A Qualitative Study of Women Domestic Workers using Public Transport and the Adoption of Purdah

The aim of this research is to analyze the key issues concerning the mobility of women domestic workers working in Lahore, Pakistan, through a qualitative feminist approach. For data collection, the walking interview method, which entailed walking alongside the participants and asking them questions regarding the study questions. Qualitative thematic analysis was used to analyze the interviews with ten participants. The findings reveal that the key deterrent limiting women’s mobility includes the extremely patriarchal socio-cultural norms that surround women’s lives. Two broad themes were found including: (i) Purdah as an Extension of One’s Agency; and (ii) Personal Safety, Cost, and Overcrowded Public Transport. This paper changes the societal implications of purdah while also shifting the narrative that surrounds it through the way women participants use purdah to extend their very limited agency. The study also helps to shed light on Pakistan’s public transit system through the eyes of women domestic workers who view it as a deeply unsafe and uncomfortable mode of traveling within the city.

A Randomised Controlled Trial Investigating the Effect of Adding Fentanyl to Low Dose Bupivacaine in Combined Spinal-Epidural Anaesthesia, Using Epidural Volume Extension Technique in Caesarean Section

Background: Epidural volume extension (EVE), is a technique whereby a small-dose intrathecal block is enhanced by an epidural injection of physiological saline. This epidural injection exerts a compression effect on the dura, which then leads to a cranial increase in sensory spread of the intrathecal local anaesthetic. The lower dose of local anaesthetic required in the EVE technique has made it possible to avoid the side effects of the conventional dose of local anaesthetic while still having the benefit of adequate anaesthesia. Several studies have been conducted in this area; these studies have either used or omitted fentanyl. The successful results demonstrated in these trials have been solely attributed to the EVE effect without taking into consideration the pharmacological effect of fentanyl on the total outcome. No study has been done to demonstrate the effect of fentanyl on the epidural volume extension block and whether adding or omitting it would make a difference on spinal block level and other characteristics. Objective: The study aims at determining the effect of fentanyl plus low dose bupivacaine on the spinal block level of combined spinal epidural (CSE) anaesthesia utilizing the Epidural Volume Extension technique. Study design: A randomised controlled trial Methods - Intervention: Forty four women scheduled for elective caesarean section were randomized to 2 groups. One group got intrathecal bupivacaine with fentanyl followed by Epidural Volume Extension with physiological saline (Fentanyl group). The second group got intrathecal bupivacaine without fentanyl followed by epidural volume extension with physiological saline (No-fentanyl group). - Outcome measures: The outcome measures for this study were, the maximum sensory level which was measured by loss of sensation to temperature using a cold spirit swab, the motor block which was assessed using the Bromage score and the time to first request to analgesia taken as the time the patient first needed to use their PCA device or epidural supplementation intraoperatively. Results: The sensory block level after epidural volume extension increased in both arms. The increase was more in the intervention arm (Fentanyl group) than in the control arm (Nofentanyl group). This increase was however not statistically significant P=0.19. The sensory block level after epidural volume extension in the fentanyl group was 4 levels higher than the initial intrathecal block, while in the control arm the change was 3 levels higher than the than the initial intrathecal block. The time to first request of analgesia was shorter in the no-fentanyl