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Human Behavior

Hospital data, capacity will play major role in ‘Winter Plan’ for COVID-19 in NY: Here’s what else will happen – FingerLakes1.com

On Monday, Governor Andrew Cuomo announced the components and metrics that will be used to determine the states response to the Coronavirus Pandemic during its Winter Phase.

Cases have been surging in recent days, and with the holiday season here state leaders are concerned that there will be a spike on top of a spike, which is sentiment echoed by CDC leaders.

The states positive rate in focus areas (which includes Monroe and Onondaga counties) was 6.2%, with a statewide positivity rate of 4.02% without them. Altogether it brought the positivity rate to 4.57%. There were 54 deaths reported in the last 24 hours, and 160 new hospitalizations, as well as 14 new admissions to ICU beds.

Hospitals were a big component of the Winter Phase response plan. Heres a look at how this shapes up.

Governor Cuomo says the state will shift focus to number of hospitalizations and hospital capacity in yellow, orange, red zones. Hospitalization rate, death rate, case rate, available hospital beds, available ICU beds, and available staff all will be added to the metrics considered for when different communities reach various zones of limited commercial activity.

During the briefing Cuomo said he expects it to take 7-10 days for the specifics to be released on this front Partly because of the lag in infections post-Thanksgiving gatherings. He said state leaders will also meet with hospital administrators in the coming days to get an understanding of the data and forecast.

For hospitals, here is what Governor Coumo says they will be expected to do:

A hospital capacity emergency tracking system will be launched in the coming days.

All arms of government in the state will be working to increase gross testing, and simultaneously balance distribution. This includes healthcare workers, nursing homes, schools, essential workers, business professionals, personal services testing, and general population of students returning or traveling.

Theres not enough tests to go around I get it, Cuomo said. But we have to be fair about distribution.

All of the experts say schools are safer than the surrounding communities, Cuomo said. Testing focus will be on schools that fall into various zones, and will be amplified as necessary. Pool testing will be allowed, and testing out will still be permitted. School districts will be allowed to exceed the 20% testing requirement, but the surrounding community will have to maintain all other mandated testing levels for nursing homes, essential workers, and other important groups simultaneously.

We have a mandatory close level for school districts and they can close at lower levels, but our advice is that you dont, Cuomo said. We believe in keeping especially K-8 open.

Governor Cuomo called the impact small gatherings are having on virus transmission a dramatic shift from the early days of the Coronavirus Pandemic. It now accounts for 65% of total transmission of the virus. Its an adaptation of social behavior to circumstance, Cuomo said. He outlined a number of other states that have the 10 or fewer rule in place. This is a nationwide problem. I understand the people say they have COVID fatigue. The truth is that Government doesnt have the ability to monitor [your home], but its a matter of public health and safety that people do not gather at home, or elsewhere. We have to communicate this to people the same way we communicated mask-wearing.

A new media campaign will begin in the coming days to drive this home point. The Governor spoke to the fact that its not political both Republicans and Democrats agree that small gatherings should not be happening.

Vaccine delivery could start in the next few weeks. The process will be built around fairness, equity, and safety. Governor Cuomo says it will be an inclusive process that includes outreach to Black, Brown, and poor communities. Vaccine critical mass is still months away. Until it reaches there operate at maximum possible level that is safe, he said. Youll continue to see these numbers increase, probably until mid-January. You have not yet seen the effects of Thanksgiving. Youll see the effects a week out from today. I expect those numbers to keep going up. I would say you start to see a stabilization in mid-January, at an increased rate from the holiday season. The rate will be much higher than it is today. You wont see a real end until the vaccine hits critical mass.

Cuomo says that wont be until late-spring or early-summer in 2021. New York is doing better than almost any other state by the numbers. New York is better prepared than any other state. And its all in our control, he added. This is all a function of human behavior, social action, and social patterns.

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Hospital data, capacity will play major role in 'Winter Plan' for COVID-19 in NY: Here's what else will happen - FingerLakes1.com

Human Behavior

In praise of Janet Yellen the Economist – The Register-Guard

Paul Krugman| The New York Times

Its hard to overstate the enthusiasm among economists over Joe Bidens selection of Janet Yellen as the next secretary of the Treasury. Some of this enthusiasm reflects the groundbreaking nature of her appointment. She wont just be the first woman to hold the job; shell be the first person to have held all three of the traditional top U.S. policy positions in economics chair of the Council of Economic Advisers, chair of the Federal Reserve and now Treasury secretary.

And yes, theres a bit of payback for Donald Trump, who denied her a well-earned second term as Fed chair, reportedly in part because he thought she was too short.

But the good news about Yellen goes beyond her ridiculously distinguished career in public service. Before she held office, she was a serious researcher. And she was, in particular, one of the leading figures in an intellectual movement that helped save macroeconomics as a useful discipline when that usefulness was under both external and internal assault.

Before I get there, a word about Yellens time at the Federal Reserve, especially her time on the Feds board in the early 2010s, before she became chair.

At the time, the U.S. economy was slowly clawing its way back from the Great Recession a recovery impeded, not incidentally, by Republicans in Congress who pretended to care about national debt and imposed spending cuts that significantly hurt economic growth. But spending wasnt the only issue of debate; there were also fierce arguments about monetary policy.

Specifically, there were many people on the right condemning the Feds efforts to rescue the economy from the effects of the 2008 financial crisis. Among them, by the way, was Judy Shelton, the totally unqualified hack Trump is still trying to install on the Fed board, who warned in 2009 that the Feds actions would produce ruinous inflation. (Hint: They didnt.)

Even within the Fed, there was a division between hawks worried about inflation and doves who insisted that inflation wasnt a threat in a depressed economy, and that fighting the depression should take priority. Yellen was one of the leading doves and a 2013 analysis by The Wall Street Journal found that she had been the most accurate forecaster among Fed policymakers.

Why did she get it right? Part of the answer, Id argue, goes back to academic work she did in the 1980s.

At the time, as Ive suggested, useful macroeconomics was under attack. What I mean by useful macroeconomics was the understanding, shared by economists from John Maynard Keynes to Milton Friedman, that monetary and fiscal policy could be used to fight recessions and reduce their economic and human toll.

This understanding didnt fail the test of reality on the contrary, the experience of the early 1980s strongly confirmed the predictions of basic macroeconomics.

But useful economics was under threat.

On one side, right-wing politicians turned away from reality-based economics in favor of crank doctrines, especially the claim that governments can conjure up miraculous growth by cutting taxes on the rich. On the other side, a significant number of economists themselves rejected any role for policy in fighting recessions, claiming that there would be no need for such a role if people were acting rationally in their own interests, and that economic analysis should always assume that people are rational.

Which is where Yellen came in; she was a prominent figure in the rise of new Keynesian economics, which rested on one key insight: People arent stupid, but they arent perfectly rational and self-interested. And even a bit of realism about human behavior restores the case for aggressive policies to fight recessions. In later work Yellen would show that labor market outcomes depend a lot not just on pure dollars-and-cents calculations, but also on perceptions of fairness.

All this may sound abstruse, but I can vouch from my own experience that this work had a huge impact on many young economists basically giving them a license to be sensible.

And it seems to me that theres a direct line from the disciplined realism of Yellens academic research to her success as a policymaker. She was always someone who understood the value of data and models. Indeed, rigorous thinking becomes more, not less important in crazy times like these, when past experience offers little guidance about what we should be doing. But she also never forgot that economics is about people, who arent the emotionless, hyperrational calculating machines economists sometimes wish they were.

