Socio-cultural aspects of the high masculinity ratio in India

Abusive head trauma: Canadian and global perspectives

Canada has come a long way since Dr. C. Henry Kempe first described battered-child syndrome in 1962. The year 1999 was crucial in Canada's battle against shaken baby syndrome/abusive head trauma (SBS/AHT), when the first national conference on the topic was held in Saskatoon. This was followed by the issuance of a national statement and multidisciplinary guidelines, recently updated in 2020. Incidence of AHT in Canada is similar to that found in population-based studies from Switzerland and New Zealand. The mainstay of prevention of AHT in Canada is education of parents and caregivers with respect to their response to infant crying. Population-based data for global incidence of AHT are lacking, largely because of social and cultural differences contributing to poor understanding of AHT as a medico-legal entity. India faces a distinct challenge in the battle against female feticide and infanticide.

India's Distorted Sex Ratio: Dire Consequences for Girls

Female gender discrimination related to cultural preference for males is a common global problem, especially in Asian countries. Numerous laws intended to prevent discrimination on the basis of gender have been passed in India, yet the distorted female-to-male sex ratio seems to show worsening tendencies. Using detailed, two-year longitudinal chart abstraction data about delivery records of a private mission hospital in rural India, we explored if hospital birth ratio data differed in comparison to regional data, and what demographic and contextual variables may have influenced these outcomes. Using quantitative chart abstraction and qualitative contextual data, study results showed the female-to-male ratio was lower than the reported state ratio at birth. In the context of India's patriarchal structure, with its strong son preference, women are under tremendous pressure or coerced to access community-based, sex-selective identification and female fetus abortion. Nurses may be key to turning the tide.