health Blog

Negligence of Doctors

2009-11-04T05:21:00.000-08:00

Protection against contagious disease, endemic disease and vocational ones and other diseases, besides treating them and combating them. Providing conditions that assure medical facilities and medical care for all in case of sickness. Reading these international texts, we conclude that right in life and protection by virtue of international conventions are restricted in protecting Man's life against the oppression of executive authorities without imposing a protection system for man's life against experimentation and medical faults on his body.

Stipulated protection in the first covenant for economic and social rights lacks the mechanism of international censorship and punishment for breaching of countries these rules. On the contrary, civil and political rights saved by the protocol annexed to the convention, which stipulates establishing a concerned committee of human rights to observe implementing rules of the convention.

Speaking about Egypt, the crisis has been escalating day after day, especially due to the absence of censorship on the performance of physicians and the widespread of random unorganized medical teaching that stem in unqualified doctors who can not deal with a human body as a living being who enjoys all rights and duties, rather this kind of random teaching produced a doctor who deals with a sick case void of all rights.

And among the poor international legislations in protecting man's rights, comes our Egyptian legislation which ignores any clauses that speak about the fault of physicians in a direct manner, and this forces a researcher to exert efforts to implement general legal rules on charged doctors. Noteworthy, these rules where legislated to face social phenomena in fact, for example, the Egyptian legislation guarantees the general protection for the Egyptian citizen's health in articles hereinafter:"

Rubbish collection

2009-11-02T23:23:00.000-08:00

"Rubbish collection in the car park appears to be nobody's responsibility. The strata owners deny it's their responsibility and the Council denies its theirs - whose is it?" The clothing bin the car park appears to be nobody's responsibility. The strata title owners deny it's their responsibility and the Council denies its theirs - whose is it?" The clothing bin is often used to dump rubbish.

"Car parking needs to be improved. Signs are needed on the main street advising shoppers of parking available at the rear of the shops." "We have three bus stops in the shopping instead it would be better to the main street advising shoppers of parking available at the rear of the shops." "We have three bus stops in the shopping area. instead it would be better to have one main central one; this would then create better traffic flow and more parking spaces. Parking patrol officers need to be more active in the area, some shop owners park in the main street all day- this doesn't help business.

The painstaking investigations of Montelius

2009-11-02T09:37:00.000-08:00

The painstaking investigations of Montelius, conducted on the principle of methodology, have led him to the conclusion that Scandinavia and North Germany formed during the bronze age one common domain of culture in regard to weapons and implements. The manner in which the other domains of culture group themselves in Europe leaves no other place for the Teutonic race than Scandinavia and North Germany, and possibly Austria-Hungary, which the Teutonic domain resembles most. Back of the bronze age lies the stone age. The examinations, by v. DÃƒÂ¼ben, Gustaf Retzius, and Virchow, of skeletons found in northern graves from the stone age prove the existence at that time of a race in the North which, so far as the characteristics of the skulls are concerned, cannot be distinguished from the race now dwelling there.

Here it is necessary to into consideration the results of probability reached by comparative philology, showing that the European Aryans were still in the stone age when they divided themselves into Celts, Teutons, &c., and occupied separate territories, and the fact that the Teutons, so far back as conclusions may be drawn from historical knowledge, have occupied a more northern domain than their kinsmen. Thus all tends to show that when the Scandinavian peninsula was first settled by Aryans-doubtless coming from the South by way of Denmark-these Aryans belonged to the same race, which, later in history, appear with a Teutonic physiognomy and with Teutonic speech, and that their immigration to and occupation of the southern parts of the peninsula took place in the time of the Aryan stone age.

Modern Scientific Evidence of Ayurvedic Approach to Alzheimer's Disease and Retardation of Aging

2009-10-17T10:57:00.000-07:00

The ancient Indian medical system, Ayurveda, included geriatrics as one of eight medical divisions. Well-documented evidence exists for treating aging and age-related disorders including dementia. Geriatrics was termed 'Rasayanasastra'. Cognitive function was well recognized and Sanskrit terms existed such as Buddhinasa (Buddhi, intelligence or cognition; nasa, loss of) for dementia. A normal human life span was considered to be 100 years. It could be prolonged to 116-120 years through the use of preventive treatments, if they were started during late youth or middle age. Treatments included herbal preparations, diet, exercise, and attention to general mode of life and social behavior. Several herbal formulations are described, including details of their composition and preparation. The mode of action of anti-aging drugs was believed to occur at three levels. Detailed descriptions of the mode of action of several herbs are provided, and recent research confirms some of this activity (for review, Manyam BV. J Altern Complement Med 1999:5:81-88).

In order to validate claims made in Ayurveda on the efficacy of dementia drugs, we selected, Bacopa monniera (Brahmi Sanskrit) and Centella asiatica (Mandookaparni). The validations were made using the transgenic animal model of Alzheimer's disease applying state of the art technology.

Oxidative stress due to beta-amyloid deposition has been implicated in the progression of Alzheimer's disease. The brains of doubly transgenic PSAPP mice (the animal model of Alzheimer's disease) carry two human early onset Alzheimer's disease mutations (APP695.K670N/M671L and PS1 M146L). PSAPP mice develop fibrillar beta-amyloid deposits at 10-12 weeks of age in their brain and the deposits increase with aging associated with cognitive behavioral deficits. PSAPP mice and non-transgenic litter mates were treated with either 40 or 160 mg/kg of Brahmi extract beginning at 8 weeks of age prior to the onset of detectable beta amyloid deposits. Additional PSAPP and non-transgenic mice were used as untreated controls.

Behavioral testing in the Y-maze and open field occurred at either 4 or 10 months of age. Hyperlocomotion and deficits in spontaneous alternation in the Y-maze were apparent in the untreated PSAPP mice at 4 months. Treatment of PSAPP mice for 2 months beginning at 8 weeks of age with both low and high dose Brahmi extract reduced the hyperlocomotion detected in the open field to levels that were indistinguishable from non-transgenic mice. Movement in the center of the open field was increased in 4-month-old PSAPP mice indicating reduced fear of a novel environment. Both doses of Brahmi extract were normalized the time spent by 4-month-old PSAPP mice in the center of the open field. Alzheimer mutation-induced hyperlocomotion persisted at 10 month of age and was reversed by the low dose of Brahmi extract. We observed up to a 60% reduction in beta-amyloid levels and major reductions in plaque number and size. A similar study with Mandookaparni is in progress.

The International Health Regulations 2005

2009-10-07T07:10:00.000-07:00

The International Health Regulations 2005 (IHR) is the international legal framework for public health actions of WHO and all of its Member States to prevent, control and respond to the international spread of disease. The IHR includes a number of rights and obligations of Member States relevant to pandemic influenza, such as: notification, reporting and verification of public health events to WHO (including all cases of new subtype human influenza); measures at international borders, ports and airports, protections for international travellers, required capacities for domestic surveillance and response in all States, and coordinated response to public health emergencies of international concern.