Now, none of this means that things will necessarily go well. The race is not to the swift, neither yet bread to the wise, nor yet success to policymakers of understanding, but time and chance happen to them all. Trumps cabinet was a clown show possibly the worst cabinet in Americas history but it wasnt until 2020 that the consequences of the administrations incompetence became fully apparent.

Still, its immensely reassuring to know that economic policy will be made by someone who knows what she is doing.

Paul Krugman writes for The New York Times.

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In praise of Janet Yellen the Economist - The Register-Guard

Human Behavior

Female Hunters – Women at the Hearth and on the Hunt – SAPIENS – SAPIENS

This article was originally published atThe Conversationand has beenrepublished under Creative Commons.

For a long time, it was assumed that hunting in ancient societies was primarily carried out by men. Now a new studyadds to a body of evidence challenging this idea. The research reports the discovery of a female body buried alongside hunting tools in the Americas some 9,000 years ago.

The woman, discovered in the Andean highlands, was dubbed Wilamaya Patjxa individual six, or WPI6. She was found with her legs in a semi-flexed position, with the collection of stone tools placed carefully next to them. These included projectile pointstools that were likely used to tip lightweight spears thrown with anatlatl (also called a spear thrower). The authors argue that such projectile points were used for hunting large animals.

WPI6 was between 17 and 19 years old at time of death. It was an analysis of substances known as peptides in her teeth, which aremarkers for biological sex, that showed that she was female. There were also large mammal bones in the burial fill, demonstrating the significance of hunting in her society.

The authors of the study, published in Science Advances, also reviewed evidence of other skeletons buried around the same period in the Americas, looking specifically at graves containing similar tools associated with big-game hunting. They found that of the 27 skeletons for which sex could be determined, 41 percent were likely female.

The authors propose that this may mean that big-game hunting was indeed carried out by both men and women in hunter-gatherer groups at that time in the Americas.

This idea goes against a hypothesis, dating back to the 1960s, known as the Man the Hunter model, which is increasingly being debunked. It suggests that huntingand especially, big-game huntingwas primarily, if not exclusively, undertaken by male members of past hunter-gatherer societies.

The hypothesis is based on a few different lines of evidence. Probably most significantly, it considers recent and present-day hunter-gatherer societies to try to understand how those in the deeper past may have been organized.

The remains of the ancient woman identified as WPI6 were found at the Wilamaya Patjxa site in what is today southern Peru. Randall Haas

The stereotypical view of hunter-gatherer groups is that they involve a gendered division of labor, with men hunting and women being more likely to stay nearer to the home with young children, or to fish and forage, though even thenthere is some variation. For example, amongAgta foragers in the Philippines, women are primary hunters rather than assistants.

Some present-day hunter-gatherers still use atlatls today, and some people alsoenjoy using atlatlsin competitive throwing events, with women and children regularly taking part. Archaeologists studyingdata from these eventssuggest that atlatls may well have been equalizersfacilitating hunting by both women and men, possibly because they reduce the importance of body size and strength.

The new study further debunks the hypothesis, adding to a few previous archaeological findings. For example, at the 34,000-year-old site of Sunghir in Russia, archaeologistsdiscovered the burial of two youngsters, one of whom was likely a girl of around 9 to 11 years old. Both individuals had physical abnormalities and were buried with 16 mammoth ivory spearsan incredible offering of what were probably valuable hunting tools.

In 2017, a famous burial of a Viking warrior from Sweden, discovered early in the 20th century and long assumed to be male,was found to be biologically female. This finding caused a significant and somewhat surprising amount of debate, and points to how our own modern ideas of gender roles can affect interpretations of more recent history too.

It has been argued that distinguishing between boy jobs and girl jobs, as one former British prime minister put it, could have evolutionary advantages. For example, it can allow pregnant and lactating mothers to stay near to a home base, keeping themselves and youngsters protected from harm. But we are increasingly learning that this model is far too simplistic.

With hunting being a keystone to survival for many highly mobile hunter-gatherer groups, community-wide participation also makes good evolutionary sense. The past, as some say, is a foreign country, and the more evidence we have, the more variable human behavior looks to have been.

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Female Hunters - Women at the Hearth and on the Hunt - SAPIENS - SAPIENS

Human Behavior

Morality and COVID-19: Why some individuals continue to ignore rules about wearing face masks – Milwaukee Independent

Governments around the world have recommended or mandated various behaviors to slow the spread of COVID-19. These include staying at home, wearing face masks and practicing social distancing.

Yet individuals continue to flout these recommendations and ignore explicit rules about wearing face masks. In the U.S., U.K. and Australia, crowds have gathered closely together to protest against lockdowns. All this poses the question: Why are people not following the rules that protect not only their own health but the health of their community and nation? And how can policymakers and public health officials design better messages to encourage uptake?

How morals guide our decisions

In my latest research, I studied how people perceive the three main recommended behaviors as either right or wrong. I grounded my research on Moral Foundations Theory, which states that people judge the rightness or wrongness of behaviors along five different moral concerns or foundations.

The first is whether an action shows you care; the second is whether an action upholds standards of equality; the third is whether it shows loyalty to the group; the fourth is whether it shows deference to authority; and the last is whether it conforms to impulses and the natural way of doing things.

Some foundations are relevant to certain behaviors; others, not so much. For example, parents who are anti-vaxxers hold this view because they see vaccines as harming a childs natural immunological defenses. Although that is not true, vaccines still challenge their perception of whats natural. Likewise, when it comes to charitable giving, people donate because they see it as showing they care not because they see it as natural to do so.

One benefit of exploring which moral foundation is relevant to a certain behavior is that it offers a better understanding of how to encourage or discourage that behavior. For example, policymakers now understand that to encourage vaccinations for children, messages aimed at hesitant parents need to help them see how vaccinations can actually boost a childs natural defenses. But telling these parents that it shows you care for your child has little effect, because the caring foundation is less relevant.

Morality and COVID-19

I surveyed 1,033 Americans during the last week in April 2020, asking them how relevant each moral foundation is to staying at home, wearing face masks and practicing social distancing. I found that Americans, on the whole, associated all three behaviors with the caring and equality foundations. Indeed, staying at home when you dont need to go out shows you care about others I call this the caring foundation. But staying at home helps flatten the curve only if everyone does it the equality foundation. The same can be said for wearing face masks and social distancing.

But I also found important age differences in two other moral foundations. Younger adults felt that staying at home and wearing face masks go against their nature what I call the nature foundation. It would make sense. Younger adults are more likely to crave social interactions, and so staying at home goes against what they perceive to be natural human behavior.

Meanwhile, wearing face masks not only is uncomfortable but hides ones face, which also goes against beliefs about how human beings are supposed to socialize. Older adults, on the other hand, felt that all three behaviors show a greater value placed on communal goals and public health over personal comfort. Interestingly, the authority foundation didnt relate to any of the three behaviors, regardless of age.

Policy implications

By understanding which moral foundations are relevant, social marketers, public health officials and policymakers can design more effective appeals to get people to stay at home, wear face masks and stay 6 feet apart.

For example, because Americans see the actions as showing they care, emphasizing how those behaviors show caring will likely increase compliance. To target younger adults, who see staying at home and wearing face masks as going against the social nature of human beings, messages should suggest how these actions can actually facilitate socialization.

For example: Wearing a mask lets you stay in touch, safely. Common slogans such as Staying Apart, Together, while whimsical and a play on words, are unlikely to increase younger adults uptake, since the communal foundation is a less relevant concern for them. Those slogans may be more effective for older adults.

