Showing papers on "Rural area published in 1988"

Social Security in a "Moral Economy": An Empirical Analysis for Java

Abstract: Private transfer payments are modeled as outcomes of a constrained social choice pro blem facing donors. The approach is applied to a large household leve l data set for Java and hypotheses are tested concerning the performa nce of the "moral economy" as a social security system. Transfer be havior is found to be very different between rural and urban areas. W hile transfer receipts and outlays are income inequality reducing in rural areas, this is not the case in urban areas. There is also evidence of transfers being targeted to disadvantaged households such as the sick, elderly, and (for urban areas) the unemployed. Copyright 1988 by MIT Press.

The Subsidy from Nature: Shifting Cultivation, Successional Palm Forests, and Rural Development

Abstract: This paper outlines the importance of the small-scale extractive sector to extremely impoverished households in rural areas of tropical Brazil. Extractive activities are important as inputs to household reproduction, and are critical as a source of cash income. In the case study we analyze, small-scale extraction was roughly equivalent to wage labor and to agriculture in its contribution to household income. We suggest that in rural development analysis, a significant source of both use and exchange values has been overlooked. This issue is of particular concern for three main reasons. First, the importance of small-scale extraction is more pronounced among the more impoverished. Second, extraction is a major source of cash for women, who are often denied access to alternative means of acquiring income in rural areas. Finally, current rural development programs are actively undermining access to the resources and often imply their destruction. Through a detailed social and ecological analysis of the babas...

Evaluation of a Selective Medical School Admissions Policy to Increase the Number of Family Physicians in Rural and Underserved Areas

Abstract: Jefferson Medical College initiated the Physician Shortage Area Program (PSAP) in 1974; this program preferentially admits medical school applicants from rural backgrounds who intend to practice family medicine in rural and underserved areas. Evaluation of the program has shown that PSAP graduates from the classes of 1978 to 1985 have performed slightly less well than their peers (non-PSAP) during medical school, although there was no difference in attrition between the two groups. Nor did the performance of PSAP and non-PSAP graduates differ during their postgraduate training. PSAP graduates from the classes of 1978 to 1981 were almost five times as likely as non-PSAP graduates to practice family medicine (59.6 vs. 12.6 percent, P<0.001), three times as likely to practice in rural areas (37.8 to 42.2 percent vs. 10.0 to 11.8 percent, P<0.001), and two to four times as likely to practice in areas where there is a physician shortage (26.7 to 40.0 percent vs. 9.2 to 11.2 percent, P<0.01). They were...

Determinants of women's time allocation in rural Bangladesh

Abstract: Attempts are increasingly being made to adapt the economic theory of the household to the examination of the time allocation behavior of rural households in developing countries particularly with regard to women. The objective of this paper, consequently, is to estimate a time allocation model for Bangladeshi rural women where both women's labor force participation decision and hours of work are jointly determined. For policy purposes it is more beneficial to examine the factors influencing time allocation of women rather than to note simple presence of women in one type of work category. Moreover, this study identifies whether sample selection bias is important for estimating women's time allocation in nonmarket production, an important category of work where both groups of women spend considerable amounts of their productive time. The study hopes to shed light on the determinants of the economic roles of rural women in Bangladesh and in similar developing countries.

Urban-rural location and the risk of dying in a pedestrian-vehicle collision.

Abstract: Statewide data from two sources were used to compare the pedestrian-vehicle collision injury and fatality rates for urban and rural areas of Washington State from 1981 through 1983. Although the rates of pedestrian injuries are higher in urban areas, the pedestrian fatality rate in rural areas is higher for nearly all age groups, and at all posted speeds. Multiple logistic regression was carried out to measure the risk of dying once involved in a pedestrian-vehicle collision in rural areas compared to the risk for urban areas. This relative risk was seen to be elevated (RR = 2.3; 95% CI = 2.0-2.6) even after controlling for the effects of age and sex of the pedestrian, and posted speed of the vehicle. When explored further it was seen that a larger proportion of fatalities died out of the hospital and within the first hour after injury in rural areas than in urban areas. It is possible that Emergency Medical Services care is less rapidly available and that accessibility to trauma centers is more limited in rural areas.