The IHR (2005) also contain functions for WHO concerning international surveillance, assessment and public health response. Once there is credible reason to believe that an animal or human-animal influenza virus has evolved that is capable of sustained human transmission in a community, the IHR (2005) gives the Director-General of WHO the authority to determine that the event constitutes a Public Health Emergency of International Concern (PHEIC).

On such occasions, an IHR Emergency Committee will provide its views to the Director-General on Temporary Recommendations for the most appropriate and necessary public health measures to prevent or reduce the international spread of disease and avoid unnecessary interference with international traffic. These Recommendations may include the activation of national pandemic surveillance systems (1) to rapidly detect, characterize and notify additional human clusters, (2) to assess the virological, clinical and epidemiological features of infection by the new virus, and (3) to monitor disease spread and the impact of response measures. Relevant provisions in the International Health Regulations (2005) can be found under Article 5 to 14 and Annex 1 and 2 of the International Health Regulations at http://www.who.int/csr/ihr/IHR_2005_en.pdf.

Influenza Virus Phase

2009-10-07T07:09:00.000-07:00

In December 2007, A global consultation was held to discuss the objectives, critical data elements, feasibility, and outputs of global pandemic influenza surveillance. The outcomes of the consultation were taken forward and further developed by an expert working group to produce the current document . Each surveillance component will be field tested in several countries during seasonal influenza and simulation exercises during 2009. The test results will help to refine this document, whereupon it will be distributed widely.

Phase 4 : Human to human transmission of an animal or human-animal influenza reassortant virus able to sustain community-level outbreaks has been verified.
Phase 5 : The virus has caused sustained community level outbreaks in two or more countries in one WHO Region.
Phase 6 : The virus has caused sustained community level outbreaks in at least another country in another WHO Region in addition to the criteria defined in Phase 5.

SARS Data ownership at international level

2009-10-07T07:08:00.000-07:00

Accurate, timely, and complete sharing of data are indispensable for public health action essential for containment, control and mitigation of a pandemic. Knowledge gained from countries affected early in the course of the pandemic will guide response in countries affected later in the pandemic. The experience of SARS demonstrated that international response and open communication can lead to effective disease control. The timely and transparent reporting from countries with limited resources will also facilitate the international response and support to those countries and will ultimately provide the best opportunity for containment and control of an emerging pandemic.

Countries not only have a moral obligation to share such information and lessons learned but are required under international law to report events of international concern to the international community. Governments also have a responsibility to disseminate information to their own people. Part of effective pandemic preparedness is an effective communications strategy. Communications plans need to include strategies for notifying the international community, reporting data to national policy makers, and providing data and health promotion messages to the health care community and population at large.

All patients have a right to privacy and confidentiality. Health information collected or received by WHO that refers to an identified or identifiable person will be kept confidential except to the extent necessary to disclose or transmit it for public health purposes. Country specific summary data will be displayed on public websites as reported by the member states. It is understood that the data collected by WHO during pandemic is primarily for public health purposes for the benefit of all Member States. A review of different potential uses of this data will be organized by WHO to further discuss data handling at international level, during and after the pandemic.

Women Health Funds

2009-10-06T23:43:00.000-07:00

ACT Health funds a number of programs in government and non government services that aim to improve participation in physical activity to reduce the risk of ill health and promote community engagement for at-risk groups. Some examples of projects involving women are: the Community Outreach Falls Prevention project includes improving access for older women to community based exercise programs; and the Post and Ante Natal Depression Support Group (PANDSI) offers the 10-week PUMP Program (Promoting Ultimate Maternal Potential) that includes stretching sessions, massage, health and fitness assessments, a personal exercise prescription and dietary analysis and nutritional advice.

British Orthopedic Surgeon and Speedster

2009-10-05T06:59:00.000-07:00

Renowned British Orthopedic surgeon Dr. Andrew Williams, who is treating Pakistan fast bowler Shoaib Akhtar found the controversial speedster 'very co-operative', and has said that he needed surgery only on his left knee. "Shoaib Akhtar met me for consultation at Wellington Hospital and I found him very co-operative. He needs surgery only to his left knee. The right knee seemed to be alright," Dr. Williams said over the phone from London.

Dr.Williams, who had also treated English all-rounder Andrew Flintoff earlier, said Akhtar's left knee would be operated on Thursday (today) after which he would have to undergo a rehabilitation programme for a few weeks. "He will need to stay in the hospital for one night. After surgery, Shoaib will be under rehabilitation programme and it will take a few weeks for the bowler to return to action again," The Nation quoted Dr. Williams, as saying.

While Akhtar's career appears to be almost over, the bowler himself is hoping that surgery would end his woes and help him restart playing competitive cricket. "I am just so excited and optimistic that a world-leading knee surgeon like Andy Williams is going to take care of my knee.I hear that he is like an artist with knees and that his expertise is second to none. It is a great comfort that Andy is taking on my treatment," Akhtar had said earlier.

The Pakistan Cricket Board (PCB) has however, denied paying Akhtar's medical bills. Akhtar said he has been eagerly waiting to get into the national squad and be a part of the team for a long time. He hoped that the knee operation would pave his way for making a come back and play till the 2011 World Cup or even after that. "Although I may not have played as much as I should have, the good part is that I am still very fresh and have a great deal more to offer Pakistan.I am looking to play at least as far as the 2011 World Cup and hopefully even further," Akhtar said.

The Rawalpindi Express hasn't played much for Pakistan for the past two and half years due to fitness and disciplinary issues. Akhtar, who has taken 178 Test and 223 one-day international wickets, recently played in a domestic tournament in a bid to get back into the national team.

Autism and human genome Genetic Code

2009-10-05T06:51:00.000-07:00

In a first of its kind study, an international team of researchers, including an Indian origin scientist, has found a single-letter change in the genetic code that is linked with autism. The finding implicates a neuronal gene not previously tied to the disorder and more broadly, underscores a role for common DNA variation.

In addition, the new research highlights two other regions of the genome, which are likely to contain rare genetic differences that may also influence autism risk. "These discoveries are an important step forward, but just one of many that are needed to fully dissect the complex genetics of this disorder. The genomic regions we've identified help shed additional light on the biology of autism and point to areas that should be prioritized for further study, " Nature quoted Mark Daly, at the Broad Institute of Harvard and MIT, as saying.

"The biggest challenge to finding the genes that contribute to autism is having a large and well studied group of patients and their family members, both for primary discovery of genes and to test and verify the discovery candidates," said Aravinda Chakravarti, at the McKusick-Nathans Institute of Genetic Medicine at Johns Hopkins. To more deeply probe autism's complex genetic architecture, researchers in a large multinational collaboration, devised a two-pronged, genome-scale approach.

The first component makes use of a family-based method (called "linkage") that analyses DNA from autism patients and their family members to detect portions of the genome that harbour rare but high-impact DNA variants.
The second harnesses a population-based method (known as "association") that examines DNA from unrelated individuals and can expose common genetic variants associated with autism and which tend to exert more modest effects.

"Given the genetic complexity of autism, it's unlikely that a single method or type of genomic variation is going to provide us with a complete picture. Our approach of combining multiple complementary methods aims to meet this critical challenge," said Daly.