If governments and public health officials really want to promote staying at home, wearing face masks and practicing social distancing, they cant just say its moral to do so. They might want to learn to appeal to the relevant moral convictions of the population they are targeting.

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Morality and COVID-19: Why some individuals continue to ignore rules about wearing face masks - Milwaukee Independent

Embryology

CSUN Prof Finds Aggressive Alga Threatening Health of Caribbean Coral Reefs – CSUN Today

Peyssonnelid algal crusts (PAC) overgrowing a star coral near the Caribbean island of St. John in the U.S. Virgin Islands. Photo by Peter Edmunds.

Hurricanes, pollution, disease, bleaching and effects of an increasingly warmer planet are all negatively impacting the health of coral reefs around the world. However, the reefs in the Caribbean are facing a new threat an aggressive, crust-like algae that is rapidly overgrowing shallow reefs.

California State University, Northridge marine biologist Peter Edmunds and a team of researchers said the algae, known as peyssonnelid algal crusts (PAC), are taking over the reefs at such an aggressive rate that they are interfering with the ability of coral larva, or babies, to find places to settle on the reefs, and interfering with the reefs natural ecosystem.

PAC starting to cover Orbicella annularis, a boulder star coral, at 14 meter depth. Photo by Peter Edmunds.

PAC seems a little bit like that silent killer who has been in the back seat at all the events, Edmunds said. People have been worried about hurricanes and their impact on the reefs. People have been worried about diseases, worried about bleaching, worried about pollution and worried about climate change. Thats where the attention has been and somehow, while people have been focused on those things, this alga slowly has been creeping in and gobbling up more and more space.

An article about their research on PAC, An unusual microbiome characterizes a spatially-aggressive crustose alga rapidly overgrowing shallow Caribbean reefs, appears in the most recent edition of the journal Scientific Reports. Edmunds co-authors are Bryan Wilson, a researcher at University of Oxford in the United Kingdom, and Chen-Ming Fan, a faculty member in the Department of Embryology at the Carnegie Institution for Science in Washington D.C.

Edmunds said he first spotted the alga about five years ago while was studying the impact of two back-to-back Category 5 hurricanes Irma and Maria on the coral reefs near the Caribbean island of St. John in the U.S. Virgin Islands.

At first, he didnt pay much attention to the alga. But as time passed, Edmunds said, he was stunned by how quickly it began to dominate the reef.

The space that it had gobbled up before the hurricane was partially cleaned by the storms washed away with sandblasting, he said. And then, boom! It was going like gangbusters again within a year of the storms. I realized that I cant just sit back on the sidelines and watch this happen. I knew I was going to wake up one day and see the reef 100 percent covered by the algae, and Id ask myself why didnt I do something sooner?

Edmunds noted that algae have always been a component of coral reefs, often serving as food to sea urchins. But something changed, he said, and a new type of algae (PAC) now seems to be heading towards domination of Caribbean reefs.

PAC over growing a brain coral. Photo by Peter Edmunds.

He, Wilson and Fan have been able to document how PAC are aggressively taking over large areas of space on some of the shallow reefs of St. John. PAC is taking over so much space that it is discouraging baby coral and other sea life, including sea urchins, from making the reef home, which, in turn, jeopardizes the persistence of the reef community itself.

Once the alga is there, its very hard to get rid of, Edmunds said. Its like cutting down the proverbial forest and paving it over with asphalt. Once youve paved it over, its very difficult to get back to the forest. In this instance, PAC has taken up real estate on the reefs and is not letting anybody else move into the neighborhood.

Edmunds noted that PAC, with its dark brown and dirty orange veneer, stands out among the white sands and light greens, pinks, yellows and other colors that make up the reef.

Edmunds said he and his researchers are not sure if PAC is made up of one algal species or several, nor do they know what is causing the algae to be so aggressive.

What we do know is that this is an alarming trend, and one that we need to know more about, he said. The coral and their ecosystem are so fragile as it is. They are under assault by environmental pollution and global warming. We have made their lives so fragile, yet they are sticking in there. And now this gets thrown into the mix. We dont know if this is the straw that breaks the camels back, but we need to find out.

The next step, Edmunds said, is to beat the bushes to raise the funds to study what PAC is and its long-term impact on the coral reefs.

Alga, Climate Change, College of Science and Mathematics, Coral Reef Research, Coral Reefs, CSUN marine biology, Department of Biology, Environment, Featured, Peter Edmunds

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CSUN Prof Finds Aggressive Alga Threatening Health of Caribbean Coral Reefs - CSUN Today

Embryology

First Lady of DR Congo Meets Merck Foundation CEO to Mark Together the International Day of Elimination of Violence Against Women and Girls – Outlook…

(Eds: Disclaimer: The following press release comes to you under an arrangement with Business Wire India. PTI takes no editorial responsibility for the same.) Mumbai, Maharashtra, India&Kinshasa, Democratic Republic of the Congo Business Wire India DR Congo First Lady partners with Merck Foundation to build healthcare capacity, break infertility stigma and empower girls through education. Merck Foundation CEO underscored their long term commitment to the social and economic development of Democratic Republic of The Congo through their partnership with The First Lady and Ministry of Health.Merck Foundation, the philanthropic arm of Merck KGaA Germany, underscored their long term commitment through starting their partnership with The First Lady of Democratic Republic of the Congo, H.E. Madam DENISE NYAKERU TSHISEKEDI. During the high level meeting held this week, Dr. RashaKelej, CEO of Merck Foundation, appointed The First Lady of Democratic Republic of the Congo as The Ambassador of Merck More Than a Mother to work closely with Merck Foundation to break the stigma of infertility, build healthcare capacity , and empower girls through education in the country. H.E. Madam DENISE NYAKERU TSHISEKEDI, The First Lady of Democratic Republic of the Congo and Ambassador of Merck More Than a Mother emphasized, I am very happy to partner with Merck Foundation and start their valuable programs in our country as their Ambassador. These programs will help us to transform our public health care sector and create a future shift to empower infertile and childless women through access to information, health and change of mindset as well as empower girls through education which is very close to my heart. Dr. Rasha Kelej, CEO of Merck Foundation and President, Merck More Than a Mother emphasized, I am very proud of our partnership with The First Lady Of Democratic Republic of the Congo and welcome her as the Ambassador of Merck More Than a Mother, and new member of Merck Foundation First Ladies Initiative-MFFLI. With the outbreak of the global coronavirus pandemic, building healthcare capacity is of the highest importance, and through our partnership, we are planning to provide specialty training to equip the local doctors with the skills they need to improve access to equitable and quality healthcare solutions. Along with appointing The First Lady of Democratic Republic of the Congo as the Ambassador of Merck More Than A Mother, Merck Foundation also marked the International Day for the Elimination of Violence against Women. Violence against women and girls (VAWG) is one of the most widespread, persistent and devastating human rights violations, and on the occasion of International Day for the Elimination of Violence against Women, We must work together to eliminate violence against women and girls once and for all, Dr. Rasha Kelej, CEO of Merck Foundation.Merck Foundation has enrolled 32 doctors from Democratic Republic of the Congo to master course in Diabetes in French accredited by Diabetes UK as part of their Diabetes Blue Point Program to help the doctors prevent and manage the disease in their communities.Merck Foundation has also provided Fertility and Embryology training to 5 Doctors from Democratic Republic of the Congo with the aim to establish a strong platform of first Fertility specialists and Embryologists to assist infertile couples in the country as part of their historic campaign Merck More than a Mother.Merck Foundation has also enrolled 1 Oncologist from the Democratic Republic of the Congo as part of their Merck Oncology Fellowship Program to increase the limited number of oncologists in the country and plans to enroll more doctors after coronavirus lockdown is over. COVID-19 has severely affected the families of casual and daily workers. To aid this issue, Merck Foundation made a community donation to the casual workers and women to support poor families in Democratic Republic of the Congo as part of their coronavirus response program. We are also planning to support 20 girl students as part of Merck Foundation Educating Katty which aims to empower girls through education in Democratic Republic of the Congo. We are closely working with The First Lady on this new program with the aim to empower girls through education, added Dr. Rasha Kelej, One of the 100 Most Influential Africans (2019, 2020). Merck Foundation also announced 9 winners from Democratic Republic of the Congo for their Stay at Home Media Recognition Awards 2020 which been launched earlier this year in partnership with The First Lady of Democratic Republic of the Congo with the aim to build media capacity and raise awareness about Covid-19 pandemic. The Merck Foundation Stay At Home Media Recognition Awards winners from Democratic Republic of the Congo are:ONLINE CATEGORY WINNERS:FIRST Position: Cassien Tribunal Aungane - Radio Centrale & "Diplomacy & Development" (500 USD)And Mukanya Kafuata Andre Mbote Africa (500 USD)SECOND Position: Stphie Manza Mukinzi Alert Coronavirus (300 USD)PRINT CATEGORY WINNERS:FIRST Position: Mathy Musau Dinyika - Forum Des As (500 USD)MULTIMEDIA CATEGORY WINNERS:FIRST Position: Muemba Wa Muemba Donat Jua Magazine (500 USD)SECOND Position: Jessy Nzengu - Palmier Radio-Tlvision Communautaire (300 USD)THIRD Position: Kazadi Lukusa Nicolas - Radiotlvision Happy Day (200 USD)RADIO CATEGORY WINNERS:FIRST Position: Aly Bukasa Kabambi Radio Communautaire Butook (500 USD)SECOND Position: Jody Daniel Nkashama- Radio Okapi (300 USD)About Merck More Than a Mother campaignMerck More Than a Mother is a strong movement that aims to empower infertile women through access to information, education and change of mind-sets. This powerful campaign supports governments in defining policies to enhance access to regulated, safe, effective and equitable fertility care solutions. It defines interventions to break the stigma around infertile women and raises awareness about infertility prevention, management and male infertility. In partnership with African First Ladies, Ministries of Health, Information, Education & Gender, academia, policymakers, International fertility societies, media and art, the initiative also provides training for fertility specialists and embryologists to build and advance fertility care capacity in Africa and developing countries.With Merck More Than a Mother, we have initiated a cultural shift to de-stigmatize infertility at all levels: By improving awareness, training local experts in the fields of fertility care and media, building advocacy in cooperation with African First Ladies and women leaders and by supporting childless women in starting their own small businesses. Its all about giving every woman the respect and the help she deserves to live a fulfilling life, with or without a child.The Ambassadors of Merck More Than a Mother are: H.E. NEO JANE MASISI, The First Lady of Botswana

