In 1998, the Damien Foundation Bangladesh invited semi-qualified, private "gram dakter" (Bangla for "village doctors") to participate in tuberculosis (TB) programmes in a population of 26 million people in rural Bangladesh. The organization trained 12 525 village doctors to not only refer suspected TB cases for free diagnosis but also to provide directly observed treatment (DOT) free of charge....

BACKGROUND The delivery of mental health services in rural China has been notably limited due to lack of qualified mental health professionals among other impeding factors. A village doctor-based cognitive behavioral therapy intervention may be one way of improving accessibility. The purpose of this study was to explore the advantages and challenges of implementing this intervention, as deliver...

BACKGROUND Studies into the costs of syndromic surveillance systems are rare, especially for estimating the direct costs involved in implementing and maintaining these systems. An Integrated Surveillance System in rural China (ISSC project), with the aim of providing an early warning system for outbreaks, was implemented; village clinics were the main surveillance units. Village doctors express...

People embedded in dense social networks are likely to trust and cooperate with other members of their group. However, these individuals are also likely to turn inward and harbor strong hostility toward groups outside their network. Thus, it is important to establish bridging networks between groups. However, the effect of dense networks within a group on bridging networks between groups remain...

deformation pattern of the northeastern part of the iranian-arabian collision zone (i.e., mainly sanandaj-sirjan belt or zone) is the main concern of this paper. here, we investigate the stress distribution and displacement pattern of eghlid-deh bid area as affected by the position of zagros suture using a three dimensional mechanical model. the modeled area is located between the zagros thrust...

The substantial number of ghost possessions that came to our attention during fieldwork in a North Indian village in 1977-78 led to a thorough study of ghost beliefs as part of a holistic study of village life. Ghosts are not phantoms floating on the periphery of village life, the concern only of children and the credulous. Rather, the study shows that ghosts are linked with basic Hindu beliefs...

We evaluated the efficiency of selection for body weight in a cooperative village breeding program for Menz sheep of Ethiopia under smallholder farming system. The design of the program involved organizing villagers in a cooperative breeding group to implement selective breeding of their sheep. The program was jump-started through a one-time provision of elite rams from a central nucleus flock,...

During my travels to numerous countries over 40 years, I have seen many picturesque mountain villages with elegant and well-preserved houses perched on carefully selected sites on the mountains, and others located by a river or lake at the foot of a mountain. They appear remarkably harmonious with the natural scenery. Fruit trees or tea trees and crops such as rice, wheat, and corn are planted ...

The three chapters presented in this section address very different economic sectors. Seen as a case, each one illuminates a common understanding about the changing nature of economic development that is especially relevant for the 21 century. Moreover, each in its own way recognises the critical importance of infrastructure, and especially telecommunications, as an enabling technology for deve...

We live in a global village where electronic communication has eliminated the geographical barriers of information exchange. The road is now open to worldwide convergence of information interests, shared values, and understanding. Nevertheless, interests still vary between countries around the world. This raises important questions about what today’s world map of information interests actually ...