Farm diversification and rural development

Abstract: Under a new policy initiative, grants will be payable for the setting up of ancillary businesses on or adjacent to farms in the UK. While this initiative is to be welcomed, it is suggested that more could be done to develop the rural economy as a whole. Farm diversification grants, modelled on previous farm capital grant schemes, are focused on a narrow range of activities, for which demand is likely to be limited, and are most appropriate for the larger farm. They imply that farmine will continue to be the main activity and run counter to current trends. The goals of rural development and farm income support might be pursued more effectively by encouraging the creation in rural areas of off-farm employment, unrelated to agriculture, and suitable for members of families on low-income farms.

Electric Power For Rural Growth: How Electricity Affects Rural Life In Developing Countries

Abstract: A comprehensive analysis of the effects of rural electrification on rural industries, communities, and households in parts of India, Columbia, and Indonesia is presented. The study covers a wide range of social and economic effects, examining (1) agricultural, commericial, and industrial productivity, income and employment; (2) social benefits and their distribution by income class, gender, and age; and (3) benefit/cost ratios-both financial and social. Factors that affect success or failure of electrification projects are examined.

The Family Economy, Work, and Educational Participation in the United States, 1890-1940

Abstract: Previous studies have found that rural areas experienced substantial growth in public school enrollments around the turn of the century. Is this finding based on a narrow definition of schooling patterns? The analysis of state-level patterns for 1890-1940 shows that urban industrialism, religion, and race had varying effects across different dimensions of schooling, including public enrollment and attendance rates, and enrollments in private versus public schools and for younger versus older children. In contrast to prior interpretations, this article argues that the diversity of effects can be explained in terms of subpopulation differences in the need for children's labor contributions in the family economy, the availability of "work" (both paid and unpaid), and its compatibility (on a part-year or part-day basis) with schooling.

The Minnesota Rural Physician Associate Program for medical students.

Abstract: The Rural Physician Associate Program (RPAP) at the University of Minnesota Medical School is a clinical education experience for third-year students that lasts nine to 12 months. In 1970 the Minnesota legislature required the medical school faculty to find an educational method to redistribute physicians into the medically underserved rural areas of Minnesota or lose state funds for the medical school. After 16 years of the program, all 87 counties in Minnesota have an acceptable ratio of general physicians for the first time in the state's history. RPAP students work directly with and are supervised by general physicians practicing in rural areas; these preceptors have an average age of 40 years, are board-certified, and have 12 years of clinical experience. They give their teaching services and a $2,500 stipend to the student; the state provides $7,000 to the student with no obligation that the student practice in rural Minnesota after training. The preceptors, RPAP staff members, and visiting university faculty members provide 50, 30, and 20 percent, respectively, of a student's grades for the program; the student receives six months of credit for the program. As of 1986, 57 percent of the former RPAP students in practice were practicing in rural communities, with a majority in Minnesota and a majority in towns with populations less than 10,000.

Rural Employment Trends and the Legacy of Surplus Labour, 1978–86*

Abstract: Despite 35 years of political turbulence and social change, a constant feature of China's employment situation has been its overwhelming agrarian orientation In 1952, 88 per cent of China's total work force lived in rural areas, and 95 per cent of these individuals worked in agricultural jobs, primarily farming By 1986, 74 per cent of the country's work force were considered rural, yet still an overwhelming 80 per cent of these individuals were engaged in agricultural pursuits Few countries have experienced as rapid a growth as China has over the past four decades, yet maintained an employment structure so closely tied to the soil, the seasons, and the sun

Parental son preference in seeking medical care for children less than five years of age in a rural community in Bangladesh.

Abstract: We examined drug purchases for children less than five years of age from privately owned pharmacies in Matlab, a rural area in Bangladesh. The male to female incidence rate ratio was 1.71 (95 per cent confidence intervals = 1.27, 2.28) for overall drug purchase, and 2.94 (95% CI = 1.14, 7.73) for purchase of drugs prescribed by physicians. Our findings support and extend previous observations in this community of parental son preference in caring for children.

