As the COVID-19 pandemic has made it palpable, anxieties can turn into pervasive affects with detrimental effects on the psychological well-being of the individual. To be anxious is to be on edge,... Show moreAs the COVID-19 pandemic has made it palpable, anxieties can turn into pervasive affects with detrimental effects on the psychological well-being of the individual. To be anxious is to be on edge, not only psychologically, but also ontologically and existentially; or to use Heidegger’s terms, it is to be in a state of “groundless floating”. 1 Ranging from general anxiety, PTSD, OCD, and phobias to the simple sentiment of being out of sort, anxieties operate as harbingers of imminent disruptions. Often linked with the concept of “disorder”, anxieties are mostly mentioned in a context that frames personal and socio-economic behavioural patterns in terms of pathology, normality, and abnormality, which implicitly refer to normative views of what constitutes a fulfilled, ’good’ life. It is no coincidence that anxiety, as a heightened state of insecurity and being-alarmed, has been on the rise because of the radical transformations of the welfare state and the liberalisation (i.e., deregulation) of the labour market. These macroeconomic factors have eroded former assurances and made normative fantasies of the ‘good life’, centred around notions of upward mobility, job security, meritocracy, increasingly unattainable. Lauren Berlant famously called “the emergence of a precarious public sphere” in which “optimistic objects/scenarios that had once held the space open for the good-life fantasy”, while under pressure, are still the object of our strife, a state of “cruel optimism.” 2 While anxiety seems to be omnipresent, it also runs counter to what has been described as the official happiness agenda, i.e., the ensemble of practices and instruments to measure and foster our sense of contentment, Show less
This dissertation takes the reader around different Collective Food Procurement networks in Turin (Italy). Building on 15 months of ethnographic fieldwork between 2019 and 2020, I discuss the case... Show moreThis dissertation takes the reader around different Collective Food Procurement networks in Turin (Italy). Building on 15 months of ethnographic fieldwork between 2019 and 2020, I discuss the case of urban gardens (part one), open-air food markets (part two) and food aid initiatives (part three). I analyse related sites, people, practices and narratives and I call for diversifying our outlooks on urban peripheral areas and moving away from incautious optimism around widespread understandings of urban renewal and sustainability. To critically engage with these themes, I focus on civic engagement and morality, which represent red threads throughout the text. In particular, I argue that citizens’ engagement is increasingly mediated by the non-profit sector. This should be problematised in relation to silenced discontent, the exclusion of marginalised practices and limited citizens’ possibilities to be part of actual decision-making. I use morality as a common denominator to investigate the similarities and differences between the various cases - and examine their linkages with broader processes such as welfare reconfiguration, precarious labour and gentrification. I highlight how, through morality, certain working cultures, such as low remuneration as part of the non-profit sector, became interrelated with contemporary understandings of urban sustainability. Show less
An ad hoc Panel of Experts has determined for the first time that a free trade partner of the European Union violated sustainable development obligations under the new generation of free trade... Show moreAn ad hoc Panel of Experts has determined for the first time that a free trade partner of the European Union violated sustainable development obligations under the new generation of free trade agreements. The Republic of Korea was the EU’s first trading partner to ratify such an agreement.2 After a European Commission non-paper in 2018 promised “more assertive” use of the soft dispute mechanism for “trade and sustainable development” issues in free trade agreements, the EU filed formal proceedings against Korea.3The Panel’s report is a milestone decision that will likely serve as a precedent for future ad hoc panels. Show less
Epidural analgesia provided superior analgesia to remifentanil PCA. Women randomised to epidural analgesia with a request for pain relief are more satisfied with their analgesia than women... Show more Epidural analgesia provided superior analgesia to remifentanil PCA. Women randomised to epidural analgesia with a request for pain relief are more satisfied with their analgesia than women randomised to remifentanil PCA. Costs of epidural analgesia and remifentanil PCA are not significantly different. From an economic perspective, there is no preferential pain treatment in labouring women. Epidural analgesia is associated with a greater incidence of fever and significantly higher temperature overall. Patient controlled remifentanil has an effect on maternal SpO2 with significantly lower mean SpO2 during the labour period. This shows that respiratory complications are a serious problem associated with remifentanil and that continuous monitoring by trained personnel is obligatory. Persistent postpartum pain affects many women. Of surveyed women, 6.1% complained of significant pain related to delivery. Since this was a retrospective follow up study this results might be explained by the study design and these findings have to be evaluated by further research. Show less
The aim of this dissertation is outlined in the introduction, which includes a paragraph on physiology and pathophysiology of the third stage of labour. The next paragraph handles the management of... Show moreThe aim of this dissertation is outlined in the introduction, which includes a paragraph on physiology and pathophysiology of the third stage of labour. The next paragraph handles the management of the third stage of labour. Furthermore, the clinical problems __retained placenta__ and __puerperal uterine inversion__ are outlined. In the last paragraph, the terms __quality of life__ and __illness perceptions__ are clarified. Part 2 of this dissertation contains the Dutch contribution to explore a possible global rise in incidence of postpartum haemorrhage (chapter 1). The current knowledge and practice regarding active management of the third stage of labour in midwifery practices and obstetric departments in the Netherlands is presented (chapter 2). In part 3 of this dissertation, the problems associated with abnormal placentation are explored. Misoprostol turned out not to be beneficial over placebo in the management of retained placenta (chapter 3 and 4). In chapter 5, a cohort of fifteen women with puerperal inversion of the uterus is presented. Experiencing an event such as major obstetric haemorrhage does not seem to be associated with diminished quality of life. Clinical characteristics imply a big impact of the event on women and their partners. Show less
The Asia-Pacific region accounts for 35-40% of the four to five million workers who take to their heels in search of employment each year. In scale, diversity and socio-economic consequences for... Show moreThe Asia-Pacific region accounts for 35-40% of the four to five million workers who take to their heels in search of employment each year. In scale, diversity and socio-economic consequences for the countries involved, contemporary movements of labour fundamentally differ from those of the past. Transnational labour migration can no longer be controlled by political measures or economic arrangements and is in need of a new approach beyond the limitations of neoclassical economic analysis. Show less
