Providentia

War Journalism and Stress

As part of an ongoing study in association with CNN and the University of Toronto, Dr. Anthony Feinstein has established a web site for front-line journalists who may be dealing with stress problems resulting from the risks that they face.  The web site provides a self-assessment tool that journalists can use to assess their psychological well-being using a unique password provided by their news organization.  In addition to providing feedback on stress symptoms that they may be experiencing, journalists can also receive guidance on what treatment resources are available to them. 

Dr. Feinstein, a professor of psychiatry at the University of Toronto, is the author of Dangerous Lives: War and the Men and Women Who Report It (Thomas Allen, Toronto 2003),   His new book, titled , Journalists Under Fire: the Psychological Hazards of Covering War has just been released by John Hopkins University Press.  The first chapter is available through the web site. 

Click here to access the web site.

PTSD in Rape Victims

An article published in the March, 2007 issue of Psychology of Women Quarterly provides an important look at the role that social interaction after being raped can have on the posttraumatic symptoms that rape victims develop.  The research was based on a survey of 636 women living in the Chicago metropolitan area who have reported having at least one unwanted sexual experience.  Statistical analyses of the results indicated that negative social reactions and avoidance coping (such as nondisclosure) have a profound effect on development of later PTSD symptoms.  The expected relationship between victim self-blame and PTSD was found to be at least partially due to negative social interactions with others.  The researchers conclude that there is a critical need for support services for rape victims as well as community education on how to respond to survivors of sexual assault.

The full article can be found here.

Fetal Alcohol Exposure and Child Psychiatric problems

Although the impact of severe fetal alcohol exposure during pregnancy on brain development has long been recognized, an article in the March, 2007 issue of Pediatrics presents the results of a study examining the role that heavy prenatal alcohol exposure may play in child psychiatric disorders.  The study matched 39 children with a history of prenatal exposure with 30 non-exposed children for age, gender, and socioeconomic status.  Results indicated significant group differences with respect to incidence of ADHD, depressive disorders, oppositional defiant/conduct disorders, and specific phobias.  The largest effect was for incidence of ADHD. 

The study abstract can be found here.  The full-length study is also available.

The First Lone Gunman

Howard Unruh was born in 1921 in Camden, New Jersey and, by all accounts, lived a quiet life before enlisting to serve his country in World War Two.  His tour of duty as a tank soldier was said to have had a profound effect on him.  He even kept notes on every German soldier that he killed, right down to the condition of their corpses.  It was after his honourable discharge in 1945 and his triumphant return to his hometown of Camden that things began to spiral out of control for him.  Family members and friends all noted a considerable change in him.  Despite being a war hero, he remained unemployed and seemed to have little to do with his time except look at the medals and other war memorabilia decorating his bedroom walls and care for his considerable collection of firearms.   While the target range that he set up in the basement of the apartment building in which he and his mother lived and his attending of daily church services absorbed some of his energies, they didn't prevent him from getting into trouble with his neighbours.  The spectacle of a grown man being financially supported by his mother who worked at a local factory made him the target of considerable teasing as a  "mama's boy".   

His growing alienation from the world and the feeling of being persecuted did not sit well with Howard.  In his diaries, he kept careful note of every personal grievance (real or imagined).  When the diaries were later examined, it was found that he had written the word "retal" (short for retaliate) next to the name of every neighbour whom he had thought deserving of special consideration.

On September 6, 1949, Howard came home from a local movie theatre to find that the new gate that he had built onto the front of the apartment building had been stolen.  That was the last straw... 

California Lawmaker Takes Aim at Pro-Suicide Web Sites

A California Congressman is advocating a bill to make it illegal to encourage suicide over the Internet.  Representative Wally Henger is attempting to table legislation aimed at banning encouragement of suicide through Internet chat rooms, email, and instant messaging.  Despite concerns raised over potential curtailing of speech, advocates of the bill have argued for the need of legislation following the suicide of 19-year old Suzanne Gonzales.  A student at Florida State University, she committed suicide four years ago after discontinuing antidepressant medication and obtaining poison on the advice of online participants in a chat room to which she belonged.  Following her suicide, chat room participants referred to it as a "success".  Suzanne Gonzales' father, Mike, has accused the site's participants of being "serial killers".  He added, "What a perfect place for someone who gets their thrills playing God,"

Although those who encouraged Suzanne Gonzales' suicide can not be charged under existing legislation, her family members are hoping that the proposed bill can be used to save lives in the future. 

Click here for more information.

Latest Paul Cameron Study Targets Canadian Gay Statistics

In a new research study by Dr. Paul Cameron, chairman of the Family Research Institute, and his son Kirk, demographic information provided by a 2003 Canadian community survey was used to estimate the prevalence of homosexuality in the general population and to make inferences about gay mortality.  Based on the sample of 121,300 adults, the Camerons concluded that only 2 per cent of 18 to 44 year old respondents described themselves as homosexual with the percentage dropping to less than 1 per cent of respondents over 60.  While admitting that the overall 1.4% figure can not be regarded as the "bedrock truth",  Paul and Kirk Cameron accused the Canadian government of distorting the data by not reporting on homosexual activity in respondents over the age of 60 thereby increasing the "homosexual footprint".   They accuse governments around the world of "covering up" the early mortality of homosexuals and draw on their own research despite the controversy that has surrounded their methodology and findings.

