Week 2 - The Research Topic Revealed!

   Ok, so my research this week actually helped me narrow down my broad topic into a topic that will be easier to explore over the next 6 weeks. I ‘checked out’ an electronic book from Brandman’s Leatherby Library for the first time. I was pleased to discover that Brandman sponsors our account with the electronic book server. Using the book, which was loaded with health care statistics from various countries, I discovered some alarmingly high rates of mortality among women and infants in the nation of Chad as well as several other serious health concerns in these demographics. Since I knew I wanted to do my research on Chad and specifically in the areas of health or education I decided to do my research on maternal and child mortality rates in the nation of Chad. Now I’m hoping I can find enough credible published information on Chad itself. As a country, it tends to be abit ‘off the grid.’

   Using the book, Health Care Systems Around the World: A Comparative Guide, I discovered among other things, that about 1 in 10 live birth infants in Chad die before the age of one. Additionally, only 23% of women who give birth are assisted by a skilled attendant. I’ve used the Countdown 2015 official website for my research as well as they have some great charts and current statistics available. This is a robust campaign sponsored by the World Health Organization targeting maternal and child mortality rates specifically. From this website I gathered information about immunization rates, frequency of continued care, and specific childhood diseases. Based on the research from this week I certainly feel like this subject is something I am going to be able to stay ambitious about throughout the research period. I am actually pretty excited to learn more about these critical issues concerning a country that I have a lot of love for.