Supplementing the sunshine- what is the role of psychiatrists,particularly in a forensic context,in maintaining patients vitamin D levels?

Vitamin D has an integral role in maintaining calcium homeostasis in the blood. It is well established that prolonged and severe vitamin D deficiency leads to rickets in children and osteomalacia in adults. Increasing evidence indicates that deficiency has associations with a number of other physical and mental health conditions. Doctors should ensure that their patients have information so that they can make informed decisions about their health, be it their physical or mental health. Recent NICE guidelines on vitamin D recommend that health care professionals have a role in informing patients about vitamin D supplements. This is especially relevant for forensic psychiatrists, as their patients often fall into recognised at risk groups for lowered vitamin D levels. One could argue that patients who have long admissions in secure wards are a specific at risk group and that supplementation should be routine.     

The impact of collaborative case formulation with high risk offenders with personality disorder

This study investigated the impact of completing collaborative case formulations (CFs) on the professional relationship between Offender Managers (OMs) and high risk offenders with personality disorder (PD). It was hypothesised that collaborative CFs would result in significantly improved professional relationships, offender engagement and OM confidence. Seventy-seven OMs were randomised into control and formulation groups and randomly allocated a high risk offender with PD. OMs in the formulation group attended advanced formulation training and constructed collaborative CFs. No collaborative CFs were constructed by the control group. All participants subsequently completed a measure of relationship quality. OMs also completed a perceived benefits rating scale evaluating perceived offender engagement and OM confidence. OMs in the formulation group reported significantly higher overall relationship quality, a stronger working alliance and greater confidence. Offenders in the formulation group reported significantly higher degrees of trust in their OMs. Results indicate that completing CFs collaboratively with high risk offenders with PD may have a small, beneficial impact on the quality of OM/Offender relationships and increase OM confidence.     

Mother–infant separations in prison. A systematic attachment-focused review of the academic and grey literature

This review systematically searched UK academic and grey literature in relation to mother and child separation in prison. Attachment theory is referred to in current prison policy for mothers and could provide a framework linking policy and practice. Reviewing grey literature provided an opportunity to explore practice-based literature. Twenty-four academic papers and 51 grey documents were reviewed. Use of attachment theory in the academic literature varied according to discipline, ranging from extensive use to no use. There was greater use of attachment theory in the grey literature. Despite linguistic differences, all documents highlighted the detrimental impact of separation on imprisoned mothers. However, specificity was lacking regarding support for mothers, and staff needs were overlooked. Given its use across the sparse research and practice literature, and its basis for policy, attachment theory could underpin theoretically informed support for imprisoned mothers separated from their infants and staff who support them.     

Exploring the agency of Africa in climate change negotiations: the case of REDD+

Emerging climate change regimes, such as the mechanism for reducing emissions from deforestation and forest degradation (REDD+), are increasingly aiming to engage developing countries such as those in Africa, in sustainable development through carbon markets. The contribution of African countries to global climate negotiations determines how compatible the negotiated rules could be with the existing socioeconomic and policy circumstances of African countries. The aim of this paper is to explore the agency of Africa (African States) in the global climate change negotiations and discuss possible implications for implementing these rules using REDD+ as a case study. Drawing on document analysis and semi-structured expert interviews, our findings suggest that although African countries are extensively involved in the implementation of REDD+ interventions, the continent has a weak agency on the design of the global REDD+ architecture. This weak agency results from a number of factors including the inability of African countries to send large and diverse delegations to the negotiations as well lack of capacity to generate and transmit research evidence to the global platform. African countries also perceive themselves as victims of climate change who should be eligible for support rather than sources of technological solutions. Again, Africa’s position is fragmented across negotiation coalitions which weakens the continent's collective influence on the REDD+ agenda. This paper discusses a number of implementation deficits which could result from this weak agency. These include concerns about implementation capacity and a potential lack of coherence between REDD+ rules and existing policies in African countries. These findings call for a rethink of pathways to enhancing Africa’s strategies in engaging in multilateral climate change negotiations, especially if climate change regimes specifically targeted at developing countries are to be effective.     

Democracy in China: a distant dream

Since the late 1970s, China has made enormous efforts to liberalize its markets and integrate itself into the world economy. Yet these developments have not been accompanied by any meaningful degree of liberalization of the political system. This paper attempts to account for the lack of democratization in China. In particular, it reviews the process of gradual economic liberalization initiated under Deng Xiao Ping and discusses the issue of corruption. Economic liberalization, it is shown, has provided new opportunities for the political elite to translate power into wealth, thereby making it more reluctant than ever to relax its grip on power. In a system of “autocratic capitalism,” the ruling elite both in business and government lack the incentives to introduce political liberalization. At this stage, dreams that the country’s economic liberalization will someday lead to democracy remain distant.

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Building on the Greenbook: A Perpetrator Pattern‐Based Approach to Improve Child Welfare’s Response to Domestic Violence

The Greenbook Initiative has acted as a catalyst for change across the United States and globe. In this article, the authors discuss how the Greenbook has shaped the environment related to perpetrator accountability in child welfare, how a paradigm shift in work with fathers can advance domestic violence‐informed practice, and how a perpetrator pattern‐based approach, as exemplified by the Safe & Together Model, can help advance the vision of the Greenbook.     

A Tale of Two Inquiries: Sans Everything and Ely

The government acknowledged scandalously poor care of long‐stay patients in National Health Service (NHS) hospitals in 1969. This followed the Ely Hospital inquiry, which emerged in the aftermath of revelations of abuse at seven hospitals described in Barbara Robb's book Sans Everything: A Case to Answer (1967). Allegations in Sans Everything and at Ely were similar. However, the inquiry committees which investigated, ‘disproved’ those in Sans Everything and upheld those at Ely. The Ely inquiry became pivotal to NHS policy reform for long‐stay mental illness and mental handicap hospitals, and for giving patients and their families a greater voice if they had concerns about inadequacies. This paper explains the relationship between Sans Everything and ‘Ely’ and analyses the impact of Robb's work—her high‐profile press campaign, networking, and determination to achieve improvement—which triggered revelations at Ely and elsewhere, and helped shape the course and constructive outcome of the Ely inquiry.     

Construing the Legality of Solitary Confinement: Analysis of United States Federal Court Jurisprudence

American Journal of Criminal Justice - This article analyzes the constitutional parameters of solitary confinement, administrative segregation, and/or punitive isolation within correctional...