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Biomedical subjects

M MacLachlan

Publications and source records attributed to M MacLachlan.

14 recordsLinked to original sources
PubMed1999

Psychological adjustment and coping in adults with prosthetic limbs.

The potential mediating effects of different coping strategies on the adjustment to living with a prosthetic limb were investigated in 44 adult amputees. Participants completed a questionnaire inquiring about coping, pain, emotional well-being, demographics, and disability-related variables. The coping strategy adopted and the extent of the adjustment to the prosthetic limb varied with age, site of limb loss, and cause of amputation. Furthermore, coping style mediated the adjustment to wearing a prosthetic limb. The results are discussed in terms of future applications and research.

Adaptation, Psychological↗
PubMed1998

Patients' perceptions of chamba (marijuana) use in Malawi.

This study examines the perceptions of the social aspects, triggers, and effects of chamba (marijuana) use among psychiatric patients at Zomba Mental Hospital in Malawi. Focus groups were used to elicit responses from 44 male and 10 female psychiatric patients about their perceptions of chamba use in Malawi. This study provides insight into these patients' perceptions of the triggers and effects of their chamba use, and it has implications for the development of treatment and prevention programs for chamba users in Malawi.

Adult↗
PubMed1997

Tropical illness profiles: the psychology of illness perception in Malawi.

Psychological and social investigations of tropical diseases can make a significant contribution to understanding and managing many illnesses. One-hundred and seventy-five Malawian university students rated peopled who suffered from AIDS, malaria, schistosomiasis and the 'common cold', on 11 psycho-social dimensions related to illness. Analysis of variance and factor analysis was used to distinguish distinctive illness profiles reflecting perceptions of (people with) these illnesses. Results suggested that infirmity was associated with AIDS and that the seriousness of malaria was minimized. Within a context of many threats to health the importance of distinguishing between serious illnesses is emphasized for effective health promotion interventions.

Acquired Immunodeficiency Syndrome↗
PubMed1996

Identifying problems in community health promotion: an illustration of the Nominal Group Technique in AIDS education.

Recognition of the extent and consequences of HIV/AIDS in Africa has resulted in many large scale health promotion programmes. These programmes usually provide information about how to avoid contracting HIV as well as information to dispel false beliefs about the virus. However there also exist anti-health promotion ideas about HIV/AIDS which often challenge the very premises on which health promotion messages are based. Such anti-health promotion ideas may represent reassuring benefits and these are likely to vary not only across cultures but also between different communities and 'at risk' groups within the same culture. The Nominal Group Technique (NGT) is a participative exercise which can be used with small groups to achieve a consensus concerning which anti-health promotion ideas are most influential in terms of encouraging people to ignore health promoting messages. The application of the NGT is illustrated with a group of Malawian students.

Adult↗
PubMed1996

Effects of unreasonable pay discrepancies for under- and overpayment on double demotivation.

The "double demotivation" hypothesis that pay discrepancies decrease work motivation among both lower and higher paid groups was tested in two experiments. In experiment 1, 70 Australian undergraduates received either $1 or $2 to work on an intrinsically rewarding puzzle, with or without knowledge of what amount other participants were receiving. A comparison of participants with a no-payment control showed that participants exhibited significantly reduced intrinsic motivation (seconds spent interacting with the puzzle during a free-choice period) when they knew that they were being under- or overpaid. In experiment 2, 126 occupationally matched Australian workers receiving wages equal to, lower than, or higher than those of counterparts reported their level of job satisfaction and whether they would stay on the job, change jobs, or retire, if given the financial opportunity. Compared with equitably paid workers, employees who felt they were being under- or overpaid reported lower job satisfaction and greater readiness to change jobs. The results provide experimental support for double demotivation, which is relevant not only to international development cooperation but also to Western enterprise bargaining, merit pay, and minority groups in the multicultural workplace.

Analysis of Variance↗
PubMed1995

Attributions for admission to Zomba Mental Hospital: implications for the development of mental health services in Malawi.

Within Malawi, as in many other African countries, a variety of traditional and modern attributions exist regarding the cause of a person's mental disturbance, or their admission to a 'mental' hospital. It is argued that a good mental health service should consider the beliefs of the patients it seeks to serve. Consequently we studied 103 consecutive admissions to Zomba Mental Hospital in order to find out how patients explained their own admission to the hospital. Traditional attributions were the most common, followed by medical and then psychological attributions. Some patients explained their admission to the hospital by combining traditional, medical or psychological ideas. Content analysis of traditional attributions identified examples of "Tropical Tolerance" and the "Pull Down" phenomenon. The possible interactive nature of traditional, medical and psychological processes is discussed and it is suggested that traditional healers should be incorporated into 'modern' Malawian mental health services.

