Papers by Abu-Hena M Kamal
BMC Public Health, Jan 31, 2023
Background Food adulteration is an increasingly recognized global public health problem. In low-a... more Background Food adulteration is an increasingly recognized global public health problem. In low-and middleincome countries like Bangladesh, adulteration is difficult to detect and respond to. We explored customers' perceptions on food adulteration, perception of risk and connections between information, participant characteristics and patterns of adulterated food concerns that impact risk perception in urban Bangladesh. Methods A formative study was conducted in Dhaka, between June and August 2015 at a supermarket and a wet market. We explored community awareness and response to chemical contaminants (adulterants) among participants from a range of socioeconomic backgrounds. The team conducted 38 in-depth interviews with 12 customers and 4 staff from a supermarket, and 12 customers and 10 vendors from a wet market. Participants were selected purposively. Audio recorded data were coded based on thematic content and analyzed manually. Results We asked participants how common foods were likely adulterated, and most gave figures of 70% or more. They reported that foods were adulterated with chemicals or artificial colors, especially fish, milk, and vegetables. The supermarket more commonly sold packaged foods with nutritional and expiry information on the label; and offered convenience in terms of building size, layout, and cleanliness. All customers from the wet market thought that foods were cheaper and fresher than from supermarkets. Supermarket customers expressed greater concern about adulterated foods than wet market customers. Most participants from both markets reported that food adulteration is invisible, adulterated foods cannot be avoided, and have long-term negative health impacts including cancer, diabetes, paralysis, heart attack, and others. Nearly half of customers from both markets were concerned about the poor nutritional value of adulterated food. Participants from both settings expressed the need for access to credible information about adulteration to help choose safe foods. The majority expressed the need for government action against those who are responsible for adulteration. Conclusions Food adulteration was considered a major health threat. The government could act on food adulteration prevention if provided credible population-based data on disease burden, a model food sampling and testing protocol, a model for inspections, organizational strengthening and training, example social and behavioral change communications with estimated costs.
Animals, May 1, 2023
This article is an open access article distributed under the terms and conditions of the Creative... more This article is an open access article distributed under the terms and conditions of the Creative Commons Attribution (CC BY
PLOS ONE, 2021
Introduction Rumors and conspiracy theories, can contribute to vaccine hesitancy. Monitoring onli... more Introduction Rumors and conspiracy theories, can contribute to vaccine hesitancy. Monitoring online data related to COVID-19 vaccine candidates can track vaccine misinformation in real-time and assist in negating its impact. This study aimed to examine COVID-19 vaccine rumors and conspiracy theories circulating on online platforms, understand their context, and then review interventions to manage this misinformation and increase vaccine acceptance. Method In June 2020, a multi-disciplinary team was formed to review and collect online rumors and conspiracy theories between 31 December 2019–30 November 2020. Sources included Google, Google Fact Check, Facebook, YouTube, Twitter, fact-checking agency websites, and television and newspaper websites. Quantitative data were extracted, entered in an Excel spreadsheet, and analyzed descriptively using the statistical package R version 4.0.3. We conducted a content analysis of the qualitative information from news articles, online reports an...
Quail Rearing Practices and Potential for Avian Influenza Virus Transmission, Bangladesh
EcoHealth
In 2015, human influenza surveillance identified a human infection with A/H9N2 in Dhaka, Banglade... more In 2015, human influenza surveillance identified a human infection with A/H9N2 in Dhaka, Bangladesh with evidence of exposure to a sick quail. We conducted in-depth interviews with household quail caregivers, pet bird retail shop owners, and mobile vendors, key informant interviews with pet bird wholesale shop owners, one group discussion with pet bird retail shop workers and unstructured observations in households, pet bird wholesale and retail markets, and mobile bird vendor's travelling areas to explore quail rearing and selling practices among households, mobile vendors, and retail pet bird and wholesale bird markets in Dhaka. Every day, quail were supplied from 23 districts to two wholesale markets, and then sold to households and restaurants directly, or through bird shops and mobile vendors. All respondents (67) reported keeping quail with other birds in cages, feeding quail, cleaning feeding pots, removing quail faeces, slaughtering sick quail, and discarding dead quail. Children played with quail and assisted in slaughtering of quail. Most respondents (94%) reported rinsing hands with water only after slaughtering and disposing of wastes and dead quail. No personal protective equipment was used during any activities. Frequent unprotected contact with quail and their by-products potentially increased the risk of cross-species avian influenza virus transmission. Avian influenza surveillance in retail pet bird and wholesale bird markets, mobile vendors, and households may identify cases promptly and reduce the risk of virus transmission.
