1. In chapter 6, Trostle mentioned proximate and ultimate causes of diseases. In reference to diarrheal diseases, he said “an epidemiological study of the causes of diarrheal disease may show that drinking contaminated water is a major risk factor or the proximate cause of the disease… Lack of resources, rather than failure to boil water, is the ultimate cause of this disease” (Trostle 2005, 127). In what way is only addressing the proximate cause problematic? How might one go about addressing the ultimate in lieu of the proximate cause?
2. In what ways do the words of Minja and Obrist contribute to the definition and manifestation of structural violence in society? What is the extent of cultural impact on inclination to accept new information that conflicts with establishing norms and traditions?
Readings:
Briggs, C., & Mantini-Briggs, Clara. (2003). Stories in the Time of Cholera Racial Profiling during a Medical Nightmare. Berkeley: University of California Press.
Chapter 1: Preparing for a Bacterial Invasion: Cholera and Inequality in Venezuela
Minja, Happiness, & Obrist, Brigit. (2005). Integrating local and biomedical knowledge and communication: Experiences from KINET project in Southern Tanzania.(Author Abstract). Human Organization, 64(2), 157-165.