Diabetes Mellitus in Tunisia: Description in Urban and Rural Populations

Abstract: A prevalence survey of diabetes mellitus was carried out in Tunisia on two random samples of households. The first sample (3826 adult subjects) was drawn from the Gouvernorat of Tunis, the second one (1787 adult subjects), was drawn from a rural area, the Gouvernorat of Siliana. The families were investigated at home and diabetes assessed on the basis of an interview (to determine known cases) and of fasting blood glucose level in subjects having no personal history of diabetes (new cases). Prevalence rates were estimated considering known cases and newly found ones together. Overall, the age-standardized prevalence rate was found to be much higher in the urban sample compared to the rural one, especially for women (4.6% versus 2.3% in men, 3.5% versus 0.6% in women). Diabetes was often associated with obesity, especially in men. Within the urban sample, the prevalence rate was similar in subjects born in Tunis and in those born in the rest of the country, thus mainly of rural extraction. In contrast, a family history of diabetes was more often reported in the former group. The results are consistent with other epidemiological findings, showing that a dramatic increase in diabetes morbidity parallels the rapid westernization of urban centres in developing countries.

Patterns of travel for rural individuals hospitalized in New York State: relationships between distance, destination, and case mix.

Abstract: : The travel patterns of individuals living in rural areas of New York State who were discharged from short-term general hospitals in New York State in 1983 are examined. Counties are used as the geographical unit, and rural individuals who cross geographic boundaries to obtain inpatient hospital care are compared with those who receive such care in their own geographic area. Hospitals serving the rural population of New York are classified into three types: urban, consisting of all hospitals located in MSAs; rural referral centers; and other rural hospitals. Next, the rural patients who are admitted to each of these three types of hospitals are characterized in terms of distance traveled, case mix, length of stay, and age. Individuals who travel beyond the counties adjacent to their county of residence had a higher case mix index but were less likely to be more than 75 years old. Distance traveled and the expected cost of care were strongly positively related for patients admitted to urban and rural referral center hospitals, but were only weakly related for other rural hospitals. Finally, comparisons of rural patients in these three types of hospitals were performed adjusting for DRG mix, a comparison which is relevant to hospital reimbursements under the Medicare Prospective Payment System. Using several measures of illness severity, rural patients in urban hospitals and rural referral center hospitals were more severely ill than rural patients in other rural hospitals after adjusting for DRG mix. We conclude that somewhat higher payments to urban hospitals and rural referral center hospitals in New York are justified based on the more severely ill patients which they treat.

The Second National Growth and Development Survey of Children in China, 1985: children 0 to 7 years

Abstract: SummaryTo evaluate the normal physical growth and development of Chinese children and to compare the nutritional status of today with that of ten years ago, a second national cross-sectional growth survey was undertaken in the same urban and suburban rural areas of nine main cities in China in 1985 as in 1975. In this survey 152 874 boys and girls from birth to age 7·0 years were measured for weight, height, sitting height, and chest, head and upper arm circumferences. Compared with the results in 1975, the condition of growth and development of children for both boys and girls from urban or suburban rural areas has been relatively much improved. Average weight and height had increased in the past 10 years by 0·40 kg and 1·8 cm respectively, in 6–7-year-old children. The greater part of the increase in height has been due to increase in leg length. The urban-rural difference in stature has become smaller, as the increase has been greater in rural areas. The data from this survey can be used as a new growt...

Economic Reforms in the People's Republic of China

Abstract: The emphasis in this paper is primarily on rural economic reforms. Industrial reforms are treated quite briefly. The primary reason for this allocation is that the agricultural reforms have been much more sweeping than the industrial reforms and have had more striking consequences. Another reason, of course, is that China remains a primarily rural country, with 80% of the population living in rural areas. A final reason is that there has been much trial and error in urban and indus-

Rural Credit: Lessons for Rural Bankers and Policy Makers

Abstract: What is - and what should be - the role of rural credit in developing countries? The author steers the reader though this discussion and towards sound practical conclusions, using examples from India, Brazil, Cameroon, Malawi and the Philippines

Poverty research and policy for rural America

Abstract: Resurgent interest in poverty in the U.S. by both researchers and policymakers offers an opportunity to bring increased attention to the plight of the rural poor. Rural poverty is widespread and severe, and fundamental changes in the structure of the national economy portend continued distress in remote areas. High labor force participation by the rural poor has important theoretical and policy implications for understanding the causes, consequences and intervention strategies for combating poverty. Research on the characteristics and circumstances of different groups of the poor in rural areas could make a significant contribution toward dispelling some of the myths about “deserving and undeserving” categories of poor people that continue to impede design and implementation of appropriate policy. We review what is currently known about rural poverty, what needs to be learned, and how such research applies to current policy debates.

