Analytical reviews Assignment Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 1000 words - 3

Analytical reviews - Assignment Example In the first section China, the Islamic world, Japan and Russia are all considered first, and then the narrative leads into the emergence of Europe and the Habsburg empire in particular. The period 1660 -1815 is identified as introducing â€Å"the financial revolution† which casts the conflicts of that period firmly in the domain of economics. This section is pretty factual, with some theorizing about the close relationship between stable financial systems and the ability to wage wars. The second section develops the thesis that major powers always exist in a shifting state which is relative to other powers around them. He sees the world as being a system which has a sort of inherent balance to it, and describes how the steady rise of Britain was due to good organization and the early application of industrial technology, allowing this tiny country to produce about 53% of the world’s iron, and consume about half of the raw cottono output of the globe (p. 151) This is, h owever, a shortlived achievement, and Britain is presented as a model case study to show how every power wanes when others catch up with the innovations that led it to prominence in the first place. A factor which influences the rise of a global power is that it concentrates more on production than on military strength, and a factor which influences its fall is the converse, as can be seen in the carnage of the first half of the twentieth century. The third section entitled â€Å"Today and Tomorrow† is the most insightful, because it traces the two world wars, the cold war, and the tensions that existed in the 1960s to 1980s between several world powers such as America, Europe, Russia and Japan. The book ends just before the fall of the Berlin Wall and the extraordinary collapse of Communism across wide tracts of the globe, which means that there is unfortunately no analysis of the rebalancing effect that this has had. Using the models presented earlier in the book, however, the reader is able to deduce that yet again the world has settled into a new balance of power, and yet again the declining superpower (America) is falling into the usual trap of investing in military campaigns. The strength of this book is in the sweeping connections it makes and the insight into relative power in the world. Part Two: Orientalism. Edward Said’s book, Orientalism, is justly famous because it approached world history from a refreshingly non-Western perspective and caused historians across the globe to re-evaluate all the history books that had been written with a largely unconscious Western bias. Said’s main thesis is that the concept of â€Å"orientalism† and labels like the East, Far East and Middle East are a fabrication of Western societies. He argues that the West sees itself as the norm, and the standard to which every culture should aspire, and that the colonial age deepened this instinctive feeling of superiority. The East is defined as a distant space which is â€Å"other† than the dominant West. It is cast in the role of contrast, displaying opposite features so that the West can compare itself, favorably of course, with a cultural counterpart. The book makes some strong points which are critical of Western European hegemony, and especially of French

Summary Essay Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 250 words - 45

Summary - Essay Example People always perceive that the city life is luxurious and convenient. Even though, this might be true, this is not always the case. For instance, in Aesop’s fable, the country mouse proved to the town mouse that town life is not always reliable as perceived since he could not even have a meal in peace (Carroll 1). This fable was widespread in the Classical era (Carroll 1). Artists such as Horace incorporated the fable in his satires concluding his stories with quotes from Aesop’s fable. Nevertheless, writers from the 12th century, such as Walter of England, contributed most to adapting Aesop’s fable. Aesop was a fabulist credited with numerous fables that are collectively referred to as Aesop’s Fables (Carroll 1). According to historians, Aesop might or might have not written his fables. However, his Romantic writings confirm that he wrote his own works and he should be given credit for writings that seem so contemporary yet

Homosocial Communication Practices Essay Example for Free

Homosocial Communication Practices Essay The issue on mixed or single gender school has raised very many arguments; interestingly there is no profound truth that single-sex schools provide quality education compared to mixed school. But mainly the choice of school depends on where the parent fill their child won’t get good education. The school choice can as well be determined by the individual child’s abilities and weaknesses. Being a parent with a school going girl child, and with much interest to sent her to a public school, my choice would be in a K-12 single-sex school for girls. The reasons behind my decision are that single-sex educational setting often controls student’s academic ability. Girls and boys do better in single-sex schools than in mixed-sex schools (Becker, 2001). Single-sex girl’s schools provide them with confidence and achievement; this is evident since they can take non-traditional courses considered for boys especially advanced mathematics and Physics. The girls have freedom of expression in absence of boys who would make jokes upon what the girls say assuming they where in a mixed class thus learning becomes more comfortable (Forgasz Leder, 1995). Better expression gives the girls the much desired inside to conceptualize scientific concepts. There is also a better teacher-student relationship because teaches do not compare between different sexes. The single-sex class setting provides and creates very many opportunities that cannot exist in mixed classes, these opportunities result to better understanding of life concepts Teaches in single-sex schools undergo specialized training on how to interact with the students thus a one-to-one specialized handling of issues which would otherwise not be solved in a mixed gender school, test scores and grades improve significantly (Forgasz, Leder, 1995). The major disadvantage of same sex school for my child is that they lack enough exposure in interacting with opposite sexes; this reduces their level of maturity and even self-discipline. These can result in shy behavior traits since they lack exposure Later in life it becomes a big challenge interacting with men since they lacked the exposure, do not understand their beliefs and way of life from their early ages. Emotional development is as well not fully established in their lives (Haag, 2000). The establishment of single sex schools means that districts must have twice the number of school as opposed to if they had mixed sex schools within the same district. The number of teacher employed is twice even if classes are small and uneconomical teaching. These would result to a nightmare in timetabling, logistical and budget challenges. This could affect the quality of education being offered within the institutions. The required same-sex education skills and extra training provided to the teachers handling these classes may not be provided and the full benefits of the single-sex school may not be accomplished in the long run (Edison Penelope 1982). In conclusion, though same sex school offer children all the opportunities to effectively explore and maximize their potentials in an open and friendly environment, they mainly equip the young ones with one side of what they need in life which is the academics and offer less of other life knowledge skills required later in live. So as parents we must be considerate on our children whole being without laying much emphasis on the academics and ignoring the social part of life. References Edison T. Penelope T. (1982). The independent school experience: aspects of the normative environment of single-sex. Journal of Educational Psychology. Becker, J. R. (2001). Single-gender schooling in the public sector in California: Promise and practice. Forgasz, H. J. , Leder, G. C. (1995). Single-sex mathematics classes: Who benefits? Lawrence Erlbaum Associates. . Haag, P. (2000). K-12 single-sex education: What does the research say? ERIC Digest.

