Book reviews

Book Reviews in this Article
Review article: Women managing
Hardship and Health in Women's Lives
Shattering the Glass Ceiling: The Woman Manager
Women, Management and Care
Reminiscence Reviewed: Evaluations, Achievements, Perspectives
Controlling Health Professionals
The Practice of Health Services Research
Sociology of Health and Health Care: An Introduction for Nurses
Caring in Crisis: A Handbook of Intervention Skills     

POLICE INVOLVEMENT WITH CLIENTS HAVING INTELLECTUAL DISABILITIES: A PILOT STUDY IN SOUTH LONDON

Following the increasing trend for de-institutionalisation of people with learning disabilities, community services are increasingly being utilised to support those who also display challenging behaviours. Where severely challenging behaviours are involved community service providers may require additional support from die police service. The authors undertook a retrospective pilot study among two major community care providers in South London, and looked at the reasons for calling the police, the frequency with which die police were called; staff expectations in calling the police and the outcomes for die clients in terms of further involvement with the criminal justice system. The authors note that the police were generally used as additional support when clients became too difficult for the immediate service providers to manage. It is also noted that police action on behalf of victims was generally low and that the police were never called in response to clients with learning disabilities reporting having witnessed crime. The authors note that further research is required.     

Relative effect of surgery and radiotherapy on the internal jugular vein following functional neck dissection

We examined the internal jugular veins in three groups of patients who had undergone (1) a functional neck dissection and radiotherapy, (2) a functional neck dissection alone, or (3) radiotherapy alone, using a noninvasive color Doppler ultrasound scan. The internal jugular veins were ultrasonically bilaterally normal in 18% of patients who had undergone a functional neck dissection and radiotherapy, in 88% of patients who had undergone a functional neck dissection alone, and in 57% of patients who had undergone radiotherapy alone. The combination of a functional neck dissection and radiotherapy significantly affected the internal jugular vein when compared with a functional neck dissection alone.     

A Qualitative Analysis of Vaccine Safety Perceptions and Concerns Among Caretakers in Uganda

Parents and caretakers of young children often have concerns about vaccine safety and adverse events following immunization (AEFI). Little is known about vaccine safety perceptions in Uganda and their influence on parental decision-making about infant immunization. The study objectives were: to identify community sources of information on immunization, vaccine safety and AEFI; determine caretakers?? knowledge of immunization; identify community concerns/fears about immunization and AEFI and their influence on caretakers?? decisions to vaccinate; and obtain an understanding of knowledge, perceptions, and experience of health care workers (HCWs) and policy administrators on vaccine safety and AEFI. Twelve focus group discussions with 136 caretakers who were very or somewhat concerned about vaccine safety and 25 key informant interviews were conducted in two districts (1 urban and 1 rural) with district authorities and health facility staff as well as national level decision-makers between December and April 2006. Content analysis was used to analyze the results. The main themes identified related to general lack of information among caretakers about immunization, perceived immunization benefits, immunization concerns, and misconceptions. Specific caretaker concerns related to vaccine administration, immunization services and vaccine safety. Experiences with AEFI and concerns about vaccine safety negatively affected caretakers?? decisions to vaccinate their children, notably in rural areas. HCWs demonstrated knowledge about AEFI and their management although incidences reported to facilities were rare. Inadequate communication between HCWs and caretakers was noted. Concerns and misconceptions about vaccination still exist among caretakers in Uganda and influence decisions to vaccinate. Effective inter personal communication initiated by HCWs towards caretakers is needed.     