For their initial studies, the researchers examined roughly half a million genetic markers in more than 1,000 families from the Autism Genetic Resource Exchange (AGRE) and the US National Institute of Mental Health (NIMH) repositories. Their results highlight three regions of the human genome, which include parts of chromosomes 6 and 20, the top-scoring regions to emerge from the family-based linkage studies.

The other major result is a single-letter change in the genetic code known as a single nucleotide polymorphism, or SNP (pronounced "snip"). This common variant lies on chromosome 5 near a gene known as semaphorin 5A, which is thought to help guide the growth of neurons and their long projections called axons. Notably, the activity or "expression" of this gene appears to be reduced in the brains of autism patients compared to those without the disorder. The study has been published in the latest issue of the journal Nature.

Family Cohesion and Social Isolation

2009-10-04T07:00:00.001-07:00

In addition, family cohesion is predictive of social isolation (Harter, Alexander, & Neimeyer, 1988), depression, selfesteem, social adjustment (Ray & Jackson, 1997), and general psychological adjustment (Fromuth, 1986) independent of a sexual abuse history. These relationships, however, are predominantly based on investigations that have utilized child and adult samples of women. Only a few studies have examined the relationship between family functioning and adjustment with adolescent populations.

Feiring, Taska, and Lewis (1998) investigated psychological distress at the time of abuse discovery in a sample of 87 children and 67 adolescents, and indicated that low levels of parental support were significantly related to elevated psychological distress. Likewise, maternal support was significantly related to depression in a sample of 50 treatment-seeking adolescent female sexual abuse survivors (Morrison & Clavenna-Valleroy, 1998) and to binge drinking among a large community sample of male and female adolescents with a sexual abuse history (Luster & Small, 1997). In contrast to these findings, Hussy and Singer (1993) revealed that depression and selfesteem, and perceived family cohesion and adaptability, did not differ as a function of sexual abuse status in psychiatrically hospitalized adolescents. It is likely, however, that these null findings may be an artifact of the nature of the inpatient sample. Finally, one longitudinal investigation has shown that child sexual abuse and family environment increase the likelihood that an adolescent will experience depression as well as other psychiatric disorders (Fergusson et al., 1996). Notably, family environment was operationalized as a composite score of family stability, parent-child relationships, and parental adjustment in this investigation.

Emotional Trauma Therapy

2009-10-04T07:00:00.000-07:00

And you also need independent supervision - unfortunately it seems to be almost a rite of passage when you are working with youngsters who have been sexually abused and in this field - that the bullets will come and hit you and sometimes you will have enough support around you to keep yourself upright , but at other times you wont and you need that support from the organisation which funds you and from your immediate colleagues and when that support is not there then many of us has had difficult experiences as I have and as I said that's part and parcel of doing the work and we as clinicians accept that when we go into it, but those who are charged, the managers I suppose and those who hold the purse strings need to accept that that is part of the whole to support their teams and support during crises and provide that support so that we can continue the work. Because we need to accept also that here are a number of unpleasant people out there and organisations that do not want these kind of initiatives to succeed.

So this is my view but I think a lot of people working in this field would have similar views - that children and young people who have been sexually abused have the right to specific therapy for emotional trauma and paediatric and adolescent health care rather than receiving care form non specialists because this is a particularly difficult area - and that their prognosis is improved if a supportive parent or carer is also treated or is given the same sort of supports to help the child.

Victim Psychopathology Development

2009-10-04T06:59:00.000-07:00

Given the conflicting findings, it is unclear what the unique contribution of physical and sexual abuse may be in predicting later adjustment. A complete understanding of the relationship between abuse and psychopathology may not be adequately achieved until types of abuse are considered together.To further clarify the relationship between the occurrence of abuse and subsequent psychological symptomatology, researchers have expanded their analyses to include contextual variables that may influence psychological functioning. Specifically, numerous investigators have examined the influence of family environment on the development of psychopathology (for review see Draucker, 1996; Hulsey, Sexton, & Nash, 1992).

While investigators have only recently begun to unravel the specific relationships between childhood family environment, sexual abuse, and psychological functioning (Hulsey et al., 1992), results of this line of inquiry have consistently shown that survivors of sexual abuse often perceive their family as having high levels of conflict and low levels of cohesion (Benedict & Zautra, 1993; Jackson, Calhoun, Amick, Maddever, & Habif, 1990; Ray, Jackson, & Townsley, 1991). Moreover, it has been demonstrated that these dimensions of family environment are robust predictors of psychological functioning among individuals with a sexual abuse history. Specifically, it has been shown that family conflict is uniquely predictive of psychosocial adjustment (Edwards & Alexander, 1992), anxiety (Yama, Tovey, & Fogas, 1993), and depression (Yama, Tovey, & Fogas, 1993).

Child Adjustment Difficulties

2009-10-04T06:57:00.000-07:00

In comparison to child sexual abuse, fewer studies have examined the effects of childhood physical abuse on adolescent functioning. Those studies available have indicated that adolescents physically abused in childhood show greater overall adjustment difficulties, poorer social competence, decreased language ability, and poorer overall school performance than nonabused adolescents (Flisher, Kramer, Hoven, & Greenwald, 1997). Physically abused adolescents are also more likely to have a variety of psychiatric conditions, including major depression, conduct disorder, and generalized anxiety disorder as compared to nonphysically abused individuals (Briere & Runtz, 1988; Flisher et al., 1997; Kaplan & Pelcovitz, 1982; Kolko, Moser, & Weldy, 1988; Malinosky-Rummell & Hansen, 1993).

It is apparent that survivors of physical and sexual abuse often display a wide range of psychological and behavioral problems. Despite these findings, no one type of abuse is associated with a specific pattern of symptomatology. Some studies from the adult literature indicate that sexual and physical abuse result in similar psychological outcomes (Margo & McLees, 1991; Mullen, Martin, Anderson, Romans, & Herbison, 1996; Wind & Silvern, 1992). Other work, however, highlights the differences in symptom expression on the basis of exposure to sexual or physical abuse (Cohen et al., 1996; Hart et al., 1989; Luster & Small, 1997; Schaff & McCanne, 1998).

Basic Mental Health Care

2009-10-04T06:56:00.001-07:00

So why is it that this is the way the money goes and this large group of children receive very little in the way of basic mental health care? I have been aware of the work of Ester Debenger in the United States and Lucy Berliner in Seattle and Judy Cohen and her colleagues and was very interested in seeing a paper written in 1997 by and they did an elegant study looking at two groups of preschool children. One group received abuse specific therapy of a cognitive behavioural nature following child sexual abuse and the other group received non specific supportive therapy and the outcome showed significant differences in reduction in the emotional disturbance and also interestingly enough in reduction in inappropriate sexualised behaviour with others. It seems to me that there is a wealth of literature out there in the United State sand it seems to be that in the State it Is reasonably well accepted that if a child has been sexually abused they have a right to receive services from mental health services and emotional support and yet I know in Scotland less than 10% of children who have been sexually abused ever receive any specific therapy and the majority never receive it within one year of the abuse disclosure which is obviously the crisis point where they really need help.

