Women,conflict, and culture in former Yugoslavia

The civil war in the former Yugoslavia has taken a toll on the women's movement which has disintegrated across male-defined nationalist borders. The women's movement in this area got its start during the Second World War but was disbanded under communism until women's groups began to form in the 1970s. Today the women's movement has lost the power to oppose the war and has been unable to prevent widespread violence perpetuated against women. Some feminists who have refused to embrace nationalism and patriotism have been vilified and have had to seek refuge abroad. Recently, however, hundreds of nongovernmental organizations have been formed to provide support to women and children victimized by the war. Women have been raped and impregnated as a strategy of male warfare, and raped women who refused an abortion were ostracized. War-related rape has yet to be fully recognized as an international human rights violation, and the issue is being used as political propaganda in the former Yugoslavia while it is ignored elsewhere. Sensationalist reporting of these rapes has further victimized women and made them unable to give voice to their trauma. War also increases women's suffering by destroying economic and social welfare systems. Oxfam is helping women record their testimonies of war and reconstruct the fabric of their societies through programs which provide income-generation and training in micro-enterprises. In addition, Oxfam is strengthening electronic communication and networking among women's groups throughout the region.     

A hospital protocol to resolve complaints against staff physicians

Complaints of discrimination or harassment in the workplace have become almost commonplace in recent years, increasing in both frequency and variety. In the hospital setting, this trend is manifested in allegations against members of the medical staff by hospital employees as well as by patients or their families. Whether real or fancied, such allegations are reflective of a potentially disruptive undercurrent of organizational tensions. Left unresolved, they can erode the essential partnership between staff physicians and other members of the health care delivery team. Unsatisfactory patient experiences may also damage the reputation of the institution and thereby undermine its viability. With either group of complainants, allegations of malfeasance that are not resolved at the source in a timely manner are far more likely to result in expensive, time-consuming, and potentially damaging litigation.     

A rational approach to career change

Recently, the number of physicians who have been interested in alternative careers has vastly increased. Many physicians express dissatisfaction with clinical practice, but they are uncertain about which nonclinical options are appropriate for them. Pursuing a different career after many years of studying and practicing medicine can seem like an overwhelming task. In this article, the author briefly outlines a decision-making process that can be used in analyzing career options and suggests some careers that have provided challenging opportunities for physicians.     

LET''''S MAKE ENGLISH MORE EXCITING

"Teacher, what are we going to do next class?" This is an exciting question which I often hear from my students. As an English conversation teacher, I can make the learning of English either a dull and boring duty, or an exciting adventure. It is very important that I make my students hate missing my class, and keep them guessing just what will happen the next time! Let us consider some important ways that any teacher can help his other students want to do their     

Economic integration and labor flows: stage migration in farm labor markets in Mexico and the United States

"This article examines the probable effects of the North American Free Trade Agreement (NAFTA) on migration from Mexico to the United States, disputing the view that expansion of jobs in Mexico could rapidly reduce undocumented migration. To the extent that NAFTA causes Mexican export agriculture to expand, migration to the United States will increase rather than decrease in the short run. Data collected in both California and the Mexican State of Baja California show that indigenous migrants from southern Mexico typically first undertake internal migration, which lowers the costs and risks of U.S. migration. Two features of employment in export agriculture were found to be specially significant in lowering the costs of U.S. migration: first, working in export agriculture exposes migrants to more diverse social networks and information about U.S. migration; second, agro-export employment in northern Mexico provides stable employment, albeit low-wage employment, for some members of the family close to the border (especially women and children) while allowing other members of the family to assume the risks of U.S. migration."     

Implications of ERISA for health benefits and the number of self-funded ERISA plans

