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Health and human rights of marginalized populations

This section considers studies regarding the health and human rights of members of marginalized populations, including sexual and gender minorities, children, migrants, ethnic minorities, refugees, displaced people, commercial sex workers, injection drug users, and other marginalized populations.

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  1. Women, especially those who marry as children, experience various forms and degrees of exclusion and discrimination. Early marriage is a harmful traditional practice that continues to affect millions around th...

    Authors: Mikyas Abera, Ansha Nega, Yifokire Tefera and Abebaw Addis Gelagay
    Citation: BMC International Health and Human Rights 2020 20:30
  2. Cervical cancer claims 311,000 lives annually, and 90% of these deaths occur in low- and middle-income countries. Cervical cancer is a highly preventable and treatable disease, if detected through screening at...

    Authors: Katrina Perehudoff, Heleen Vermandere, Alex Williams, Sergio Bautista-Arredondo, Elien De Paepe, Sonia Dias, Ana Gama, Ines Keygnaert, Adhemar Longatto-Filho, Jose Ortiz, Elizaveta Padalko, Rui Manuel Reis, Nathalie Vanderheijden, Bernardo Vega, Bo Verberckmoes and Olivier Degomme
    Citation: BMC International Health and Human Rights 2020 20:21
  3. Birth registration establishes the existence of a child under law and provides the foundation for ensuring many of his/her rights. Despite its significance, a continuous, effective and comprehensive birth regi...

    Authors: Shishay Tadesse Abay and Ataklti Gebreyesus Gebre-egziabher
    Citation: BMC International Health and Human Rights 2020 20:20
  4. Female genital mutilation/cutting (FGM/C) has been recognized as a gross violation of human rights of girls and women. This is well established in numerous international legal instruments. It forms part of the...

    Authors: Edward Kwabena Ameyaw, Justice Kanor Tetteh, Ebenezer Kwesi Armah-Ansah, Kofi Aduo-Adjei and Aisha Sena-Iddrisu
    Citation: BMC International Health and Human Rights 2020 20:19
  5. The determinants of sexual- and gender-based violence (SGBV) and early marriage are embedded across different levels of the social ecological system, including at the individual, family, community, and policy ...

    Authors: Jewel Gausman, Areej Othman, Abeer Dababneh, Maysoon Dabobe, Iqbal Hamad, Insaf Daas and Ana Langer
    Citation: BMC International Health and Human Rights 2020 20:16
  6. Human rights language has become a common method of internationally denouncing violent, discriminatory or otherwise harmful practices, notably by framing them as reprehensible violations of those fundamental r...

    Authors: Melisa Demir, Bilkis Vissandjée, Danielle Jacobson and Gillian Einstein
    Citation: BMC International Health and Human Rights 2020 20:14
  7. Building on a broader sociological discourse around policing approaches towards vulnerable populations, increasing public health and human rights evidence points to policing practices as a key health determina...

    Authors: Katherine H. A. Footer, Bradley E. Silberzahn, Sahnah Lim, Steven Huettner, Victor A. Kumar, Derek Loeffler, Sarah M. Peitzmeier and Susan G. Sherman
    Citation: BMC International Health and Human Rights 2020 20:12
  8. Definitions of child sexual exploitation vary. Sexual exploitation violates children’s rights and exposes them to mental and physical harm. There exist differences in views of behaviour that is considered expl...

    Authors: N. Kyegombe, R. Meiksin, S. Namakula, J. Mulindwa, R. Muhumuza, J. Wamoyi, L. Heise and A. M. Buller
    Citation: BMC International Health and Human Rights 2020 20:11
  9. Mozambique has high maternal mortality which is compounded by limited human resources for health, weak access to health services, and poor development indicators. In 2011, the Mozambique Ministry of Health (Mo...

    Authors: Karen Hobday, Anthony B. Zwi, Caroline Homer, Renae Kirkham, Jennifer Hulme, Páscoa Zualo Wate and Ndola Prata
    Citation: BMC International Health and Human Rights 2020 20:9
  10. All around the world, the paralegal program prepares members of marginalized communities to face the legal system. Having a common background with their clients and being capable of conducting flexible work, p...

    Authors: Albert Wirya, Ajeng Larasati, Sofia Gruskin and Laura Ferguson
    Citation: BMC International Health and Human Rights 2020 20:8
  11. Almost one in three married Indian women have ever experienced physical, sexual, or emotional violence from husbands in their lifetime. We aimed to investigate the preliminary effects of community mobilisation...

    Authors: Nirmala Nair, Nayreen Daruwalla, David Osrin, Suchitra Rath, Sumitra Gagrai, Rebati Sahu, Hemanta Pradhan, Megha De, Gauri Ambavkar, Nibha Das, G. Pramila Dungdung, Damini Mohan, Bahadur Munda, Vijay Singh, Prasanta Tripathy and Audrey Prost
    Citation: BMC International Health and Human Rights 2020 20:6
  12. The issue of child marriage is a form of human rights violation among young women mainly in resource-constrained countries. Over the past decades, child marriage has gained attention as a threat to women’s hea...

