When Kam began seeing the girl in October of 2011, she was suffering from “several serious psychiatric symptoms and/or conditions,” the board said in its findings. A junior psychiatrist treating her at the hospital had trouble engaging her, but she opened up to Kam.

Kam began to think her problems were spiritual, the board found, and told members of his church he was concerned about a patient’s spiritual wellbeing. His attorney declined to say where Kam goes to church or what religion he practices.

At one point, the junior psychiatrist told Mezzacappa that Kam was “very involved” with the patient, and that he “may be losing objectivity,” but that the girl was improving, the board said.

The girl was hospitalized in February 2012, and Kam met with her alone Feb. 8. After the meeting, the board said, he came to believe that she was “being influenced by, speaking with, and being hurt by evil spiritual entities.”

He visited her about three times while she was in the hospital, and Feb. 14, he gave her a cross to wear, believing that the girl thought “the symbol was harmful” and that “the exchange would help” her.

Not only did his religious beliefs affect any professional judgement he may have had, it went beyond inappropriate treatment, and continued to get worse.

Kam gave the girl a cross to wear in exchange for a different, undisclosed religious symbol she had on; he also took her to church with him and let her stay at his home, board investigators said in documents filed in the case. At one point, she told him that her mother pushed her down the stairs and tried to asphyxiate her, and he allegedly failed to report her charges to the Department of Children and Families as required by state law.

Although Kam was the primary psychiatrist treating the girl, he was not the only one with such pseudo-scientific ideas. Another psychiatrist, Enrico Mezzacappa also supported the spiritual diagnosis.

Mezzacappa complimented Kam “for his courage in coming forward” and remarked that it was interesting and unusual that he, the junior psychiatrist, and Kam all agreed there could be “a spiritual component to [the girl’s] diagnosis.”

Mezzacappa “believed that not all of Children’s Hospital’s psychiatrists would entertain the belief that [the girl] could be suffering from a spiritual diagnosis.”

They discussed the idea that Kam should become the girl’s “spiritual mentor,” the board said, and Mezzacappa told Kam to seek a consultation for the girl from Kam’s church, and told him to speak with a hospital chaplain; Mezzacappa allegedly did not tell the girl’s inpatient treatment team or her mother about the spiritual diagnosis.

Mezzacappa, also a designated reporter in child abuse cases did not report the abuse to child services as mandated by law. For some reason, Mezzacappa was reprimanded but retained his standing at the hospital. Even Kam could return to practice as early as next year if certain conditions are met.

This poor girl has lost almost a year of proper treatment and undergone unnecessary abuse at the hands of her parents and her psychiatrist. Most of us believed that the association of mental illness with evil spirits disappeared a century ago. How wrong we are.

It should go without saying that religion and medicine don’t mix, but some people still haven’t got the memo.

The hatching process can be quite disturbing. Watch the video at your own risk. I am not responsible for lost lunches.

Even god cancelled evolution when he watched.

Dr Shea O Rutstein has done several studies into the importance of extending birth intervals in developing countries. In the papers cited, estimates are made for survival rates of infants and young children.  The finding demonstrate that if birth intervals were extended to 24 months, the deaths of almost 2 million children under 5 would have been averted.

The education of women and the availability of adequate birth control methods has benefits for both the women and their children. Rutstein’s initial study was conducted in 2005 and published in the International Journal of Gynecology and Obstetrics

Effects of preceding birth intervals on neonatal, infant and under-five years mortality and nutritional status in developing countries: evidence from the demographic and health surveys. S.O. Rutstein

Since at least 1923, the deleterious effect of short interbirth and/or interpregnancy intervals for maternal and child health has been investigated. The effect of short intervals has been demonstrated many times to be one of the most important factors affecting the mortality of infants and young children. Little research has been done, however, on determining the optimal birth interval rather than establishing the relationship between birth intervals and mortality. It is the purpose of this paper to determine whether there is an optimal interval for the mortality of children under age 5 years and, if so, to establish the optimal spacing window in order to guide mothers. As such, this paper reports on the analysis of the effects of birth spacing on infant and child mortality, and on nutritional status, controlling for the effects of potentially confounding variables.

The study used 17 countries surveyed in the Retrospective survey data of the Demographic and Health Surveys (DHS) program and used NCHS/CDC/WHO international reference standards for height for age, weight for age, and weight for height. Attempts were made to control for nutrition status, breastfeeding duration, and other factors.

