Stress, memory, and emotion: developmental considerations from the study of child maltreatment

Emotion and memory are examined within a developmental framework. The point of departure for this discussion is the study of maltreated children whose traumatic experiences have been linked to difficulties in emotional development. It is suggested that cognitive processes such as memory and attention serve to link experience with emotion and emotion with psychopathology. Thus, an information processing approach is used to explain the development of maltreated children's adaptive and maladaptive coping responses. It is argued that maltreated children's association of affective stimuli with traumatic experiences and memories selectively alters the meaning of emotions for these children. More generally, the role of experience and learning as a component of emotional development is emphasized.     

Predicting Individual Differences in Attention, Memory, and Planning in First Graders From Experiences at Home, Child Care, and School.

This study adds to the growing literature linking children's experiences in the environment to individual differences in their developing skills in attention, memory, and planning. The authors asked about the extent to which stimulating and sensitive care in the family and in the child-care or school environments would predict these cognitive outcomes. The authors also questioned the primacy of experiences in the first 3 years of life. Data from a sample of 700 first graders whose experiences in the home and in child care or school were evaluated since early infancy revealed that the cumulative quality of the child-rearing environment was related to attention and memory but not to planning and that the quality of the family environment was more strongly associated with outcomes than was the quality of child care and of school. The quality of both children's early (6 through 36 months) and later (54 months and first grade) environments predicted performance on the attention and memory tasks. (PsycINFO Database Record (c) 2010 APA, all rights reserved)     

Characterization of human IgG1 monoclonal antibody against gangliosides expressed on tumor cells

In this study, our intention was to describe the decision making of nurses practicing in intensive care, and the differences of nurses' decision making in Canada, Finland, Northern Ireland, Switzerland, and the United States. The instrument used in the study was a 56-item Likert-type questionnaire that has been used in previous studies and has proved to be a reliable tool. The target group comprised a nonrandom sample of nurses (N = 314) from five countries. The samples are not representative; therefore, the results in these cases cannot be generalized. The results showed that the decision making of nurses practicing in intensive care was broadly based, and that there were some country differences in data collection, problem definition, and planning. In contrast, decision making related to the implementation and evaluation of nursing is quite similar in the different countries. Canada and the United States on the one hand, and Finland, Northern Ireland, and Switzerland on the other, showed more similarities with each other in data collection, problem definition, and nursing planning related to decision making. Neither experience nor nurse's knowledge structure was associated with different decision-making approaches.     

Counseling, psychotherapy or psychological counseling? On the profile of therapeutic work in child guidance counseling

The children's and young people's assistance law authoritatively pointed out more clearly, what counselling in educational guidance services offered by the youth welfare can be. Then a difference is to be made between psychotherapy as a free offer made by educational guidance services and psychotherapy as a service offered by the medical care system and financed by the health insurance. Important criteria for discrimination can be deduced from the purposes of the children's an young people's assistance law and from their interpretations. The law demands a stronger pedagogical orientation, and it even demands an orientation towards underprivileged groups dealing with everyday matters. An analysis of the current practice confirms this trend. Meanwhile the educational guidance services have developed an independent methodology. Much more than the therapy offered by the medical care systems this therapy is marked by pragmatic purposes and a generic orientation. This therapy is getting more and more profiled on the basis of the children's and young people's assistance law still is lacking however a theory bringing it forward as well as systematics studies of their effects.     

A study of self-care among Irish doctors

Little is known about the self care employed by Irish doctors, though studies in other countries suggest this is likely to be less than ideal. In this study 76 doctors; general practitioner trainees, general practitioners and hospital consultants, completed a questionnaire on their self management of illness. High levels of self-prescribing and referral were discovered. The implications for the health of doctors in Ireland and the need for an occupational health service for doctors are discussed.     

Topical mitomycin C chemotherapy for conjunctival melanoma and PAM with atypia

Increasing parental participation in their child's health and health care is an important process by which the health care system can effectively address and service the needs of its patients. Clinicians need to have an appreciation of parental understanding, beliefs, and expectations. This paper reviews the recent literature regarding parental needs, concerns, decision-making strategies, and expectations for their children's health and health care.     

Social problems of transition society and health of populations of the North of the European Russia

Dramatic changes in Russian economic life led to worse health state of population, higher children's mortality. Unfavorable influence of environmental pollution on health state is also seen in Northern regions. Governmental institutions should participate in creation of system for health care and preservation.     

Where do anxious children “fit” best? Childcare and the emergence of anxiety in early childhood.