Older Americans' access to oral health care

Abstract: To determine whether older Americans have difficulty obtaining access to dental care, we studied 7,265 adults nationwide. The objectives of this analysis are to: (1) determine the proportion of older Americans receiving dental services, (2) identify the types of services received, and (3) examine barriers to access to dental care in this population. Almost half of the respondents over the age of 60 reported a dental visit in the past year. This is consistent with the national trend of increasing utilization of dental services by older adults in the United States. However, older respondents reported significantly fewer dental visits in the past year than respondents aged 25-59. The mean time since the respondent9s last dental visit increased with increasing age. Minority elders and those older adults with lower incomes, lower educational achievement, poorer perceived health status, chronic diseases, transportation problems, and those living in rural areas had disproportionately fewer dental visits than more socially advantaged respondents. In multivariate analyses, less education, lower income, increasing age, and poorer self-perceived health status were identified as independent risk factors for not having a dental visit, suggesting that certain subpopulations of older Americans are at risk for not receiving necessary oral health services.

Unravelling the population turnaround in rural Canada.

Abstract: This paper attempts to unravel the rural population turnaround in Canada through a disaggregation and analysis of rural growth rates by (1) two decades 1961-71 and 1971-81 (2) the farm and non-farm components of rural population (3) provincially based regions and (4) area types based on proximity to urban centres. Following a discussion of the various definitional and boundary-matching issues arising from the use of the Census of Canada results are presented in tabular and map form. Although rural growth rates did in all likelihood exceed urban rates in the 1970s the extent of this turnaround is undoubtedly exaggerated in the census data primarily because of definitional and reclassification effects. Moreover setting aside data-related anomalies there is strong evidence that much of this rural population growth was in fact spillover from urban centres. (SUMMARY IN FRE) (EXCERPT)

Health and Medical Care in Ethiopia

Abstract: PIP: Ethiopia is a country of 45 million people in northeast Africa. With a stagnant, agriculture-based economy and a per capita gross national product of $110 in 1984, it is one of the world's poorest nations. 70% of the children are mildly to severely malnourished, and 25.7% of children born alive die before the age of 5. Life expectancy is 41 years. The population is growing at the rate of 2.9%/year, but only 2% of the people use birth control. After the 1974 revolution, the socialist government nationalized land and created 20,000 peasant associations and kebeles (urban dwellers' associations), which are the units of local government. The government has set ambitious goals for development in all sectors, including health, but famine, near famine, forced resettlement programs, and civil war have prevented any real progress from being made. The government's approach to health care is based on an emphasis on primary health care and expansion of rural health services, but the Ministry of Health is allocated only 3.5% of the national budget. Ethiopia has 3 medical schools -- at Addis Ababa, Gondar, and the Jimma Institute of Health Sciences. Physicians are government employees but also engage in private practice. A major problem is that a large proportion of medical graduates emigrate. Ethiopia has 87 hospitals with 11,296 beds, which comes to 1 bed per 3734 people. There are 1949 health stations and 141 health centers, but many have no physician, and attrition among health workers is high due to lack of ministerial support. Health care is often dispensed legally or illegally by pharmacists. Overall, there is 1 physician for 57,876 people, but in the southwest and west central Ethiopia 1 physician serves between 200,000 and 300,000 people. In rural areas, where 90% of the population lives, 85% live at least 3 days by foot from a rural health unit. Immunization of 1-year olds against tuberculosis, diphtheria-pertussis-tetanus, poliomyelitis, and measles is 11, 6, 6, and 12% respectively. Infectious diseases dominate the medical scene in Ethiopia. In 1984, tuberculosis accounted for 11.2% of hospital admissions and 12.2% of deaths. The leading cause of childhood mortality in 1984 was diarrhea (45%). Malaria, trypanosomiasis, schistosomiasis, leishmaniasis, and meningococcal meningitis are endemic. Intestinal parasitism is rampant, and the nationwide prevalence of leprosy is 3/1000. Venereal diseases were the 9th most common cause of hospital outpatient visits in 1984, but AIDS is rare. The leading noninfectious diseases are rheumatic and syphilitic heart disease, hypertension, diabetes mellitus, hepatoma, and elephantiasis. Ethiopia has the highest number of cases of nonfilarial elephantiasis -- an estimated 350,000 cases -- in the world. Aside from a large influx of money, the most necessary changes to improve the health system are lowering the salaries of doctors and nurses, reorienting physician training toward primary health care, increasing the quality of existing health services, more efficient management, and better coordination between the Ministry of Health and the voluntary organizations.