H.E. FATOUMATTA BAH-BARROW, The First Lady of The Gambia

H.E. MONICA GEINGOS, The First Lady of NamibiaH.E. ANGELINE NDAYISHIMIYE,The First Lady of Burundi

H.E. REBECCA AKUFO-ADDO, The First Lady of Ghana

H.E ASSATA ISSOUFOU MAHAMADOU, The First Lady of NigerH.E. BRIGITTE TOUADERA, The First Lady of Central African Republic

H.E. COND DJENE, The First Lady of Guinea Conakry

H.E. AISHA BUHARI, The First Lady of NigeriaH.E. HINDA DEBY ITNO, The First Lady of Chad

H.E. CLAR WEAH, The First Lady of Liberia

H.E FATIMA MAADA BIO, The First Lady of Sierra LeoneH.E. ANTOINETTE SASSOU-NGUESSO, The First Lady of Congo Brazzaville

H.E. MONICA CHAKWERA, The First Lady of Malawi

H.E. ESTHER LUNGU, The First Lady of ZambiaH.E. DENISE NYAKERU TSHISEKEDI, THE First Lady of Democratic Republic of Congo

H.E. ISAURA FERRO NYUSI, The First Lady of Mozambique

H.E. AUXILLIA MNANGAGWA, The First Lady of Zimbabwe Merck Foundation launched new innovative initiatives to sensitize local communities about infertility prevention, male infertility with the aim to break the stigma of infertility and empowering infertile women as part of Merck More than a Mother COMMUNITY AWARENESS CAMPAIGN, such as; Merck More than a Mother Media Recognition Awards and Health Media Training Merck More than a Mother Fashion Awards Merck More than a Mother Film Awards Local songs with local artists to address the cultural perception of infertility and how to change it Children storybook, localized for each country Click on icon below to Download Merck Foundation Apphttps://www.merck-foundation.com/MF_StoreRedirectionJoin the conversation on our social media platforms below and let your voice be heard Facebook: Merck FoundationTwitter: @MerckfoundationYouTube: MerckFoundationInstagram: Merck FoundationFlickr: Merck FoundationWebsite: http://www.merck-foundation.comAbout Merck Foundation The Merck Foundation, established in 2017, is the philanthropic arm of Merck KGaA Germany, aims to improve the health and wellbeing of people and advance their lives through science and technology. Our efforts are primarily focused on improving access to quality & equitable healthcare solutions in underserved communities, building healthcare and scientific research capacity and empowering people in STEM (Science, Technology, Engineering, and Mathematics) with a special focus on women and youth. All Merck Foundation press releases are distributed by e-mail at the same time they become available on the Merck Foundation Website. Please visit http://www.merck-foundation.com to read more. To know more, reach out to our social media: Merck Foundation; Facebook, Twitter, Instagram, YouTube and Flickr. To View the Image Click on the Link Below:Dr. RashaKelej, CEO of Merck Foundation & President, Merck More Than a Mother during her meeting with H.E. Madam DENISE NYAKERU TSHISEKEDI, The First Lady of Democratic Republic of The Congo and Ambassador of Merck More Than a Mother. PWRPWR

Disclaimer :- This story has not been edited by Outlook staff and is auto-generated from news agency feeds. Source: PTI

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First Lady of DR Congo Meets Merck Foundation CEO to Mark Together the International Day of Elimination of Violence Against Women and Girls - Outlook...

Embryology

Introduction to the Global Scientist Interdisciplinary Forum job with Southern University of Science and Technology (SUSTech) | 302819 – The Chronicle…

Global Scientist Interdisciplinary Forum of Southern Universityof Science and Technology (SUSTech) is animportant forum for SUSTech to recruit excellent talents. It isaimed to provide a platform for domestic and overseas scholars toexchange thoughts and conduct academic communication, promotedisciplinary crossing and academic innovation, and jointly build aworld-class university and develop academic disciplines.SUSTech is striving to build itself into a top researchuniversity with distinctive strength and uniqueness both in Chinaand the rest of the world through recruiting and trainingworld-class talents and vigorous efforts in pursing excellence. TheSchool of Medicine will provide recruited applicants with globallycompetitive remunerations, first-class research laboratories andplatforms, and excellent living facilities for themselves and theirfamilies.

Introduction to the School of Medicine ofSUSTech

The School of Medicine of SUSTech was founded in 2018.Based in Shenzhen, it is positioned as an internationalizedhigh-level research school of medicine featuring the integration ofmedicine with sciences, engineering, and humanities. Itsmission is to train and foster leading medical talents who willpossess ethical integrity, professional competence andinternational vision.

