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American Data (american + data)
Selected AbstractsMental health improvements of substance-dependent clients after 4 months in a Therapeutic CommunityDRUG AND ALCOHOL REVIEW, Issue 5 2010ANNE-MAREE POLIMENI Abstract Introduction and Aims. Odyssey House Victoria's Therapeutic Community (TC) accepts substance-dependent clients, including those with co-occurring mental health issues. American data suggest that TCs are effective in rehabilitating such clients; however, Australian research is limited. The aim of the study was to examine Minnesota Multiphasic Personality Inventory-2 (MMPI-2) profiles of Odyssey House TC residents early in their residency and again after 4 months, to chart changes in MMPI-2 profiles and compare them with norms for psychological health. Design and Methods. The sample comprised 351 clients who were part of the residential program between 1997 and 2007, and who remained in treatment at the TC for at least 4 months. They were administered the MMPI-2 after 5 weeks in treatment and again after 4 months. Results. At the first assessment, the validity scales of the MMPI-2 plus the clinical scales Depression, Psychopathic Deviate, Paranoia, Psychasthenia and Schizophrenia were in the clinical range. At the second assessment, mean scores on all clinical scales except Mania were significantly or near significantly lower and, except for Psychopathic Deviate, within the normal range. The validity scales also demonstrated improvement, although two of the three remained in the clinical range. Discussion and Conclusions. Results indicated that treatment within the TC over this time span was associated with improved mental health. The present study suggests that residential rehabilitation's holistic approach provides a suitable treatment model for clients with co-occurring mental health and substance use disorders.[Polimeni A-M, Moore SM, Gruenert S. Mental health improvements of substance-dependent clients after 4 months in a Therapeutic Community. Drug Alcohol Rev 2010] [source] Nocturnal Haemodialysis , A Preliminary Cost Comparison with Conventional Haemodialysis in AustraliaHEMODIALYSIS INTERNATIONAL, Issue 1 2003JWM Agar A 6 night/wk, home-based, government funded nocturnal haemodialysis (NHDx) program, believed to be the first outside North America, commenced in July 2001. Previously published Canadian and US costs suggest NHDx to be more cost-efficient than conventional haemodialysis (CHDx) as, although consumable-expensive, NHDx is home-based and is thus highly infrastructure, wage and hospital inpatient bed-day efficient. Comparable Australian cost evaluation is essential, however, before NHDx is widely encouraged as a new modality here. Cost comparisons for 3 × wk CHDx vs preliminary costs for 9/12 pts on 6 × wk NHDx (3 excluded for inadequate program time) include: consumables/fluids CHDx @$A8781/pt/yr vs NHDx @$A17562/pt/yr; estimated nursing costs CHDx (62.25 nurse hrs/wk with a nurse/pt ratio of 3:9)@$A12666/pt/yr vs NHDx (40 nurse hrs/wk with a nurse/pt ratio of 1:9)@$A8111/pt/yr with projected reduction to A$4866 for nurse/pt ratio of 1:15; pharmaceutical costs (includes all medication & Fleet® for dialysate but excludes EPO/iron polymaltose) CHDx one month prior to NHDx @$A1412/pt/yr vs NHDx costs after one month starting home-based treatment @$A1273/pt/yr. Though the NHDx pts have been carefully selected, only 3 hospitalizations for a total of 4 bed-days have been necessary in 348.5 pt wks of experience to September 2002. Our preliminary cost analyses confirm prior North American data. Cumulative financial modeling shows NHDx is more costly than CHDx at low pt numbers, reaching approximate equivalence @ 12 pts and progressively dropping below CHDx costs thereafter. NHDx appears cost-competitive with CHDx whilst yielding superior biochemical, life-style and rehabilitation results (see accompanying clinical data abstract). [source] Regime-dependent streamflow sensitivities to Pacific climate modes cross the Georgia,Puget transboundary ecoregionHYDROLOGICAL PROCESSES, Issue 24 2007Sean W. Fleming Abstract The Georgia Basin,Puget Sound Lowland region of British Columbia (Canada) and Washington State (USA) presents a crucial test in environmental management due to its combination of abundant salmonid habitat, rapid population growth and urbanization, and multiple national jurisdictions. It is also hydrologically complex and heterogeneous, containing at least three streamflow regimes: pluvial (rainfall-driven winter freshet), nival (melt-driven summer freshet), and hybrid (both winter and summer freshets), reflecting differing elevation ranges within various watersheds. We performed bootstrapped composite analyses of river discharge, air temperature, and precipitation data to assess El Niño,Southern Oscillation (ENSO) and Pacific Decadal Oscillation (PDO) impacts upon annual hydrometeorological cycles across the study area. Canadian and American data were employed from a total of 21 hydrometric and four meteorological stations. The surface meteorological anomalies showed strong regional coherence. In contrast, the seasonal impacts of coherent modes of Pacific circulation variability were found to be fundamentally different between streamflow regimes. Thus, ENSO and PDO effects can vary from one stream to the next within this region, albeit in a systematic way. Furthermore, watershed glacial cover appeared to complicate such relationships locally; and an additional annual streamflow regime was identified that exhibits climatically driven non-linear phase transitions. The spatial heterogeneity of seasonal flow responses to climatic variability may have substantial implications to catchment-specific management and planning of water resources and hydroelectric power generation, and it may also have ecological consequences due to the matching or phase-locking of lotic and riparian biological activity and life cycles to the seasonal cycle. The results add to a growing body of literature suggesting that assessments of the streamflow impacts of ocean,atmosphere circulation modes must accommodate local hydrological characteristics and dynamics. Copyright © 2007 John Wiley & Sons, Ltd. The copyright in Paul H. Whitfield's contribution belongs to the Crown in right of Canada and such copyright material is reproduced with the permission of Environment Canada. [source] Cultural differences related to positive and negative valenceASIAN JOURNAL OF SOCIAL PSYCHOLOGY, Issue 2 2007Kenji Noguchi Differences between North American and East Asian cultures were examined in terms of the valence of psychological constructs. Americans were more likely than Japanese to focus on positive things. In contrast, Japanese (vs Americans) were more likely to attend to negative information of the self, but not more or less likely to focus on negative things about others. Based on within-culture analyses, the Americans' data were better described by their tendency to focus on positive things over negative things than by their tendency for self-enhancement. In contrast, the Japanese data were better described by their self-critical tendency. This result was replicated in a second study. In addition, correlations between constructs with opposite valences were negative in the USA, but positive or absent in Japan. [source] | ||||||||||