarital sex, in pregnancy, and in birth. It also assesses quantitatively the relative contribution of each component to the change over time in two fertility outcomes: the probability of a nonmarital live birth and, given a live birth, the odds of its being nonmarital. The changes in the probability of sexual debut prior to marriage and in marriage patterns themselves are the two most important contributors to these changes. The influence on the change in adolescent fertility outcomes of the decreased likelihood of marriage following a nonmarital pregnancy was compensated for by the increased use of abortion to terminate the pregnancy.

Abortion, Illegal↗
PubMed1987

Delivery of fertility control services by male and female obstetrician-gynecologists.

Sex differences in the delivery of fertility control services were explored in a national survey of 1420 recently trained obstetrician-gynecologists in active practice. Women were found to be more likely than men to provide abortion services but less likely than men to provide amniocentesis and certain infertility services. Women were found to contribute less than their proportionate share of two services for which volume was measured: artificial inseminations and sterilizations. Physician gender, however, was a less important predictor of volume of sterilizations delivered than were a set of practice-related variables. Overall our findings suggest that the increased representation of women among obstetrician-gynecologists could influence the delivery of a few specific services.

Family Planning Services↗
PubMed1987

Women in the labor force: are sex mortality differentials changing?

The relationship between the increasing participation of women in the labor force, female mortality, and the male-female mortality differential is examined in this work. The mortality experience of women and men 16 to 64 years of age in the Wisconsin civilian labor force is examined for the period 1974 to 1978 through comparisons of central death rates and sex mortality ratios. In general, this study suggests that, at this time, female mortality is not negatively affected by female labor force participation. Furthermore, there is little evidence to suggest that the entrance of women into the labor force will narrow the sex mortality differential in the general population. However, among certain occupation groups, males and females of similar marital status experience mortality rates that are quite similar. Possible interpretations of these unusual findings are presented.

Adolescent↗
PubMed1986

Sex differences in the practice patterns of recently trained obstetrician-gynecologists.

Sex differences in practice patterns, as modified by family roles, are investigated in a national survey of 1420 active obstetrician-gynecologists who graduated from medical school between 1974 and 1979. Women are more likely than men to be practicing in multispecialty groups, and men are more likely than women to be practicing in obstetrics-gynecology partnerships. On average, men and women report working over 60 hours per week. In all practice arrangements except academic medicine, women work fewer total hours per week, although the differences are small and translate into significantly fewer patient encounters than men in only two practice arrangements: partnerships and multispecialty groups. When marital status and presence of children under age 18 are controlled, significant sex differences in hours worked remain only for married respondents with children. Family roles have an opposite effect on hours of work reported by men and women, decreasing the number of hours worked by women and increasing the number worked by men.

Adult↗
PubMed1985

Female labor force participation and female mortality in Wisconsin 1974-1978.

The following research question is addressed in the study: what effect will the entrance of women into the labor force have on female mortality rates for all causes of death combined as well as specific causes relating to occupational stress, behavioral factors and physical hazards associated with occupation? This question is examined through comparisons of age, marital status and occupation-specific death rates for all causes of death combined and for selected causes of death. Death certificates provided by the Wisconsin Bureau of Health Statistics for the years 1974-1978 and population data provided by the 1976 Survey of Income and Education were used to construct death rates. The death rates of the white civilian female population of Wisconsin 16-64 years of age were examined using exploratory data analysis techniques (schematic plots and median polish) and standard errors. In general, the death rates of women in the labor force are substantially lower than those of housewives. These results may indicate that the role of housewife exposes women to health hazards. In addition, the results of this study may suggest some selectivity of healthy women into the labor force or a protective effect of labor force participation. In a limited number of instances, labor force participants' mortality rates exceed those of housewives. In the 60-64 year old population, white-collar workers, specifically, sales workers, managers and professionals, experience significantly higher death rates than housewives. In addition, specific groups of labor force participants experience significantly higher death rates than housewives for accidental deaths (i.e. laborers 16-44 and 45-54), deaths due to heart disease (i.e. laborers 45-54 and sales workers 60-64) and deaths due to malignant neoplasms (i.e. white-collar workers 60-64 years of age). The possibility that these instances indicate the direction of future mortality trends should be considered.