Taking the advantage of strong science and engineeringdisciplines of SUSTech, the School of Medicine will establish asystem of new medicine to achieve interdisciplinary developmentbetween medicine and engineering, the humanities and sciences, withclinical medicine as the core focus. Through such integration ofmedicine with engineering, sciences and the humanities and bydrawing on the experience of medical education models both in Chinaand abroad, the School of Medicine is striving to build itself intoa base for cultivating world-class medical talents withmultidisciplinary capabilities to meet the strategic demands forhealth development at the municipal, provincial and nationallevels.

The School of Medicine has an internationally competitiveleadership team. Mingzhao Xing, M.D., Ph. D., the foundingDean of the School of Medicine of SUSTech, is a tenured Professorof Medicine (LOA) of the Johns Hopkins University School ofMedicine and an elected member of the Association of AmericanPhysicians, who joined SUSTech full time for his leadership role atthe School of Medicine. He is an internationally renownedphysician-scientist and American Board-certified clinical expert inendocrinology and thyroid medicine. Under the leadership ofDean Xing, the School of Medicine has in short time built a strongleadership team and a unique and efficient administrativeorganizational structure. Professor Xiao Guozhi, a formertenured professor at Rush University in Chicago, serves as theAssociate Dean in charge of scientific research and graduatestudies and Professor Zhang Wenyong, a USA-trained M.D., Ph.D andAmerican Board-certified pathologist, serves as the Associate Deanin charge of undergraduate education. Seven basicadministrative units have been established in the Medical School,now in their full functional operation, including the Deansoffice, the office of human resource, the office of teachingaffairs, the office of scientific research, the office of studentsaffairs, the office of graduate student affairs, and the office offinancial affairs. The School of Medicine has a total of 148employees (including visiting scholars).

The 2019 Global Scientist Interdisciplinary Forum of SUSTechattracted more than 80 outstanding talents from both China andabroad. More are expected to come this year. In the last 1-2years the School of Medicine has built a strong faculty, currentlywith 31 core tenured or tenure-track members (including some toarrive). These include one academician of the Chinese Academy ofSciences and five chair professors. There are additional 12 facultymembers on the research track at the Research Assistant/AssociateProfessor levels. Among these faculty members there are 40person-times of outstanding academic talent honor titles at thenational, provincial and municipal levels. There arecurrently 11 postdoctoral fellows, with an expected rapid growth inthe near future. All members in the individual facultymembers research team in the School of Medicine has a master orhigher education degree.

The School of Medicine has established eight departments,including Department of Medical Neurosciences, Department ofPharmacology, Department of Biochemistry, Department of Human CellBiology and Genetics, Department of Physiology and Pathophysiology,Department of Anatomy, Histology and Embryology, Department ofPathology, and Department of Oncology. Additionally, theDepartment of Microbiology and Immunology is currently indevelopment. It also has two specially designated scientificresearch platforms the Guangdong Provincial Key Laboratory forCell Microenvironment and Disease Research and the SUSTech PainMedicine Center.

The School of Medicine currently has two core undergraduateeducation programs--clinical medicine and biomedicine, with severalmore to be developed in the next few years. The SUSTech also has astrategic plan to collaborate with King's College London (UK) inbuilding a joined international medical education program or joinedmedical school. The School presently enrolls graduatestudents for master and doctoral degrees in biology and iscurrently in the process of applying for accreditation for offeringmaster and doctoral degrees in clinical medicine.

Benefited from the excellent resources in Guangdong Province andShenzhen Municipality as well as SUSTech, the School of Medicinehas, in its relatively short history, achieved remarkablescientific accomplishments. By October 2020, it has published140 scientific papers and has been awarded 46 government-sponsoredresearch grants of a total monetary value of 40.6374 millionYuan. The School has organized 98 major academicseminars.

The School of Medicine has ten hospitals with direct affiliationor with a collaboration relationship. These include threedirectly affiliated hospitals the First Affiliated Hospital ofSUSTech (Shenzhen Peoples Hospital), the Second AffiliatedHospital of SUSTech (The Third Peoples Hospital of Shenzhen), andthe Third Affiliated Hospital of SUSTech (formerly XiliHospital). The main tertiary hospital of the School ofMedicine its own in adjacency with the campus of the School ofMedicine is currently under designing and its construction willstart soon. There is one jointly-funded collaborative hospital(SUSTech Yantian Hospital) and five teaching hospitals (theShenzhen Cancer Hospital of the Chinese Academy of MedicalSciences, the Shenzhen Kangning Psychiatry Hospital, the ShenzhenChildrens Hospital, the Shenzhen Hospital of Peking University,and the Shenzhen Maternity & Child Healthcare Hospital).

The core moral value of the School of Medicine includescivility, team spirit, cooperation, harmony, respect, inclusivenessand mutual help to form a unique cultural atmosphere. The Schoolpromotes diverse cultural pursuits and supports and organizes avariety of cultural activities among students and employees. Thispositive cultural atmosphere is seen in the student dormitories,class rooms, laboratories, conference rooms, offices and everywherein the School of Medicine. The School of Medicine is dedicated tocreating a learning and working atmosphere commensurate with thecore humanity value of medical science.

The School of Medicine at SUSTech will strive towards the goalof building itself into a world-class school of medicine, fosteringgenerations of motivated, responsible and capable physicianscientists who are both outstanding research scientists and skilledclinicians. This is to generate and provide outstandingleaders in clinical medicine and biomedicine to the GuangdongHongKongMacao Greater Bay Area, the country of China, and theworld.

1. Forum Schedule

Date of Main online Forum: January 9,2021 (Saturday)

9 a.m. Beijing Time, Main forum live9 p.m. Beijing Time, Mainforum replay

Date of Sub-forum Presentation: January 10-17, 2021

2. Recruiting Categories

3. Application Materials and Methods

1) Application materials

Resume

Cover letter

Representative papers (published in the previous 5 years),representative work

Honors and awards

Research proposal

How to apply

Please submit all your application materials to the Mailbox ofHuman Resources Office of School of Medicine(hr-med@sustech.edu.cn) and entitledSUSTech Global Scientist Interdisciplinary ForumApplication-School of Medicine-OutstandingFaculty/Young Faculty/Post-doctoralTalents(choose one from the three) for evaluation. Wewill evaluate your application and send out invitations as soon aspossible. Please send materials at your earliest convenience sincethe registration is limited.

Application due date:

December 31, 2020

Successful applicants will receive the invitation before January5, 2021.

4.ContactInformation

Miss. Wang

Tel: +86-755-88018031

Email: hr-med@sustech.edu.cn

5. Qualifications and Benefits

Outstanding Faculty (Chair Professor /Professor)

1.Requirements

Candidate of national-level talent programstenured professor orassociate professor of overseas well-known universities or researchinstitutions, leading talent with internationally recognizedachievements.

2.Support Policies

Research fundswill be discuss case by case.

Group support: At least 1 PhD student per year andunlimited numbers of post-doctoral fellows in support.Self-determination of hiring research assistant professors (RAPs)with competitive research funding support for RAPs.

Lab space about 150 square meters per person.

3.Remuneration

Salary: Globally competitive salary; Preferential policy ofindividual income tax, income tax of qualified high-level talentswill be compensated by local government to a maximum of 15% (taxfree).

Insurances: Shenzhens highest level of retirement insurance,medical insurance, unemployment insurance, industrial injuryinsurance, maternity insurance and housing provident funds. Specialhigh-level health insurance is negotiable.