Role of Community Clinic in Reducing Climate Change and Disaster-Induced Health Risks
Routledge eBooks, Feb 3, 2023
Why Is Women's Leadership Important for Enhancing Disaster Resilience to Natural Perturbations?
Routledge eBooks, Feb 3, 2023
Journal of Health Management, 2021
The COVID-19 vaccine has been made available for emergency use in Bangladesh. However, willingnes... more The COVID-19 vaccine has been made available for emergency use in Bangladesh. However, willingness to receive the vaccine may be affected by varying factors across the country. Therefore, this study aimed to investigate the factors that influence willingness to receive the vaccine among Bangladeshi adults. A population-based cross-sectional online survey was conducted among a sample of 1,725 Bangladesh adults (age 18 years and older). The statistical analysis included univariate, bivariate and multivariate regression model. Findings show that 85% ( n = 1463) of respondents were willing to receive the vaccine. Respondents with 1–2 children (aOR: 1.77, 95% CI: 1.00–3.13, P = . 048), perceived risk of being infected (aOR: 1.48, 95% CI: 1.03–2.14, P = . 03), perceived impact on daily life (aOR: 2.53, 95%CI: 1.45–4.44, P = . 001), history of co-morbidities (aOR: 2.04, 95% CI: 1.37–3.04, P < . 01), price of the vaccine (aOR: 3.58, 95% CI: 2.34–5.47), physician’s recommendation to recei...
Background: Food adulteration is an increasingly recognized global public health problem. In low-... more Background: Food adulteration is an increasingly recognized global public health problem. In low- and middle-income countries like Bangladesh, adulteration is difficult to detect and respond to. We explored customers’ perceptions on food adulteration, perception of risk, and connections between information, participant characteristics, and patterns of adulterated food concerns that impact risk perception in urban Bangladesh.Methods: The study was conducted in Dhaka, between June and August 2015 at a supermarket, and a wet market. We explored differences in awareness and response to chemical contaminants (adulterants) by socio-economic status. The team conducted 38 in-depth interviews with 12 customers, and 4 staff from a supermarket, and 12 customers and 10 vendors from a wet market. Participants were selected purposively. Audio recorded data were coded based on thematic content and analyzed manually.Results: When asked what proportion of foods were likely adulterated, most particip...
Marginalization of certain groups or clans occurs in most societies including developed countries... more Marginalization of certain groups or clans occurs in most societies including developed countries and perhaps it often occurs in under developed countries. Women, especially the slum women are far more excluded than any other groups in the society. It is clearly demonstrated that the number of slum dwellers is increasing day by day with the increased demand for employment opportunity, rapid rural-urban migration and rapid growth of urban population. The current study has expounded the nature of Social exclusion of women in the selected slums of Narayangonj city. Moreover, the study aimed to explore the reasons, causes, dimensions, impacts and pattern of exclusions for different socio-economic groups. This study had a critical outlook in examining the overall social-environment that perpetuated exclusion of women in slum areas. Findings of this study has presented a social exclusion index of three selected slums and a women poverty index in order to critically examine both the exclus...
The American Journal of Tropical Medicine and Hygiene, 2020
Infodemics, often including rumors, stigma, and conspiracy theories, have been common during the ... more Infodemics, often including rumors, stigma, and conspiracy theories, have been common during the COVID-19 pandemic. Monitoring social media data has been identified as the best method for tracking rumors in real time and as a possible way to dispel misinformation and reduce stigma. However, the detection, assessment, and response to rumors, stigma, and conspiracy theories in real time are a challenge. Therefore, we followed and examined COVID-19related rumors, stigma, and conspiracy theories circulating on online platforms, including fact-checking agency websites, Facebook, Twitter, and online newspapers, and their impacts on public health. Information was extracted between December 31, 2019 and April 5, 2020, and descriptively analyzed. We performed a content analysis of the news articles to compare and contrast data collected from other sources. We identified 2,311 reports of rumors, stigma, and conspiracy theories in 25 languages from 87 countries. Claims were related to illness, transmission and mortality (24%), control measures (21%), treatment and cure (19%), cause of disease including the origin (15%), violence (1%), and miscellaneous (20%). Of the 2,276 reports for which text ratings were available, 1,856 claims were false (82%). Misinformation fueled by rumors, stigma, and conspiracy theories can have potentially serious implications on the individual and community if prioritized over evidence-based guidelines. Health agencies must track misinformation associated with the COVID-19 in real time, and engage local communities and government stakeholders to debunk misinformation.