The goal of this study was to explore the role of childcare history as a potential moderating factor in the development of anxiety in early elementary school. Data were drawn from multiple cycles of the National Longitudinal Survey of Children and Youth. At Time 1, the sample included n = 3,100 children aged 4 to 5 years. Based on parent ratings at Time 1, groups of extremely anxious, aggressive, and comorbid children were identified, as well as a comparison group. Parents also reported on children's primary care experiences (e.g., centre-based care, home-based care, no care). Two years later, teachers provided ratings of child anxiety and aggression in elementary school. Results indicated an interaction between early behavioural risk group and childcare type in the prediction of later anxiety. Anxious children who participated in home-based care were significantly less anxious 2 years later than anxious children in the centre-based care or no-care groups. Results are discussed in terms of the importance of the fit between child characteristics and childcare type in the emergence of anxiety in early childhood. (PsycINFO Database Record (c) 2010 APA, all rights reserved)     

Results from the 1995 survey of prevalent clinically diagnosed HIV infection in England, Wales, and Northern Ireland

Health districts in England, Wales, and Northern Ireland were surveyed in 1996 to collect summary information about people with diagnosed HIV infection who received care under the statutory services in 1995. The survey provided demographic and epidemiological information about the prevalent caseload by area of residence, and the extent to which patients with diagnosed HIV infection travelled to obtain care related to it. A total of 13362 people with diagnosed HIV infection were reported to be resident and treated in England, Wales, or Northern Ireland in 1995. Forty-four per cent of these were treated outside the health district where they lived, with regional specialist centres attracting patients from wider areas. At least 13% received care from more than one treatment centre. This national survey of prevalent diagnosed HIV infections provided public health specialists with information relevant to their own localities without compromising confidentiality. This information complements surveillance data from confidential AIDS case diagnosis reports, laboratory reports of HIV infections, and the unlinked anonymous HIV prevalence monitoring programme, all of which contribute to the assessment and projection of demands on health and social services, and provide evidence on which to develop and direct national and local health campaigns.     

An investigation of the object relations theory of depression.

The current study investigated a particular aspect shared by a number of theories of depression under the common heading of object relations theory (ORT), namely that depression is associated with a continuing pattern of poor attachment that is laid out in childhood and continues into adulthood. The study examined the relationship between attachment (both parental and peer) and depressive symptoms in young adults (N = 85) of Northern Ireland. Results provided support for the continuity of perceptions of attachment styles across the life span and revealed that perceptions of early attachment experiences, as well as continuing peer attachment styles, appeared to be predictive of current depressive symptoms. More specifically, the analyses revealed a statistically significant positive correlation between perceived quality of current peer attachment and symptoms of depression, as well as a statistically significant negative correlation between self-reported childhood maternal care and symptoms of depression. However, other self-reported measures of childhood attachment were not found to be significant predictors of depressive symptoms (i.e., paternal care, maternal overprotection, paternal overprotection). Taken together, the findings lend some support for this important element of a number of object relations theories, as they pertain to depression. Further empirical research is indicated. (PsycINFO Database Record (c) 2010 APA, all rights reserved)     

Room-to-grow: responding to community cultural needs to support positive parenting

Preventive services to assist parents to understand their children's developmental needs and to devise positive, culturally appropriate strategies for managing them are not recognized as important by most third party health service payers, especially managed care programs. Room-To-Grow is an intervention designed to meet identified community needs in a culturally appropriate and sensitive way. This article discusses the evolution of this intervention and the problems encountered in finding appropriate reimbursement streams.     

Academic Socialization: Understanding Parental Influences on Children's School-Related Development in the Early Years.

This review summarizes the research literature on the academic socialization of children within the family context. A conceptual model is introduced that describes the process of academic socialization, including parental experiences in school, parental school-related cognitions, and specific parenting behaviors. Parental attitudes and practices provide the foundation for children's development of schemas about school performance and thus are critical determinants of children's early school experiences. In addition, recent efforts to understand the role of transition practices aimed at facilitating children's early adjustment in school are described. The present review extends the transition practices literature by providing a developmental perspective on parenting influences on children's academic socialization, within an ecological systems perspective. The authors describe academic socialization as a process that occurs under the broad umbrella of socioeconomic and cultural contexts. (PsycINFO Database Record (c) 2010 APA, all rights reserved)     

The spiritual needs of pediatric patients and their families

Holistic perioperative nursing care of children and their families includes assessing their spiritual needs and identifying interventions that help them achieve spiritual comfort. This is achieved by therapeutic listening and by facilitating children's and family members' access to clergy members of their practice of religious rites and rituals. Perioperative nurses have a unique opportunity and responsibility to assess children's or family members' spiritual needs and to intervene on their behalf. This article describes the opportunities a surgical liaison nurse may have to intervene on the behalf of family members during children's perioperative experiences.     

The conflict in Northern Ireland: Causes, consequences, and controls.