4.Benefits

Housing and subsidies: Temporary on-campus apartments providedor subsidies to support off-campus rental housing. No less than CNY4.5 million living and housing subsidies (tax free) for scholars ofnational-level talent programs. An extra yearly subsidy of CNY500,000 will be awarded to scholars within Pearl River TalentsPlan (longest duration 5 years).

Other benefits: Permanent residence or resident visa service forscholars and family (spouse and children); Service of childrenseducation in SUSTech affiliated preschool, primary school andmiddle school; Spouses employment service.

Young Faculty (Associate / Assistantprofessor)

1. Requirements

Under the age of 40.

Doctoral degree obtained from internationally renowneduniversities and institutes; or Ph.D. degrees from Chineseuniversities and more than 36 months of overseas work experience,with a formal teaching or research position in famous overseasuniversities and research institutes.

2.SupportPolicies

Research funds: Up to CNY 12 million / 6 million in researchstart-up funding is provided by local government and the universitywithin 5 years.

Group support: At least 1 PhD student per year and unlimitednumbers of post-doctoral fellows in support. Self-determination ofhiring research assistant professors (RAPs) with competitiveresearch fund support for RAPs.

Lab space of approx. 150 square meters per person.

3.Remuneration

Salary: Globally competitive salary; Preferential policy ofindividual income tax, income tax of qualified high-level talentswill be compensated by local government to a maximum of 15% (taxfree).

Insurances: Shenzhens highest level of retirement insurance,medical insurance, unemployment insurance, industrial injuryinsurance, maternity insurance and housing provident funds. Specialhigh-level health insurance is negotiable.

4.Benefits

Housing and subsidies: Temporary on-campus apartments providedor subsidies to support off-campus rental housing. No less than CNY2.75 million living and housing subsidies (tax free) for scholarsof national-level talent programs. An extra yearly subsidy of CNY500,000 will be awarded to scholars within Pearl River TalentsPlan (longest duration 5 years).

Other benefits: Permanent residence or resident visa service forscholars and family (spouse and children); Service of childrenseducation in SUSTech affiliated preschool, primary school andmiddle school; Spouses employment service.

Post-doctoral Talents

1.Requirements

Under the age of 35

No more than 3 years of obtaining doctoral degree withdemonstrable academic and scientific research excellence.

2.Remuneration

Salary: Pre-tax annual salary not less than CNY 335,000(including provincial and municipal subsidies); For PresidentOutstanding Post-doctors, pre-tax annual salary not less than507,000 CNY (including provincial and municipal subsidies).

Insurances: Shenzhens highest level of retirementinsurance.

3.Benefits

Housing and subsidies: Temporary on-campus apartments providedor subsidies to support off-campus rental housing. No lessthan CNY 1.6 million living and housing subsidies (tax free) forscholars who meet the requirements of high-level talents inShenzhen.

Other benefits: Permanent residence or resident visa service forscholars and family (spouse and children); Service of childrenseducation in SUSTech affiliated preschool, primary school andmiddle school.

Welcome all eligible scholars at home and abroad to apply andattend

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Introduction to the Global Scientist Interdisciplinary Forum job with Southern University of Science and Technology (SUSTech) | 302819 - The Chronicle...

Embryology

Merck Foundation CEO and DR Congo First Lady mark the International day of ‘Elimination of Violence Against Women and Girls’ after appointing her as…

DR Congo First Lady partners with Merck Foundation (http://www.Merck-Foundation.com) to build healthcare capacity, break infertility stigma and empower girls through education; Merck Foundation CEO underscored their long term commitment to the social and economic development of Democratic Republic of The Congo through their partnership with The First Lady and Ministry of Health.

Merck Foundation, the philanthropic arm of Merck KGaA Germany, underscored their long term commitment through starting their partnership with The First Lady of Democratic Republic of the Congo, H.E. Madam DENISE NYAKERU TSHISEKEDI.

During the high level meeting held this week, Dr. Rasha Kelej, CEO of Merck Foundation, appointed The First Lady of Democratic Republic of the Congo as The Ambassador of Merck More Than a Mother to work closely with Merck Foundation to break the stigma of infertility , build healthcare capacity , and empower girls through education in the country.

H.E. Madam DENISE NYAKERU TSHISEKEDI, The First Lady of Democratic Republic of the Congo and Ambassador of Merck More Than a Mother emphasized, I am very happy to partner with Merck Foundation and start their valuable programs in our country as their Ambassador. These programs will help us to transform our public health care sector and create a future shift to empower infertile and childless women through access to information, health and change of mindset as well as empower girls through education which is very close to my heart.

Dr. Rasha Kelej, CEO of Merck Foundation and President, Merck More Than a Mother emphasized, I am very proud of our partnership with The First Lady Of Democratic Republic of the Congo and welcome her as the Ambassador of Merck More Than a Mother, and new member of Merck Foundation First Ladies Initiative-MFFLI. With the outbreak of the global coronavirus pandemic, building healthcare capacity is of the highest importance, and through our partnership, we are planning to provide specialty training to equip the local doctors with the skills they need to improve access to equitable and quality healthcare solutions.

Along with appointing The First Lady of Democratic Republic of the Congo as the Ambassador of Merck More Than A Mother, Merck Foundation also marked the International Day for the Elimination of Violence against Women.

Violence against women and girls (VAWG) is one of the most widespread, persistent and devastating human rights violations, and on the occasion of International Day for the Elimination of Violence against Women, We must work together to eliminate violence against women and girls once and for all Dr. Rasha Kelej, CEO of Merck Foundation.

Merck Foundation has enrolled 32 doctors from Democratic Republic of the Congo to master course in Diabetes in French accredited by Diabetes UK as part of their Diabetes Blue Point Program to help the doctors prevent and manage the disease in their communities.

Merck Foundation has also provided Fertility and Embryology training to 5 Doctors from Democratic Republic of the Congo with the aim to establish a strong platform of first Fertility specialists and Embryologists to assist infertile couples in the country as part of their historic campaign Merck More than a Mother.

Merck Foundation has also enrolled 1 Oncologist from the Democratic Republic of the Congo as part of their Merck Oncology Fellowship Program to increase the limited number of oncologists in the country and plans to enroll more doctors after coronavirus lockdown is over.

COVID-19 has severely affected the families of casual and daily workers. To aid this issue, Merck Foundation made a community donation to the casual workers and women to support poor families in Democratic Republic of the Congo as part of their coronavirus response program.

We are also planning to support 20 girl students as part of Merck Foundation Educating Katty which aims to empower girls through education in Democratic Republic of the Congo. We are closely working with The First Lady on this new program with the aim to empower girls through education, added Dr. Rasha Kelej, One of the 100 Most Influential Africans (2019, 2020).

Merck Foundation also announced 9 winners from Democratic Republic of the Congo for their Stay at Home Media Recognition Awards 2020 which been launched earlier this year in partnership with The First Lady of Democratic Republic of the Congo with the aim to build media capacity and raise awareness about Covid-19 pandemic.

The Merck Foundation Stay At Home Media Recognition Awards winners from Democratic Republic of the Congo are:

ONLINE CATEGORY WINNERS:

FIRST Position:

SECOND Position:

PRINT CATEGORY WINNERS:

FIRST Position:

MULTIMEDIA CATEGORY WINNERS:

FIRST Position:

SECOND Position:

THIRD Position:

RADIO CATEGORY WINNERS:

FIRST Position:

SECOND Position:

Jody Daniel Nkashama- Radio Okapi (300 USD)

Distributed by APO Group on behalf of Merck Foundation.

