Resource Tag: UNITED STATES. MICHIGAN

This study examined young adult sequelae of participation in high school activities & identity group for 900 participants from the Michigan Study of Life Transitions. Performing arts participation predicted more years of education as well as increases in drinking between ages 18 & 21, & higher rates of suicide attempts & psychologist visits by the […]

Initial support is outlined for a new scale called the Life Ownership Orientation Questionnaire, which assesses the extent to which one believes that God, the individual, or society has the power to control & govern one’s life. The strength of respondents’ god ownership orientation demonstrated higher predictive validity with regard to attitudes toward abortion, suicide, […]

This article reports on a 1981 study that found Detroit police retirees had a suicide rate that was 10 times higher than the national average for men in the same age group. The author discusses the contribution of severe job stress & emotional trauma sustained on the job to the unusually high suicide rate.

This study evaluated the impact of a mail information campaign on emergency department professionals’ knowledge about the lethal role of firearms in suicide, knowledge of appropriate strategies for warning caregivers of adolescents who have attempted suicide about firearms, & practices with respect to the delivery of such warnings. The pattern of results suggests that the […]

This chapter provides an overview of the most significant developments of the past 5 years in the United States related to the dying process. Because of the significant controversy associated with this issue, the emphasis is placed on situations involving the possibility of physician-assisted death. In order to best convey the trends, the chapter is […]

This article summarizes the controversy surrounding Dr. Jack Kevorkian’s first 20 cases of physician-assisted dying. It discusses major ethical arguments on both sides of the morality of physician-assisted dying for terminal adult patients. It defends Dr. Kevorkian & argues that he enjoys the support of most ordinary Americans but that he is condemmned by most […]

This essay summarizes major legal events concerning assisted suicide over a twelve-month period (ending May 1995) in Michigan. These included the jury acquittal of Dr. Jack Kevorkian, the inconclusive report of the Michigan Commission on Death & Dying, the failure of the state legislature to enact legislation to replace the expired absolute but temporary prohibition, […]

This article discusses a Mighigan law banning assisted suicide & the decision by a County Circuit Judge that effectively overturned the law on narrow procedural grounds. The judge ruled that when the legislation was ammended to make assisted suicide a crime, it violated a provision of the Mighigan Constitution that prohibits amending legislation to change […]

Factors that increase the risk of suicide in urban jails were identified by examining all 37 suicides from 1967-92 in a Detroit jail. Inmates charged with murder or manslaughter were 19 times more likely to commit suicide than were inmates with other charges. All suicides were by hanging & most occurred at night within 31 […]

Telephone hotlines are more often using computerized call answering devices, for example voice mail, as a backup system when all of the counsellors are occupied. This clipping examines how various crisis services in Michigan have implemented these devices & discusses the reactions of both professionals & crisis line callers to this new technology.

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Common Ground is a crisis intervention agency in metropolitan Detroit. This presentation describes the training that volunteers at this agency receive, & the qualities that the agency looks for in volunteers, i.e. they are empathic, non-judgemental & have the ability to set aside personal beliefs to provide effective intervention for the caller. A unique aspect […]

This presentation describes the process used to select volunteers for Common Ground, a crisis centre in Michigan. Screening is held prior to the 3-times yearly training session & is directed by a staff supervisor with volunteers who do the actual screening. Screening is a 4-part process: 1) applicants first interview each other; 2) they then […]

In this letter to the editor, Hook addresses an article by Sedler, “The Constitution in Hastening Inevitable Death” (see SIEC #931008). Contrary to Sedler, Hook argues that physicians should not use their knowledge & skills for the sole purpose of killing, either directly or indirectly, through assisted suicide. He also argues that there is nothing […]

This Letter to the Editor reports on a 1994 survey concerning physician-assisted suicide & presents some of the views of 336 Michigan physicians & 341 Michigan adults. Nature of the questionnaire & survey process are described. In sum, attitudes toward physician-assisted suicide & euthanasia are polarized in Michigan, but the findings reported by the authors […]

This article reports on the Michigan 1990 ruling that Jack Kevorkian committeed no crime in June 1990 by hooking Janet Adkins to a device & watching as she activated the machine that released deadly poisons into her veins. The judge ruled that she caused her own death & noted that Michigan law is “at best […]

This article is a brief biography of Jack Kevorkian. Kevorkian’s ideas about experimentation with human subjects are discussed in some detail.

This article describes an investigation being conducted on the death of Hugh Gale & the assistance provided by Dr. Jack Kevorkian. At issue is the question of whether the patient changed his mind right before death. It reviews previous cases of Kevorkian-assisted suicide & the new Michigan law (February 1993) which makes assisting in a […]

Annas discusses Michigan’s law against assisted suicide passed in February 1993. The law provides for fines &/or imprisonment if a person provides the physical means or participates in a physical act by which another person attempts or commits suicide. Two subsections specify the exceptions to the law. Annas also discusses the difference between Quill, another […]

In a prospective study of a random sample of 1007 young adults, the authors examined the association between migraine and psychiatric disorder, physical complaints, indicators of functional impairment, and use of mental health services. A history of migraine was associated with lifetime rates of major depression, anxiety disorders, illicit drug use, nicotine dependence and suicide […]