Health Policy And The Social Determinants

Health Policy And The Social Determinants INEQUALITIES IN MENTAL HEALTH Introduction and definitions: Mental health is described by the World Health Organization (WHO) as: a state of well-being in which the individual realizes his or her own abilities, can cope with the normal stresses of life, can work productively and fruitfully, and is able to make a contribution to his or her community (WHO 2001a, p.1). According to NHS website every year in the UK, more than 250,000 people are admitted to psychiatric hospitals and over 4,000 people commit suicide (http://www.nhs.uk/conditions/mental-health/Pages/Introduction.aspx , accessed 20-4-2010) Mental health inequality is a long standing problem that has been tackled for decades by epidemiologists, sociologists and health professionals. And because this problem has both strong social and health aspect there is no unified approach to identification and resolution. From Sociologists viewpoint inequality with mental health is a problem that has two main explanations: people are poor because they have mentally illness that makes them unable to keep work probably (social selection), or they become mentally ill under the stress of being poor (social causation). However, in modern psychiatry other factors are believed to involve in the etiology such as genetic factors, diet, and hormonal disturbance which interact with personality disorders or emotional state to produce mental illness. The problem of inequality is not only about serious mental illness but we can expand the definition of mental health inequality to include everyday feelings which is considered by United Kingdom Department of Health to be public health indicator: How people feel is not an elusive or abstract concept, but a significant public health indicator; as significant as rates of smoking, obesity and physical activity (Mental Well-being Impact Assessment ,2009) The table below gives examples of those factors that promote or reduce opportunities for good mental health (DOH 2001): MENTAL HEALTH PROTECTIVE FACTORS INTERNAL PROTECTIVE FACTORS EXTERNAL PROTECTIVE FACTORS EMOTIONAL RESILIENCE physical health self esteem/positive sense of self ability to manage conflict ability to learn CITIZENSHIP a positive experience of early bonding positive experience of attachment ability to make, maintain and break relationships communication skills feeling of acceptance EMOTIONAL RESILIENCE basic needs met food, warmth, shelter CITIZENSHIP societal or community validation supportive social network positive role models employment HEALTHY STRUCTURES positive educational experiences safe and secure environment in which to live supportive political infrastructure live within time of peace (absence of conflict) MENTAL HEALTH DEMOTING/VULNERABILITY FACTORS INTERNAL VULNERABLE FACTORS EXTERNAL VULNERABLE FACTORS EMOTIONAL RESILIENCE congenital illness, infirmity or disability lack of self esteem and social status feeling of helplessness problems with sexuality or sexual orientation CITIZENSHIP poor quality of relationships feeling of isolation feeling of institutionalisation experience of dissonance, conflict, or alienation EMOTIONAL RESILIENCE needs not being met hunger, cold, homelessness/poor housing conditions etc. experience separation and loss experience of abuse or violence substance misuse family history of psychiatric disorder CITIZENSHIP cultural conflict experience of alienation discrimination the negative experience of being stigmatised lack of autonomy the negative experience of peer pressure unemployment HEALTHY STRUCTURES value systems effects of poverty negative physical environment Table 1: factors that promote or reduce opportunities for good mental health What is the evidence on mental health inequalities? Socio-economic status: Community-based epidemiological studies across countries and over time have consistently identified an inverse relationship between Socio-economic status and prevalence rates of schizophrenia .The ratio between the current prevalence (defined as period prevalence up to one-year prevalence) of the disorder among low-SES and high-SES people was 3.4, whereas the ratio for lifetime prevalence was 2.4 (Saraceno et al,2005), and in Britain, twice as many suicides occur among people from the most lower SES (Blamey A et al ,2002). There are five hypotheses to explain this relation (Hudson 2005): Hypothesis 1: Economic stress. The inverse SES-mental illness correlation is a speci ¬Ã‚ c outcome of stressful economic conditions, such as poverty, unemployment, and housing unaffordability. Hypothesis 2: Family fragmentation. The inverse SES-mental illness correlation is a function of the fragmentation of family structure and lack of family supports. Hypothesis 3: Geographic drift. The inverse SES-mental illness correlation results from the movement of individuals from higher to lower SES communities subsequent to their initial hospitalization. Hypothesis 4: Socioeconomic drift. The inverse SES-mental illness correlation results from declining employment subsequent to initial hospitalization. Hypothesis 5: Intergenerational drift. The inverse SES-mental illness correlation is a function of declines in community SES levels of hospitalized adolescents between their  ¬Ã‚ rst hospitalization and their most recent hospitalization after turning 18 Age: In elderly: National Institute for Mental Health in England (NIMHE) has reported the following point regarding mental health problems in elderly : 3million older people in the UK experience symptoms of mental health