Effectiveness of Institutional Arrangement to Ensure Women’s Sexual and Reproductive Health during Disaster
ABSTRACT
Effectiveness of Institutional Response to Ensure Women’s Sexual and Reproductive Health during Flood
Women are the most vulnerable in a disastrous situation compared to their male counterpart. It is... more Women are the most vulnerable in a disastrous situation compared to their male counterpart. It is evident in several studies that among all other natural disasters flood causes immense sufferings for women especially in respect to their sexual and reproductive health due to low standard of living condition and poor institutional arrangement. The goal of this study was to understand the existing reproductive health status of women and the effectiveness of existing reproductive health care services to women and adolescent during Flood. We used both qualitative and quantitative method in this study. Our sampling procedure was purposive. We used a semi-structured questionnaire with 46 women of 6 villages of 3 different districts of Bangladesh, namely- Faridpur, Shariatpur and Sirajgonj. In addition to this, 5 focus group discussion, 5 exit interview of the vulnerable women, and 5 Key informant interviews of the local health care providers were conducted for triangulating our data. SPSS ...
Global Biosecurity, 2020
The World Health Organization (WHO) has identified the COVID-19 pandemic as a severe health threa... more The World Health Organization (WHO) has identified the COVID-19 pandemic as a severe health threat to the global population. The disease is particularly concerning for the approximate one million Rohingya people living in 34 refugee camps in Cox's Bazar district of Bangladesh due to many ongoing challenges with basic needs (e.g. poor living conditions, physical and mental health risks) and gaps in the response to COVID-19 prevention in the camps. According to the WHO, as of 2 August 2020, a total of 2,205 tests were conducted at the refugee camps and 87 dwellers tested positive; of them, seven have died. Although the incidence rate is currently low, epidemiological modeling estimates with a sample of the 23 camps suggest a mortality rate of around 1,500 Rohingya refugees per day. This estimated rate of mortality, together with existing challenges and gaps in response preparedness to COVID-19, warrants rapid and comprehensive preventative measures to control the COVID-19 outbreak and reduce aggravating the existing humanitarian crises in the camps. This paper highlights epidemiological insights into the need for a rapid response to the prevention of COVID-19 in the Rohingya refugee camps. It offers translational strategies at the community, health service, and political levels to help control the spread of COVID-19 among the extremely vulnerable Rohingya refugees in Bangladesh.
The Journal of medical research, 2018
Context-Women are the most vulnerable in any disastrous situation compared to their male counterp... more Context-Women are the most vulnerable in any disastrous situation compared to their male counterpart. It is evident in several studies that among all other natural disasters flood causes immense sufferings for women especially in respect to their Sexual and Reproductive Health (SRH) due to the lower standard of living condition and poor institutional response. Aims: The objective of this study was to understand the reproductive health status of women during the flood. The study also aimed to explore the effectiveness of existing reproductive health care services for women and adolescents during the flood. Methods and Material: We used both qualitative and quantitative method in this study and our sampling procedure was purposive. We used a semi-structured questionnaire to collect data from 46 women in six villages under three different districts of Bangladesh, namely-Faridpur, Shariatpur and Sirajgonj. Moreover, five focus group discussion with the vulnerable women, ten exit interviews of the health care seeking women and five key informant interviews' of the local health care providers were conducted.
Global Biosecurity, 2020
The World Health Organization (WHO) has identified the COVID-19 pandemic as a severe health threa... more The World Health Organization (WHO) has identified the COVID-19 pandemic as a severe health threat to the global population. The disease is particularly concerning for the approximate one million Rohingya people living in 34 refugee camps in Cox's Bazar district of Bangladesh due to many ongoing challenges with basic needs (e.g. poor living conditions, physical and mental health risks) and gaps in the response to COVID-19 prevention in the camps. According to the WHO, as of 2 August 2020, a total of 2,205 tests were conducted at the refugee camps and 87 dwellers tested positive; of them, seven have died. Although the incidence rate is currently low, epidemiological modeling estimates with a sample of the 23 camps suggest a mortality rate of around 1,500 Rohingya refugees per day. This estimated rate of mortality, together with existing challenges and gaps in response preparedness to COVID-19, warrants rapid and comprehensive preventative measures to control the COVID-19 outbreak and reduce aggravating the existing humanitarian crises in the camps. This paper highlights epidemiological insights into the need for a rapid response to the prevention of COVID-19 in the Rohingya refugee camps. It offers translational strategies at the community, health service, and political levels to help control the spread of COVID-19 among the extremely vulnerable Rohingya refugees in Bangladesh.
