Which factors have the greater influence on family planning performance: fixed background variables such as racial composition, urbanization, and mortality, which are affected by level of development, or program inputs such as assignment of personnel and location of clinics, which are subject to manipulation by administrators? An analysis of differences in family planning acceptance among 70 districts of Malaysia shows that two main program-manipulable variables--level of personnel deployment and accessibility of clinics--have the largest direct effect upon acceptance levels. Variations in background factors explain a smaller proportion.
PIP: The application to the Malaysian family planning program of a conceptual model in which background factors, affected by the level of development, are distinguished from program input variables, subject to program manipulation, is considered in an effort to examine reasons for variations in program performance. Focus is particularly on the inputs of workers, who provide services and distribute supplies, and clinic facilities, through which services and supplies are made available. The questions asked concerned how their availability and use are affected by background factors, which themselves reflect to some extent the population's readiness to accept family planning. Distinguishing the program-manipulable factors from the background factors involved determination of the impact of both groups of variables, separately and together on levels of program acceptance, using appropriate bivariate and multivariate techniques. The evidence shows that in addition to background factors, over which program administrators can exercise no direct influence, there is a major contribution made to program acceptance through program factors over which the planner and administrator do have control. The 2 program variables contributed more in explaining performance levels than all 5 selected background variables combined, and the relative contribution of these program factors has increased over time. The key finding emerging from the different analyses is that program manipulable inputs are the dominant direct determinants of subsequent levels of family planning acceptance in Malayasia. Clearly, higher levels of development, as reflected in the measures of background variables, have facilitated acceptance, and background variables contributed significantly. Yet, whatever the level of development, the extent of deployment of program resources does significantly influence the level of program performance.
1. Of the scarce Calyptra minuticornis, C. orthograpta and C. labilis, 51, 24, and 7 adults, respectively, were observed during some 600 night inspections at over 100 sites in 1965--1967 and 1971--1977. 2. Hitherto biologically completely unknown, and not recorded before in S.E. Asia, the latter two species flew in or near tropical monsoon forests in hilly regions (300--600 m) of N. Thailand (C. orthograpta also N. Laos). C. minuticornis was found in these and in tropical evergreen and semi-evergreen rain forests of S. Thailand and N.W. Malaysia. 3. In N. Thailand the three species were more common at the end of the cool season/start of the hot season and at the start of the rainy season. They were active mainly during the first half of the night 4. Flight and piercing behaviour, alighting, resting, enemies, and the lack of females, were similar to virtually identical with the "classical" skin-piercing blood-sucking C. eustrigata. 5. C. labilis was seen attacking elephant, C. orthograpta also water buffalo and sambar, C. minuticornis also zebu and tapir but not sambar. C. minuticornis settled on man also but did not pierce. 6. Through no piercing of hosts' skin has actually been seen in nature, indirect evidence suggests that the 3 moths are likely to be occasional blood-suckers. They pierced and sucked blood from the author's skin in experiments. 7. Reasons for lack of direct evidence may be: less developed hematophagy, less favoured hosts, lack of easy-to-pierce injured skin (which also trigger the piercing response), different climatic and phytoecological environment, fewer specimens than in the case of C. eustrigata. 8. Field observations and experiments indicate that the closely related, fruit-piercing Oraesia emarginata is not skin-piercing blood-sucking--a habit likely to be exhibited mainly in humid equatorial regions by a few Calyptra only.
A breeding colony utilizing a harem mating system was established to study the feasibility of breeding cynomoglus monkeys, Macaca fascicularis, in Malaysia. Two groups consisting of 10 females and one male each were evaluated over a 3 period. Forty births were recorded; one was stillborn, 11 died while nursing, and 28 were weaned. The average time to wean offspring was 230 days with an average weight at weaning of 0.858 kg. The average time for conception to take place after weaning was 50 days. Of the 20 breeder females, six produced three offspring each, nine produced two offspring each, four produced one offspring each and one remained barren throughout the project. Three different weaning systems were evaluated. The best method was caging the mother-infant pair within or adjacent to the breeding room followed by a two-part cage system which allowed the infant to continue nursing and also obtain solid food inaccessible to the mother.
Matched MeSH terms: Macaca fascicularis/growth & development
Pharyngeal micro-organisms of 131 Australian and Malaysian children and adults were compared by analysis of aerobic culture of throat swab specimens. Enteric Gram-negative bacilli were commonly isolated in small numbers from Malaysian adults whether they had sore throats (28%) or not (36%), but were detected in only 9% of Australian adults without sore throats and in only 12% and 4% of Malaysian children with and without sore throats respectively. In other respects microbiological findings were similar in the different groups of subjects studied. It is concluded that the pharyngeal carriage rate of enteric Gram-negative bacilli may differ substantially between different groups of normal individuals. Our findings also suggest that these micro-organisms do not have a pathogenic role in pharyngitis.
Matched MeSH terms: Escherichia coli/growth & development
Haemaphysalis (Garnhamphysalis) mjoebergi Warburton was reported from four male specimens from Sarawak, Borneo. We redescribe herein the male, from three specimens from Sarawak and 24 from Lampung District, Sumatra, and describe the female from 24 specimens from Lampung. Male structural variation in the dental formula and development of the coxa IV spur and segments of legs III and IV is unusual or unique in the genus Haemaphysalis. "Atypical" males might easily be misidentified. This species provides an ideal model for experimental study of population genetics and evolutionary processes and of biological factors influencing body size and structural variation in the genus Haemaphysalis. The sambar deer, Cervus unicolor brookei Hose (Sarawak) and C. unicolor equinus Cuvier (Sumatra), appears to be the chief host in humid, marshy, lowland forests and secondary growth. Single collections were from a human and a domestic cow. The dynamics and vector potential of this tick should be investigated in environments being exploited for human settlement and cattle breeding.