Resource Tag: PEOPLE WITH MENTAL DISABILITIES

This article examines the feasibility of the palliative approach for all patients, showing that reasonable people may refuse even the most exemplary care for themselves or an incompetent relative. Palliative care should always have an important place in medicine. Yet medical realities & the alleviation of pointless suffering necessitate that policymakers consider other options, including […]

This entry is a letter to the editor and reply in regards to a commentary about a case study of a person who was in psychoanalysis since childhood.

This study aimed to evaluate a peripheral serotonergic marker, 3H-imipramine binding to platelet membranes, in a group of severly aggressive subjects, institutionalized since childhood for mental retardation, as compared with suicide attempters and healthy controls. The data provide supporting evidence for the hypothesis of an abnormality of the 5HT system in aggressive behaviour and suggest […]

Cognitive behaviour therapy for depression & its adaptation for people with intellectual disability is reviewed. Two case studies are used to illustrate the clinical applications. All the elements of the therapy were maintained & simplified. Both subjects were able to monitor their feelings of depression & subject 2 also monitored the frequency of suicidal thoughts. […]

The case history of Kim, a 36-year-old woman, is presented. Kim has been diagnosed as being mildly retarded & suffering from major depression. Kim expressed suicidal ideation following her mother’s death, & more recently, after the termination of a close friendship. Commentary on this case is provided by Drs. Rowland Barrett & Anne Walters, & […]

The revision of DSM-III & changes in policies of third-party payers have sensitized clinicians to the presence of psychopathology among mentally retarded persons. The authors discuss the relationship between mental illness & mental retardation, & review recent research on the diagnosis of specific psychiatric disorders in these patients. Some problems, such as psychoses & phobias, […]

Presents case reports of 4 patients (aged 10-28 years when admitted to hospital) with IQs below 50 who displayed suicidal behaviour. The cases refute the notion that the severely mentally handicapped are unable to form such an intention & demonstrate that the subjects were able to appreciate that the outcome of the behaviour could cause […]

This article analyzes the suicidal behavior of eight people with mental handicaps and a concomitant diagnosis of mental illness. These patients had all been referred to an inpatient psychiatric facility. The authors present an analysis of each individual, as well as diagnostic and treatment strategies. A five year follow-up was also conducted. (VM)

This article discusses the legal implications of suicide for persons with disabilities, or the “new illegimates” (i.e. those with few legal rights or public benefits). Also included are those with impaired consciousness, the old & infirm, those with mental illness, & racial minorities & the poor. The author argues that if assisted suicide were legalized, […]

The author of this article argues that many people who argue for euthanasia have a hidden agenda: they are arguing for cost-effectiveness. He asserts that allowing assisted suicide would get rid of an array of socially devalued & disadvantaged people, such as people with disabilities, the elderly, & sick people. The case of Elizabeth Bouvia, […]

309 police officers in Cincinnati & Hamilton County, Ohio were asked about their contacts with mentally ill individuals & about their need for various kinds of information & assistance from the mental health system. Police officers indicated they most needed information about an individual’s history of violence or suicide attempts & quick on-site assistance by […]

113 adolescents, age 10-21, with developmental disabilities were studied. There were more moderate than profoundly retarded individuals & more younger than older but no unusual patterns regarding sex or race. A wide range of psychopathology was noted with conduct disorders being prominent but very little drug/alcohol abuse, suicide & anorexia. There is only a tendency […]

This volume is 5th in a series of 8 compiled following the 7th World Congress of Psychiatry held in Vienna in 1983. Topics include: child psychiatry, pediatric neuropsychiatry, treatment in child psychiatry, psychopharmaca, social & transcultural issues, the immigrant child, puerperal mental illness, mental retardation, and geriatric psychiatry; dementia, psychophysiological disorders, neurotransmitters in dementia, psychopharmacology, […]

The author discusses various ways in which the government policy of apartheid has an impact on the people of the country. Apartheid policy affects people psychologically, politically, socially, economically & medically. Agencies who support the government should be exposed & condemned. Mental health professionals must work to expose, condemn & reverse the major public health […]

Cases of involuntary committment in 1963-64 were followed up over 15 years with regard to subsequent offences & convictions, hospital admission & death. 9% could not be traced: of the remainder, 16% had died, a quarter of them by suicide. History of criminality following release is discussed. (NBB)

The author explores the risk of suicide among those with mental & physical handicaps. He stresses the importance of acceptance & compassion on the part of those caring for this type of client. This is a summary of a paper presented to the 17th Annual Meeting of the AAS held in Anchorage, Alaska, May 2-5, […]

This article discusses the emotional & behavioral adjustment of adults & young adults with physical handicaps and/or chronic physical illnesses. Significant areas examined are (1) the degree of handicap as it relates to the degree of adjustment; i.e., those with milder forms of disability appear to show greater maladjustment as disparity between abilities & expectations […]

A pilot study of suicidal behavior among mentally handicapped individuals was conducted, using case records of 12 clients selected by the University of Calgary’s BST.(7 males, 5 females, aged 17-45) Several demographic variables were compared. Findings indicated that attempts were preceded in most cases by a period of frustration & stress. Lack of cognitive ability […]

This article presents a description of & comments on the behavior therapy oriented treatment used for an 8-year old retarded boy whose aggression was dangerously self-destructive. By means of very short frequent sessions the self-destructive behaviours could be reduced.