Chile: la selección de establecimientos educacionales prioritarios en el marco de una política de equidad

Incluye Bibliografía

Notas de la CEPAL Nº 45

CEPAL propone pacto de protección social para América Latina y el Caribe La protección social de cara al futuro. Columna de opinión de José Luis Machinea, Secretario Ejecutivo de la CEPAL Agenda de reformas en salud Doble desafío: reformar los sistemas de pensiones para expandir la cobertura Resoluciones del Trigésimo primer período de sesiones de la CEPAL Los programas sociales contribuyen a paliar la pobreza pero enfrentan grandes desafíos Derechos humanos y desarrollo, al centro del debate sobre migración Desafíos y oportunidades para la gobernabilidad migratoria Proyecciones de crecimiento Apéndice estadístico Publicaciones recientes Calendario

Políticas públicas para la igualdad: Hacia sistemas de protección social universal

Incluye bibliografía.

An assessment of the economic impact of climate change on the health sector In Jamaica

Climate change is a naturally occurring phenomenon in which the earth‘s climate goes through cycles of warming and cooling; these changes usually take place incrementally over millennia. Over the past century, there has been an anomalous increase in global temperature, giving rise to accelerated climate change. It is widely accepted that greenhouse gas emissions from human activities such as industries have contributed significantly to the increase in global temperatures. The existence and survival of all living organisms is predicated on the ability of the environment in which they live not only to provide conditions for their basic needs but also conditions suitable for growth and reproduction. Unabated climate change threatens the existence of biophysical and ecological systems on a planetary scale. The present study aims to examine the economic impact of climate change on health in Jamaica over the period 2011-2050. To this end, three disease conditions with known climate sensitivity and importance to Jamaican public health were modelled. These were: dengue fever, leptospirosis and gastroenteritis in children under age 5. Historical prevalence data on these diseases were obtained from the Ministry of Health Jamaica, the Caribbean Epidemiology Centre, the Climate Studies Group Mona, University of the West Indies Mona campus, and the Meteorological Service of Jamaica. Data obtained spanned a twelve-year period of 1995-2007. Monthly data were obtained for dengue and gastroenteritis, while for leptospirosis, the annual number of cases for 1995-2005 was utilized. The two SRES emission scenarios chosen were A2 and B2 using the European Centre Hamburg Model (ECHAM) global climate model to predict climate variables for these scenarios. A business as usual (BAU) scenario was developed using historical disease data for the period 2000-2009 (dengue fever and gastroenteritis) and 1995-2005 (leptospirosis) as the reference decades for the respective diseases. The BAU scenario examined the occurrence of the diseases in the absence of climate change. It assumed that the disease trend would remain unchanged over the projected period and the number of cases of disease for each decade would be the same as the reference decade. The model used in the present study utilized predictive empirical statistical modelling to extrapolate the climate/disease relationship in time, to estimate the number of climate change-related cases under future climate change scenarios. The study used a Poisson regression model that considered seasonality and lag effects to determine the best-fit model in relation to the diseases under consideration. Zhang and others (2008), in their review of climate change and the transmission of vector-borne diseases, found that: ―Besides climatic variables, few of them have included other factors that can affect the transmission of vector-borne disease….‖ (Zhang 2008) Water, sanitation and health expenditure are key determinants of health. In the draft of the second communication to IPCC, Jamaica noted the vulnerability of public health to climate change, including sanitation and access to water (MSJ/UNDP, 2009). Sanitation, which in its broadest context includes the removal of waste (excreta, solid, or other hazardous waste), is a predictor of vector-borne diseases (e.g. dengue fever), diarrhoeal diseases (such as gastroenteritis) and zoonoses (such as leptospirosis). In conceptualizing the model, an attempt was made to include non-climate predictors of these climate-sensitive diseases. The importance of sanitation and water access to the control of dengue, gastroenteritis and leptospirosis were included in the Poisson regression model. The Poisson regression model obtained was then used to predict the number of disease cases into the future (2011-2050) for each emission scenario. After projecting the number of cases, the cost associated with each scenario was calculated using four cost components. 1. Treatment cost morbidity estimate. The treatment cost for the number of cases was calculated using reference values found in the literature for each condition. The figures were derived from studies of the cost of treatment and represent ambulatory and non-fatal hospitalized care for dengue fever and gastroenteritis. Due to the paucity of published literature on the health care cost associated with leptospirosis, only the cost of diagnosis and antibiotic therapy were included in the calculation. 2. Mortality estimates. Mortality estimates are recorded as case fatality rates. Where local data were available, these were utilized. Where these were unavailable, appropriate reference values from the literature were used. 3. Productivity loss. Productivity loss was calculated using a human capital approach, by multiplying the expected number of productive days lost by the caregiver and/or the infected person, by GDP per capita per day (US$ 14) at 2008 GDP using 2008 US$ exchange rates. 4. No-option cost. The no-option cost refers to adaptation strategies for the control of dengue fever which are ongoing and already a part of the core functions of the Vector Control Division of the Ministry of Health, Jamaica. An estimated US$ 2.1 million is utilized each year in conducting activities to prevent the post-hurricane spread of vector borne diseases and diarrhoea. The cost includes public education, fogging, laboratory support, larvicidal activities and surveillance. This no-option cost was converted to per capita estimates, using population estimates for Jamaica up to 2050 obtained from the Statistical Institute of Jamaica (STATIN, 2006) and the assumption of one expected major hurricane per decade. During the decade 2000-2009, Jamaica had an average inflation of 10.4% (CIA Fact book, last updated May 2011). This average decadal inflation rate was applied to the no-option cost, which was inflated by 10% for each successive decade to adjust for changes in inflation over time.