Download MorePhotos:https://we.tl/t-vNf34WHxDg

Join the conversation on our social media platforms below and let your voice be heard:Facebook:bit.ly/2MmUl3pTwitter:bit.ly/2NDqHLRYouTube:bit.ly/318obQeInstagram:bit.ly/2MtCKsuFlicker:bit.ly/2P7AICNWebsite:Merck-Foundation.comDownload Merck Foundation App:https://bit.ly/3q03rYH

About Merck Foundation:The Merck Foundation (Merck-Foundation.com), established in 2017, is the philanthropic arm of Merck KGaA Germany, aims to improve the health and wellbeing of people and advance their lives through science and technology. Our efforts are primarily focused on improving access to quality & equitable healthcare solutions in underserved communities, building healthcare and scientific research capacity and empowering people in STEM (Science, Technology, Engineering, and Mathematics) with a special focus on women and youth. All Merck Foundation press releases are distributed by e-mail at the same time they become available on the Merck Foundation Website. Please visit http://www.merck-foundation.com to read more. To know more, reach out to our social media:Merck Foundation, (Merck-Foundation.com)Facebook(bit.ly/2MmUl3p),Twitter(bit.ly/2NDqHLR), Instagram(bit.ly/2MtCKsu), YouTube(bit.ly/318obQe) andFlicker(bit.ly/2P7AICN).

About Merck More Than a Mother campaign:Merck More Than a Mother is a strong movement that aims to empower infertile women through access to information, education and change of mind-sets. This powerful campaign supports governments in defining policies to enhance access to regulated, safe, effective and equitable fertility care solutions. It defines interventions to break the stigma around infertile women and raises awareness about infertility prevention, management and male infertility. In partnership with African First Ladies, Ministries of Health, Information, Education & Gender, academia, policymakers, International fertility societies, media and art, the initiative also provides training for fertility specialists and embryologists to build and advance fertility care capacity in Africa and developing countries.

With Merck More Than a Mother, we have initiated a cultural shift to de-stigmatize infertility at all levels: By improving awareness, training local experts in the fields of fertility care and media, building advocacy in cooperation with African First Ladies and women leaders and by supporting childless women in starting their own small businesses. Its all about giving every woman the respect and the help she deserves to live a fulfilling life, with or without a child.

The Ambassadors of Merck More Than a Mother are:

H.E. NEO JANE MASISI, The First Lady of Botswana

H.E. FATOUMATTA BAH-BARROW, The First Lady of The Gambia

H.E. MONICA GEINGOS, The First Lady of Namibia

H.E. ANGELINE NDAYISHIMIYE,

The First Lady of Burundi

H.E. REBECCA AKUFO-ADDO, The First Lady of Ghana

H.E ASSATA ISSOUFOU MAHAMADOU, The First Lady of Niger

H.E. BRIGITTE TOUADERA, The First Lady of Central African Republic

H.E. COND DJENE, The First Lady of Guinea Conakry

H.E. AISHA BUHARI, The First Lady of Nigeria

H.E. HINDA DEBY ITNO, The First Lady of Chad

H.E. CLAR WEAH, The First Lady of Liberia

H.E FATIMA MAADA BIO, The First Lady of Sierra Leone

H.E. ANTOINETTE SASSOU-NGUESSO, The First Lady of Congo Brazzaville

H.E. MONICA CHAKWERA, The First Lady of Malawi

H.E. ESTHER LUNGU, The First Lady of Zambia

H.E. DENISE NYAKERU TSHISEKEDI, THE First Lady of Democratic Republic of Congo

H.E. ISAURA FERRO NYUSI, The First Lady of Mozambique

H.E. AUXILLIA MNANGAGWA, The First Lady of Zimbabwe

Merck Foundation launched new innovative initiatives to sensitize local communities about infertility prevention, male infertility with the aim to break the stigma of infertility and empowering infertile women as part of Merck More than a Mother COMMUNITY AWARENESS CAMPAIGN, such as;

Merck More than a Mother Media Recognition Awards and Health Media Training

Merck More than a Mother Fashion Awards

Merck More than a Mother Film Awards

Local songs with local artists to address the cultural perception of infertility and how to change it

Children storybook, localized for each country

Africanews provides content from APO Group as a service to its readers, but does not edit the articles it publishes.

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Merck Foundation CEO and DR Congo First Lady mark the International day of 'Elimination of Violence Against Women and Girls' after appointing her as...

Embryology

Tales of pain for couples unable to have children – The Standard

Like for all newlywed couples, life was supposed to follow a certain pattern for Mary when she got married. Get married, enjoy honey moon, get pregnant and enjoy family life. But that was not the case.

I never thought that I would need another woman to carry my child. I thought I was fertile because I come from a lineage of fertile women. But in 2013 I used another womans womb to bring my child into this world, she says.

Mary (not her real name), now 42 years old, recalls how infertility almost ended her marriage a year into the union when they realised there was a problem.

People started talking. Relatives were asking whether I was a real woman. Mary recalls.

I wondered what the definition of a real woman was. For a while, we blocked our ears from the mean comments but two years in, we started looking for answers, she adds.

Heartless in-laws

Mary says they spent a lot of money on in vitro fertilisation (IVF), which was not successful. Before they settled on surrogacy, some relatives had already found a second wife for her husband.

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I was depressed. I had everything I ever wanted: a husband, a well-paying job, a beautiful house, but I couldnt make my husband a father, she says in tears.

It broke my heart when I learnt that my dear in-laws were looking for a replacement for me without even giving me a chance to conceive. But I am happy that my husband stood by me.

In 2013, three years into the marriage, Mary and her husband opted for a surrogate.It was a difficult decision. I felt like I wasnt woman enough. But I went for counseling and the process was easier. We finally found a surrogate, sorted out the finances, and she carried our child. We were in touch with her throughout the pregnancy, Mary narrates.

Although there are couples who prefer not knowing their surrogates, the couple chose to be involved. After the delivery we were in touch for a few weeks, after which she opted to end the communication for personal reasons.

Mary, however, says if shed consulted a specialist a year into her marriage, she could have prevented a lot of heartache.

Dr Wanyoike Gichuhi, a consultant obstetrician/gynaecologist and fertility specialist, says a couple that lives together, not on any birth control method and having regular sexual intercourse, who are not able to conceive within a year of marriage, should seek medical help.

He explains that once certain tests are done, they will determine if the challenge is with the woman or the man or both partners.

Fertility tests for a woman involve hormonal tests such as antimllerian hormone, follicle-stimulating hormone, luteinising hormone and oestrogen, and pelvic ultrasound and x-ray, Dr Wanyoike explains.

Semen analysis

For men, semen analysis is done to examine its quality among other factors. If indeed there is a problem, assisted reproduction is recommended.

During IVF, the ovaries are stimulated with fertility medicines to produce multiple ova (eggs). The mature eggs are retrieved from the ovaries in an operating theatre and fertilised with the sperms in the laboratory. The embryos are cultured in an incubator where they develop, before being transferred back to the womb, explains Dr Gichuhi.

Data from the Nairobi Fertility Clinic shows that IVF success rates are about 40 per cent in women below the age of 35 years but, as women go beyond the age of 41, they have less than 5 per cent success rates.

The success of IVF depends on many factors, but the age of the woman is the most important factor if she is using her own eggs.

Kenya is lagging behind on legislative framework governing the practise of fertility.

Developed countries like the UK have elaborate and comprehensive regulatory authorities. In the UK, where I trained, there is the Human Fertilisation and Embryology Authority which is responsible for ensuring that the fertility clinic and research centre comply with the law and ethics, Dr Gichuchi explains.

Kenyas Assisted Reproductive Technology (ART) Bill introduced in the National Assembly by Suba North Constituency Member of Parliament, Millie Adhiambo, is still a long way from becoming law to regulate the practise.