problems the annual economic burden of late onset dementia is  £4.3 billion which is greater than that for stroke, cancer and heart disease combined dementia affects 5% of those aged over 65 and 20% over 80 10-15% of all older people meet the clinical criteria for a diagnosis of depression these numbers are set to increase by a third over the next 15 years (NIMHE, 2009). Mental health problems in elderly often go unrecognised. Even where they are acknowledged, they are often inadequately or inappropriately managed (DH 2005c). The UK inquiry into mental health and well-being in later life (2006) identified five factors that influence the mental health of older people: discrimination (for example, by age or culture); participation in meaningful activity; relationships; physical health (including physical capability to undertake everyday tasks); and poverty. in children : WHO states, that the à ¢Ã¢â€š ¬Ã… ¾development of a child and adolescent mental health policy requires an understanding of well-being and the prevalence of mental health problems among children and adolescents(child and adolescent mental health policy, 2006) However, there is an evidence that levels of distress and dysfunction during childhood are considerably high between 11 per cent and 26 per cent, while the severe cases that require interventions are around 3-6 per cent of people under 16 years of age (Bird et al.1988; Costello et al. 1988). Emotionally disturbed children are exposed to abuse or neglect in their family of origin, with estimates up to 65 per cent (Zeigler-Dendy,1989). Gender: Women and Mental Health Mental health problems are more common among women than men with higher incidence rates of depressive disorder than men (Palmer, 2003). There are many factors to explain this, first: Socio-economic factors such as poverty and poor housing conditions cause greater stress and fear of future amongst women. lack of confidence and self-esteem may be the results of educational factors such negative school experiences , Living in unsafe neighbourhoods cause stress and anxiety amongst women , dependency on prescription drugs (for depressive and sleeping disorders) often leads to anxiety. Men and Mental Health Men tend to be more vulnerable to mental health problems and suicide than ever before due for a number of reasons including: Men in general are less likely to talk about their problems or feelings or to admit that they have depression. Men are less likely to seek help for mental and emotional health problems. Unemployment has a greater impact on men in general. Some mental disorders are more serious in men for example suicide is the leading cause of death among young men. The rate for young men aged 10-24 years is higher among those from deprived communities compared with those from affluent communities. Men also experience earlier onset of schizophrenia with poorer clinical outcomes (Piccinelli, 1997) Risk groups for mental illness in men include (DHSSPS,2004): Older men: they are less willing to use health services because of the perception that these services are for older women. Divorced men because they have less support available from family , and services designed to meet the needs of this group is particularly. Male victims of domestic abuse -especially boys in rural areas. Gay and bisexual men few services are available to help men deal with problems such as homophobic bullying and harassment. Male survivors of sexual abuse lack of co-ordinated support for adult survivors of abuse Fathers despite examples of good practice, men have comparatively less access to support services than women, to enable them to cope with the stresses of parenthood. Bereaved men lack of appropriate services specifically targeted at men who have experienced bereavement. Men in rural areas particularly isolated in terms of service access. Young offenders inadequate psychological services in juvenile justice centres despite the high proportion of young people entering the juvenile system with a range of mental health problems. Ethnic group: A review by Commission for Healthcare Audit and Inspection,( Count me in, 2009) noted that Rates of admission were lower than the national average among the White British, Indian and Chinese groups, and were average for the Pakistani and Bangladeshi groups. They were higher than average among other minority ethnic groups particularly in the Black Caribbean, Black African, Other Black, White/Black Caribbean Mixed and White/Black African Mixed groups with rates over three times higher than average, and nine times higher in the Other Black group. Employment Status and Mental Health Having a job helps to maintain better mental health than not having one, but this is not always true as many factors involve For example, jobs which are unsatisfactory or insecure can be as harmful to health as unemployment (Wilkinson et al , 2003). Anxiety about job security, lack of job control, perceived effort-reward imbalance, negative relationships in the workplace, including bullying and harassment can have negative mental health consequences. According to OSC Health Inequalities Review (2006) people with a common mental disorder are five times more likely to be unemployed, and if they have work they are more likely to be excluded, people with an identified mental health problem are twice as likely to be on income support and four to five times more likely to be getting invalidity benefits. A person with a diagnosis of a psychotic illness leaves him with only a one in four chance of being in employment. Geographic variation: Studies result on