Assessing and meeting the health needs of Roman Catholic priests in the archdiocese of Chicago

In 1985, the Bishops' Committee on Priestly Life and Ministry recommended bishops form holistic health boards for their priests based on the results of a 1982 U.S. survey of Catholic priests. In 1995, a holistic health committee was formed under the office of the vicar for priests for the archdiocese of Chicago. One of the committee's first actions was to survey the priests of the archdiocese of Chicago to identify baseline health behaviors and needs. Survey results (n = 524; 52% response rate) revealed the need for the committee to promote health education, preventive care, and annual physicals. The committee conducted a series of health fairs, improved the insurance benefit for an annual physical, and conducted a series of health-related talks targeted to priests. A follow-up survey in 2006 (n = 389; 46% response rate) indicated improvements in health behaviors of the priests. Comparisons to statewide and national data indicate that overall, engagement in healthy behaviors is higher for priests than for men who are not priests.     

A Geometric Morphometric Approach to Sex Determination of the Human Adult Os Coxa

Abstract: Sex determination of the human skeleton is best assessed from the os coxa. The present study explored the possibility of using three‐dimensional landmark coordinate data collected from various landmarks located over the entire bone to determine whether there were significant sex differences local to the landmarks. Thirty‐six landmarks were digitized on 200 African American and European American male and female adult human os coxae. MANCOVA results show that sex and size have a significant effect on shape for both European Americans (Sex, F = 17.50, d.f. = 36, 63, p > F = 0.0001; Size, F = 2.56, d.f. = 36, 63, p > F = 0.0022) and African Americans (Sex, F = 21.18, d.f. = 36, 63, p > F = 0.0001; Size, F = 2.59, d.f. = 36, 63, p > F = 0.0005). The discriminant analysis shows that sexing accuracy for European Americans is 98% for both males and females, 98% for African American females, and 100% for African American males.     

‘Happiness again’: photographing and narrating the arrival of Hungarian child refugees and their families 1956–1957

Abstract

The Australian government has long been involved in creating, collecting and circulating photographs of newly arrived immigrants, displaced people and refugees. Many of these images have been used for internal and external promotional/propaganda purposes. In this article I use news reports and visual photographic material depicting Hungarian refugee children and their families, alongside an analysis of government agendas and communication strategies, to examine how these ‘new Australians’ were understood and presented to the nation. After the 1956 anti-Communist uprising in Hungary, just over 14,000 Hungarian refugees were resettled in Australia. The federal government specially sought out a number of ‘compassionate cases such as children’, and many groups and individuals within the host population offered support to care for what they imagined would be large numbers of orphaned and unaccompanied Hungarian children. These Hungarian refugees came to Australia in the context of increased government interest in public relations and publicity around immigration. A Public Relations director in the Department of Immigration was appointed in 1955 and a publicity section was also established as part of the Planning and Research Division. Discussions by the Immigration Planning Council during 1956 plainly stated that ‘business’ was now the driving force for immigration rather than ‘the “refugee” concept’. Tasman Heyes, the Secretary of the Department of Immigration, agreed but also felt that these two forces were and could be combined, pointing out that since 1951 Australia had received ‘international credit for contributing to the solution of an international problem’ by achieving the integration of these aims. This article examines how refugee children and families were positioned in relation to the fraught pairing of economic and humanitarian concerns, thus interrogating broader understandings of immigration, children and families within the Australian nation that are revealed in these moments of photographic capture and circulation.     

Anxiety disorders and intimate partner violence: can the association be explained by coexisting conditions or borderline personality traits?

Intimate partner violence (IPV) is a serious, preventable public health problem. IPV perpetration is strongly associated with Anxiety disorders at the population level. We investigated whether the association could be explained by coexisting psychiatric conditions or Borderline personality traits, using a combined data-set of two National Household Surveys (n = 15,973). Results showed women were more likely to report perpetrating IPV than men. Anxiety disorders were associated with IPV. When coexisting psychiatric conditions together with a categorical diagnosis of Borderline Personality Disorder (BPD) were investigated as explanatory variables, 19.2% of the association between Anxiety disorders and IPV was explained. Using individual Borderline traits in place of a categorical diagnosis of BPD, 58.3% of the association was explained. In conclusion, the association between Anxiety disorders and IPV was partly, but not fully, explained by coexisting psychiatric conditions and individual Borderline traits. Perpetrators of IPV should be screened for Anxiety disorders and among those with Anxiety disorders, Borderline traits are important.     

