ABSTRACT
Taking the case of Chile in the period 1974-85, this article examines the impact of economic conditions and social policies on poor households, and especially on children. The study starts with an analysis of the nature of the economic policies implemented in Chile during 1974-85 and their effects on income distribution and on the material living conditions of poor households. It then looks into the social policies, government expenditure, and the main programs directed toward poor households and children, as well as at the changes in child welfare that followed. From this macrosocial level the study diverts to the household level and describes, based on several in-depth studies of small samples of households in the Santiago metropolitan area during the years 1982-85, the daily experiences of poor households--their deteriorating economic conditions and the behaviors adopted to stretch scarce resources to satisfy basic needs. The final part draws some lessons from the Chilean case.
Subject(s)
Child Welfare , Economics , Poverty , Public Policy , Child , Child Health Services , Child, Preschool , Chile , Economics/trends , Employment , Family , Female , Humans , Income , Infant , National Health Programs/economics , Pregnancy , Urban PopulationABSTRACT
PIP: Recognizing the value of women's work within the family and society is a key ingredient towards designing an acceptable national health policy. The critical roles that women can play are especially relevant when designing health policies and programs for poverty areas and for areas of preventive medicine. But success of such programs require a national commitment if they are to work. Women represent very important agents in the prevention, cure and rehabilitation of diseases within the family and the community. Community participation for health programs are expedited when governments have support from local women. Examples of such programs are in the areas of maternal and child health and problems that affect women, such as mental disorders among poor urban women.^ieng
Subject(s)
Community Participation , Health Planning , Maternal-Child Health Centers , Philosophy , Preventive Medicine , Public Health , Public Policy , Women , Behavior , Delivery of Health Care , Economics , Health , Health Services , Medicine , Organization and Administration , Primary Health Care , Social Behavior , Social PlanningABSTRACT
PIP: Between 1974-79, despite the severe economic recession during 1975-76 and along with the precarious standard of living of the low-income population, the infant mortality rate (IMR) continued to drop at the same pace registered since the mid-1960s. This is the starting point of research on factors which lead to the mitigation or abolition of the adverse effects of socioeconomic condition on health standards of the infant population. The drop in the IMR has recently been attributed to the fall in the birthrate expressed in terms of modifications in the composition of live births; the validity of this hypothesis is evaluated. It is seen that although a change in the composition of births in order of sibship and maternal education are variables which can explain the decreased IMR, their impact was no greater between 1974-79 than between 1969-73. Thus, these factors cannot be labelled as those which perpetuated the adverse effects of socioeconomic condition on the IMR. Empirical support was found for the hypothesis which postulates public health services as the causative factor. Public health services have emphasized the mother-child group as well as nutrition programs, especially those with lactating infants and the undernourished. These appear to be factors which explain that the IMR has not ceased to decline as was expected given the deterioration of the socioeconomic condition. Finally, particular aspects of the situation in Chile which have made these results possible are analyzed. (author's modified)^ieng
Subject(s)
Infant Mortality , Adolescent , Adult , Birth Order , Child Health Services , Chile , Female , Humans , Infant , Infant, Newborn , Male , Maternal Age , Maternal Health Services , Middle Aged , Public Health , Socioeconomic FactorsABSTRACT
PIP: Trends in rural-urban migration in Chile during the period 1965-1970 are analyzed, with a focus on the impact of the combination of structural factors and socioeconomic processes in rural areas. Factors of population retention and expulsion are examined in terms of agrarian structure, the process of agrarian reform, urbanization of the countryside, and the availability of basic social services. Rural-urban migration rates in the central and southern areas of the country are compared, and migration rates of males and females are examined.^ieng
Subject(s)
Agriculture , Demography , Economics , Emigration and Immigration , Geography , Population Dynamics , Rural Population , Sex Factors , Social Change , Social Welfare , Socioeconomic Factors , Urban Population , Urbanization , Americas , Chile , Developed Countries , Developing Countries , Latin America , Population , Population Characteristics , Social Planning , South AmericaABSTRACT
PIP: The rural-urban nature and geographical patterns of internal migration in Chile are studied. The magnitude, nature, and relative importance of rural-urban, interurban, inter-rural, and urban-rural movements in the country are examined, with a focus on the impact of internal migration on urbanization and on the demographic growth of cities and rural areas. Rural and urban differentials in propensity to migrate and in the capacity to attract and retain population are investigated using 1970 census data on migratory flows to and from the Santiago metropolitan area and those directed to other parts of the country.^ieng