The MP acknowledges that women disproportionately bear the brunt of the stigma when a couple is unable to conceive, yet, she says, science has shown that men also have fertility challenges.

I am childless, and I am not shy about it, but I didnt know the extent of this problem, she says.

I realised that even in Parliament there are several other people who have gotten their children through an assisted reproductive technology but because of the stigma around this, they cannot talk about it publicly, she says.Odhiambo explains that a support group of women with fertility challenges approached her to introduce the Bill in Parliament to protect affected couples from exploitation and stigma.

A couple without a child is stigmatised, with different communities having names for such men and women. Part of the reason for introducing this Bill is to create awareness on this sensitive issue and let people know that you do not have to have a child if you do not want to, and if you are facing challenges, know that there are alternatives.

Modern day surrogacy

She refers to the Bible where a couple who could not have children would get a woman to conceive with the man, an earlier form of surrogacy. Modern day surrogacy is a bit different with IVF playing the crucial role in conception.

Vanessa, 30, decided to be a surrogate for a close relative after they failed to conceive through IVF.

Vanessa decided to help them after having that conversation with a friend two years earlier.

My relatives marriage was on the verge of collapse because of six years of childlessness. I wanted to help, and being their surrogate was the only way I could. They cried when I told them I wanted to be their surrogate. It was a very emotional moment, she recalls.

Vanessa says her relatives and friends were shocked when she told them she was doing it for free. However, she admits that it was a challenge because she had a 1-year-old daughter that she had to stop breastfeeding. I had to stop breastfeeding my baby. It was hard for me, I felt like I was failing my child. But I had chosen to help my relative. The nurses encouraged me on.

Vanessa explains that placing the embryo into her uterus (implantation) was not scary. The transfer was quick and painless, and she did not require medication or anaesthesia.

She was advised to be on bed rest for two weeks, after which she went back to the hospital to confirm the viability of the pregnancy. It was positive.

Prior to the implantation, Vanessas relative decided to also try IVF at the same time one last time, and to their surprise, it was a double blessing that she was also able to carry her pregnancy at the same time.

Vanessa explains that the hardest moment was when she was discharged and had to take the baby to the parents.

My sister came for me and we took the baby to her parents. When we reached their home, I didnt alight from the taxi, I really cried, Vanessa intimates.

But I pulled myself together because I knew this was expected.

Slowly with time, she has adjusted to the reality that the new baby was not hers.

The rest is here:
Tales of pain for couples unable to have children - The Standard

Neuroscience

Informative Report: What will be the future of the Global Neuroscience Antibodies & Assays Market – PharmiWeb.com

Pune, New York, USA, November 30 2020 (Wiredrelease) Research Dive :The global neuroscience antibodies & assays market is estimated to surpass $6,159.8 million by 2027, exhibiting a CAGR of 10.2% from 2020 to 2027.

The report aims to offer a clear picture of the current scenario and future growth of the global Neuroscience Antibodies & Assays Market market. The report provides scrupulous analysis of global market by thoroughly reviewing several factors of the market such as vital segments, regional market condition, market dynamics, investment suitability, and key players operating in the market. Besides, the report delivers sharp insights into present and forthcoming trends & developments in the global market.

The report articulates the key opportunities and factors propelling the global Neuroscience Antibodies & Assays Market market growth. Also, threats and limitations that have the possibility to hamper the market growth are outlined in the report. Further, Porters five forces analysis that explains the bargaining power of suppliers and consumers, competitive landscape, and development of substitutes in the market is also sketched in the report.

For More Detail Insights, Download Sample Copy of the Report at: https://www.researchdive.com/download-sample/1843

The report reveals various statistics such as predicted market size and forecast by analyzing the major factors and by assessing each segment of the global Neuroscience Antibodies & Assays Market market. Regional market analysis of these segments is also provided in the report. The report segments the global market into four main regions including Asia-Pacific, Europe, North America, and LAMEA. Moreover, these regions are sub-divided to offer an exhaustive landscape of the Neuroscience Antibodies & Assays Market market across key countries in respective regions. Furthermore, the report divulges some of the latest advances, trends, and upcoming opportunities in every region.

Furthermore, the report profiles top players active in the global Neuroscience Antibodies & Assays Market market. A comprehensive summary of 10 foremost players operating in the global market is delivered in the report to comprehend their position and footmark in the industry. The report highlights various data points such as short summary of the company, companys financial status and proceeds, chief company executives, key business strategies executed by company, initiatives undertaken & advanced developments by the company to thrust their position and grasp a significant position in the market.

RESEARCH METHODOLOGY

The research report is formed by collating different statistics and information concerning the Neuroscience Antibodies & Assays Market market. Long hours of deliberations and interviews have been performed with a group of investors and stakeholders, including upstream and downstream members. Primary research is the main part of the research efforts; however, it is reasonably supported by all-encompassing secondary research. Numerous product type literatures, company annual reports, market publications, and other such relevant documents of the leading market players have been studied, for better & broader understanding of market penetration. Furthermore, medical journals, trustworthy industry newsletters, government websites, and trade associations publications have also been evaluated for extracting vital industry insights.

Connect with Our Analyst to Contextualize Our Insights for Your Business:https://www.researchdive.com/connect-to-analyst/1843

KEY MARKET BENEFITS

This report is a compilation of qualitative assessment by industry analysts, detailed information & study, and valid inputs from industry participants & experts across the value chainAn in-depth analysis along with recent trends of the industry are provided in the report to identify & comprehend the prevailing opportunities and the tactical assessment of the global Neuroscience Antibodies & Assays Market market growthThe market size and forecasts are derived by scrutinizing market boomers and restraints, and key developments in the Neuroscience Antibodies & Assays Market marketThe report studies the market from 2019 to 2027 and maps the qualitative impact of several industry factors on market segments as well as geographiesThe development strategies implemented by the key industry players are conscripted in the report to understand the competitive scenario of the global Neuroscience Antibodies & Assays Market marketThe report also offers insights into foremost market players, Porters Five Analysis, and top winning business strategies

KEY MARKET SEGMENTS

The global Neuroscience Antibodies & Assays Market market is segmented on the basis of the following:

Global Neuroscience Antibodies & Assays Market Market By Product Type:

Consumables, Instruments

Global Neuroscience Antibodies & Assays Market Market By Applications:

Research, In Vitro Diagnostics, Drug Discovery and Development

Global Neuroscience Antibodies & Assays Market Market By Regions:

North America (U.S, Canada, and Mexico.)Europe (Germany, UK, France, Spain, Italy, Rest of Europe.)Asia-Pacific (Japan, China, India, Australia, South Korea, Rest of APAC.)LAMEA (Brazil, Argentina, Saudi Arabia, South Africa, UAE, Rest of LAMEA)

Top Leading key players stated in Global Neuroscience Antibodies & Assays Market Market report are:

Thermo Fisher Scientific, Abcam, Bio-Rad, Merck KGaA, BioLegend, Cell Signaling Technology, F. Hoffmann-La Roche, GenScript, Rockland Immunochemicals, Santa Cruz Biotechnology, Siemens, Tecan

The report also summarizes other important aspects including financial performance, product portfolio, SWOT analysis, and recent strategic moves and developments of the leading players.

Contact Us:

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This content has been published by Research Dive company. The WiredRelease News Department was not involved in the creation of this content. For press release service enquiry, please reach us at contact@wiredrelease.com.

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Informative Report: What will be the future of the Global Neuroscience Antibodies & Assays Market - PharmiWeb.com