The health of the poor: women living in informal settlements.
نویسندگان
چکیده
OBJECTIVES A large share of the urban population in developing countries lives in informal settlements or "slums" today. This study investigates the association between slum residence and health among adult Ghanaian women residing in the Accra Metropolitan Area. METHODS Health data collected as part of the Women's Health Study of Accra round II (WHSA-II) was combined with data from the Household and Welfare Study of Accra (HAWS) to compare the health of female slum dwellers to the health of female non-slum dwellers living in the Accra Metropolitan Area. Group means were calculated and multivariate linear regression models were estimated to compare eight domains of health as measured by the short-form 36 (SF-36) questionnaire. RESULTS Women living in informal settlements were found to display consistently better health. Conditional on all observable characteristics, women living in informal settlements scored higher on all self-reported health outcomes than women living in non-slum areas. The differences appear largest for general health as well as for the physical role functioning domains, and appear smallest for the social role functioning and bodily pain domains. CONCLUSIONS The results presented suggest that slum residence does not have a negative effect on self-reported health among women in Accra. Three factors may contribute to the generally positive association between slum residence and observed outcomes: i) self-selection of individuals with strong health into informal settlements and an accordingly small impact of environmental factors on health ii) self-selection of more driven and ambitious individuals into slum neighborhoods who may have a generally more positive view of their health and iii) the geographic placement of slum neighborhoods in central neighborhoods with relatively easy access to health facilities.
منابع مشابه
Assessing the Relationship between the Components of Capacity Poverty and Mental Health in Ardabil Informal Settlement and Its Comparison with Urban Textures
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متن کاملAssessing the Relationship between the Components of Capacity Poverty and Mental Health in Ardabil Informal Settlement and Its Comparison with Urban Textures
Introduction: capacity poverty and mental health are among the issues that seem to be important issues in cities, especially informal settlements. Therefore, the aim of the present study is to assess the status of capacity poverty and mental health and the relationship between them in informal settlements of Ardabil city and compare the status of this settlement with other settlements or urban ...
متن کاملفقرزدایی و تامین رفاه سکونتگاههای غیر رسمی با رویکرد مقتدر سازی در میان آباد اسلامشهر
As long as the government in the concept of urban management plays the role of “direct provider” instead of “facilitator” to improve the life’s welfare level and provide a situation for poor societies and particularly informal settlements, its sole result is the increase in the number of open mouths that their dependence on government enlarges per day. Therefore the investigation of differe...
متن کاملفقرزدایی و تامین رفاه سکونتگاههای غیر رسمی با رویکرد مقتدر سازی در میان آباد اسلامشهر
As long as the government in the concept of urban management plays the role of “direct provider” instead of “facilitator” to improve the life’s welfare level and provide a situation for poor societies and particularly informal settlements, its sole result is the increase in the number of open mouths that their dependence on government enlarges per day. Therefore the investigation of differe...
متن کاملThe in-home environment and household health: a cross-sectional study of informal urban settlements in northern México.
People living in poverty make up nearly half of the global population and a large proportion of these individuals inhabit cities, living in informal settlements. However, only limited research on in-home environmental exposures and the associated health effects in these communities is available. This research investigates the home environment in unplanned settlements of a rapidly growing city o...
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ورودعنوان ژورنال:
- Ghana medical journal
دوره 46 2 شماره
صفحات -
تاریخ انتشار 2012