    Authors: Sanni Yaya, Emmanuel Kolawole Odusina and Ghose Bishwajit
    Citation: BMC International Health and Human Rights 2019 19:33
  13. The ongoing Syrian civil war has led to massive population displacements, leading to the reorganization of the asylum policies of several countries. Accordingly, like other European countries, the Swiss govern...

    Authors: Nahema El Ghaziri, Jérémie Blaser, Joëlle Darwiche, Joan-Carles Suris, Javier Sanchis Zozaya, Régis Marion-Veyron, Dario Spini and Patrick Bodenmann
    Citation: BMC International Health and Human Rights 2019 19:32
  14. Although the extent of legal inequities experienced by sexual and gender minorities (SGM) has declined during recent decades, this population still enjoys fewer legal protections and benefits than the non-gend...

    Authors: Monica Malta, Reynaldo Cardoso, Luiz Montenegro, Jaqueline Gomes de Jesus, Michele Seixas, Bruna Benevides, Maria das Dores Silva, Sara LeGrand and Kathryn Whetten
    Citation: BMC International Health and Human Rights 2019 19:31
  15. Violence against women has particular importance for women’s health and wellbeing in the Arab world, where women face persistent barriers to social, political and economic equality. This review aims to summari...

    Authors: Tatiana Elghossain, Sarah Bott, Chaza Akik and Carla Makhlouf Obermeyer
    Citation: BMC International Health and Human Rights 2019 19:29
  16. The aim of this study is threefold: (i) to establish the psychometric properties and gender invariance of ENRICHD Social Support Inventory (ESSI), which was used for the first time in the present study in the ...

    Authors: Maria Gottvall, Marjan Vaez and Fredrik Saboonchi
    Citation: BMC International Health and Human Rights 2019 19:28
  17. Female genital mutilation/cutting (FGM/C) is a traditional harmful practice that has been prevalent in Egypt for many years. The medicalization of FGM/C has been increasing significantly in Egypt making it the...

    Authors: Omaima El-Gibaly, Mirette Aziz and Salma Abou Hussein
    Citation: BMC International Health and Human Rights 2019 19:26
  18. While the determinants and impacts of child marriage among girls have been well documented, little research exists on the practice among boys. This paper explores the sociodemographic profile of men who marrie...

    Authors: Christina Misunas, Colleen Murray Gastón and Claudia Cappa
    Citation: BMC International Health and Human Rights 2019 19:25
  19. Refugees have significant unmet health needs. Delivering services to refugees continues to be problematic in the Australian healthcare system. A systematic review and thematic synthesis of the literature explo...

    Authors: Michael Au, Athire Debbie Anandakumar, Robyn Preston, Robin A. Ray and Meg Davis
    Citation: BMC International Health and Human Rights 2019 19:22
  20. Children separated from their caregivers in humanitarian emergencies are vulnerable to multiple risks. However, no field-tested methods exist to capture ongoing changes in the frequency and nature of separatio...

    Authors: Matthew MacFarlane, Beth L. Rubenstein, Terry Saw, Daniel Mekonnen, Craig Spencer and Lindsay Stark
    Citation: BMC International Health and Human Rights 2019 19:19
  21. Refugees are one of the most vulnerable groups in our society. They are at risk of poor physical and mental health outcomes, much of this attributed to traumatic events prior to migration and the additional ri...

    Authors: Alison Dowling, Joanne Enticott, Marina Kunin and Grant Russell
    Citation: BMC International Health and Human Rights 2019 19:15
  22. In 1948 the Universal Declaration of Human Rights was drawn up. The content of this document was further reflected two treaties, the Covenant on Civil and Political Rights, and the Covenant on Economic, Social...

    Authors: Priscila Neves-Silva, Giselle Isabele Martins and Léo Heller
    Citation: BMC International Health and Human Rights 2019 19:14
  23. Leishmaniasis is a neglected tropical disease endemic in Bolivia that disproportionately affects people with little social and political capital. Although the treatment is provided free of charge by the Bolivi...

    Authors: Daniel Eid, Miguel San Sebastian, Anna-Karin Hurtig and Isabel Goicolea
    Citation: BMC International Health and Human Rights 2019 19:12
  24. In Cote D’Ivoire, there has been limited coverage of evidence-based sexual health services specifically supporting men who have sex with men (MSM). To date, there has been limited study of the determinants of ...