geographic variation of mental illness are inconsistent , for example Hollie has concluded that In mental health problems there is substantial variation at the household level but with no evidence of postcode unit variation and no association with residential environmental quality or geographical accessibility. It is believed that in common mental disorder the psychosocial environment is more important than the physical environment (Hollie et al, 2007) On the other hand, a recent Swedish study of 4.4 million adults found that the incidence rates of psychosis and depression rose with increasing levels of urbanisation (Sundquist K.et al.,2004). Another study by Royal Commission on Environmental Pollution shows that people from densely populated areas had a 68-77% and 12-20% higher risk of developing any psychotic illness and depression respectively when compared to a control group in rural areas. Within urban areas the rates for psychoses map closely those for deprivation and the size of a city also matters; in London schizophrenia rates are about twice those in Bristol or Nottingham (Royal Commission on Environmental Pollution, 2007a, 2007b). Disability and Mental Health: Definition: According to Disability Discrimination Act (1995) (DDA) A person has a disability if he has a physical or mental impairment which has substantial and long-term adverse affect on his ability to carry out normal day to day activities In the light of this definition we can focus on mental health inequality of three groups of people: à ¢Ã¢â€š ¬Ã‚ ¢ People suffer socio-economic disadvantage caused by stigma and discrimination associated with their mental health problems. à ¢Ã¢â€š ¬Ã‚ ¢ People with both mental health problems and physical disabilities. à ¢Ã¢â€š ¬Ã‚ ¢ People with physical disabilities, whose experience discrimination and stigma because of their physical impairment and become mentally ill because of this experience. Disabled people are more likely to experience stress and emotional instability than those who are not disabled. a report by the Equality Commission for Northern Ireland (2003) has found that whilst 34% of those who were not disabled had experienced quite a lot or a great deal of stress in the last 12 months prior to the survey, the percentage rose to 52% for disabled people. Experiences of depression within the last 12 months were higher among women who were disabled (44%) than men (34%). Conclusion: Inequality in mental health is as important as any other form of health inequality, however the interaction between social and personal level in mental illness makes it more difficult to address different kinds of mental health Inequalities associated with it. Question 2 : word count (2000) Tackling inequalities in mental health Introduction: Mental illness, among other disorders, is widely considered as a significant determinant of both health and social outcomes and many studies have spotted mental health disorders as both consequence and cause of inequalities and social exclusion. Mental health diseases have two distinct characteristics as a public health problem: first very high rates of prevalence; secondly : onset is usually at a much younger age than for other health problem , Mental health diseases effects all areas of peoples lives : personal relationships, employment, income and educational performance. (Friedli and Parsonage , 2007; McDaid , 2007) Who is at risk for mental health problems? Defining risk groups enables policies makers to determine how to manage available resources to achieve better health equality. Furthermore, these groups are the main targets for health equality promotional programs. A review of recent evidences on mental health inequalities can help to define the large groups at risk: à ¢Ã¢â€š ¬Ã‚ ¢ People living in institutional settings: such as care homes or those in secure care or subject to detention. à ¢Ã¢â€š ¬Ã‚ ¢ People living in unhealthy settings and who may not be reached by traditional health care such as veterans or the homeless. à ¢Ã¢â€š ¬Ã‚ ¢ People with physical and/or mental illness, people misusing drugs, people with alcohol problems, people who are victims of violence and abuse. à ¢Ã¢â€š ¬Ã‚ ¢children whose parents have problems with alcohol or with drugs, children whose parents have a mental illness and looked after and accommodated children, à ¢Ã¢â€š ¬Ã‚ ¢ People from groups who experience discrimination. Key policies: These policies can be long term policies focusing on deep change over long period or short term seeking fast results such as health promotion. Long term aims: Inequalities in mental health are not only about equality of access, but also about quality of access. In the year 2009 Mental Health Foundation has published a report on resilience and inequalities in mental health (Mental Health, Resilience and Inequalities ,2009) This report mentioned four priorities for action: 1-Social, cultural and economic conditions that support family life: This can be done by reduce child poverty , parenting skills training and high quality preschool education , increasing access to safe places for children to play, especially outdoors, inter-agency partnerships to reduce violence and sexual abuse. 2- Education that helps children both economically and emotionally by: schools health promoting programs, involving teachers, pupils, parents and supporting parents to improve the home learning environment (HLE) support social, sports and creative achievements, as well as academic performance 3- Reduce unemployment and poverty levels and promote and protect mental health by: Supporting efforts to improve pay, work conditions and job security. Facilitate early referral to workplace based support for employees with psychiatric symptoms or personal crises to prevent employment breakdown. 