Previous recommendations to women have been to avoid having birth sooner than 24 months apart. While the excess risk of mortality is highest for very short birth intervals (less than 18 months), there are relatively few children born with such intervals (16%). Combining both the increased risk of birth earlier than 36 months with the great number of birth with such intervals results substantial declines in mortality by avoiding intervals of 24 to 35 months. For the year 2003, if women in developing countries (excluding China) would not have had any births at intervals less than 24 months; they could have averted almost 2 million deaths in that year to children under age 5 years. An additional almost 1 million deaths in that year would have been averted if mothers had spaced at least 36 months between births. The deaths that would have been averted account for about 35% of all deaths to children less than 5 years of age in 2003

For the surveys where significant results have been established, children face a double whammy to a healthy life from short preceding birth intervals: the risk of dying and the risk of being malnourished.

In 2008, Rutstein expanded the data set to include 52 DHS surveys conducted from 2000 through 2005, and confirmed the results.

The population attributable risk (PAR) for under-five mortality for avoiding conceptions at less than 24 months after a birth is 0.134. In other words, if all women would wait at least 24 months to conceive again, under-five deaths would fall by 13 percent. The effect of waiting 36 months to conceive again would avoid 25 percent of under-five deaths. The impact of avoiding these high risk intervals (less than 36 months) would be a total of 1,836,000 deaths avoided annually in less developed countries.

For neonatal mortality, the adjusted risk ratios indicate that risk of dying decreases with increasing birth to pregnancy interval lengths up to 36 months and rises for conceptions after 48 or more months. This rise was indicated in the previous study for birth intervals of five and more years but the increase was not statistically significant. The larger data set now confirms that this rise is statistically significant.

For post-neonatal mortality, the decrease of the risk of dying with increasing interval is again similar to those of early neonatal, neonatal and infant mortality. However, there is no
corresponding increase with duration of interval for children conceived after the reference group (i.e. after an interval of 48 or more months).

For the risk of dying between ages one and four years, also known as child mortality, the adjusted risk ratios indicate that the longer the birth interval, the lower the risk, even for  intervals of 48 or more months.

The risk of being chronically malnourished (stunted and/or underweight) decreases with increasing time between the preceding birth and the conception of the child under study. In
contrast with the effects on mortality, there is no levelling or increase in the risk of being stunted or underweight for long birth intervals.

Studies have also shown maternal deaths increase with decreasing birth interval, and are  decreased by contraceptive use.  Organizations such as Safe Motherhood and the Bill and Melinda Gates Foundation are tackling these problems head on with campaigns focusing on family planning through education and access to contraception and safe abortions.

Organizations such as the Catholic Church, Focus on the Family, and some Islamic groups fight these initiatives to the detriment of mothers and their children, as well as to the men who lose their wives and children.  This is not protecting men, women, children, or families. This is sacrificing all in the name of religion.

Most people recover within a week or ten days. However, some are at greater risk for more severe and longer-lasting complications, such as pneumonia. The groups at higher risk include very young children, people over 65, pregnant women, people with underlying medical conditions such as chronic respiratory disease, heart or kidney disease, diabetes or a weakened immune system due to cancer, HIV infection, or some other cause.

Another possible health effect related to the flu is Reye’s syndrome, which can develop in children and teenagers who are given salicylates (aspirin) when they have the flu or chickenpox. Reye’s syndrome affects the central nervous system and the liver, and can be fatal. Do not give aspirin to children or teenagers with the flu, unless you are specifically directed to do so by a doctor.

In the US,

Over a period of 31 seasons between 1976 and 2007,estimates of flu-associated deaths in the United States range from a low of about 3,000 to a high of about 49,000 people. During a regular flu season, about 90 percent of deaths occur in people 65 years and older. The “seasonal flu season” in the United States can begin as early as October and last as late as May.

There are some people, who should not get the vaccine, and if you are  not sure, discuss this with your physician. These include

• People who have a severe allergy to chicken eggs.
• People who have had a severe reaction to an influenza vaccination.
• Children younger than 6 months of age (influenza vaccine is not approved for this age group), and
• People who have a moderate-to-severe illness with a fever (they should wait until they recover to get vaccinated.)
• People with a history of Guillain–Barré Syndrome (a severe paralytic illness, also called GBS) that occurred after receiving influenza vaccine and who are not at risk for severe illness from influenza should generally not receive vaccine.

A recent study funded by the National Institutes of Health discovers a pregnant mother’s exposure to the flu may have extreme mental health consequences for the child.

If the mother contracts the flu, the child has a nearly four-fold increased chance of developing bipolar disorder in adulthood, say researchers.

The findings add to mounting evidence of possible shared underlying causes and illness processes with s hizophrenia, which some studies have also linked to prenatal exposure to influenza.

Although researchers have suspected a linkage between maternal influenza and bipolar disorder, the new study is the first to prospectively follow families using physician-based diagnoses and structured standardized psychiatric measures.