    Authors: Mark B. Ulanja, Carrie Lyons, Sosthenes Ketende, Shauna Stahlman, Daouda Diouf, Abo Kouamé, Rebecca Ezouatchi, Amara Bamba, Fatou Drame, Ben Liestman and Stefan Baral
    Citation: BMC International Health and Human Rights 2019 19:11
  25. Among all newly diagnosed HIV cases in Germany in 2015, 16% originated from sub-Saharan Africa. Twelve percent of these infections were contracted within Germany and migrants from sub-Saharan Africa (misSA) ar...

    Authors: Johanna Müllerschön, Carmen Koschollek, Claudia Santos-Hövener, Anna Kuehne, Jacqueline Müller-Nordhorn and Viviane Bremer
    Citation: BMC International Health and Human Rights 2019 19:10
  26. Female sex workers, MSM, and transgender women—collectively referred to as key populations (KPs)—are disproportionately affected by gender-based violence (GBV) and HIV, yet little is known about the violence t...

    Authors: Emily Evens, Michele Lanham, Karin Santi, Juana Cooke, Kathleen Ridgeway, Giuliana Morales, Caleb Parker, Claire Brennan, Marjan de Bruin, Pavel Chladni Desrosiers, Xenia Diaz, Marta Drago, Roger McLean, Modesto Mendizabal, Dirk Davis, Rebecca B. Hershow…
    Citation: BMC International Health and Human Rights 2019 19:9
  27. Stigma in health services may be detrimental to health seeking attitudes and practices. This study investigates non-disclosure of sex work to health care providers among female sex workers (FSW) in Brazil and ...

    Authors: Inês Dourado, Mark Drew Crosland Guimarães, Giseli Nogueira Damacena, Laio Magno, Paulo Roberto Borges de Souza Júnior and Celia Landmann Szwarcwald
    Citation: BMC International Health and Human Rights 2019 19:8
  28. There have been several barriers in effectively engaging men who have sex with men for STI/HIV prevention and treatment programming in Nigeria including social stigma, policies, and laws criminalizing same-sex...

    Authors: Susanne Strömdahl, Abimbola Onigbanjo Williams, Bede Eziefule, Godwin Emmanuel, Stella Iwuagwu, Oliver Anene, Ifeanyi Orazulike, Chris Beyrer and Stefan Baral
    Citation: BMC International Health and Human Rights 2019 19:7
  29. In 1988, Brazil established a constitutional right to health and universal access to health care for all Brazilians through the creation of the Unified Health System (SUS). As part of its efforts to fulfill th...

    Authors: Mariana V. Gattegno, Maria A. F. Vertamatti, Robert A. Bednarczyk and Dabney P. Evans
    Citation: BMC International Health and Human Rights 2019 19:6
  30. The war in Syria has led to the biggest refugee crisis of our time. Unaccompanied asylum seeking adolescents (UASA) are a particularly vulnerable subgroup of refugees. This study aims to describe the weight st...

    Authors: Annika Laukamp, Luise Prüfer-Krämer, Florian Fischer and Alexander Krämer
    Citation: BMC International Health and Human Rights 2019 19:5
  31. In recent decades, many workers from rural areas in China migrated to urban cities in search of a better livelihood. Due to the household registration policy and other financial barriers, more than 40 million ...

    Authors: Daisheng Tang, Weng I. Choi, Liyuan Deng, Ying Bian and Hao Hu
    Citation: BMC International Health and Human Rights 2019 19:4
  32. The ready-made garment industry in Bangladesh not only contributes to the nation’s economic development, but has created income opportunities for women, benefiting their whole family. However, these benefits c...

    Authors: Sadika Akhter, Shannon Rutherford and Cordia Chu
    Citation: BMC International Health and Human Rights 2019 19:2
  33. Violence against women is a major human rights and public health issue globally. The experience of violence affects women across Australia, including the large number of migrant and refugee women who permanent...

    Authors: Cathy Vaughan, Yara Jarallah, Adele Murdolo, Linda Murray, Regina Quiazon, Karen Block and Lana Zannettino
    Citation: BMC International Health and Human Rights 2019 19:1
  34. There are various harmful traditional practices and beliefs across the different parts of Ethiopia. Shilshalo, which is yet little known about, is one of these practices existing in Argoba, a community in Amhara ...

    Authors: Yohannes Mersha Belete and Negesse Kebede Atlaw
    Citation: BMC International Health and Human Rights 2018 18:42
  35. Determinants of newborn health and survival exist across the reproductive life cycle, with many sociocultural and contextual factors influencing outcomes beyond the availability of, and access to, quality heal...

    Authors: Stephanie Gee, Josep Vargas and Angel M. Foster
    Citation: BMC International Health and Human Rights 2018 18:40
  36. Empirically assessing the needs of refugees in camps is critical to the improvement of existing policies and programs that aim at enhancing their well-being. By neglecting the needs of refugees, interventions ...