4- Tackle economic and social problems, which cause the psychological distress. Such as housing/transport problems, isolation, debt, beside that art and leisure centres can help to reduce stress too. However, these strategies take long time to be effective, that means the need for more rapid actions or short term aims. Short term aims: Mental health promotion: To build an effective strategy to promotion for health equality the following points should be achieved: à ¢Ã¢â€š ¬Ã‚ ¢ Comprehensive: Mental Health promotion is not only the responsibility of health services alone; other sectors of society should join that effort. à ¢Ã¢â€š ¬Ã‚ ¢ Based on evidence à ¢Ã¢â€š ¬Ã‚ ¢ Based on the needs of the local communities, and with the agreement of these communities. à ¢Ã¢â€š ¬Ã‚ ¢ Subject to evaluation: The strategy should be subject to critical evaluation and can be changed when necessary. A good example of such strategy is the Mental health national evidence based standards which have been issued by The National Service Framework for Mental Health (DOH 1999). The purpose of these standards is to deal with mental health discrimination and social exclusion associated with mental health problems. And that can be achieved by promotion: promote mental health for the whole society, working with individuals and communities Stop discrimination against individuals and groups with mental health problems, and take steps towards better promotion for their social inclusion. Tackling inequalities for special risk groups: The Suicide prevention strategy: One of the best example is the strategy based on work by (DOH 2002) and The NSPSE (National Suicide Prevention Strategy for England), the report was the result of literature review of suicide prevention programs around the world and has reached the following goals: 1. To reduce the risk in key high-risk group. 2. To promote mental well-being in the wider population. 3. To reduce the availability and lethality of suicide methods. 4. To improve the reporting of suicide behavior in the media. 5. To promote research on suicide and suicide prevention. 6. To improve monitoring of progress towards the target for reducing suicide. Women and Mental Health: Preventing: The results of UK-based survey (Williams, 2002) shows that mental health services for women: Do not meet womens mental health needs. Can replicate inequalities. Can be unsafe for women. Can be insensitive to the effects of gender and other social inequalities, such as race, class and age However, in their response to a survey conducted in England and Wales, women said that they wanted services that: à ¢Ã¢â€š ¬Ã‚ ¢ Keep them feel safe. à ¢Ã¢â€š ¬Ã‚ ¢ Promote empowerment, choice and self-determination. à ¢Ã¢â€š ¬Ã‚ ¢ Place importance on the underlying causes and context of their distress in addition to their symptoms. à ¢Ã¢â€š ¬Ã‚ ¢ Addressee important issues relating to their roles as mothers, the need for safe accommodation and access to education, training and work opportunities. à ¢Ã¢â€š ¬Ã‚ ¢ Value their strengths, abilities and potential for recovery. (DH, 2002a) These points are important to build a need-based action plan for better equality in health services. Men and Mental Health: Preventing: The Equal Minds conference workshop which had special focus on men and mental health listed five service design features targeted at mens mental health and well-being (equal minds, 2005): à ¢Ã¢â€š ¬Ã‚ ¢ Accessibility and flexibility of services regarding time, location. For example, Select places familiar for men, Men Only sessions run by male staff, make use of some activities, such as sport and physical activity programmes. à ¢Ã¢â€š ¬Ã‚ ¢ Holistic approach, works on the person as a whole, not just on mental health. à ¢Ã¢â€š ¬Ã‚ ¢ Early intervention to prevent anxieties and concerns build up, especially in stress and anger management. à ¢Ã¢â€š ¬Ã‚ ¢ Trust and confidence are important to solve problems of identity and role that can underlay mens anxieties and self-perceptions or lack of self-esteem. Ethnicity and Mental Health: Preventing: The main problem in this field was the barriers to access services. Barriers include: à ¢Ã¢â€š ¬Ã‚ ¢ Language. à ¢Ã¢â€š ¬Ã‚ ¢ Stereotyping. à ¢Ã¢â€š ¬Ã‚ ¢ Lack of awareness or understandings of mental illness. The report Inside Outside (Sashidharan, 2003) which addresses mental health services for people from black and minority ethnic communities in England and Wales. Suggest that patients from all minority ethnic groups are more likely than white majority patients: à ¢Ã¢â€š ¬Ã‚ ¢ To follow aversive pathways into specialist mental health care. à ¢Ã¢â€š ¬Ã‚ ¢ To be admitted compulsorily (there are differences also between ethnic groups at all ages). à ¢Ã¢â€š ¬Ã‚ ¢ To be misdiagnosed. à ¢Ã¢â€š ¬Ã‚ ¢ To be prescribed drugs and Electroconvulsive therapy (ECT), more than talking therapies. à ¢Ã¢â€š ¬Ã‚ ¢ To have higher readmission rates and stay for longer periods in hospital. à ¢Ã¢â€š ¬Ã‚ ¢ To be admitted to secure care/forensic environments. à ¢Ã¢â€š ¬Ã‚ ¢ Their social care and psychological needs are less likely to be addressee within the care planning process. à ¢Ã¢â€š ¬Ã‚ ¢ To have worse outcomes. A strategic approach in Ethnicity and Mental Health: In England and Wales a framework have been developed for action for delivering race equality in mental health (DH, 2003b) The framework focuses on three building