Researchers followed children born in a northern California county from 1959-1966 and compared 92 who developed bipolar disorder linked to maternal flu diagnoses.

The nearly fourfold increased risk implicated influenza infection at any time during pregnancy, but there was evidence suggesting slightly higher risk if the flu occurred during the second or third trimesters.

Moreover, the researchers linked flu exposure to a nearly six-fold increase in a subtype of bipolar disorder with psychotic features.

Prior research suggested a threefold increased risk for schizophrenia associated with maternal influenza during the first half of pregnancy.

This research is not definitive, but it is certainly another reason to make sure you get the flu shot next fall.

The venom of these spiders is potent but not usually lethal to humans. The effects of the bite

usually wear off in 12-24 hours unless the victim has an allergic reaction. Experiments on the web have shown some promise in its use as a scaffolding material for nerve regeneration. On a more visually spectacular level, the web has been used in textiles, although not commercially. A cape made from Madagascar Golden Orb spider silk exhibited at London’s Victoria and Albert Museum in June 2012.

Because of their size and the strength of their web, Nephila have been known to capture and consume quite large prey. This video was taken in Cairns Australia.

Voila:

And for those who don’t care for either:

There are three basic assumptions in cladistics:

1. Any group of organisms are related by descent from a common ancestor.
2. There is a bifurcating pattern of cladogenesis.
3. Change in characteristics occurs in lineages over time.

In a cladogram (a cladistics tree diagram), the distance from the root of the tree can be expressed in both physical time and phylogenic distance.

It is via cladistics that we can understand that a Tyrannosaurus Rex is more closely related to modern birds than it is to a Triceratops.

 On Thursday, May 18th, the members of the Bluefield High School chapter of SADD (Students Against Drunk Driving), in conjunction with the school faculty, staged a mock accident in the school parking lot.

During this exercise, a student was extracted from the vehicle by the North River Fire Department using the jaws of life. The ‘deceased’ student was removed, placed under a blanket and placed in a waiting ambulance. It was only at this time that the exercise was revealed as a piece of ‘shock art’ to the remainder of the student body.

The faculty, in its wisdom felt that by not telling the students the impact would be stronger, and the potential for saving a life was worth any emotional fallout on the students. A little research will show that in other jurisdictions, demonstrations of this nature are common, but students are aware that they are staged.

Although several of the faculty members were wandering among the student, there seemed to be no concerted effort the evaluate the emotional state of the student body. In any group of 800 individuals it is reasonable to assume that a significant proportion, perhaps as high as 10%, may be struggling with a pre-existing emotional illness. Along with these, there are an unknown number who are dealing with an unstable home life.
In my opinion, these young people were abandoned by their caregivers who apparently hadn’t considered that some students might be traumatized.

I believe that, at the very least, an apology should be issued to the student body, and to us, their parents.

The reason this hit so close to me was that my son was one of he major victims. It was his girlfriend at the time who was the student pried from the wreck. His first knowledge of the incident was when some of his friends burst into the art room and told him she had been in an accident in the parking lot. At the time, he was being treated for depression, and when I returned home from work, my other son informed me what had happened and that son # 2 had disappeared. I spent the next hour or so frantically phoning his friends until I finally found him, physically safe and sound, but emotionally devastated.

I subsequently met separately with the school principle and the School board Superintendent and both insisted that the school had acted appropriately. I also found out that some of the students walked out of class in protest and received approximately the same reaction, in fact they were informed that the school would feel quite comfortable in creating a similar mock accident in the future.  There were a few other letters and editorials in the newspaper as well, so I do not wish to claim that I was a lone voice in the wilderness. In fact, the only support came from those inside the system.

For my efforts on behalf of the students the faculty (with one exception) refused to speak to me for the rest of the semester. It is important to note that I feared repercussions towards my son, and only stood up because it was his last month in school. However, among others it was a different story. I was approached by a parent who told me her daughter had been a passenger in a fatal accident the year before and was just barely able to complete her last few weeks of school. many other parents and friends of my son were quick to praise me for my public stance. Many of the mental health professionals I have encountered over the past number of years also expressed outrage at what the school had done.

No acknowledgement was  ever made by the faculty or school board that anything wrong had been done, but at least, there have been no surprise mock accidents since then.

Bullying and abuse are serious problems in our schools, but it is important to remember that not all of the abuse comes from peers.