What is it that I think ought to be best practice for Scotland's children. We needed a multidisciplinary team of specialists rather like the team described in the Cleveland report so many years ago. Over thirteen years ago and it has still not come to fruition. These people need dedicated time so there is a large amount of resource there in terms of money - they need flexibility within their timetable to be able to provide a service that's appropriate for children when they need it. They need stability of the team - it takes a long time to get a cohesive team of people working together with al the different inter relationships and also the stresses of the actual job itself and excellent interagency cooperation.

Drug Addiction and Herbal Smoke

2009-10-04T06:56:00.000-07:00

We are already used to, Ramey would say, the government, the media, and other defenders of morality wanting to associate drug addiction with the act of having smoked something herbal. The same thing would happen in this case. The parallel nowadays is striking. What do we gain -- Ramey asks -by telling young people that their lives have been destroyed by that incestuous experience? It is time, he asserts, to approach incest from other perspectives, becoming well-acquainted with the facts and responding to them with greater rationality and sensitivity than that which has occurred up to this point.

Ramey would say all of this in 1979. Nevertheless, his ideas do not appear to have had much success. During the 1980s, in the wave of ritual abuse panic already described, although a huge number of studies into the problem of incest or sexual abuse in general were carried out, their results were not very promising. The horror theory, of lifetime harm, of inevitable trauma, finally ended up dominating the scientific, political, and social arenas that dealt with the issue. And not only with regard to father-daughter incest, which was the most important object of preoccupation in this field's first research efforts; all sexual contacts between adults and children -- and a short time later between minors of different ages as well (Okami, 1992) - Were seen more and more, and with greater firmness, as the source of unutterable suffering.

Major Heath Problem : Child Sexual Abuse

2009-10-04T06:55:00.001-07:00

If we look at child sexual abuse as a major heath problem for children which is where I started off, and if we consider that we are pretty conservative in the uk and most people would say that its more than well over 10% of children are affected by this - but as I say we are conservative and so I keep it to 10% for the audiences I speak to because if you put it up higher than 10% most people shut off and cease to listen to you. It affects all social strata and cultural groups, has serious long term morbidity particularly in mental health problems and serious implications for society in general. As I understand it from colleagues in the States and the UK it seems that early intervention with abuse specific programmes of therapy is likely to be cost effective and have beneficial effects for children and their families. So why is it that in the face of that evidence we seem to have difficulties in getting health authorities to put money into this kind of work.

I just thought thorough - where is it that we get our money for the health service in the UK - and public opinion - we elect our democratic government and the government then apportions money to the National Health Executive and in Scotland there is a Scottish executive and then that is divided up and given to health boards. The real controllers of the money that we have in our health trust which is a combined health trust combining community health services for children with hospital based services - the director of public health and his public health physicians control where the money goes and they also have a great deal of control about how that money is distributed to local services.

The Health Board Sense

2009-10-04T06:55:00.000-07:00

Which local services do they favour - well they have a responsibility to give a certain amount of money to basic services primary care cooperatives that have different names in different parts of the country but are essentially primary practice primary care, and joint initiatives that are now coming to the fore including cooperative initiatives with social services and including voluntary groups. A lot of individual voluntary sector groups that have set up special projects and I add private practice because specifically with child sexual abuse it has long been accepted in Scotland that mainly GPS but other doctors acting as private practitioners contracted to the police will provide forensic services for the examination of children who have been sexually abused. Now they have sort of been brought into the fold because in most areas of Scotland joint examinations are conducted of children with paediatric professionals - but they are still employed and received separate remuneration for this work so in a sense the health board is condoning the use of private practitioners although they are setting standards for their services.

Basic Dilemma Incest as Tragic Reality

2009-10-04T06:53:00.000-07:00

It therefore becomes what we might define as a question of faith, thus presenting a basic dilemma: to believe or not believe that the abuse occurred. If one believes that it did happen, one is understood as being from that portion of society which does not deny the existence of abuse and incest; if one does not believe that a given case occurred or doubts that it did, then one joins that other part of society which continues to deny that tragic reality. As Ofshe & Watters (1996) point out, in the abuse memory discourse, in a certain way every individual case fits into social reality as a whole.

One type of denial is confused with another in such a way that the notion that "the personal is political" acquires new dimensions. In the opinion of feminist authors like Benatar, Robbins (1995) affirms, this skepticism is obviously nothing more than a reflection of anti-feminism and a vehement rejection of sexual abuse survivors, thereby assuring all concerned that those who question the truth of recovered memories of these previously repressed experiences are simply trying to turn back the clock on recent advances in our understanding of the problem of child sexual abuse as well as its seriousness.

woman's sexual inner-self

2009-10-04T06:44:00.001-07:00

If there comes an impulse to urinate, you are on the right track - but rather than backing off, push into this feeling. Soon you shall find yourself experiencing female ejaculation! If the male partner finds it difficult locating the woman's g spot, the woman's feedback on where the sensation is the most can ease up the confusion. G spot massage must not be tried when either or both partners are in an anxious or tensed state. No sudden movements or surprises; a woman must know when the massage is starting. . G spot massage is for awakening a woman's sexual inner-self; it's not meant for bringing her to orgasm immediately.

These are to be started first with the fingers and then with various sex toys, once you both become familiar with the concept. You must Set up the mood for both of you prior to anything else. Then Start with a full body massage focusing on the various strokes and pressures. The massage should be initiated on the g spot only after the woman feels considerably aroused. Pressing the palm of the free hand on her pubic mound can trigger the sensations threefold. Picture the g-spot as a clock. You need to spend some time at each point of the clock, seeing where it feels the best until you get on a hot spot. Hold and press gently over there; your partner's feedback shall be the best way to detect how successful you are. As you continue on with the other clock positions, focus on the goal of delivering greater pleasure. Over-stimulation is to be avoided.

Paediatrician and Medical Paediatrics

2009-10-04T06:44:00.000-07:00

I am a paediatrician and I work in medical paediatrics and my background in presenting this is that over the past 15 years I have working with colleagues in Scotland to try and provide a better service for children who have been sexually abused and I suppose over the years I have learned an awful lot form my mental health colleagues in psychology and those with dual qualifications in social work and those in adolescent and child psychiatry and I suppose I am rather impatient and I am sure that people who have been in this field for longer have dealt with that impatience over many years but I am rather impatient that Britain seems to be rather slow in providing what one would think would be basic health care for this group of children.

SO I wanted to raise some questions really and I don't know that I have many answers but I thought this was an opportune conference in which to raise them because one of my questions is why is it that adolescent health services and these kinds of services of sexually abused children and those for children with disabilities are largely coming from the voluntary agencies and charitable groups within the UK rather than coming from mainstream services. I think that's an issue for the whole of the health service within the UK.

vagina wall

2009-10-04T06:38:00.000-07:00

The first step is to become super-comfortable with the concept, for physiologists still debate on its existence. The latter parts shall prove where the experts go wrong. This account is a first hand experience of g spot's delicious fruits - the intense whole body orgasms; prolonged pulses and waves of ecstatic pleasure for minutes at a time and evenly satisfying female ejaculations. So let us introduce you to the entire plethora of female g spot resources comprising pictures, videos, guided exercises and more.

