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Biomedical subjects

K A Long

Publications and source records attributed to K A Long.

32 records · Page 2Linked to original sources

Pitfalls to avoid and positive approaches in the nurse-adolescent relationship.

The establishment of a therapeutic nurse-adolescent relationship can be facilitated by the nurse's awareness of specific personality characteristics prominent during the adolescent period. These characteristics not only color the adolescent's behavior, but they can elict marked responses from the nurse. Nurses must, therefore, be self-aware if they are to deal with adolescents objectively and therapeutically. Positive approaches to the nurse-adolescent relationship include the establishment of a therapeutic alliance, the use of reality-based limits, and an emphasis on insight-producing communication techniques. Problem areas to be alert for are over-identification with adolescent problems, responses based on surface behaviors, and manipulation by the adolescent. Nurses must also work at decreasing non-therapeutic attitudes such as viewing the adolescent as an "enemy" to be controlled, or as a potential person to be molded according to the nurse's personal goals and aspirations.

Adolescent↗

Detection and treatment of emotionally disturbed children in public schools: problems and theoretical perspectives.

Examined the effect of selected socio-demographic, mental health resource, and school system variables on the identification and treatment of children as emotionally disturbed. An explanatory model is provided, and the Labeling and Social Movements perspectives are examined in terms of their explanatory power. The major finding is that emotionally disturbed children are significantly underdetected and underserved nationally in public school systems, and, specifically, in Maryland and Washington, D.C. Further, results indicate that the attitudes of school system officials and the community in general, as well as the availability of mental health professionals, determine whether school systems detect emotionally disturbed children. When such children are detected, more specialized and expensive services are provided in school districts with higher per capita income, school budget, and proportion of mental health professionals.

Affective Symptoms↗

The experience of repeated and traumatic loss among Crow Indian children: response patterns and intervention strategies.

Crow Indian children residing on the Montana Reservation appear to experience traumatic losses of family members and friends with much greater frequency than children in the population at large. Responses to these losses include interpersonal distancing, and sadness without apparent anger. Assessment and clinical intervention are considered within the sociocultural context of Indian child client and white, middle-class clinician.

Art Therapy↗

Master's degree nursing education and health care reform: preparing for the future.

Current and anticipated changes in health care delivery indicate a need for reform within nursing education. Master's degree education can be a valuable component in the preparation of future nurses, but assessment and revision of existing programs are necessary. The American Association of Colleges of Nursing's position paper, Nursing Education's Agenda for the 21st Century, provides recommendations for educational reform in general and for master's degree education specifically. Overall recommendations include greater focus on the development of unique aspects in each school's mission, emphasis on nursing as a practice discipline, and the inclusion of all aspects--content, processes, and outcomes--in curricular revisions. Master's degree education is reaffirmed as preparation for those who will advance practice. In keeping with health care delivery trends, advanced practice nurses will require substantial expertise in health promotion, primary health care, case management, health care economics, and change strategies. Many questions remain unanswered regarding appropriate future directions for master's degree education. There is little consensus on core knowledge or a single appropriate title for advanced practice nurses. The amount and type of research preparation, and the need for role preparation are other controversial issues. The future holds exciting potential, but there will be significant challenges in program revisioning, faculty redevelopment and clarification of goals and methods for master's degree education.

Curriculum↗

A reality-oriented approach to interdisciplinary work.

Although there is a long history of support in the literature for interdisciplinary education, practice, and research, the actual implementation of such activities has varied greatly. Numerous variables inhibit interdisciplinary work, including a tendency to focus on the many barriers to, rather than opportunities for, such work, a lack of solid data documenting its benefits, the difficulty inherent in finding solutions to the conflicts that arise among the disciplines involved, and organizational reward and regulation systems geared toward single-discipline work. Nonetheless, the goal of interdisciplinary work persists, and there are several notable examples of success. Strategies are outlined for incremental achievement of interdisciplinary aspirations in less-than-ideal environments. These strategies include scanning the environment for promising opportunities, setting realistic goals, building commitment to those goals, avoiding useless battles, and celebrating successes. Specific examples of such strategies as used in the Health Science Center at the University of Florida are provided.

Cooperative Behavior↗

Sex-role stereotyping: implications for the mental health of school-age children.

Theories related to sex-role stereotyping are reviewed, and the implications of these stereotypes for children's mental health are discussed. Attention is given to the impact of particular social trends, including political conservatism and religious fundamentalism. Case examples of children affected by sex-role stereotypes are presented and therapy approaches discussed. Overall intervention strategies are summarized.

Child Behavior Disorders↗

Ethical responsibility for the community's mental health: a professional nursing role.

TOPIC: A review of data from multiple sources indicates a decline in support services for children and families, and an increase in the prevalence of psychiatric disorders as well as psychosocial problems among children. A discussion of trends reveals reforms that are reducing all healthcare expenditures and limiting the provision of publicly funded services. PURPOSE: To discuss the essential values of professional nursing and considers them as a basis for needed nursing action. CONCLUSION: Individual nurses have an ethical responsibility to take social, political, and economic actions to enhance community mental health. Specific strategies and approaches for doing so are presented.

Child↗

Use of the Piers-Harris Self-Concept Scale with Indian children: cultural considerations.

Data from a survey of 241 Montana school children, Indian and white, were used as a basis for examining the psychometric properties of the Piers-Harris Self-Concept Scale. Strong estimates of internal consistency and support for construct validity were found. Studies using the Piers-Harris scale over the past 15 years have indicated that ethnic minority status per se is not related to lower self-concept score and that the scale is a reliable measure for use with minority group children. However, validity of the scale with Indian children warrants further examination, particularly in relation to the differential effects of ethnic culture and social environment on the measurement of self-concept.

Adolescent↗

Predicting alcohol use in rural children: a longitudinal study.

The purposes of this study were to describe the prevalence and correlates of alcohol use and to examine the ability to predict alcohol use among rural sixth- and seventh-grade children. The sample consisted of 625 children from six schools in small Montana towns. Self-administered questionnaires contained measures of sociodemographic characteristics, self-concept, school attitudes, beliefs about the effects of alcohol, and alcohol use. Fifty-eight percent of the children reported using alcohol. Children's beliefs about alcohol were significantly correlated with alcohol use. Logistic regression analysis failed to identify a model having adequate sensitivity and specificity for classifying sixth- and seventh-grade students as "users" and "nonusers" based on variables assessed in Grades 3 and 4. Nevertheless, holding other variables constant, children who displayed both negative self-concept and negative school attitudes in Grades 3 and 4 were most likely to use alcohol in Grades 6 and 7.

Alcohol Drinking↗