The school normally has  a dress code that is itemized on their website

• A mandatory navy blue cardigan which has the Maple Grove logo.
• Plain white or grey t-shirt, turtle neck, shirt or blouse
• Solid Navy blue pants (or shorts when the weather is warm), skirt or tunic.
• No jeans.
• No logos on clothing other than the Maple Grove logo.
• Maple Grove is a “HAT FREE ZONE” inside the building. Hats must be removed before entering.

As playoff fever heated up in the city, the school made a one day exception to the dress code

Les Canadiens

Senators

and told the students they could wear a hockey jersey as a show of support for their team. What no one appeared to consider was that not everyone would be a Canadiens’ fan. Ms Penner was cheering on the Ottawa Senators, the Canadiens on-ice rivals, and wore the other red shirt.

The result was a somewhat less than enthusiastic reaction from many of the other students, and besides the normal team rivalry comments she felt she was bullied by a number of her schoolmates.

As you would expect the administration rushed to her side and condemned the others for their uncharitable actions.

Not quite. She was given the option of changing her jersey or going home. Tough kid that she is, she stuck to her guns and hew father came and picked her up. In a happy ending, the owner of the Senators heard about the story and invited her to the next game as a VIP guest, and she watched her team win the series.

It’s a happy ending for her, but the question in my mind is whether or not the school has learned anything. Maple Grove has an anti-bullying plan available on their website.

 Goal: To prevent and stop all forms of bullying and violence targeting a student, a teacher or any other staff member.
Definitions:
Bullying: refers to any repeated in direct or indirect behavior, comment, act, or gesture, whether deliberate or not, including in cyberspace, which occurs in a context where there is a power imbalance between the persons concerned and which causes distress and injures, hurts, oppresses, intimidates or ostracizes.
Violence: refers to any intentional demonstration of verbal, written, physical, psychological or sexual force which causes distress and injures, hurts, or oppresses a person by attacking their psychological or physical integrity or well-being, or their rights or property.
Conflict: refers to a clash or disagreement based on principles, opinions or interests between  two or more people.

If the treatment of Ms Penner was severe enough for the administration to get involved, it would have fallen into the definition of bullying. Instead of stepping in and declaring to the student body that such actions would not be tolerated, they removed the target, effectively telling the students that the administration would support the majority and send the victim home.

There is an incredible amount of research that shows the long term negative effects of bullying and we have some to expect that schools, where young people spend much of their youth, would attempt to mitigate these negative effects. In this particular case, the end result was a definite win for the student who stood her ground. However, this outcome could not have been anticipated by the administration.

In my experience with schools, bullying of students is allowed if the bullies are faculty or have the support of faculty. Any school that wants to take a serious stance against the intimidation of students, needs to take a hard look in the mirror.

few African Catholics have questioned the assumption, voiced recently by Ghanaian Cardinal Peter Turkson, that the African church is purer than its counterpart in the West, which is regarded as secular and permissive.

Secularism and permissiveness have been blamed for the abuse scandal by the Vatican, so it is not surprising that this attitude would continue in Africa.

In March, he [Musaala] wrote to the archbishop of Kampala, Cyprian Lwanga, about priests who fathered children, kept secret wives or abused girls or boys, and called for a debate on marriage for priests.

One of the cases of abuse he cited involved himself. He was one of numerous boys sexually abused at 16, he says, by Catholic brothers at one of Uganda’s best boarding schools. He also alleged several other cases of child sex abuse in his letter.

“Wherever you go, people know about this. It’s like an open secret. People know. Nothing is ever done,” said Musaala in an interview.

For exposing the abuse and outing himself as a victim, he was rewarded by his superiors. Or Not.

The letter was leaked to the news media. And in response, Lwanga suspended Musaala, saying his statements stirred up contempt for the Catholic Church and damaged the morale of believers.

Later in the month, Lwanga acknowledged that abuses had taken place, apologized to victims and set up an internal inquiry. But he did not backtrack on Musaala’s unpaid suspension.

It’s not the abuse that affects the church, it is exposure.

Anyone who calls for these embarrassing secrets to be brought to light, placing the church in an awkward position, doesn’t get much sympathy from Uganda’s conservative churchgoers, even if the allegations are true. To traditionalists, what Musaala is doing is un-African.

In Uganda, what is African is the criminalization of homosexuality and the hiding of abuse by Catholics.

This new Pope has called for a crackdown on abusing priests and their enablers. Let’s see how he handles this Ugandan scandal.

Monte Carlo simulation furnishes the decision-maker with a range of possible outcomes and the probabilities they will occur for any choice of action.. It shows the extreme possibilities—the outcomes of going for broke and for the most conservative decision—along with all possible consequences for middle-of-the-road decisions.

Sampling Bias can be due to several conditions, for example: self-selection, under-coverage, and survivorship.

SMBC has something to say about this.