Generally, the g spot area is about 2 inches in, on the front side of the vagina wall, nestled under the pubic bone. An easy way to find it is by putting in the index finger up to the base knuckle; hooking it and making a come hither motion. But then again, answering exactly where is the g spot requires exploration and experimentation with the finger position; the intensity of pressure; the motion; pressure and the strokes. Feedbacks, thus, are the best answers. However, g spot stimulation can be painful or unwanted with some women while for the sexually inexperienced, it's a tough job finding.

a specific G spot

2009-10-04T06:37:00.000-07:00

This is probably the most important question; while it sounds simple, it can actually be more complex to answer. It's chiefly because the g-spot is more an area more than being a specific spot. That means it shall be of different sizes, shapes and in a different place with every woman. Thus, there is no simple answer to where the g spot is but some key facts. If you're just like the others, then the female g spot to is sort of mythical phenomenon to you; at best, you haven't had much scope to know it entirely. Either way, you don't know much about it. This section of our website is thus designed especially for you all, to make easy the process of locating the g spot and make good use of it!

Therapy Working Stages

2009-10-04T06:34:00.000-07:00

In the next stage - the working stage, the final goal is to elect the leader of the group through pursuing common themes within the inner group of alters. Symbolically, the director for the actors within the inner theatre will be elected. The director's role is to conduct the group, set the boundaries for each actor, set the group's goals and act to achieve it. This stage is also characterized by a here and now focus. Conflict in the inner group is recognized, and alters have learned that they need not run away from it or "sweep it under the carpet". Working on a conflict and resolving it becomes the focus of work. Being in touch with oneself and trusting oneself more in terms of each alter role and ability, decreases the need for game playing and testing, and contributes to improved integrative thought, emotion, and behavior in everyday life. Inter-alter exchange during this working stage increases the cohesion between alters as a group, thus increasing self-benefit.

The objective of the final stage of treatment is to face the termination of treatment. This includes feelings concerning separation from internal objects that ceased to exist, discussing the therapeutic process and its termination, and most importantly, focusing on present and future plans.

Dissociative Identity Disorder (DID)

2009-10-04T06:27:00.000-07:00

The severity of the dissociative symptoms may vary depending on factors such as age of abuse onset, severity of abuse, emotional closeness/dependence on the abuser, dysfunction of early social environment and psychological factors (Gold, 1999).

Dissociative Identity Disorder (DID) appears to be the most severe form of disturbance (Draijer & Boon, 1993). According to the DSM-IV, dissociative identity disorder (DID) is characterized by the existence within the person of two or more distinctly different identities or personality states that from time to time take executive control of the person's behavior, with accompanying amnesia (APA, 1994). Despite evidence that DID may be more prevalent than once believed-effecting 1% of the general population and perhaps as many as 5-20% of psychiatric patients who receive other diagnoses (Ellason, Ross & Fuchs, 1996)- many individuals with this disorder often spend years in the mental health system before an accurate diagnosis is made ([Duffy, 2002] and [Weber, 2001]).

According to Silberg (1998), sexually abused children tend to dissociate themselves during a traumatic event - a state that allows the child to survive and retain a relatively normal, functioning self ([Krystal et al., 2000] and [Midgley, 2002]). The fact that individuals who were sexually abused in early childhood or adolescence showed greater impairment in object relations (Swartz, 2002), were more engaged in self-destructive behaviors such as self-mutilation or risky sex (Rodrigues-Srednicki, 2001) than others, has been explained by the greater use of dissociative experiences (Zelikovsky & Lynn, 2002). Hoyt (2002) suggested that the use of dissociation affects the victims' awareness of danger cues and their willingness to participate in potentially dangerous situations throughout their life.

Athletes Physical Abuse

2009-10-04T06:24:00.000-07:00

As a Special Olympics volunteer, your efforts are critical to achieve the Special Olympics mission and assure that all athletes have a positive, safe and rewarding experience in Special Olympics. These guidelines are designed to protect athletes and volunteers by providing information on how to prevent emotional, sexual and physical abuse of athletes. Please take a moment to review this information carefully and ask your local coordinator if you have any questions.

Preventing physical abuse of athletes : Do not use corporal punishment including spanking, hitting, slapping, or other forms of physical discipline. Any discipline techniques used should be constructive and positive, Do not withhold water or food from athletes as a form of punishment. To avoid dehydration, water should be available for athletes during practice sessions, especially strenuous ones, and during competitions, Only medications that have been prescribed by an athlete's physician should be dispensed to that athlete, and then only as indicated on his or her consent form signed by either a parent or legal custodian, and Check to make sure water for bathing is not too hot.

National Immunization Days

2009-10-04T06:22:00.002-07:00

Overall, Japan has provided 48% of total cost so far incurred for National Immunization Days in Bangladesh from 1995 to 2000. The UNICEF-Japan cooperation started after the visit of EPI and Polio eradication by Japan's Global Issues Initiative mission to Bangladesh in 1995. Based on the mission's report and GOB's interest in the polio eradication programme Government of Japan agreed to provide support to Bangladesh using UNICEF's procurement service mechanism for two years - 1996 and 1997. This process enabled GOB to place order for vaccine and other supplies through UNICEF. Government of Japan reimbursed the fund to UNICEF upon receipt of commodity and verification by Government.

child treatment modality

2009-10-04T06:22:00.001-07:00

Another treatment modality that was found by Chard (2005) to be useful in decreasing symptoms of distress among sexual abuse survivors is the cognitive processing therapy (CPT-SA). The CPT-SA is an adaptation of Resick and Schnicke's cognitive processing therapy for rape victims that was designated to focus on the areas of trauma symptom responses that appear to be commonly found in sexual abuse survivors. CPT-SA is based on a broad treatment model combining information processing, developmental (Cole & Putnam, 1992) and self-trauma theories (Briere, 2002), thereby, addressing the roles that fear processing, attachment, cognitions, and development play in the creation and maintenance of symptoms.

The modality consists of 17 weeks of manual-guided group and individual therapy. Clients are educated about PTSD, rules and beliefs, discuss their developmental history, identify how the event impacted their lives in terms of thoughts, feelings, and relationships, and following exposure they challenge the disruptive cognitions. However, whereas data indicate that some cognitive behavioral therapies are effective in reducing posttraumatic stress symptoms, the issue of treatment modalities for individuals who suffer from dissociative disorders resulting from childhood sexual abuse, remains to be discussed.

The Mental Health Workshops

2009-10-04T06:22:00.000-07:00

With this in mind, the project has been conducting some recreational activity as well vocational training (sewing classes, sanitary napkin making sessions, etc.) for adolescent girls at centre. Also certain physical and mental health workshops are conducted, where the topic of sexual abuse is subtly approached. These workshops have in fact helped some of these girls to share their own experiences, thereby starting the process of healing. These workshops have encouraged the participants to recognize violations of their sexual boundaries, the confidence to acknowledge it and seek help. The ripple effect of this breaking of silence has a positive impact on the peer group, making it an issue of criminal violation rather than personal guilt and shame.

