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Analyzing issue cycles usually begins with observing selected events and then tracking the course of media coverage. This approach collapses when the events of interest are hidden, overlain, or even distorted by extensive coverage of other events. One such complicated case is news about terrorism in Africa. While previous studies have started from single media hypes, we propose modeling the general pattern of such issue cycles with distributed lag models on a large-scale data basis. In order to assess the utility of distributed lag models, two basic principles of issue cycles are derived from theory and empirically tested. Furthermore, using the Global Database of Events, Language, and Tone, we evaluate the usefulness of automated methods for news research. Although the data are quite noisy, automated content analysis combined with distributed lag models is a promising approach for studying issue cycles. The model can be used to visualize issue cycles. In the case of news about terrorism in Africa, we found a sudden increase in coverage, followed by a second local maximum after a few weeks. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

African countries experience many complex public health challenges that, to tackle, require coordinated, multi-stakeholder, collaborative partnerships at local and global levels. The African nurse diaspora is a strategic stakeholder, contributor, and liaison to public health interventions, given their roots in the continent, their professional connections in the west, and their ability to build an extensive network of global partners. Using a descriptive qualitative approach that amplifies the voices of the Africa nurse diaspora, this study provides an insider view of the continent's public health priorities and what roles the diaspora can play to improve health and population outcomes. Findings show that Africa's high disease burden is generally preventable but compounded by enduring socioeconomic challenges. Against this situation, African-born nurses in the diaspora are uniquely positioned to mobilize both local and global stakeholders in coordinated global health policy interventions and actively engage communities in preventive care while earning their trust. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Conceptual frameworks for health policy analysis guide investigations into interactions between institutions, interests, and ideas to identify how to improve policy decisions and outcomes. This review assessed constructs from current frameworks and theories of health policy analysis to (1) develop a preliminary synthesis of findings from selected frameworks and theories; (2) analyze relationships between elements of those frameworks and theories to construct an overarching framework for health policy analysis; and then, (3) apply that overarching framework to analyze tobacco control policies in Togo and in South Africa. This Comprehensive Framework for Multi-Sectoral Approach to Health Policy Analysis has 4 main constructs: context, content, stakeholders, and strategies. When applied to analyze tobacco control policy processes in Togo and in South Africa, it identified a shared goal in both countries to have a policy content that is compliant with the provisions of international tobacco treaties and differences in strategic interactions between institutions (e.g., tobacco industry, government structures) and in the political context of tobacco control policy process. These findings highlight the need for context-specific political mapping identifying the interests of all stakeholders and strategies for interaction between health and other sectors when planning policy formulation or implementation. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Mass media play an important role in explaining the issue of female genital cutting and can influence discourse among the general public as well as policy makers. Understanding how news media present female genital cutting has strong implications for the global status of women. This study, a quantitative content analysis, analyzed how 15 years of newspaper coverage surrounding the launch of the Millennium Development Goals framed female genital cutting in four countries with varying prevalence levels of female genital cutting: the United States, Ghana, The Gambia, and Kenya. The study found female genital cutting is consistently portrayed as a problematic and thematic topic, largely tied to cultural rituals. However, coverage is minimal and inconsistent over time, and does not appear to be impacted by the increase in international initiatives aimed at combatting the practice. [ABSTRACT FROM PUBLISHER]

China’s role as an emerging donor and its conceptualization of social policy in Africa has generated polarized reactions in the West. Many argue its ‘productivist’ approach is driven less by notions of citizenship and social rights, and more in terms of accumulation functions. Social investment is justified for broader economic development goals in contrast to current safety-net or ‘welfarist’ models of Western donors. While some international organizations perceive the Chinese approach as antithetical to Western goals and practice, others welcome it as an opportunity to develop new ideas about social development.This qualitative research explores to what extent and in which direction Chinese aid to Africa is influencing Western ideas about welfare policy in developing countries. The study comprises a systematic review of Sino-African and Western policy documents and in-depth interviews with senior Chinese, Western and African stakeholders. It investigates how social policy is conceptualized by those involved in Chinese aid to Africa, to what extent this differs from traditional Western approaches, and what it means for Western social development policy. The implications for understanding the drivers of global policy development and links between the economic and social dimensions of welfare are explored. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Objective: To examine and compare doctors’ and nurses’ views and experiences regarding outcome measurement in palliative care, including patient-reported outcome measures (PROMs).Methods: A web-based survey developed through expert review and piloting was conducted in Europe and Africa with palliative care professionals working in clinical care, audit and research.Results: The overall participation rate was 42% (663/1592) and the overall completion rate was 59% (392/663). Of these respondents, 196 were doctors (51% male, mean 47 years) and 104 were nurses (84% female, mean 45 years). Doctors’ most common reported reasons for not using tools were time constraints followed by lack of training. For nurses, it was lack of training followed by time constraints. Provision of information and guidance influenced willingness to use measures. For those that used tools, most reported favourable outcome measurement experiences. Both prioritized brief PROMs, and measures that included physical and psychological domains. For clinical purposes, the main advantage for doctors was assessment/screening, and clinical decision making for nurses. For research, doctors were most influenced by a measure’s comparability with national/international literature followed by its validation in palliative care. For nurses, validation in palliative care was followed by tool access.Conclusion: Overall these respondents shared similar views and experiences, and both were influenced by similar factors. Multidisciplinary outcome measurement education and training is feasible and required. Multidimensional and brief PROMs that include physical and psychological domains need to be prioritized, and access to freely available, validated and translated tools is needed to ensure cross-national comparisons and coordination of international research. [ABSTRACT FROM PUBLISHER]

The media in Africa are often indicted for being partly responsible for the conflicts and tensions in the continent, and the role of the radio in escalating the 1994 genocide in Rwanda is frequently cited in support of this indictment. This article examines newspaper reports of the post 2007 presidential election violence in Kenya and finds a contrast to the Rwandan ‘model’. Although the newspapers analysed did not provide any forewarning about the impending crisis, they relentlessly published news stories and house editorials that addressed peace-building in the country. The authors suggest that the Kenyan example raises two main issues: (a) the media can play functional roles in de-escalating conflicts in Africa; and (b) reporters should be society’s moral witnesses, not ‘objective’ bystanders, who watch and report on the collapse of humanity. [ABSTRACT FROM PUBLISHER]