The American Journal of Tropical Medicine and Hygiene, 2020
Infodemics, often including rumors, stigma, and conspiracy theories, have been common during the ... more Infodemics, often including rumors, stigma, and conspiracy theories, have been common during the COVID-19 pandemic. Monitoring social media data has been identified as the best method for tracking rumors in real time and as a possible way to dispel misinformation and reduce stigma. However, the detection, assessment, and response to rumors, stigma, and conspiracy theories in real time are a challenge. Therefore, we followed and examined COVID-19-related rumors, stigma, and conspiracy theories circulating on online platforms, including fact-checking agency websites, Facebook, Twitter, and online newspapers, and their impacts on public health. Information was extracted between De-cember 31, 2019 and April 5, 2020, and descriptively analyzed. We performed a content analysis of the news articles to compare and contrast data collected from other sources. We identified 2,311 reports of rumors, stigma, and conspiracy theories in 25 languages from 87 countries. Claims were related to illness, transmission and mortality (24%), control measures (21%), treatment and cure (19%), cause of disease including the origin (15%), violence (1%), and miscellaneous (20%). Of the 2,276 reports for which text ratings were available, 1,856 claims were false (82%). Misinformation fueled by rumors, stigma, and conspiracy theories can have potentially serious implications on the individual and community if prioritized over evidence-based guidelines. Health agencies must track misinformation associated with the COVID-19 in real time, and engage local communities and government stakeholders to debunk misinformation.
Marginalization of certain groups or clans occurs in most societies including developed countries... more Marginalization of certain groups or clans occurs in most societies including developed countries and perhaps it often occurs in under developed countries. Women, especially the slum women are far more excluded than any other groups in the society. It is clearly demonstrated that the number of slum dwellers is increasing day by day with the increased demand for employment opportunity, rapid rural-urban migration and rapid growth of urban population. The current study has expounded the nature of Social exclusion of women in the selected slums of Narayangonj city. Moreover, the study aimed to explore the reasons, causes, dimensions, impacts and pattern of exclusions for different socioeconomic groups. This study had a critical outlook in examining the overall social-environment that perpetuated exclusion of women in slum areas. Findings of this study has presented a social exclusion index of three selected slums and a women poverty index in order to critically examine both the exclusion index and poverty index of women extensively. Finally, the study has examined the ineffectiveness/inaction of existing law and rules in protecting the disadvantaged women folk of slums. Abstract-Marginalization of certain groups or clans occurs in most societies including developed countries and perhaps it often occurs in under developed countries. Women, especially the slum women are far more excluded than any other groups in the society. It is clearly demonstrated that the number of slum dwellers is increasing day by day with the increased demand for employment opportunity, rapid rural-urban migration and rapid growth of urban population. The current study has expounded the nature of Social exclusion of women in the selected slums of Narayangonj city. Moreover, the study aimed to explore the reasons, causes, dimensions, impacts and pattern of exclusions for different socioeconomic groups. This study had a critical outlook in examining the overall social-environment that perpetuated exclusion of women in slum areas. Findings of this study has presented a social exclusion index of three selected slums and a women poverty index in order to critically examine both the exclusion index and poverty index of women extensively. Finally, the study has examined the ineffectiveness/inaction of existing law and rules in protecting the disadvantaged women folk of slums.
Title of Research: Engendering Disaster: A Sociological Study on Aila Affected Area of a Coastal ... more Title of Research: Engendering Disaster: A Sociological Study on Aila Affected Area of a Coastal District of Bangladesh
Author/s: Abu-Hena Kamal, MSS, Department of Sociology, Jagannath University, Dhaka
Mohammed Moniruzzaman Khan, Assistant Professor, Jagannath University, Dhaka.
Disaster disrupts and reshapes the role of gender in the society including the natural activities of women along with all the normal functions and sectors of the society. In disastrous situation women go outside to work and to collect foods and substances in support of family besides their traditional activities such as household management. By using the combination of both qualitative and quantitative method in Uttar Bethkashi union of Khulna district, a severely Aila affected area, the study demonstrates that women’s activities in Aila affected area are regarded as amateur; the number of casualties is comparatively higher in women, children and the aged. The results of the empirical fieldwork also highlight that vulnerability of women in disastrous situation like Aila become more acute than normal situation. Moreover, politicization of disaster, traditional and patriarchal norms, values and cultural practices makes women as the worst sufferers of disaster.
