Real change or more of the same? Analysing Australian media's portrayal of intellectual disability during the NDIS rollout

Background

Through the filtering of information, the creation, and reinforcement of stereotypes, media moulds attitudes and set agendas on critical social issues including public policy and disability.

Methods

This study explored Australian media representations of the care of people with intellectual disability during a crucial period in disability policy change: the National Disability Insurance Scheme (NDIS) rollout (2013–2018). Search criteria identified 168 news stories, examined via content analysis and news framing.

Results

Four major issues were identified: Roles and responsibilities of government; housing; mistreatment of persons with intellectual disability, and responsibility of care for families. Stories tended to be presented negatively, however, regional and local/community metropolitan stories were more balanced or positive compared with major metropolitan stories.

Conclusion

Despite significant disability policy change, media presentations continue to reinforce stereotypes of people with intellectual disability and position the government as one continuing to fall short in critical areas of funding, safety, and support.     

A case of bilateral frontal tumors without “frontal syndrome”

We report the longitudinal case study of a right-handed patient harboring two frontal tumors that benefited from bilateral simultaneous surgery. The tumors were WHO Grade II gliomas located in the left inferior frontal area (including the cingulate gyrus) and the right anterior superior frontal gyrus. The double tumor resection was guided by direct electrical stimulation of brain areas while the patient was awake. Neuropsychological assessments were administered before and after the surgery to analyse how the brain functions in the presence of two frontal gliomas that affect both hemispheres and reacts to a bilateral resection, which can brutally compromise the neuronal connectivity, progressively established during the infiltrating process. We showed that both the tumor infiltration and their bilateral resection did not lead to a “frontal syndrome” or a “dysexecutive syndrome” predicted by the localization models. However, a subtle fragility was observed in fine-grain language, memory and emotional skills. This case study reveals the significance of brain plasticity in the reorganization of cognitive networks, even in cases of bilateral tumors. It also confirms the clinical relevance of hodotopical brain models, which considers the brain to be organized in parallel-distributed networks around cortical centers and epicenters.     

Outcomes for Patients With Acute Promyelocytic Leukemia in South Africa

BackgroundThe characteristics and outcomes of patients with acute promyelocytic leukemia (APL) from sub-Saharan Africa have not been published.Patients and MethodsWe report retrospectively on consecutively diagnosed APL patients treated in Cape Town, South Africa, during 1998-2019. A total of 69 patients were treated, of whom 27 (39%) were classified as having high risk APL.ResultsEarly death rates at 7 and 30 days were 7% and 13%, respectively, including 4 patients who died before any treatment could be administered. Overall survival at 3 years was 76.5% (95% confidence interval, 63.9-85.2) for the entire cohort, and 82.5% (95% confidence interval, 69.7-90.2) if patients who died within 7 days of diagnosis were excluded. For 13 patients (18.8%), there was a delay of 5 or more days from time of initial presentation at a peripheral hospital until arrival at the leukemia center and administration of all-trans retinoic acid; only 1 of these patients died within 30 days.ConclusionDespite the challenges faced in the public healthcare system of a developing country, outcomes of APL patients treated at our center are similar to outcomes from developed countries.