Gender differences on sexual behaviour and school inputs: evidence from Bogota.

This thesis explores the correlation between school factors and the differentiated results on sexual behaviour between boys and girls in Bogota. A school stratified propensity score matching was performed to match each boy of the sample with the most similar girls in individual, household and school characteristics. A regression analysis was performed to estimate the correlation between the five school factors evaluated with four main outcomes: have had sexual intercourse, condom use in the last sexual intercourse, incidence of teenage childbearing and age at first intercourse. Boys - in relation to girls - begin earlier their sexual life, more of them reported have used condom in their last sexual intercourse and have a lower incidence of teenage childbearing. These differences are correlated with have reported the school as main source of knowledge about reproductive health and contraceptive methods, a larger proportion of teachers with a graduate or postgraduate degree, a larger proportion of teachers with a related pedagogy degree and to the average age of teachers in the school. The results suggest that the content of the message about sex that is delivered to girls at school is not complete or accurate and that the competences of the school teachers in charge of this task should be improved to reach equally boys and girls.

Relationship among children’s perception of parental relationship and parental empathy and prosocial behaviour during childhood

The objective of this work is to study if children’s perception of parental relationship and parental empathy can predict prosocial behaviour during childhood. The sample was composed of 934 Argentine children, aged 9 to 12, of middle socio-economical level. The participants completed Argentine scale of Children Perception of Parental relationship (richaud de Minzi, 2007), an Argentine adaptation of scale of Prosocial Behaviour (Caprara and Pastorelli, 1993) and a questionnaire to measure children’s perception of parental empathy (richaud de Minzi, 2006). structural equations modelling (sEM) analyses were conducted to explore our hypotheses. Six theoretical models fit the data very well. The results showed that parental styles of acceptance and pathological control impact on children prosocial behavior. Children’s perception of parental empathy was positively associated with children prosocial behavior. Finally, parental acceptance and pathological control were associated with children’s perception of parental empathy, but negligent parental behaviour did not.  

Niveles de actividad física, condición física y tiempo en pantallas en escolares de Bogotá, Colombia: Estudio FUPRECOL

Examina la relación entre los niveles de actividad física (AF) de forma objetiva, la condición física (CF) y el tiempo de exposición a pantallas en niños y adolescentes de Bogotá, Colombia.

Factores de riesgo del comportamiento y readiness de aficionados inscritos a carreras atléticas de fondo de 18-64 años en Bogotá D.C., 2014”

La participación en carreras atléticas de calle ha aumentado; esto requiere detectar riesgos previos al esfuerzo físico. Objetivo. Identificar factores de riesgo del comportamiento y readiness de inscritos a una carrera. Método. Estudio transversal en aficionados de 18-64 años. Encuesta digital con módulos de IPAQ, PARQ+ y STEP. Muestreo aleatorio sistemático con n=510, para una inactividad física esperada de 35% (±5%). Se evaluó nivel de actividad física, consumo de alcohol (peligroso), de fruta, verdura, tabaco y sal, y readiness. Resultados. El cumplimiento de actividad física fue 97,4%; 2,4% consume nivel óptimo de fruta o verdura (diferencias por edad, sexo y estrato), 3,7% fuma y 44,1% consumo peligroso de alcohol. El 19,8% reportó PARQ+ positivo y 5,7% requiere supervisión. Hay diferencias por trabajo y estudio. Discusión. Los aficionados cumplen el nivel de actividad física; pero no de otros factores. Una estrategia de seguridad en el atletismo de calle es evaluar los factores de riesgo relacionados con el estilo de vida así como el readiness.

Small-area variation in health care affecting the choice of cesarean delivery: the case of a Colombian health insurer

In the midst of health care reform, Colombia has succeeded in increasing health insurance coverage and the quality of health care. In spite of this, efficiency continues to be a matter of concern, and small-area variations in health care are one of the plausible causes of such inefficiencies. In order to understand this issue, we use individual data of all births from a Contributory-Regimen insurer in Colombia. We perform two different specifications of a multilevel logistic regression model. Our results reveal that hospitals account for 20% of variation on the probability of performing cesarean sections. Geographic area only explains 1/3 of the variance attributable to the hospital. Furthermore, some variables from both demand and supply sides are found to be also relevant on the probability of undergoing cesarean sections. This paper contributes to previous research by using a hierarchical model and by defining hospitals as cluster. Moreover, we also include clinical and supply induced demand variables.

Reflexiones en salud pública

Desde una visión general y práctica este texto facilita la reflexión sobre tópicos de interés para la salud pública. Con un lenguaje sencillo, busca aproximarse al estudio de la salud desde una visión interdisciplinar, partiendo del reconocimiento del rol que le compete al individuo, la sociedad y el Estado. El objetivo general es promover en el lector el análisis crítico de problemáticas relacionadas con el ámbito de la salud pública, constituyéndose en una iniciativa para el posterior desarrollo de acciones en el área.