Abstract
Disaster disrupts and reshapes the role of gender in the society including the natural a... more Abstract
Disaster disrupts and reshapes the role of gender in the society including the natural activities of women along with all the normal functions and sectors of the society. In disastrous situation women go outside to work and to collect foods and substances in support of family besides their traditional activities such as household management. By using the combination of both qualitative and quantitative method in Uttar Bethkashi union of Khulna district, a severely Aila affected area, the study demonstrates that women’s activities in Aila affected area are regarded as amateur; the number of casualties is comparatively higher in women, children and the aged. The results of the empirical fieldwork also highlight that vulnerability of women in disastrous situation like Aila become more acute than normal situation. Moreover, politicization of disaster, traditional and patriarchal norms, values and cultural practices makes women as the worst sufferers of disaster.
Key words: Disaster, gender, vulnerability, women
Abstract
Women are the most vulnerable in a disastrous situation compared to their male counterpa... more Abstract
Women are the most vulnerable in a disastrous situation compared to their male counterpart. It is evident in several studies that among all other natural disasters flood causes immense sufferings for women especially in respect to their Sexual and Reproductive Health (SRH) due to low standard of living condition and poor institutional response. The goal of this study was to understand the existing reproductive health status of women and the effectiveness of existing reproductive health care services to women and adolescent during Flood. We used both qualitative and quantitative method in this study and our sampling procedure was purposive. We used a semi-structured questionnaire with 46 women from 6 villages of 3 different districts of Bangladesh, namely- Faridpur, Shariatpur and Sirajgonj. In addition to this, 5 focus group discussion with the vulnerable women, 10 exit interview of the vulnerable health care seeking women, and 5 Key informant interview of the local health care providers were conducted. Besides we also conducted unstructured observation (both participatory and non-participatory) in the communities .The findings of the current study revealed that flood affected women suffer from various types of problems during flood regarding their SRH. On the other hand, institutional responses were not effective to reduce SRH related vulnerabilities.
Keywords: Flood, Sexual and Reproductive Health, Women, Bangladesh.
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Papers by Abu-Hena M Kamal
Author/s: Abu-Hena Kamal, MSS, Department of Sociology, Jagannath University, Dhaka
Mohammed Moniruzzaman Khan, Assistant Professor, Jagannath University, Dhaka.
Disaster disrupts and reshapes the role of gender in the society including the natural activities of women along with all the normal functions and sectors of the society. In disastrous situation women go outside to work and to collect foods and substances in support of family besides their traditional activities such as household management. By using the combination of both qualitative and quantitative method in Uttar Bethkashi union of Khulna district, a severely Aila affected area, the study demonstrates that women’s activities in Aila affected area are regarded as amateur; the number of casualties is comparatively higher in women, children and the aged. The results of the empirical fieldwork also highlight that vulnerability of women in disastrous situation like Aila become more acute than normal situation. Moreover, politicization of disaster, traditional and patriarchal norms, values and cultural practices makes women as the worst sufferers of disaster.
Disaster disrupts and reshapes the role of gender in the society including the natural activities of women along with all the normal functions and sectors of the society. In disastrous situation women go outside to work and to collect foods and substances in support of family besides their traditional activities such as household management. By using the combination of both qualitative and quantitative method in Uttar Bethkashi union of Khulna district, a severely Aila affected area, the study demonstrates that women’s activities in Aila affected area are regarded as amateur; the number of casualties is comparatively higher in women, children and the aged. The results of the empirical fieldwork also highlight that vulnerability of women in disastrous situation like Aila become more acute than normal situation. Moreover, politicization of disaster, traditional and patriarchal norms, values and cultural practices makes women as the worst sufferers of disaster.
Key words: Disaster, gender, vulnerability, women
Women are the most vulnerable in a disastrous situation compared to their male counterpart. It is evident in several studies that among all other natural disasters flood causes immense sufferings for women especially in respect to their Sexual and Reproductive Health (SRH) due to low standard of living condition and poor institutional response. The goal of this study was to understand the existing reproductive health status of women and the effectiveness of existing reproductive health care services to women and adolescent during Flood. We used both qualitative and quantitative method in this study and our sampling procedure was purposive. We used a semi-structured questionnaire with 46 women from 6 villages of 3 different districts of Bangladesh, namely- Faridpur, Shariatpur and Sirajgonj. In addition to this, 5 focus group discussion with the vulnerable women, 10 exit interview of the vulnerable health care seeking women, and 5 Key informant interview of the local health care providers were conducted. Besides we also conducted unstructured observation (both participatory and non-participatory) in the communities .The findings of the current study revealed that flood affected women suffer from various types of problems during flood regarding their SRH. On the other hand, institutional responses were not effective to reduce SRH related vulnerabilities.
Keywords: Flood, Sexual and Reproductive Health, Women, Bangladesh.