Life Skill Interventions with Homeless Youth,Domestic Violence Victims and Adults with Mental Illness

SUMMARY

This paper presents three exploratory studies of life skills interventions (employment, money management or food/nutrition) with 73 homeless individuals from four shelters and supportive housing programs located in the urban Midwest for youth, victims of domestic violence and adults with mental illness. The Ansell Casey Life Skills Assessment was administered prior to the eight group and individual sessions. Quizzes and posttests indicated clinical change in all groups, with statistical significance in the domestic violence group. The intervention implementation, challenges encountered, and strategies developed for implementing shelter-based interventions are discussed. Recommendations for successfully providing collaborative university-shelter clinical interventions are provided.     

Physician and Public Knowledge of Depression Among Older Adults

Abstract

This study examined primary care physicians' knowledge of geriatric mental health and whether it was quantitatively and/or qualitatively different from that of the general public. Physician and public responses to the Depression in Later Life Quiz were evaluated and compared using t-tests and chi-squared tests. While physicians were more knowledgeable than members of the general public regarding most facts associated with geriatric mental health issues, physicians were also more likely than the general public to associate depression with the aging process. Further investigation regarding the potential negative impact of geriatric medical education, which is frequently limited to acute care and nursing home settings, should be considered.     

小学生心理健康与社会支持调查

目的了解小学生心理健康与社会支持情况,为有效提高小学生心理健康水平提供参考。方法采用分层整群随机抽样方法,对调查对象进行问卷调查。结果 31.10%的调查对象自我意识水平在正常范围,49.70%自我意识水平过高,19.20%自我意识水平过低。自我意识量表总分均值和全国常模差异没有统计学意义。农村调查样本的客观支持及社会支持总分显著低于城市;在小学生社会支持系统中,父母影响占31.62%,老师影响占15.31%,家人影响合计占54.26%。结论小学生自我评价过高即自负,这种心理对孩子的成长极为不利,应予重视;小学生社会支持系统中,父母影响最大。     

心理咨询对减低宫内节育器不良反应的干预效果分析

目的 探讨心理咨询对减少放置宫内节育器(intrauterine contraceptiv edevice,IUD)后不良反应的效果。方法 选择清城区计划生育服务站2011年3～4月行IUD放置术育龄妇女为研究对象,209例为干预组,217例为对照组。干预组通过术前录像宣传教育、问卷调查、心理咨询、音乐疗法等心理干预,解决手术者的焦虑情绪;对照组采用常规的健康宣传教育方法。术后分别于1、3、6、12月进行随访,比较两组放置IUD后的各种不良反应发生情况。结果 对照组术后1、3、6月的月经异常发生率高于干预组,对照组术后1、3月腰腹疼痛的发生率高于干预组,对照组术后1月IUD异位的发生率高于干预组,对照组术后1、3、6、12月白带异常的发生率高于干预组,差异均有统计学意义(P<0.05)。结论 放置IUD术前行心理干预,可有效减少IUD的不良反应,有助于提高IUD的续用率。     

CHILDREN,YOUTH, AND MOBILE COMMUNICATION

Exposure to online risks does not necessarily result in harm, but some groups of children prove to be less resilient than others when facing a potentially harmful situation online. The aim of this article is to better understand and explain which children under which social conditions are more likely to be more or less resilient. Children with low self-efficacy and more psychological difficulties are more vulnerable online as they experience stronger negative feelings and are more likely to go offline for a while or simply hope the problem would go away. A higher level of digital literacy is related to the use of online coping strategies aimed at solving the problem and protecting the child from further harm. Girls and younger children are more susceptible to sexual risks. Parental mediation and monitoring do not result in more online resilience. Mediation from peers and teachers has rather ambigous outcomes.     

Mental Illness,Not Obesity Status,is Associated with Food Insecurity Among the Elderly in the Health and Retirement Study

Abstract

Objectives: Food insecurity, limited or uncertain access to adequate nutrition, is an increasingly recognized determinant of health outcomes and is often associated with having obesity. It is unclear, however, if this association persists in elderly populations.

Methods: We conducted a cross-sectional study of 2868 participants’ aged 65+ years from the Health and Retirement Study. Multivariate logistic regression was used to assess associations between food insecurity and body mass index, demographic characteristics, psychiatric history, and medical history.

Results: Participants with overweight/obesity had a higher prevalence of food insecurity than leaner counterparts, however, weight status was not a significant predictor of food insecurity after multivariate adjustment. Instead, mental illness, current smoking status, and non-White race were all independently associated with food insecurity.

Discussion: Beyond financial status, health care providers are encouraged to use these characteristics to identify elderly patients that may be at risk of food insecurity.     

Interprofessional practice and decision support: An organizational framework applied to a mental health setting

Decision support as a means to assist people in making healthcare decisions has been discussed extensively in the medical literature. However, the potential for use of decision support and decision aids with people with psychiatric disabilities in order to promote recovery has only begun to be researched and discussed in the mental health literature. Organizational factors that foster interprofessional practice within a decision support environment focused on mental health issues are examined in this paper.     

Mental Health Issues and Psychotropic Medication: Current Applications for Children and Adolescents in Residential Treatment

ABSTRACT

Severe mental and emotional conditions are much more prominent in juvenile resident treatment facilities than they are within the general adolescent population. These conditions are often painful to the juveniles and create management difficulties for the facility. Several mental illnesses are particularly severe and troublesome when not properly treated. Many of these require medication in order to be treated properly. This article identifies and describes those conditions, identifies many of the medications commonly used to treat them, and discusses both the effects and common side-effects of the medications. The paper does not offer medical advice and cannot be used as a guide to effective treatment. Rather, it is intended to improve the understanding of non-medical practitioners in the mental health field.