The project from the very beginning has involved the local people in its program and it is visualized that the self-empowered groups formed by the project would further sensitize the community independently. Apart from children and adolescent girls, the boys and the youth of community are also being involved. These young boys are not only being sensitized but are actively involved in mass sensitization programs.

With the passage of time the project has established good rapport with the people of the community. There has been an increase in the referral of cases from the community. This is an innovative project and most probably one of the first few to help the victims of crime. Though the project is doing commendable work, but due to lack of financial support, it has been able to reach out only to a fraction of the victims. Lack of awareness and stigma attached to sexual abuse has been inhibiting a number of donors from extending their support to this project. Keeping the nature of project in mind, the project needs sensitive and aware donors who understand the need to support such a project. You, by supporting this endeavor, would have perhaps help prevent some child from being sexually abused and also given courage and strength to those being abused to break the silence and begin the process of ending their nightmare.

World Health Organization (WHO) on Bangladesh

2009-10-04T06:20:00.001-07:00

Bangladesh started routine EPI programme in 1985 and children below one year of age started getting polio vaccine. This strategy could reduce the number of polio cases but was not effective to eradicate the disease. In 1995, Bangladesh, according to World Health Organization's recommendation, started supplementary immunization programme targeting all under five children. This massive campaign known as National Immunization Days (NIDs) is the largest initiative that has ever been taken in the public health programme.

The target population of the campaign was 20 million children in 1995 requiring a budget of close to USD 6 million. The initial recommendation was to conduct two rounds (days) of NIDs every year till 2000 with the anticipation of eradicating polio by the year 2000. Bangladesh is now aiming to be certified as polio free along with other nine countries of South Asia by the year 2005. Bangladesh has achieved substantial progress towards the goal. The cases of polio have decreased by more than 95% in 2000 from 1995. There was an estimated number of 2300 cases in 1995 which came down to 196 clinically confirmed cases and only one virologically confirmed case in 2000.

Though there has been no virologically confirmed case since 2001, Bangladesh still must continue to conduct the polio eradication initiatives for the following reasons: 1) Routine OPV3 coverage is still low; i.e. only 68% of children receive 3 valid doses of PV by their first birthday; 2) AFP surveillance is not adequate in many districts; 3) Wild polio virus is still circulating in countries that border Bangladesh; i.e. In India, 265 cases were isolated with wild polio- virus in 2000.

Team Work Productivity

2009-10-04T06:20:00.000-07:00

We at the Human Resources for Health Unit believe in the exponential power and productivity of team work. PAHO has many interventions that address specific health threats and that strengthen health systems to respond more effectively. The HRH Unit is linked to all these efforts because the success of these activities depends on the human capacities of those that implement and sustain them. These capacities can be developed and strengthened only through better policy designs, more information to forecast workforce allocation needs, and the academic education and professional training that prepares teams to respond to the health needs of the population. By re-enforcing these human resource areas, the HRH Unit supports all activities in the Region so that the systems will be able sustain those efforts long after the projects are over.

Human Resources for Health encompass

2009-10-04T06:19:00.000-07:00

Human Resources for Health encompass all of the men and women who work in the health field - not only physicians and nurses, but also public health workers, policy makers, educators, clerical staff, scientists and pharmacists. Together, all these people (more than 12 million in the Americas) make up the health workforce. This group includes not only those who work with individual patients in primary health care delivery or specialty advanced care - but also those members of the workforce that care for the health of the population as a whole.

In addition, the health workforce includes associated fields such as research, technology and education. "People who work in the various professions of health care - physicians, nurses, midwives, pharmacists, dentists, associate professionals and community health workers - whose goal is to improve the health of the populations they serve."

Gender Homogeneous Group

2009-10-04T06:15:00.001-07:00

Based on these findings, males and females should not be considered a homogeneous group, and caution should be employed when generalizing findings of studies that include only females to the experiences of males. Further research should continue to explore the unique importance of family variables and abuse (sexual vs. physical) history, and include abuse-related characteristics (e.g., relationship to the perpetrator, use of force) that have been related to the development of psychopathology (e.g., Mennen & Meadow, 1995; Wolfe, Sas, & Wekerle, 1994).

Prospective studies that examine psychological adjustment and family environment before and after abuse occurs are also encouraged. These findings also have significant treatment implications. Exploration of family environment issues with clients and consideration of interventions that include the family are warranted in light of these findings that indicate that family dysfunction is predictive of depression and distress in adolescents. Goals to decrease conflict and increase cohesion could substantially impact the adolescent's mental health functioning. Along these lines, treatment should be gender sensitive given the disparate effect of family environment and types of abuse for males and females with mental health problems. The inclusion of information regarding childhood abuse and family dynamics, in a gender specific and sensitive manner, would help to create a more complete treatment plan.

Women Good Heath and Wellbeing

2009-10-04T06:15:00.000-07:00

The 2007-08 Women's Budget Statement outlines the various ways in which the ACT Government is delivering on its commitment to advance the status of women and girls and provides an opportunity to highlight achievements across ACT Government agencies against the six key themes of the ACT Women's Plan: representation and recognition; good health and wellbeing; responsive housing; safe inclusive communities; economic security and opportunities; and flexible education and training.

Agencies across the ACT Government continue to explore ways to work together and provide coordinated services for women, including the establishment of: a pilot project between the Child and Family Centres and Care and Protection Services to provide a wrap around, integrated and strengths based model of service delivery to families with children aged between birth and 2 years old living in Gungahlin and Tuggeranong; and a bilateral project under the National Agenda for Early Childhood to improve outcomes for vulnerable and at-risk children and their families. Ten non-government services and three government departments have come together to reform and strengthen the human service delivery system across the universal, primary and secondary prevention and tertiary continuum.

the health care safety net system

2009-10-04T06:12:00.000-07:00

However, understanding the health care safety net system is complicated by the fact that the composition and functioning of the safety net varies tremendously from one local area to another. In fact, the health care safety net system has been described as a patchwork of institutions, clinics, and physicians offices, supported with a variety of financing options that vary from state to state and community to community. Traditional core safety net providers typically include a variety of health centers (e.g. Community Health Centers, Migrant Health Centers, The Health Care for the Homeless Program, and the Public Health Housing Program) community-based clinics, public hospitals, local health departments, as well as special service providers such as AIDS and school based clinics, and many teaching hospitals.

Moreover, a substantial amount of safety net care is provided in hospital emergency departments and private physicians' offices. At the same time, understanding the health care safety net system requires more than just focusing attention on "traditional" core safety net providers; it requires that we also take into account "non-traditional" providers who are part of the total landscape of safety net health care services, and include a diverse group of not-for profit, social service and faith-based organizations.