Accidents, Occupational↗
PubMed1985

Professional satisfaction and client outcomes. A comparative organizational analysis.

In studies of the effectiveness of health care organizations, the job satisfaction level of professional staff is often viewed as an "outcome," since providing a climate that satisfies participants' needs is one aspect of organizational effectiveness. Staff satisfaction, however, has not been linked with outcomes associated with clients. In this article, the authors examine the relationship between the aggregate job satisfaction level of nursing staff in 77 family planning clinics and two client outcomes: the aggregate satisfaction level of teenage clients with contraceptive services obtained in the clinic, and the subsequent rate of client compliance with contraceptive prescriptions. Among the variables studied in testing an organizational-level model, it is found that the job satisfaction level of nursing staff is the strongest determinant of the aggregate satisfaction level of clients; client satisfaction level, in turn, predicts the rate of clients' subsequent contraceptive compliance. Staff satisfaction has a noteworthy indirect effect on compliance through client satisfaction. Compliance, however, appears to be more susceptible to variations in clinic structure than to variations in staff satisfaction levels. Implications of these findings for studies of effectiveness of health services and for management of health care organizations are discussed.

Adolescent↗
PubMed1985

The influence of client-provider relationships on teenage women's subsequent use of contraception.

This paper describes the relationships of selected dimensions of nurse-client interaction in county health department family planning clinics to the subsequent contraceptive use of the clinic's unmarried teenage clients. The subjects for the study are the clients and professional staff of 78 clinics: 2,900 eligible clients making their first contraceptive visit and 338 clinic staff nurses. Results of interviews demonstrate that client and staff expectations and interactions are significant predictors of adherence to a contraceptive regimen; under circumstances where clients anticipate, and staff employ, authoritative guidance in helping the clients to select a contraceptive method, clinic mean levels of contraceptive use are substantially increased. Overall, 40 per cent of clinic variation in contraceptive compliance is explained by the interaction dimensions and other aspects of clinic organization addressed in this paper. Implications of these results for the structuring of family planning clinic programs directed toward teenage women are briefly considered.

Adolescent↗
PubMed1984

Sex differences in mortality.

"Patterns of sex differences in mortality in developed and developing countries are briefly described, and the range of explanatory approaches that have been used to account for these differences are reviewed. Attention is primarily focused on the higher male than female mortality rate in developed countries. Biological and behavioral/environmental perspectives on these differences are considered in some detail. It is concluded that a specifically sociological approach to sex differences in mortality requires both greater attention to the spectrum of variation within and across societies and a more complex model of causality that takes account of gender differences in the nature of mortality risks."

Behavior↗
PubMed1982

Aging and the family.

Characteristics of family and household structure are examined in this paper to shed light on an important aspect of the life conditions of older persons in countries at different levels of development. Using various measures, both direct and indirect, the analysis showed the existence of a nuclear household as a predominant family form. Extended household families are more common in Asian countries, especially India, than in other regions for which data are available. While available cross-national data do not enable us to assess the extent to which older persons reside in households with their children, headship rates indicate that the majority of male older persons continue to maintain their position as heads of households in later life and that female headship increases with age. This is confirmed by analysis of data on marital status, which show higher proportions of males currently married than for females and sharply higher widowhood levels for females. Marriage at older ages seems to be relatively low. A general trend within most developed countries is toward increasing independent living, especially for females, and a sharp decline in both males and females living in a household with relatives.

Adult↗
PubMed1978

Sex roles as variables in the interpretation of morbidity data: a methodological critique.

Data on sex differences in morbidity are summarized: explanations are sought in the methods of data collection. It is shown that sex differences in morbidity are affected by data collection processes. It is suggested that these effects are a function of variation in the social norms that govern the behaviour of men and women when confronted with physical discomfort, health interviews and medical practitioners.

Adolescent↗