Adolescent↗
PubMed1995

Towards AIDS prevention and education at the University of Malawi.

It is important to develop community orientated approaches to health promotion. Malawi has one of the highest rates of AIDS/HIV infection and one of the lowest percentages of students in tertiary education, in the world. We surveyed the opinions of 175 undergraduate university students on developing prevention and education regarding HIV/AIDS. Descriptive statistics, analysis of variance and factor analysis revealed several important findings: there were no consequential differences between the responses of male and female students; information on self protection was rated as most important for AIDS/HIV education; the primary factor for AIDS/HIV prevention also related to protection, but this was in conjunction with a desire for "sex-perpetuation". These findings should contribute to the development of health promotion initiatives, directed at AIDS/HIV, which reflect the values and concerns of the university student community. Such an approach acknowledges the role of students as a major 'stakeholder' in the university community, rather than dissempowering them as simply the recipients of 'appropriate AIDS/HIV prevention/education'.

Acquired Immunodeficiency Syndrome↗
PubMed1994

Managing the AIDS crisis in Africa: in support of pluralism.

Although substantial evidence is now accumulating that some African peoples readily accept advice and help about health from both modern medical and traditional sources, this has not yet happened with--what is arguably the major health problem in many part of Africa--AIDS. We asked 175 of Malawi's undergraduates what sources they judged to be credible with regard to information on preventing and clinically managing AIDS. While traditional healers were seen on average to be less credible than modern health professionals (doctors and nurses), there was no correspondence between credibility of traditional healers and modern health professionals. Thus a strong belief in the credibility of modern health professionals was not associated with low credibility ratings for traditional healers. Our findings provide further support for "tropical tolerance", especially as regards a pluralistic (modern and traditional together) approach to the prevention of AIDS. Given the over-stretched health services in Malawi and many other African countries, a pluralistic approach to AIDS prevention could be a credible and economic use of indigenous human resources.

Acquired Immunodeficiency Syndrome↗
PubMed1993

Sustaining health service developments in the 'Third World'.

An increasing number of 'third world' health development projects are proving to be unsustainable once foreign aid has been withdrawn. It is argued that this is partly due to the fact that such projects usually deliver health care free of charge rather than allowing communities to incorporate the costs of health care into their local economies. There should be more emphasis on health development projects paying for themselves from the outset. Such projects might also incorporate the extant community based infra-structure of traditional medicine through direct collaboration with its practitioners.

Developing Countries↗
PubMed1993

Palliative versus curative beliefs regarding tropical epilepsy as a function of traditional and medical attributions.

Although epilepsy may be successfully managed with appropriate medication, in Africa epileptics are often vilified, sometimes because of traditional beliefs about the illness. We investigated the strength of beliefs which 112 rural Malawians held regarding traditional and medical explanations for the cause, treatment and cure of epilepsy. Those who believed in traditional causes of epilepsy also endorsed traditional treatment for it, though they did not see such treatment as curative. Those who believed in a medical treatment, did however see such treatment as curative. Knowledge of a local medical facility for the treatment of epilepsy was also positively related to the belief that epilepsy is curable. The ability of people to simultaneously hold medical and traditional beliefs about epilepsy was noted.

Attitude to Health↗
PubMed1992

Managers as social surgeons.

Deals with the Health Service manager's problems of pruning staff in NHS Trust applications. Compares handling staff with a surgeon handling patients pre-, during and post-operations. Concludes that the Health Service manager must consider the key issues of communication, involvement, unambiguity and encouraging the free expression of dissent.

Communication↗
PubMed1991

Psychological aspects of dietary weight loss and medication with the atypical beta agonist BRL 26830A in obese subjects.

Psychological aspects of dieting, including hunger and satiety sensations were explored in obese subjects during a placebo-controlled trial of the weight reducing potential of BRL 26830A, a thermogenic beta-3-agonist drug. Successful weight loss was associated with a reduction in the severity of reported depression. The initial degree of emotional disturbance and level of learned resourcefulness appeared to influence the subsequent weight lost. Subjects described few specific hunger and satiety sensations and these sensations did not generally alter during the trial. BRL 26830A, which promoted weight loss, did not significantly influence hunger and satiety sensations and was not associated with emotional disturbances during dieting. With BRL 26830A there was a reduction in the reported somatic symptoms of anxiety which was not apparent on placebo. These results suggest that the subjects' initial psychological state influences outcome when dieting and also that dynamic changes in psychological parameters occur with successful weight loss. Further, BRL 26830A had no effect on appetite and no adverse influence on the psychological functions tested during this study.

Adrenergic beta-Agonists↗