blocks which are essential to improved outcomes and experiences of people from black and minority ethnic communities: à ¢Ã¢â€š ¬Ã‚ ¢ Information of better quality and more intelligently used. à ¢Ã¢â€š ¬Ã‚ ¢ Services which are more appropriate and responsive. à ¢Ã¢â€š ¬Ã‚ ¢ Increased community engagement In other words any approach should take in consider both quality of health services and the socio-economic disadvantages experienced by people from ethnic communities. Some suggested steps for this approach may include: Providing interpretation and translation services beside mental health service to insure highest possible quality. Adopting equalities practice in mental health services, that mean better understanding for cultural identity, the impact of racism, and culture differences in expression of mental distress. Developing assessment and diagnostic tools that can better assess patients from different backgrounds and ethnicities. Ensuring that services understand and respect spiritual requirements for different cultures. Ensuring access equality to culturally appropriate services including, counseling, psychotherapy and advocacy. Addressing common problem for people from black and minority communities, such as housing, employment, welfare benefits, and child-care. Disability and Mental Health: people with disabilities may experience high levels of socio-economic disadvantage due to discrimination and stigma , this group need a special interest regarding mental health services , they are liable for what Rogers and Pilgrim (2003) described :inequalities created by service provision. Mental health services for disable people should be customized to their needs, some recommendations for such services may include: Promotion for mental health, well-being and living with disability. Early intervention: for people who show symptoms for possible mental illness. Personalised care based on individuals needs and wishes Stigma: work for better social inclusion and tackling stigma and discrimination associated with some disabilities. Elderly and mental health: In order to achieve better equality for this group, policy makers should insure better access to mental health services on the first place. In the year 2005 the Department of Health published a report titled Securing Better Mental Health for Older Adults to launch a new programme to bring together mental health and older peoples policy in order to improve services for older people with mental health problems. The National Directors for older people and mental health promoted the dual principles of: à ¢Ã¢â€š ¬Ã‚ ¢ Delivering non-discriminatory mental health and care services available on the basis of need, not age and à ¢Ã¢â€š ¬Ã‚ ¢ Holistic, person-centred older peoples health and care services which address mental as well as physical health needs Here, it is essential to emphasis the importance of specialist mental health service for older adults. Sexual Orientation and Mental Health: In this group health promotion plays a great role to address the mental problems associated with sexual orientation. PACE organization has drawn up a set of practice guidelines for working with lesbian, gay and bisexual people in mental health services (PACE guideline.2006). The guidelines suggest promoting services and resources specifically for LGB people, including services such counselling and advocacy provided by LGB organisations. In response to these guidelines and studies about LGB such as (McNair et al, 2001). Mental health services for LGB people should: Reflect upon the homophobia and heterosexism that LGBT people may experience within mental health services. Enhance awareness of LGBT people problems, and the forms of discrimination and social exclusion they may face. Consider the nature of a culturally competent for LGBT people Preventing in Mental Health Problems: people with mental health problem are in need for resilience factors that enable them to recover from mental distress and to fight the effects of discrimination and stigma, we can name some of these factors such as confiding relationships, social networks, self-determination, financial security, however, support health services are essential for individual recovery and to achieve socially inclusive accepting communities (Dunn, 1999). Examples for these services can be found in report on Mental Health and Social Exclusion which has been published by Social Exclusion Unit. The report included a 27-point Action Plan aimed at tackling stigma and discrimination, focusing on the role of health and social care in addressing problems of social exclusion, unemployment, and supporting families and community participation through ensuring access to goods and services such as housing, financial advice and transport (SEU,2004). Beyond this report, it is important that policy makers be aware of connection between inequalities and mental health as a result and a cause, this will encourage more holistic approach that aim prevention on the long run. Conclusion: It is essential to put the different recommendations on mental health inequalities into everyday practice , for example a recent study by Glasgow Centre for Population Health found that policies are not driving practice for reducing inequalities in mental health within primary care, and the primary care organization studied is not conducive to addressing inequalities in mental health. (Craig, 2009). For that reason, it is the responsibility of government, health services and health professionals to put these strategies and plans into action to insure a better and healthier society.