Perceptions of Appropriate Court-Ordered Sanctions for Situational Couple Violence Offenders: A Pilot Study

Over recent decades, social scientists have documented a fluctuation in community members’ perceptions of the appropriate social and legal responses to intimate partner violence. A lack of response to the social problem was followed by a punitive response during the 1980s and 1990s. A therapeutic response in the early 21st century followed. In this pilot study, which is a fully crossed factorial survey, we measured community members’ perceptions of appropriate responses to intimate partner violence, specifically situational couple violence. The analysis of 1,500 judgments showed that most respondents perceived community-based counseling as the appropriate sanction for situational couple violence that results in minor, physical injuries. Perceptions were influenced by victim and offender characteristics, and by the respondents’ characteristics.     

Perspectives on Regional Differences and Intimate Partner Violence in Canada: A Qualitative Examination

Few studies have examined the impact of intimate partner violence (IPV) within rural and northern communities. The current study addressed gaps within the literature by gathering perspectives from community service providers and academic researchers in order to increase understanding about the unique needs of IPV survivors within geographically diverse regions. Interviews were conducted with ten participants from Saskatchewan, Manitoba, Alberta, and Northwest Territories. Interviews focused on the unique needs of IPV survivors within each region, gaps that exist in meeting those needs, as well as questions pertaining to a larger research study entitled, Rural and Northern Community Response to Intimate Partner Violence. Results revealed several core themes relating to the unique challenges faced by IPV survivors within each region, as well as barriers to accessing services within rural and remote communities. Results also highlighted important considerations for future researchers, such as challenges that can arise when conducting research within geographically remote locations. Findings may help inform future development and implementation of services for IPV survivors residing in geographically diverse locations across Canada.     

The Intergenerational Impact of Intimate Partner Violence against Mothers on Child Functioning over four Years

Intimate partner violence affects one in three U.S. women. Children often witness the violence. Methods: A 4-year cohort analysis of 300 mother-child dyads used latent growth curve techniques to examine the impact of partner violence on mothers’ and children’s mental health and function over time. The dyads entered the study when the mother sought safe shelter or justice services. Data was collected every four months, 13 times. Results: Four models were derived, each with good fit. Maternal age, Adverse Childhood Events, and ethnicity determined the level of maternal PTSD, depression, and anxiety at baseline. Mothers’ self-efficacy and marginalization determined if maternal mental health symptoms decreased or increased over 4-years. Maternal symptom levels determined if child dysfunctions persisted over time. Conclusion: This analysis provides longitudinal evidence that maternal mental health determines children’s recovery from or persistence of behavioral dysfunctions. Primary prevention and informed referral has the potential to improve child outcomes.     

Sudden Infant and Early Childhood Death and Sinus of Valsalva Pseudoaneurysms

Two cases of occult pseudoaneurysms of the sinus of Valsalva (SoV) are reported to demonstrate different etiologies and lethal mechanisms. A previously well 9‐month‐old boy who suffered an unexpected fatal cardiorespiratory arrest was found at autopsy to have a ruptured pseudoaneurysm of the left SoV resulting in lethal hemopericardium. A 13.5‐month‐old boy died soon after presenting with a 24‐h history of poor feeding and reduced urine output. At autopsy, destruction of the noncoronary cusp of the aortic valve by bacterial endocarditis was found with extension of the inflammation into a pseudoaneurysm of the SoV with surrounding abscess formation involving the atrioventricular node. Death was most likely due to an arrhythmia. Pseudoaneurysms of the SoV are exceedingly rare but may result in sudden/unexpected death in infancy and early childhood from rupture or involvement of the conduction system or myocardium. Detailed cardiac examination is essential in all unexpected deaths in early life.