Dissociative Identity Disorder

2009-10-04T06:09:00.001-07:00

Additional questions to be asked are: should every child who experienced sexual abuse be referred to therapy? Will immediate intervention prevent later symptomathology? If the victim is asymptomatic at assessment, should he or she be diagnosed for possible covert symptomathology? Are there specific unique treatment procedures for children who were sexually abused, yet seem asymptomatic? Should other related individuals besides the victim be targeted for intervention, and if so, who? Will therapy be effective for any case whether or not it is indicated?

The aim of this paper is three-fold:

to review the literature on well-known treatment modalities that are used by professionals treating victims of childhood sexual abuse,
to discuss the relationship between posttraumatic stress symptoms and dissociation in relation to childhood sexual abuse, and
to discuss the phenomena of dissociative disorders - specifically dissociative identity disorder - in relation to survivors who were sexually abused, in terms of treatment modalities.

Gender in Family Characteristics

2009-10-04T06:09:00.000-07:00

Several important findings are evident from this study. First, results of this study point to important differences in the family functioning of nonabused and either sexually abused or physically abused adolescents. Results further suggest, however, that there are important gender differences in these family characteristics. Not only does abuse history appear related to the level of family problems reported, but these family environment characteristics, in addition to the presence of both sexual abuse and physical abuse history, are important factors in the development of adolescent depression and distress. Again, however, results point to meaningful differences between male and female adolescents in the relationship between family functioning and adjustment.

Preliminary analyses not considering gender suggest that adolescents who experienced physical abuse, but not those experiencing sexual abuse, perceived their family environment as more conflictual and less cohesive than nonphysically abused adolescents did. Closer examination of these differences by gender suggests that this picture is somewhat different for males and females however. Male survivors of physical abuse reported more conflict in their family or origin than did nonvictims, but did not report lower levels of cohesion.

Freud's Childish Desires and Fantasies

2009-10-04T06:08:00.000-07:00

Ofshe & Watters were obliged to undertake an analysis of Freud's theories along these lines, making special reference to the debate over why he supposedly went from regarding his patients' memories of abuse as actual recollections to regarding them as a reflection of their own childish desires and fantasies. It went from an abuse theory to a seduction theory - Oedipus. These researchers assert that it is common in the recovery movement literature -- and we should add the sexual abuse literature as well -- to critically point out this change of perspective on the problem that Freud would have and -- what is more important -- that this change in attitude would have been due, above all, to the pressures of a Victorian society that was not prepared to accept that sexual abuse within the family actually existed.

Because of that, the recovery movement's defenders are wont to return to Freud's initial writings, where he was still defending that these incestuous experiences were real. What these authors do not acknowledge, Ofshe & Watters assert, is that Freud -- and this can be seen in his own writings -- was using methods similar to their own -- generators of false memories -- in order to stimulate and construct in his patients memories which he wanted to create in order to support his own theories.

The Dissociative Disorders

2009-10-04T06:07:00.001-07:00

Findings such as: (a) Kendall-Tackett, Williams and Finkelhor (1993), and, Rind, Tromovitch and Bauserman (1998) report that up to 49% of the sexually abused children evidenced no posttraumatic stress symptoms, (b) approximately 80% of adult survivors of childhood sexual abuse actually suffer from dissociative disorders (Van Den Bosch, Verheul, Langwland & Van Den Brink, 2003), (c) In most settings children who have been sexually abused are routinely offered treatment (from 44 percent to 73 percent) even if asymptomatic (Finkelhor and Berliner, 1995), and (d) prevalent treatment modalities for survivors of childhood sexual abuse were actually developed for posttraumatic stress symptoms resulting from various traumatic events rather than specifically tailored for survivors of childhood sexual abuse, raise the question whether differential assessment and treatment modalities relating specifically to survivors of childhood sexual abuse should be developed.

Since childhood sexual abuse was found to differ in both context and psychological implications compared to other forms of abuse (Forbey, Ben-Porath, & Davis, 2000) the main issue is whether childhood sexual abuse should be regarded as any other traumatic event or as a unique type of trauma that requires a different therapeutic approach? Is it possible that "sexual abuse effect syndrome" is actually a comorbidity of posttraumatic stress symptomathology and dissociative disorders, requiring the development of unique treatment modalities?

The Brief Symptom Inventory (BSI)

2009-10-04T06:07:00.000-07:00

The Brief Symptom Inventory (BSI; Derogatis & Spencer, 1982) was used to measure the degree of psychological distress experienced by the participant within the previous week. The BSI contains 53 items, each of which is rated on a 5-point Likert scale ranging from 0 ("not at all") to 4 ("extremely"). A global index of distress, the Global Severity Index (GSI), is calculated by averaging the 53 item scores. The GSI has been shown to be a sensitive index of psychological distress as it combines information on both the total number of symptoms reported and the intensity of the distress experienced. The BSI has been used with both nonclinical and clinical populations, and it is reported to have good convergent and predictive validity (Derogatis & Spencer, 1982).

Test-retest reliability for the GSI over a 2-week period has been reported to be .90 (Derogatis & Melisaratos, 1983). The Beck Depression Inventory-II (BDI-II; Beck, Steer, & Brown, 1996) is a 21-item, multiple-choice questionnaire for measuring the severity of depression in adolescents and adults aged 13 years and older. Items on the BDI-II are summed to provide a continuous measure of depressive symptoms with higher scores reflecting greater levels of depression. The BDI-II has been found to have good validity and reliability as a screening instrument for depression (Beck et al., 1996). The instrument has been normed on several large samples and has acceptable reliability and validity (Beck et al., 1996). Test-retest correlations, over a 1 week time period, for a sample of outpatients were strong (.93; Beck et al., 1996).

The World Report on Violence and Health

2009-10-04T06:06:00.002-07:00

The World Report on Violence and Health (Krug, 2002) defines sexual abuse as "any sexual act, attempt to obtain a sexual act, unwanted sexual comments or advances, or acts to traffic a person's sexuality, using coercion, threats of harm or physical force, by any person regardless of relationship to the victim, in any setting, including but not limited to home and work" (p. 149). Childhood sexual abuse (CSA) is defined as a sexual act between an adult and a child, in which the child is utilized for the sexual satisfaction of the perpetrator (Briere, 1992). Although the accuracy of statistics citing childhood sexual abuse are questionable due to the inability to assume complete disclosure from children, there is an underlying assumption that quoted prevalence figures of a childhood sexual abuse experience is one out of three or four children (e.g., Briere & Elliot, 2003).

Childhood sexual abuse is considered to be a unique severe traumatic event since it includes violation of the child's body. Unlike other forms of abuse such as physical abuse in which the violation is on the body surface (whether or not internal injuries are caused), sexual abuse denotes oral, anal or genital penetration (e.g., DiLillo et al., 2006). The body, therefore, can no longer be perceived as a "safe home." Escaping the abusive situation can often be possible only virtually in the victim's mind, whereas the body continues to endure suffering (Silberg, 1998).