Infection of Chinese Rhesus Monkeys with a Subtype C SHIV Resulted in Attenuated In Vivo Viral Replication Despite Successful Animal-to-Animal Serial Passages

Rhesus macaques can be readily infected with chimeric simian-human immunodeficiency viruses (SHIV) as a suitable virus challenge system for testing the efficacy of HIV vaccines. Three Chinese-origin rhesus macaques (ChRM) were inoculated intravenously (IV) with SHIVC109P4 in a rapid serial in vivo passage. SHIV recovered from the peripheral blood of the final ChRM was used to generate a ChRM-adapted virus challenge stock. This stock was titrated for the intrarectal route (IR) in 8 ChRMs using undiluted, 1:10 or 1:100 dilutions, to determine a suitable dose for use in future vaccine efficacy testing via repeated low-dose IR challenges. All 11 ChRMs were successfully infected, reaching similar median peak viraemias at 1–2 weeks post inoculation but undetectable levels by 8 weeks post inoculation. T-cell responses were detected in all animals and Tier 1 neutralizing antibodies (Nab) developed in 10 of 11 infected ChRMs. All ChRMs remained healthy and maintained normal CD4⁺ T cell counts. Sequence analyses showed >98% amino acid identity between the original inoculum and virus recovered at peak viraemia indicating only minimal changes in the env gene. Thus, while replication is limited over time, our adapted SHIV can be used to test for protection of virus acquisition in ChRMs.     

Oral health promotion for high-risk children: case studies from British Columbia

Socio-economics, family stress and parenting style each plays as important a role in the development of early childhood caries as dietary and microbiological factors. Therefore, to be successful, oral health promotion initiatives should be designed and implemented with due consideration of issues such as collaboration with community partners, the role of dental health in overall child health and the involvement of the community in program planning. This article briefly describes 3 programs that have been undertaken in British Columbia either as public health initiatives or as demonstration research projects to improve oral health in young children from diverse communities with a high prevalence of early childhood caries.     

Ethnic and gender differences in drinking, smoking and drug taking among adolescents in England: a self-report school-based survey of 15 and 16 year olds

Concern has been mounting about the increasing numbers of adolescents who (ab)use drugs, alcohol and cigarettes. The aim of this study was to establish the prevalence according to gender and ethnicity of drinking, smoking and drug-use in a representative sample of 15 and 16 year olds. The sample consisted of 6020 15- and 16-year-old pupils from 41 schools in England who completed an anonymous self-report survey. There were clear gender and ethnic differences in self-reported substance use. For example, more males than females reported drinking and drug taking. More females reported smoking, but males were more likely to be heavy smokers. Asian, Black and other boys and Black and Asian girls were less likely to report drinking during a typical week compared to White participants. Asian females were less likely to report smoking compared to White females. Cannabis was the most commonly used drug for both genders. Black males were more likely than White males to have used cannabis, opiates and other drugs. However, Asian females were more likely than their White counterparts to have used opiates, but were significantly less likely to have used cannabis. Asian males were more likely than White males to have used ecstasy. The results confirm gender differences in substance use and demonstrate that there are different patterns of substance use between ethnic groups. These findings have implications for targeting prevention campaigns through the media and educational initiatives.     

Facilitating choice, framing choice: staff views on widening the scope of preimplantation genetic diagnosis in the UK

In the UK, the Human Fertilisation and Embryology Authority (HFEA) is responsible for licensing preimplantation genetic diagnosis (PGD). To date, licenses have been issued for the testing of about 70 genetic conditions, drawing on three key 'ethical principles'. Following a public consultation, the HFEA has recently widened the scope for PGD to include susceptibility to late onset, lower penetrance conditions such as inherited breast cancer. As the numbers and types of conditions which can potentially be tested for rises, the question of how, and indeed what limits should be set is timely. Drawing on qualitative interviews and ethics discussion groups which took place prior to or during the HFEA consultation, this paper explores the views of staff working in or linked to one PGD Unit in the UK, as to how they saw these potential changes. The paper thus provides an opportunity to develop greater understanding of how staff working in a morally contentious, innovative area viewed the potential expansion of their work, prior to that expansion taking place. Key themes include 'drawing lines' on behalf of others, particularly with the current emphasis on individual reproductive autonomy; and balancing the invasiveness and possible risks of PGD treatment against the 'seriousness' of the condition. More broadly, the paper highlights the complexities involved in trying to develop general 'ethical principles' to govern the use of ever evolving reproductive technologies.