The conflict in Northern Ireland is at its most basic a struggle between those who wish to see Northern Ireland remain part of the United Kingdom and those who wish to see the reunification of the island of Ireland. It is underpinned by historical, religious, political, economic, and psychological elements. These elements underlie the violence that has spanned the past 25 years and that has led to death and injury, led to increased community divisions, and impacted on the population's mental health. In an attempt to transform the conflict, various policy initiatives have been pursued, including attempts to reduce inequality and to improve community relations, in particular through educational initiatives. (PsycINFO Database Record (c) 2010 APA, all rights reserved)     

Protective function of proteins and lipids in human milk

Outcome monitoring has become a focus of accountability for public and nonprofit human service agencies. Besides providing answers to funders' questions about the services' impact, outcome monitoring helps administrators improve program effectiveness. After a three-year development period and a one-year implementation experience, SumOne for Kids represents a technically advanced outcome-monitoring system for children's mental health and/or child welfare services. Initiated, designed, and tested by 31 children's service agencies throughout Pennsylvania, and with state bureaucrats' and policy makers' encouragement, SumOne for Kids represents an effort to create a bottom-up/top-down process for implementing a statewide outcome-monitoring system. This article describes the genesis of this outcome-monitoring system, primary design principles, use of social validation for outcome selection, resolution of methodological difficulties, and reasons for selecting functional over clinical outcomes. The article reviews lessons learned through the development experience instructive to children's service managers, program evaluators, and industry leaders interested in establishing outcome-monitoring systems.     

A therapeutic milieu for establishing and expanding communicative behaviors in psychotic children

This study describes a clinical intervention program that was used to facilitate development of receptive and expressive language skills in a group of four psychotic children. A group format utilizing an interactive language development teaching procedure combined with a therapeutic milieu was shown to be effective in establishing and expanding communicative behaviors in psychotic children. Nine diagnostic measures were utilized to assess children's performance prior to therapy and at the end of three-month and six-month intervals. Results indicated substantial reduction of delayed and immediate echolalia, jargon, inappropriate stress, pitch, and intonation. Substantial improvement was noted in expressive syntactic and morphological functioning and in the children's ability to generate novel utterances about day-to-day experiences, family, and toys. Increases in children's concept of body image and ego functioning paralleled their improvement in receptive and expressive language development.     

American child care today.

Child care has 2 purposes: mothers' employment and children's development. These are conflicting goals, because the first focuses on the quantity and affordability of child care whereas the second favors expensive quality services. Affordable child care fosters maternal employment and gender equality. With welfare reform demanding more child-care places to move mothers from welfare to work, the pressure for larger quantities of child care is great. Demanding regulations raise the quality of care and give more assurance of children's well-being, but they also increase the cost. More expensive regulations price more working parents out of licensed care and force them to use unregulated home care. Widely varying qualities of child care have been shown to have only small effects on children's current development and no demonstrated long-term impact, except on disadvantaged children, whose homes put them at developmental risk. Parents have far greater impact on their children's development through both the genes and environments they provide. Thus, greater quantities of affordable, regulated child care may be possible. (PsycINFO Database Record (c) 2010 APA, all rights reserved)     

Political violence and child adjustment in Northern Ireland: Testing pathways in a social–ecological model including single-and two-parent families.

Moving beyond simply documenting that political violence negatively impacts children, we tested a social–ecological hypothesis for relations between political violence and child outcomes. Participants were 700 mother–child (M = 12.1 years, SD = 1.8) dyads from 18 working-class, socially deprived areas in Belfast, Northern Ireland, including single- and two-parent families. Sectarian community violence was associated with elevated family conflict and children's reduced security about multiple aspects of their social environment (i.e., family, parent–child relations, and community), with links to child adjustment problems and reductions in prosocial behavior. By comparison, and consistent with expectations, links with negative family processes, child regulatory problems, and child outcomes were less consistent for nonsectarian community violence. Support was found for a social–ecological model for relations between political violence and child outcomes among both single- and two-parent families, with evidence that emotional security and adjustment problems were more negatively affected in single-parent families. The implications for understanding social ecologies of political violence and children's functioning are discussed. (PsycINFO Database Record (c) 2010 APA, all rights reserved)     

James P. Gallagher, MD. Scrappy former boxer fights to maintain physicians' voices

It's been an adventurous life for James Gallagher, MD, from medical school in Ireland where he was a scrappy welterweight student boxer to one of the state's foremost cardiologists, and current president of the Wayne County Medical Society. Born in County Tyrone, Northern Ireland in 1932, the fifth in an ultimate full house of nine children, Doctor Gallagher attended medical school at the National University of Dublin.     

An educational initiative in anaesthetic nursing practice

The National Board for Nurses, Midwives and Health Visitors in Northern Ireland (NBNI) has adopted the principles of the UKCC's recommendations for specialist nursing practice and Incorporated these within their continuing education framework. Stage two of this framework decrees the standard required for specialist nursing practice (NBNI, 1995) and, as a result, a specialist anaesthetic nursing course has been instigated. The course extends over 44 weeks and includes 8 weeks of consolidation practice, comprising seven modules at degree and diploma level. The course gives the students an opportunity to deepen their knowledge, skills and attitudes in the field of anaesthetic nursing. Nurses were taught the necessary skills to work in collaboration with other professionals, patients and families in order to coordinate a patient-centred approach to perianaesthetic care. The role of the anaesthetic nurse specialist should be viewed as complementary to that of the anaesthetist. This course facilitates and encourages practitioners to move beyond registered practice on qualifying to a more specialized role where care is delivered in an innovative and creative manner.