While the true prevalence of homosexuality in modern society remains a politically charged question,  using data from the Canadian Community Health Survey for a purpose for which it was never designed can only add further distortion to an already murky issue.   The survey was designed to examine a range of health-related questions in Canadian residents through a series of face-to-face interviews across the country.  In the words of the survey researchers, the survey was developed to "provide regular and timely cross-sectional estimates of health determinants, health status and health system utilization for 136 health regions across the country ".  There was no sinister intent in the survey and artificially inflating the "homosexual footprint" was not part of its stated goal. 

It would be best if Paul Cameron looked elsewhere for material on which to base his diatribes.  The full Cameron study can be read here.

Canadian Mental Health Commission to be Formed

As part of the new budget tabled on Monday, Finance Minister Jim Flaherty announced the establishment of a Canadian Mental Health Commission to be headed by retired Senator Michael Kirby.  In making the announcement, Mr. Flaherty said that "Health care goes beyond physical well-being.  We must reach out in practical and compassionate ways to those struggling with mental illness".   The new commission will be headquartered in Calgary, Alberta and will have an initial budget of ten million dollars.  Priorities for the new commission will include mental health in the workplace, aboriginal and children's mental health programs, and stigma reduction. 

For more information, click here.

Anxiety Disorders in Primary Care

An article in the March 6, 2007 issue of Annals of Internal Medicine presents the results of a study examining the prevalence of anxiety disorders in patients attending one of 15 primary care clinics between 2004 and 2005.  A total of 965 patients agreed to complete a seven-item anxiety measure and to take part in a telephone structured interview.  The results of the study indicated that, on average, 19.5% of the study participants met the criteria for at least one anxiety disorder, 8.6% met the criteria for posttraumatic stress disorder, 7.6% met the criteria for generalized anxiety disorder, 6.8% met the criteria for panic disorder, and 6.2% met the criteria for social anxiety disorder.  Level of functional impairment was found to increase significantly with the number of anxiety disorder diagnoses while 41% of patients with an anxiety disorder reported no current treatment.  The study researchers concluded that despite the high prevalence of disabling anxiety disorders in primary care patients, effective treatment is often not available.  The use of a brief screening instrument for anxiety disorders in primary care settings is recommended. 

The study abstract can be found here.  The full-length study is also available.

When Psychosis Kills

The latest issue of the Medical Journal of Australia presents a study examining homicides committed by psychotic offenders in New South Wales between 1993 and 2002.  A total of 93 homicides committed by 88 people were analyzed to determine patterns of offending.  While drug use and history of brain injury were found to be potential contributing factors, the strongest contributing factor involved auditory hallucinations or delusions leading the offender to believe that he or she was in immediate danger.  Most homicide victims were known by the offender (i.e., family member or acquaintances) and the majority of lethal assaults occurred in the first year of mental illness.  In general, it was the first psychotic episode that carried the greatest risk of lethal consequences.  The study researchers recommended treating the first psychotic episode as a psychiatric emergency, particularly when family members or friends express concern about safety.   

The full article is available here.

The Hereditary Defective

In 1936 (other sources list the date as 1934), a 20-minute silent documentary film was first shown in Germany.  Titled Erbkrank (loosely translated into English as The Hereditary Defective), it was presented as an educational film by the racial affairs branch of the Nazi Party.  The point of the film was clear: due to "Jewish liberal thinking", a desperate state of affairs had come into existence in which mentally ill and physically disabled children and adults were being cared for in "palatial" hospitals by the cream of the German medical profession while hard-working German families were forced to live in dire poverty.  The years following World War One had left the economy of post-war Germany in tatters and the message that resources that should have gone to helping the German people rebuild were being wasted on genetic defectives fell on receptive ears. 

The film presented statistics showing an alarming increase in the number of mentally ill and defectives.  Jews, Blacks, and other genetically inferior populations were accused of aggravating the problem by spreading their inferior genes on to the next generation.  Film clips detailing the costs of caring for these patients and the upkeep of the mental institutions that housed them were also included.  Criminals were part of the problem as well.  All such inferior traits were obviously inherited and the notion that environment played a role was due to an "ignoring of natural law".  The upshot of the film was to convey a simple message: Something must be done.   It was an effective film in many ways and it's message spread far beyond Germany's borders.  Advocates of eugenics in other countries showed it as well prior to the outbreak of World War Two. 

Films such as Erbkrank were part of an orchestrated campaign designed to dehumanize the mentally ill and other "subhumans" and to pave the way for eliminating them altogether.  Preventing defectives from passing on their destructive genes was deemed to be part of the natural law that ensured that only the strong should survive: Darwinian selection at it's finest.  The message was heard and the way was made clear for what would follow.  It would begin with sterilization, and then...

For more information, click here.