The Neurobiology of Memory and Aging Essay -- Science Scientific Essay

The Neurobiology of Memory and Aging "I lost my keys again," my mother exclaimed at dinner a few nights ago, "I really am getting old." This use of old age as a justification for memory deficits is extremely common. Many people relate old age with loss of memory and other neurobiological functions. Why is it that aging seems to go hand in hand with losing and forgetting things? Is there a neurobiological explanation for this phenomenon? It is clear to neurobiologists that aging results in a decrease in brain size as well as a decrease in the efficiency of brain functions. It has been a widely held belief that aging causes neurons to die and for the overall number of neurons to decrease as one reaches old age. Studies conducted by Dr. David Merrill refute this idea, sighting a lack of neuronal loss in the entohinal cortex after running an MRI on a healthy subject. Instead, Merill indicates that loss of neurons may occur in degenerative disorders, such as Alzheimers, but not in healthy brains. However, it remains true that some aspects of cognition do decline as age increases, such as short term and long term memory. Since these effects are not caused by a decrease in the number of neurons present, there must be another neurobiological explanation. In order to understand memory loss it is necessary to understand how memory works in a normal brain without any cognitive deficits. Memory can be separated into three distinct parts: working memory, declarative memory, and procedural memory (1). Working memory is the most short term, and it involves repeating something that someone has just said in conversation or remembering something you had just seen briefly. This part of memory does not ever become fully sto... ...mplex.. http://psych.wisc.edu/postlab/Psych733/Nadel_Moscovitch.1997.pdf 4)Nadel and Moscovitch. "Memory Consolidation, Retrograde Amnesia and the Hippocampal Complex.. http://psych.wisc.edu/postlab/Psych733/Nadel_Moscovitch.1997.pdf 5) The Symptoms of Alzheimer's. . http://www.diseases-explained.com/Alzheimers/symptomsalzheime.html 6) Greenwood. . http://sln.fi.edu/brain/nutrition/carbohydrates/brainpower.html 7) Alzheimer's Secondary Victims. . http://sites.unc.edu/error.html 8)Alipoprotein E. . http://home.mira.net/~dhs/apoe.html 9) Determining the Cause of Memory Loss in the Elderly . http://www.postgradmed.com/issues/1999/10_15_99/welsh.htm 10)Stress tied to Memory Loss . http://www.academicpress.com/inscight/04221998/grapha.htm 11)University of Kuopio, Series Reports, Department of Neurology . http://www.uku.fi/neuro/39abs.htm The Neurobiology of Memory and Aging Essay -- Science Scientific Essay The Neurobiology of Memory and Aging "I lost my keys again," my mother exclaimed at dinner a few nights ago, "I really am getting old." This use of old age as a justification for memory deficits is extremely common. Many people relate old age with loss of memory and other neurobiological functions. Why is it that aging seems to go hand in hand with losing and forgetting things? Is there a neurobiological explanation for this phenomenon? It is clear to neurobiologists that aging results in a decrease in brain size as well as a decrease in the efficiency of brain functions. It has been a widely held belief that aging causes neurons to die and for the overall number of neurons to decrease as one reaches old age. Studies conducted by Dr. David Merrill refute this idea, sighting a lack of neuronal loss in the entohinal cortex after running an MRI on a healthy subject. Instead, Merill indicates that loss of neurons may occur in degenerative disorders, such as Alzheimers, but not in healthy brains. However, it remains true that some aspects of cognition do decline as age increases, such as short term and long term memory. Since these effects are not caused by a decrease in the number of neurons present, there must be another neurobiological explanation. In order to understand memory loss it is necessary to understand how memory works in a normal brain without any cognitive deficits. Memory can be separated into three distinct parts: working memory, declarative memory, and procedural memory (1). Working memory is the most short term, and it involves repeating something that someone has just said in conversation or remembering something you had just seen briefly. This part of memory does not ever become fully sto... ...mplex.. http://psych.wisc.edu/postlab/Psych733/Nadel_Moscovitch.1997.pdf 4)Nadel and Moscovitch. "Memory Consolidation, Retrograde Amnesia and the Hippocampal Complex.. http://psych.wisc.edu/postlab/Psych733/Nadel_Moscovitch.1997.pdf 5) The Symptoms of Alzheimer's. . http://www.diseases-explained.com/Alzheimers/symptomsalzheime.html 6) Greenwood. . http://sln.fi.edu/brain/nutrition/carbohydrates/brainpower.html 7) Alzheimer's Secondary Victims. . http://sites.unc.edu/error.html 8)Alipoprotein E. . http://home.mira.net/~dhs/apoe.html 9) Determining the Cause of Memory Loss in the Elderly . http://www.postgradmed.com/issues/1999/10_15_99/welsh.htm 10)Stress tied to Memory Loss . http://www.academicpress.com/inscight/04221998/grapha.htm 11)University of Kuopio, Series Reports, Department of Neurology . http://www.uku.fi/neuro/39abs.htm

Lorraine Glass :: essays research papers

Landscape Writing and the Lorrain Glass   Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Looking through my Lorrain glass I saw different moods of a scene. I sat on top of my car and looked out over a field of apple trees, raspberry bushes, and pumpkin patches. At the end of the fields was a huge white house with a ton of windows. The house had a wide porch that went all the way around to the back. I couldn't see much detail from such a great distance, but the smoke coming out of the chimney told me there was someone inside.   Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  I chose three different colors to put into my Lorrain glass. Red, yellow, and green slates of color all gave a different feeling to the picture I was creating in my frame. It was almost like a snap shot. I chose colors that I thought were drastically different to give a different feeling for the same scene.   Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Each slate did give a different feeling, but they looked similar in shape. Through the cellophane wrap, when the wind blew, the images seemed to wave. They had a small slant and looked as if they were moving. It was about 4 p.m. and the sun was just going down. The sun would hit the Lorrain Glass and made the image bright.   Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚   The red piece of cellophane made me feel hot. I felt that the sun coming through made it seem even warmer. It gave me a feeling of desert warmth with no water in sight. All the trees looked bare and dead. The yellow piece of paper made everything seem sunny and bright. The house looked full of light. I could picture in my mind the owner of the house having a glass of lemonade on the porch. The trees, the house, and the pumpkins all seem to come to life. They looked full and lively. The green cellophane seemed kind of cold and dark. The sun coming through of course made it seem a little brighter but it still had that sense of dreariness. The pumpkins looked rotted and old, the trees appeared bare with bad apples around its base, and the house just seemed to blend into the back round.

