Browsing by Person "Pearson, Georgina"

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Border parasites: Schistosomiasis control among Uganda’s fisherfolk
(Taylor & Francis, 2012-04-13) Parker, Melissa; Allen, Tim; Pearson, Georgina; Peach, Nichola; Flynn, Rachel; Rees, Nicholas
It is recognized that the control of schistosomisais in Uganda requires a focus on fisherfolk. Large numbers suffer from this water-borne parasitic disease; notably along the shores of lakes Albert and Victoria and along the River Nile. Since 2004, a policy has been adopted of providing drugs, free of charge, to all those at risk. The strategy has been reported to be successful, but closer investigation reveals serious problems. This paper draws upon long-term research undertaken at three locations in northwestern and southeastern Uganda. It highlights consequences of not engaging with the day to day realities of fisherfolk livelihoods; attributable, in part, to the fact that so many fisherfolk live and work in places located at the country’s international borders, and to a related tendency to treat them as ‘‘feckless’’ and ‘‘ungovernable’’. Endeavours to roll out treatment end up being haphazard, erratic and location-specific. In some places, concerted efforts have been made to treat fisherfolk; but there is no effective monitoring, and it is difficult to gauge what proportion have actually swallowed the tablets. In other places, fisherfolk are, in practice, largely ignored, or are actively harassed in ways that make treatment almost impossible. At all sites, the current reliance upon resident ‘‘community’’ drug distributors or staff based at static clinics and schools was found to be flawed.
Chapter 12: Imagining defragmented university spaces
(Critical Publishing, 2023-05-26) Dakessian, Arek; Ataekong, Anthony; Burrows, Olutayo; Haqani, Misbah; Rahman, Rezaur; Pearson, Georgina; Marcus, Geetha; Van de Peer, Stefanie
Cross-border dynamics and healthcare in West Nile, Uganda
(Social Science in Humanitarian Action, 2019-07) Storer, Elisabeth; Pearson, Georgina
Against the backdrop of on-going preparedness work in Uganda as related to the outbreak of Ebola in DRC, this brief summarises key considerations concerning cross-border dynamics and health structures and behaviours in the West Nile sub-region of north-west Uganda. It builds upon the SSHAP brief ‘Uganda-DRC: cross-border dynamics’ (published December 2018). Following the case in Ariwara, the research team connected with a number of key informants in Arua who had been involved in previous research and confirmed that, in general, local communities were more concerned (perceived greater risk) about this case than the previous case in Kasese due its close geographic proximity to West Nile, and because cross-border movement (e.g., to the market in Ariwara) is a critical part of everyday life. This brief was drafted by Elizabeth Storer (the London School of Economics and Political Science) and Georgina Pearson (St George’s, University of London), with support from Ingrid Gercama, Theresa Jones and Juliet Bedford (Anthrologica). It builds on longterm ethnographic research on issues related to health and healing conducted in Adjumani, Arua, Maracha and Moyo districts of Uganda between 2009-2018. Earlier field experience was updated with a review of recent published and grey literature, informal discussions with colleagues in Kampala, Arua, Adjumani and Moyo and a rapid assessment within Arua Town (March 2019) and further follow up in July 2019. Additional information was contributed by Dr. David Kaawa-Mafigiri (Makerere University, seconded to UNICEF Uganda). Prior to finalisation, it was reviewed by expert advisors from Anthrologica, University of Durham, Gulu University, London School of Hygiene and Tropical Medicine, Makerere University, UNICEF Eastern and Southern Africa Regional Office. Responsibility for the brief lies with the Social Science in Humanitarian Action Platform (SSHAP).
Dew, Kevin. The cult and science of public health: a sociological investigation. vii, 179 pp., bibliogr. Oxford, New York: Berghahn Books, 2012. £42.00 (cloth) [Book Review]
(Royal Anthropological Institute, 2013-05-01) Pearson, Georgina
By exploring the evolving role of public health, this book argues that it has come to function as Durkheim's ‘cult of humanity’. The ‘cult of humanity’ refers to a belief in ‘the unity of society’ (p. 7) and a shared humanity despite increasingly differentiated individuals and roles in society. In this perspective, public health not only is a science, underpinned by ‘rationality’ and strict methodologies, but functions as a religion as it relies on the belief that all individuals deserve access to health by virtue of their unity and shared humanity. It acts as a moral force aimed at alleviating uncertainty and suffering and constraining other selfish forces. Rather than a Foucauldian analysis, this book offers a perspective on the function of public health not just as a site of power and control, but as a moral force and a means of resistance in itself. In doing so, the book explores tensions both within public health and between public health, the state, and the population, and contrasts both its positive and negative functions.