The CSA Posttraumatic Stress

2009-10-04T06:06:00.001-07:00

Recent years have ushered a growing understanding and a broadening knowledge base of the complexities of child sexual abuse. These complexities are acerbated by the need to account for the specific problem of child sexual abuse (CSA) in the larger context of multi-problem intervention, requiring coordinated multi-disciplinary team efforts as well as sensitive and focused attention to CSA itself. The aim of this paper is to critically examine the literature on several treatment modalities that are utilized by professionals from a range of disciplines treating victims of childhood sexual abuse.

Acknowledging recent findings that dissociative disorders among CSA survivors are high compared to survivors of other forms of trauma and that about 80% of adult CSA survivors who were diagnosed with posttraumatic stress disorder actually suffer from dissociative disorders, the author discusses the phenomena of dissociative identity disorder among survivors who were sexually abused. The implications for the development of a therapeutic model are described, including a delineation of the model components.

Abuse and Gender Issues

2009-10-04T06:06:00.000-07:00

Notably, no investigators have explored the relationship between a history of physical abuse and specific family environment characteristics. As such, no studies have yet concurrently examined the effects the different types of abuse, as well as family functioning, on adolescent adjustment, nor considered these factors in conjunction with gender issues. As indicated by the literature review, it appears as though psychological functioning in adolescents may be best accounted for by models that include both contextual variables and multiple types of abuse. The purpose of the current study was to examine the influence of family environment, gender, and childhood victimization (sexual and physical) on the psychological adjustment of adolescents.

The hypotheses of this study were based on the premise that specific family environment characteristics, often related to childhood sexual abuse and physical abuse, would play a role in the development of psychological problems. Specifically, it was hypothesized that family environments characterized by low cohesion and high conflict would add significant unique variance in predicting adolescent depression and distress, in addition to the variance accounted for by child sexual abuse and physical abuse.

Given previous findings in the literature regarding gender differences in depression and distress, exploratory hierarchical regressions were also planned to consider these relationships separately for males and females. In addition, preliminary analyses were conducted to examine the family functioning of sexually and physically abused adolescents. It was hypothesized that adolescents who experienced childhood abuse, defined as either sexual abuse or physical abuse, would report having family environments characterized by high conflict and low cohesion relative to nonabused adolescents. Gender differences in these relationships were also examined

Suicidal Ideation

2009-10-04T06:04:00.000-07:00

Conversely, Garnefski and Arends (1998) revealed that sexual abuse was equally related to emotional and behavioral problems and suicidal ideation in adolescent males and females, but that aggressive and delinquent behavior was more prevalent in males. These conflicting findings hinder our understanding of possible gender-related effects on the sequelae of sexual abuse. It is likewise possible that the findings of existing research-based samples on both male and female participants may be confounded by the influence of gender. Thus far, studies examining the impact of child abuse on the psychological adjustment of adolescents are limited. Despite what appears to be an abundance of literature indicating a relationship between family characteristics, the occurrence of childhood sexual abuse, and subsequent adjustment, few studies have demonstrated this relationship in the adolescent population.

The Psychiatrists Scientific References on Freud's theories

2009-10-04T06:03:00.000-07:00

This work is often coordinated among the recovery movement's defenders, and also appears in some sexual abuse handbooks. Thus for example Irene Intebi (1998), in her book on the sexual abuse of minors published in our own country, refers to Masson's work in order to criticize, e.g., Iwan Bloch's attitude concerning the supposed seductress role played by many girls in their erotic relations with adults. Moreover Intebi includes a chapter entitled "Freud, Hysteria, and History," which is devoted to criticizing Freud's final posture towards abuse. Finkelhor (1984), for his part, calls on Masson's proposal in order to explain what he regards as the traditional skepticism towards abuse on the part of psychiatrists as a group.

In our own country, Félix López [E41] (1993) points out that one must look for the first scientific references to the problem of abuse in Freud's theories regarding child sexuality and the existence of erotic desires between parents and children. Freud would be the first to acknowledge the presence of abuse and to point out its frequency, although, as López acknowledges, he would subsequently abandon -- according to the theory defended by Masson, the recovery movement, and others -- this position in order to attribute everything to his patients' childhood fantasies and incestuous desires. Freud s supposed denial of the reality of abuse, transforming it into fantasy, forms a part of both the general abuse discourse and -- above all -- the recovery movement. Given its interest in the modern configuration of the problem of abuse, we will analyze it in some detail.

Child Care in Western Society

2009-10-04T06:02:00.000-07:00

So my last question is why does it take so long to incorporate better practice into mainstream services and that is a question which could be asked in many of the countries represented at this conference but I am talking specifically about the UK. We are supposed to be a civilised western society, we have a lot of resources for child care, very sophisticated taxation system and yet we have this large group of children who have enormous needs in terms of their emotional and mental health how have no voice and don't seem able to get into th system.

I know that from the mental health point of view child and adolescent psychiatry is woefully under-funded in Scotland and very few children can access mainstream NHS psychiatric services unless all they are being sent for is for a tertiary centre opinion with advice to local services about ongoing treatment and very few children are able to get long term treatment. I spoke to an adolescent psychiatrist a year ago on a committee that we were both on and he said that their definition of long term treatment was six weeks and that was all they could give to children - six sessions - because that was all the funding they received. SO although there are initiatives going on to improve or raise the profile of mental health services for young people -its going to be very slow and I wonder if there are any suggestions here as to how we can take the political issues out of providing care for children and young people and perhaps get things working a little quicker in this field in the UK.

Commercial Use of Ayurvedic Medicinal Plants

2006-02-10T01:18:00.000-08:00

Uttaranchal, a newly created state of India, is endowed with rich cultural heritage and abundant natural resources including medicinal and aromatic plants (MAPs). The state harbors nearly 5,000 species of vascular plants of which at least one third are known to have one or other type of medicinal use. A large number of traditional healers and over 800 registered Ayurvedic physicians in the state depend on wild medicinal plants for the primary health care. Also, MAPs are a major source of income for the rural populations as well as traders. Considering the biodiversity of MAPs and their economic potential/impact, Uttaranchal has been projected as the 'Herbal State' of India.

The state Government has taken several initiatives for the conservation and development of MAPs in order to boost this sector. The Uttaranchal Forest Department has been directed to carry out accelerated inventory and mapping of MAPs in each division so as to identify suitable areas for in situ conservation, propagation and development, and sustainable harvest. Although the rural populations are being encouraged to cultivate high-value MAPs and government has simplified the procedures for the MAP sales, cultivation techniques are not known for most of the medicinal plant species used in Ayurvedic formulations. As a result, populations of valuable species continue to dwindle in the wild and much of the MAP trade continues to be a secret.

Much needs to be achieved in terms of promotion and revitalization of local health traditions, production of valuable medicinal species at commercial scale aided by modern tools such as plant biotechnology. In this paper we review the current state of traditional health care system in Uttaranchal and rising demands of medicinal plants in the national and international markets. We note that very few industries based on Ayurvedic formulations are located in the state and a large number of species (over 60) used in such formulations are exported legally or illegally from the state. Various options are suggested for the increased production of Ayurvedic medicines as well as revamping this age old medicinal system in the state.