    Authors: Idrissa Beogo, Amadou Darboe, A. Oluwafunmilade Adesanya and Bomar Mendez Rojas
    Citation: BMC International Health and Human Rights 2018 18:38
  37. Approximately 18% of Sub-Saharan Africa’s urban population relies on shared sanitation facilities, which are shared by one or more households. While there is growing recognition of sanitation’s relationship wi...

    Authors: Tess Shiras, Oliver Cumming, Joe Brown, Bacelar Muneme, Rassul Nala and Robert Dreibelbis
    Citation: BMC International Health and Human Rights 2018 18:30
  38. War-related injury is a major public health concern, and a leading cause of mortality, morbidity, and disability globally, particularly in low and middle-income countries such as Palestine. Little is known abo...

    Authors: Marwan Mosleh, Koustuv Dalal, Yousef Aljeesh and Leif Svanström
    Citation: BMC International Health and Human Rights 2018 18:28

    The Correction to this article has been published in BMC International Health and Human Rights 2018 18:32

  39. Equitable access to health services is a key ingredient in reaching health for persons with disabilities and other vulnerable groups. So far, research on access to health services in low- and middle-income cou...

    Authors: Arne H. Eide, Karin Dyrstad, Alister Munthali, Gert Van Rooy, Stine H. Braathen, Thomas Halvorsen, Frans Persendt, Peter Mvula and Jan Ketil Rød
    Citation: BMC International Health and Human Rights 2018 18:26
  40. The birth of a child is a vital event that needs to be registered but this is not always the case as an estimated 40 million births go unregistered annually. Birth registration safeguards the basic rights of c...

    Authors: Fidelia A. A. Dake and Kamil Fuseini
    Citation: BMC International Health and Human Rights 2018 18:25
  41. In developing countries like Uganda, the human right to adequate food (RtAF) is inextricably linked to access to land for households to feed themselves directly through production or means for its procurement....

    Authors: Aziiza Nahalomo, Per Ole Iversen, Peter Milton Rukundo, Archileo Kaaya, Joyce Kikafunda, Wenche Barth Eide, Maritha Marais, Edward Wamala and Margaret Kabahenda
    Citation: BMC International Health and Human Rights 2018 18:21
  42. Over the past two decades, employment in the informal sector has grown rapidly in all regions including low and middle-income countries. In the developing countries, between 50 and 75% of workers are employed ...

    Authors: James Akazili, Samuel Chatio, John Ele-Ojo Ataguba, Isaiah Agorinya, Edmund Wedam Kanmiki, Osman Sankoh and Abraham Oduro
    Citation: BMC International Health and Human Rights 2018 18:20
  43. Street-connected young people carry a disproportionate burden of morbidities, and engage in a variety of practices that may heighten their risk of premature mortality, yet there are currently no reports in the...

    Authors: Lonnie Embleton, David Ayuku, Dominic Makori, Allan Kamanda and Paula Braitstein
    Citation: BMC International Health and Human Rights 2018 18:19
  44. The last decade has seen improved public awareness of disability in sub-Saharan Africa. However, negative and stereotypical views of disability still persist in many communities. We conducted a study to promot...

    Authors: Joseph K. Gona, Charles R. Newton, Sally Hartley and Karen Bunning
    Citation: BMC International Health and Human Rights 2018 18:18
  45. The majority of Ugandan children face vulnerability and malnutrition. As a State Party to international human rights treaties, Uganda has legal obligations of guaranteeing the fundamental rights and the best i...

    Authors: Monica Olafsen, Archangel Byaruhanga Rukooko, Per Ole Iversen and Bård A. Andreassen
    Citation: BMC International Health and Human Rights 2018 18:17
  46. Sexual and gender-based violence (SGBV) remains a silent epidemic in many humanitarian settings with many survivors concealing their experiences. Attitudes towards help-seeking for SGBV is an important determi...

    Authors: George Odwe, Chi-Chi Undie and Francis Obare
    Citation: BMC International Health and Human Rights 2018 18:15
  47. This study explored how employed caregivers experience the interface between child care, parental control and child rights in the context of Children’s Homes in Ghana. The focus was on investigating caregiver ...

    Authors: Ernest Darkwah, Marguerite Daniel and Joana Salifu Yendork
    Citation: BMC International Health and Human Rights 2018 18:13
  48. Madre de Dios, a southern state in the Peruvian Amazon basin, has experienced rapid development as well as an influx of migrants since the construction of the Interoceanic Highway (IOH) connecting Brazil, Boli...

    Authors: Kelly E Jensen, Nehal N. Naik, Christina O’Neal, Gabriela Salmón-Mulanovich, Amy R. Riley-Powell, Gwenyth O. Lee, Stella M. Hartinger, Daniel G. Bausch and Valerie A. Paz-Soldan
    Citation: BMC International Health and Human Rights 2018 18:12