The Experiment Must Continue: Medical Research and Ethics in East Africa, 1940–2014 by Melissa Graboyes Athens, OH: Ohio University Press, 2015. Pp. 350. £23·99 (pbk) [Book Review]
(Cambridge University Press, 2017-02-02) Pearson, Georgina
There has been a continuing and growing interest in critically reflecting on historical and contemporary perspectives of medical research practices and ethical processes. In The Experiment Must Continue, Melissa Graboyes contributes to this literature with lessons of caution. Guided by her own background in public health and history, and drawing on archival research and ethnographic fieldwork in Tanzania, Graboyes discusses key aspects of medical research and the challenges of everyday ethics in the field.
Low prevalence of intestinal schistosomiasis among fisherfolk living along the River Nile in northwestern Uganda: A biosocial investigation
(Cambridge University Press, 2016-07-18) Pearson, Georgina
Mass drug administration has been less successful as a technique for controlling intestinal schistosomiasis (S. mansoni) than anticipated. In Uganda, the mass distribution of praziquantel has been provided to populations at risk of infection since the early 2000s, but prevalence mostly remains high. This is the case, for example, at locations in north-western and south-eastern Uganda. However, there is a remarkable exception. Among Madi fishing populations and their immediate neighbours, living close to the border with South Sudan, the rate of infection has dropped dramatically. A parasitological survey carried out at twelve fishing sites in 2013 identified only three cases of S. mansoni among 383 adults tested. This article asks: why is the prevalence of S. mansoni so low among fisherfolk in northern Uganda? Taking a biosocial approach, it suggests that the mass distribution of drugs, free of charge, has had an impact. However, the low prevalence of infection cannot be attributed to this alone. Other important factors may also have contributed to the decline in infection. These include changing fishing livelihoods, local attitudes to public health interventions, access to water and sanitation facilities, hygiene practices and the use of anti-malarial treatments. Above all, the article highlights the importance of investigating both social and biological dimensions of infection simultaneously, and of recognizing the local complexities of sustainably treating this debilitating parasitic disease.
Making a livelihood at the fish-landing site: Exploring the pursuit of economic independence amongst Ugandan women
(Taylor & Francis, 2013-09-26) Pearson, Georgina; Barratt, Caroline; Seeley, Janet; Ssetaala, Ali; Nabbagala, Georgina; Asiki, Gershim
Qualitative life history data were used to explore the experiences of women who live at five fish-landing sites on Lake Victoria, Uganda. We explored what economic and social opportunities women have in order to try to understand why some women are more vulnerable to violence and other risks than others and why some women are able to create successful enterprises while others struggle to make a living. The ability of women to create a viable livelihood at the landing sites was influenced by a wide variety of factors. Women who had or were able to access capital when they arrived at the landing site to set up their own enterprise had a significant advantage over those who did not, particularly in avoiding establishing sexual relationships in order to get support. Being able to establish their own business enabled women to avoid lower paid and more risky work such as fish processing and selling or working in bars. The development of landing sites and the leisure industry may be having an impact on how women earn money at the landing sites, with the most desirable economic opportunities not necessarily being connected directly to fishing.
Opportunities and disconnects in the use of primary research on schistosomiasis and soil-transmitted helminths for policy and practice: Results from a survey of researchers
(Palgrave Macmillan, 2021-07-07) Fergus, Cristin A.; Pearson, Georgina
Even with efforts to facilitate use of evidence in health policy and practice, limited attention has been paid to researchers’ perspectives on use of their research in informing public health policy and practice at local, national, and global levels. We conducted a systematic literature search to identify published primary research related to schistosomiasis or soil-transmitted helminths, or both. We then surveyed corresponding authors. Results indicate differences by locations of authors and in conduct of research, especially for research conducted in low- and middle-income countries. Our findings exemplify disparities in research leadership discussed elsewhere. Researchers’ perspectives on the use of their work suggest limited opportunities and ‘disconnects’ that hinder their engagement with policy and other decision-making processes. These findings highlight a need for additional efforts to address structural barriers and enable engagement between researchers and decision-makers.
Understanding perceptions on 'Buruli' in northwestern Uganda: A biosocial investigation
(PLOS, 2018-07-30) Pearson, Georgina; Phillips, Richard Odame; Nkrumah, Kwame
Background: An understudied disease, little research thus far has explored responses to Buruli ulcer and quests for therapy from biosocial perspective, despite reports that people seek biomedical treatment too late.