This Issue Brief provides an overview of the issues relating to the Employee Retirement Income Security Act of 1974 (ERISA) and health benefit plans, the major case law relating to ERISA and health plans, and the implications of the preemption of state regulations for health plan sponsors and participants. It also presents the latest data on the number of health plan participants in self-funded ERISA plans. Finally, it presents a summary of current legislative proposals that would attempt to amend ERISA. Under the framework ERISA established for employee benefit plans, the regulation of employment-based health benefit plans has evolved into a two-tiered system in which both federal and state laws play important roles. The Supreme Court has interpreted ERISA's "savings" and "deemer" clauses to mean that insured plans are subject to regulations directly at the federal level and indirectly at the state level, while self-funded plans are regulated exclusively at the federal level. The ERISA statute and the courts' interpretations of the Act have created a sharp controversy over how employee health benefit plans are provided and administered, with state regulators and consumer advocates on one side of the debate and plan sponsors (e.g., employers and unions) on the other. State regulators and consumer advocates tend to favor more regulation, and in many instances greater regulation at the state level, which they argue would provide more protections for consumers. However, employers and unions (or any plan sponsors) think ERISA preemption is very important to their ability to provide innovative and cost-effective health benefits for their employees, and assert that ERISA's present structure should be preserved. The U.S. General Accounting Office (GAO) found that 44 million individuals (39 percent of those in ERISA plans) were enrolled in self-funded ERISA plans in 1993, up from 39 million (33 percent of those in ERISA plans) in 1989. The Employee Benefit Research Institute (EBRI), using the same methodology as GAO with 1995 data, estimated that 48 million individuals (39 percent of those in ERISA plans) were enrolled in self-funded ERISA plans in 1995. When policymakers look to amend ERISA, they should consider whether the change to ERISA will produce a higher level of quality for consumers than is being provided under the present system and will continue to do so in the future. Policymakers must also decide whether quality of care is better enhanced by health plans' greater exposure to liability or by market forces. If policymakers decide that increased exposure to liability is the route to go, will consumers be able to enjoy any potential improvement in quality or will more individuals end up uninsured because of increased costs and not be able to get any care regardless of the quality?     

Primary care networks: choose your physicians wisely

As hospitals and health care systems maneuver for a position in the integrated health care delivery system, no initiative is more important than building an effective and competitive primary care network. Yet this critical initiative is fraught with potential pitfalls. In their haste to develop primary care networks, hospitals and health care systems may fail to thoroughly evaluate network participants and in turn create large, inclusive, and inefficient primary care networks that don't come close to breaking even, much less repay practice acquisition costs. In an effort to become more efficient, practitioners often find themselves in the unenviable position of "de-selecting" peers retrospectively. The author presents criteria for evaluating and selecting network physicians.     

Physician glut. Physicians--the next victims of "downsizing?"

Should physicians really be polishing up their CVs or preparing to enter another line of work? In a word: No. What a recent survey makes clear is that, while managed care is driving physicians from some markets, jobs are still available in other markets traditionally underserved by physicians. This is not to suggest that the physician employment market has gone unchanged. Many physicians, particularly specialists, have taken income hits, and some specialists truly are in need of work. Primary care physicians, however, have seen their stars rise and are now in a position to work wherever they want. Physicians may no longer be able to practice within 50 miles of where they were raised or where they were trained, as has been their wont. Instead, they will have to do what other professionals have long done--go where job opportunities take them. In short, they will have to add a career strategy to their scientific mindset, and that means an aggressive job search, coupled with a strong consumer orientation.     

Sustainability of family planning and health projects

USAID has assisted the Ghanian Ministry of Health since 1991 to boost family planning services under the Ghana Family Planning and Health Project by providing supplies and information and increasing the effectiveness of HIV/AIDS prevention and control. The sustainability of the health system is endangered by favoring capital expenditures in lieu of continuous expenditures; the lack of linkage between project activities and regular activities; the centralization of resource flow; and too ambitious targeting. Capital outlays provided by USAID featured in the construction of four public health laboratories, but their operation also requires continuous financing amounting to about 10% of the whole investment. The latter is the responsibility of the government, although the details of these recurrent costs were not detailed at the outset and providing these funds for continuous operation may impair the operation of other systems. The resource constraints could be alleviated by an effective cost-recovery system or by the general improvement of the economy. The lack of linkage between project and regular activities is serious at regional and district levels. The centralization of resource flow means that most resources are kept for headquarter level activities, thus other activities suffer and the health sector becomes excessively reliant on donor support. Too ambitious planning stems from pressure on donors and hastily implemented projects result in duplication and waste. Closer consultation with the parties involved would improve the situation. The rivalry of technical and policy groups has contributed to past deficiencies. Double funding for the same activity has also occurred further increasing the dependence on donor funding. By concentration on people and systems sustainability would be enhanced, while cost recovery would help the operation of the laboratories. The Health Education Unit (HEU) recognized the importance of IEC and obtained financing for such activities.