Using business/law negotiation techniques in response to a ‘difficult’ family

Effective communication between clinicians, patients, and families at end of life is associated with better clinical outcomes. A large body of literature describes the key skills needed for effective communication. We believe that clinicians could also benefit from communication skills more commonly associated with business or law negotiations. We will demonstrate via analogy (i.e. buying a house) how four key business/law negotiation techniques – 1. Determine your Reservation and Aspiration Value; 2. Separate People from their Positions; 3. Separate Positions from Interests; and 4. Logrolling of Interests – can be applied to a difficult family meeting in a home hospice patient.     

Drug discovery strategies for acute radiation syndrome

Introduction: There are at the minimum two major, quite different approaches to advance drug discovery. The first being the target-based drug discovery (TBDD) approach that is commonly referred to as the molecular approach. The second approach is the phenotype-based drug discovery (PBDD), also known as physiology-based drug discovery or empirical approach.

Area covered: The authors discuss, herein, the need for developing radiation countermeasure agents for various sub-syndromes of acute radiation syndromes (ARS) following TBDD and PBDD approaches. With time and continuous advances in radiation countermeasure drug development research, the expectation is to have multiple radiation countermeasure agents for each sub-syndrome made available to radiation exposed victims.

Expert opinion: The majority of the countermeasures currently being developed for ARS employ the PBDD approach, while the TBDD approach is clearly under-utilized. In the future, an improved drug development strategy might be a ‘hybrid’ strategy that is more reliant on TBDD for the initial drug discovery via large-scale screening of potential candidate agents, while utilizing PBDD for secondary screening of those candidates, followed by tertiary analytics phase in order to pinpoint efficacious candidates that target the specific sub-syndromes of ARS.     

Cancer support groups – are they effective?

Cancer causes significatlt emotional distress to a considerable majority of patients. Many of these patients typically receive little formal psychological intervention. Support groups, however, have provided one forum from which patients can attempt to gain help and can use to overcome some psychological trauma that accompanies the cancer hagnosis, subsequent treatment and relapse. This article reviews past studies of professionally run cancer support groups as opposed to psychological intervention groups. These studies are considered in light of the proposed benefits and the methodological limitations frequently inherent in such studies.     

高中一年级学生抑郁情绪及相关因素的研究

目的调查高中一年级学生的抑郁情绪及与其个性、心理健康水平、应对能力和家庭环境的关系。方法采用整群抽样方法和问卷式调查,共调查高一学生488名,资料填写完整者449人(92.01%)。结果449名高一学生SDS平均得分(标准分)为(47.27±10.86),抑郁情绪的发生率为37.86%,不同性别和文理科之间差异无统计学意义。抑郁情绪组性格内向、情绪稳定性差和精神质表现较为突出,其SCL-90的9个因子评分均高于对照组,个人积极应对能力和解决问题的能力差,消极应对和自责表现突出,家庭的亲密度、情感表达、娱乐性和组织性均较对照组差,矛盾性较对照组突出。结论抑郁情绪已是高一学生中较为常见而且需要关注的心理卫生问题,严重影响其心身健康发展,抑郁情绪与个性、心理健康评分、个人应对方式和家庭环境均具有显著关系。     

Women's Danger Management Strategies in an Inner‐City Housing Project*

The danger management strategies of low‐income African American women who live in a public housing community characterized by chronic violence are examined. Based on qualitative interviews with 18 single mothers, we explored the violent community dangers with which women contend, the nature of this violence, the strategies used to deal with community violence, and their benefits and costs to family and community life. Findings show that multiple types of violence characterized life in the community and that this violence has specific physical locations, a particular set of actors, and a temporal rhythm. Women's responses to violence were nonconfrontational and family focused in nature. These efforts were effective in keeping women and their children safe, but did not reduce the prevalence of violence.     

英语听力训练策略使用问题探索

通过对河南中医学院2003级医学班的131名研究生的测试，探讨英语听力训练的策略问题。研究表明，有意识地恰当地使用策略能提高外语学习成绩，因此在他们之中进行了策略使用情况问卷调查，结果发现策略使用的多少与成绩之间虽不呈线性相关关系，但也有一定相关，从而断定策略的掌握会对学生产生积极的影响。然而现在的听力教材中缺少这一内容，于是笔者将其加入到课文的具体内容之中。     

抑郁障碍患者人格特征与发病关系的研究

目的探讨抑郁障碍患者的人格特征与其疾病发病间的关系。方法采用自评抑郁量表(SDS)、艾森克人格问卷 (EPQ)、应对方式评定量表 (WCRS)和归因方式问卷 (ASQ)对 76名抑郁障碍患者进行测试 ,同时选取 84名健康被试进行对照研究。结果①抑郁组患者在EPQ中神经质 (N)与精神质 (P)的得分显著高于健康组。②WCRS的结果显示在“宣泄接纳”、“退避调节”两个因子上 ,抑郁组的平均得分低于健康组。③在ASQ的得分中 ,抑郁组在负性事件归因的自身性、持久性和整体性均显著高于健康组。④抑郁障碍患者的“神经质”人格特质与应对方式的“宣泄接纳”和“退避调节”因子呈负相关 (r = 0 .474)。结论抑郁障碍患者的人格特征可表现为较强的神经质及孤僻、交往障碍 ,他们这种人格特征及应对和归因方式在其发病过程中起着重要作用。