Thursday, August 14, 2003
Is Email Interaction Feasible for Intervention With Women and Children Exposed to Domestic Violence? A Literature Review Article in
Topics in Advanced Practice Nursing eJournal at
Medscape - "Email interaction in assessing mothers' and children's emotional and cognitive responses to abuse is a valuable outcome to assess in research, particularly if the legal system was used to obtain protection orders. Women and children become involved with abuse when the abuse is directed at them or when they witness the abuse of another (parent or child). Email interactions have shown promise in decreasing psychiatric symptoms and providing social support to individuals with a variety of other healthcare problems. Email interaction should not fragment care or increase risk, but be a mode of access to care and enhance outcomes for these women and their children. In the era of telehealth and telecommunication, exploring and testing the feasibility of email interaction as an intervention in this population is a valid next step." [Viewing Medscape resources requires registration, which is free].
U. of Iowa Researchers urge advances in meth abuse treatment University of Iowa press release at
EurekAlert - "People who use or abuse methamphetamine, or meth, do not necessarily need specialized treatment but do need more time in intensive outpatient or residential drug treatment than currently occurs. A multidisciplinary team of University of Iowa researchers made the recommendation in a review article that appeared in the April 2003 issue of the Journal of Substance Abuse Treatment. The team also identified areas of research that could help improve treatment, including retention and new drug therapies."
Study looks at loss, its role in depression Boston Globe story - "In their search for the roots of depression, psychiatrists have long focused on the experience of loss -- the jarring loss of a loved one, the lost haven of a relationship, or the more primal feelings of loss that can be traced back to the mother's breast. But a new study of more than 7,000 adult twins calls into question assumptions about depression that date to Sigmund Freud. The events that send people into major depression, the authors found, are not merely losses, but humiliating ones that drive at a person's self-esteem -- most typically, being abandoned by a romantic partner. The classic experience of pure loss -- the death of a family member -- is only about half as likely to lead to depression, according to the study, published this week in
Archives of General Psychiatry." An
abstract of the study, "Life Event Dimensions of Loss, Humiliation, Entrapment, and Danger in the Prediction of Onsets of Major Depression and Generalized Anxiety" is available at the
Archives of General Psychiatry, where the full text can also be ordered for a fee.
Lane County Receives Grant for New Mental Health Program (Oregon) Story at
KVAL13 - "Non-violent offenders with mental illness will soon have an alternative besides jail for their offense. The US Justice System has awarded Lane and Yamhill Counties grant money for a two-year pilot program. Circuit Court Judge Doug Mitchelle will make sure participants of the new mental health court stay on track. If they do, their charges will be dropped."
Tri-County Mental Health Services plans to honor two (Missouri) Story in
Sun News of the Northland - "Tri-County Mental Health Services will present the annual Community Achievement Awards for those who aid the mentally ill ... Aug 18 ... Kansas City Councilwoman Bonnie Sue Cooper will receive the Community Service Achievement Award and community activist Kate Dowd will receive the Professional Achievement Award."
BMH's mental health care unit's future still in doubt (South Carolina) Carolina Morning News story - "Beaufort County Council members made it clear Wednesday they want Beaufort Memorial Hospital to keep its 20-bed mental health care unit open, but they received no guarantees from hospital officials. MH President and Chief Executive Officer David Brown along with Bill Paddock, chairman of the hospital's board of trustees, met with members of the county's Community Services Committee to discuss the future of the unit."