Serviço Social e as políticas públicas para os usuários afrodescendentes

Pós-graduação em Serviço Social - FCHS

Avances y brechas en la protección de los derechos de las personas mayores en los países del Caribe

En este capítulo se realiza un análisis comparativo de leyes, políticas y programas sociales de los países de la subregión que contemplan a este grupo social, enfocándose en cinco temas clave: las instituciones y políticas; las pensiones sociales; el acceso a los servicios de salud; el acceso a los servicios de cuidado y la reglamentación de las instituciones residenciales. Sobre la base de este análisis, se ofrecen recomendaciones en cada una de estas áreas.

La incorporación social en Centroamérica: trayectorias, obstáculos y oportunidades

En este documento se analizan los cambios y continuidades ocurridos en materia de incorporación social en El Salvador, Guatemala y Nicaragua desde los años noventa. Para ello, se estudian las pensiones por vejez, los servicios de salud y las transferencias monetarias condicionadas (TMCs), especialmente, en sus relaciones con los servicios de salud. Interesa particularmente determinar los avances hacia una incorporación universal —la más efectiva para la redistribución del ingreso—, la cual tiene lugar cuando los programas sociales combinan coberturas amplias con beneficios robustos y altos grados de equidad. En el estudio se demuestra que ha habido mejoras significativas en términos de incorporación social, pero que ésta ha sido, en general, de carácter segmentado antes que universal. Persisten problemas significativos en materia de cobertura, suficiencia y equidad en salud y pensiones, mientras que las TMCs han tenido capacidades muy desiguales para influir positivamente en los otros sectores de política social. Con esta trayectoria como rasgo común, El Salvador ha dado pasos especialmente significativos para promover el universalismo en el sector salud, no así en pensiones.

El Sistema de Protección Social Universal de El Salvador: posibilidades para la articulación de sus componentes

El gobierno de El Salvador está elaborando los ejercicios de planificación requeridos en el sector de la protección social para orientar las políticas y programas sociales durante la presente administración. Entre tales ejercicios destacan el Plan Quinquenal de Desarrollo (PQD) y el Plan de Desarrollo Social, en el contexto de los mandatos de la Ley de Desarrollo y Protección Social (LDPS), entre otras disposiciones legales. A solicitud y en contacto con la Secretaría Técnica de la Presidencia, se ha solicitado la elaboración de un estudio que partiendo de los mandatos, objetivos y acciones previstas, analice los desafíos y oportunidades para la articulación de los pilares contributivo y no contributivo del actual Sistema de Protección Social Universal (SPSU), y señale recomendaciones o posibles líneas de acción para avanzar hacia una mayor articulación. Precisamente, el gran reto de la protección social en El Salvador pareciera estar en la efectiva articulación de los pilares contributivo y no contributivo, en otras palabras en cómo lograr que los participantes del segundo pasen a formar parte del primero y aporten a su sostenimiento al insertarse en un mercado laboral que les pudiera ofrecer condiciones dignas y la posibilidad de una pensión.

Amazon forest biomass density maps: tackling the uncertainty in carbon emission estimates

Fundação de Amparo à Pesquisa do Estado de São Paulo (FAPESP)

Do pets reduce the likelihood of sudden unexplained death in epilepsy?

Purpose: To assess the relationship between the presence of pets in homes of epilepsy patients and the occurrence of sudden unexpected death in epilepsy (SUDEP). Methods: Parents or relatives of SUDEP patients collected over a ten-year period (2000-2009) in a large epilepsy unit were asked if the patient lived together with any domestic pet at the time of death or not. Patients who did not experience SUDEP served as controls. Results and conclusions: Eleven out of the 1092 included patients (1%) experienced SUDEP, all with refractory symptomatic epilepsy, but none of them had pets in their homes at the time of death. In contrast, the frequency of pet-ownership in the control group (n = 1081) was 61%. According to previous studies there are some indications that human health is directly related to companionship with animals in a way that domestic animals prevent illness and facilitate recovery of patients. Companion animals can buffer reactivity against acute stress, diminish stress perception and improve physical health. These factors may reduce cardiac arrhythmias and seizure frequency, factors related to SUDEP. Companion animals may have a positive effect on well-being, thus irnproving epilepsy outcome. (c) 2012 British Epilepsy Association. Published by Elsevier Ltd. All rights reserved.

The impact of R&D in firm value across Europe

In this thesis the impact of R&D expenditures on firm market value and stock returns is examined. This is performed in a sample of European listed firms for the period 2000-2009. I apply different linear and GMM econometric estimations for testing the impact of R&D on market prices and construct country portfolios based on firms’ R&D expenditure to market capitalization ratio for studying the effect of R&D on stock returns. The results confirm that more innovative firms have a better market valuation,investors consider R&D as an asset that produces long-term benefits for corporations. The impact of R&D on firm value differs across countries. It is significantly modulated by the financial and legal environment where firms operate. Other firm and industry characteristics seem to play a determinant role when investors value R&D. First, only larger firms with lower financial leverage that operate in highly innovative sectors decide to disclose their R&D investment. Second, the markets assign a premium to small firms, which operate in hi-tech sectors compared to larger enterprises for low-tech industries. On the other hand, I provide empirical evidence indicating that generally highly R&D-intensive firms may enhance mispricing problems related to firm valuation. As R&D contributes to the estimation of future stock returns, portfolios that comprise high R&D-intensive stocks may earn significant excess returns compared to the less innovative after controlling for size and book-to-market risk. Further, the most innovative firms are generally more risky in terms of stock volatility but not systematically more risky than low-tech firms. Firms that operate in Continental Europe suffer more mispricing compared to Anglo-Saxon peers but the former are less volatile, other things being equal. The sectors where firms operate are determinant even for the impact of R&D on stock returns; this effect is much stronger in hi-tech industries.