Thugs in Ancient India

Thugs In Accient India On a well-worn road through central India, Lieutenant Subhani of the Bengal Native Infantry and his three traveling companions were nearing the final leg of their journey. Ordinarily the Lieutenant would have only his pair of loyal orderlies to keep him company as he traveled, but today a third man walked alongside hishorse—a stranger who had joined him only that morning. The year was 1812, and the pleasant October weather made for an easy trek. Subhani knew these roads could be dangerous for travelers, especially at this time of year, but he was untroubled. Trained soldiers and well-armed, he and his men were an unlikely target for roving bandits. But a much greater threat loomed over them on that dusty road, closer at hand than the travelers could have possibly conceived. Accounts of a secret cult of murderers roaming India go back at least as far as the 13th century, but to modern history their story usually begins with the entrance of the British Empire in the early 1800s. For some years, India’s British administrators had been hearing reports of large numbers of travelers disappearing on the country’s roads; but, while disturbing, such incidents were not entirely unusual for the time. It was not until the discovery of a series of eerily similar mass graves across India that the truth began to dawn. Each site was piled with the bodies of individuals ritually murdered and buried in the same meticulous fashion, leading to an inescapable conclusion: these killings were the work of a single, nation-spanning organization. It was known as Thuggee. At its root, the word â€Å"Thuggee† means â€Å"deceivers,† and this name hints at the methods employed by the cult. Bands of Thugs traveled across the country posing as pilgrims, merchants, soldiers, or even royalty, in groups numbering anywhere from a few men to several hundred. Offering protection or company, they would befriend fellow travelers and slowly build their confidence along the road. Often the impostors would journey for days and hundreds of miles with their intended victims, patiently waiting for an opportunity to strike. When the time was right, typically while their targets were encamped and at their most relaxed, a signal would be given—reportedly â€Å"Bring the tobacco†Ã¢â‚¬â€and the Thugs would spring. Each member had a well-honed specialty; some distracted their quarry, some made noise or music to mask anycries, while others guarded the campsite from intruders and escapees. Thugs of the highest rank performed the actual killings. As a prohibition against shedding blood was at the core of Thuggee belief, the murders were performed in a bloodless fashion. The usual method was strangulation with a rumal, the yellow silk handkerchief each thug wore tied around his waist; but an occasional neck-breaking or poisoning helped to add some variety. It was a matter of honor for the Thugs to let no one escape alive once they had been selected for death. Lieutenant Subhani and his orderlies had spent the previous night as guests at the home of Ishwardas Moti, a prestigious cotton merchant and local official. There he had been introduced to another of Moti’s guests, the man who was traveling with him now. Moklal was his name—a business associate of Moti’s, he was told, and one he had spoken of most highly. â€Å"Narsinghpur! † Moti had exclaimed upon hearing the Lieutenant's destination, â€Å"What a fortunate coincidence! Moklal is traveling that way as well. Perhaps you could go with him for the extra protection? † Subhani, though reluctant to take on a civilian traveling companion, did not wish to offend his host—and at any rate, Moklal seemed amiable enough. He agreed. For the members of Thuggee, murder was both a way of life and a religious duty. They believed their killings were a means of worshiping the Hindu goddess Kali, who was honored at each stage of the murder by a vast and complex system of rituals and superstitions. Thugs were guided to their victims by omens observed in nature, and once the deed was done, the graves and bodies were prepared according to strict ceremonies. A sacrificial rite would be conducted after the burial involving the consecration of sugar and of the sacred pickax, the tool the brotherhood believed was given to them by Kali to dig the graves of their prey. Thugs were certainly not above robbing their victims, but traditionally a portion of the spoils would be set aside for the goddess. Kali, despite her fearsome appearance, is not an evil deity. For more mainstream Hindus, she is a goddess of time and transformation who can impart understanding of life, death, and creation. To the members of the Thuggee cult, she was something else entirely. Their Kali craved human blood, and demanded endless sacrifice to satisfy her hunger. According to Thuggee legend, Kali once battled a terrible demon which roamed the land, devouring humans as fast as they were created. But every drop of the monster’s blood that touched the ground spawned a new demon, until the exhausted Kali finally created two human men, armed with rumals, and instructed them to strangle the demons. When their work was finished, Kali instructed them to keep the rumals in their family and use them to destroy every man not of their kindred. This was the tale told to Thuggeeinitiates. All Thugs were male, and membership in the cult was hereditary apart from a few outsiders allowed to join voluntarily and some young boys captured in raids. Around their tenth birthday, the sons of Thugs would be invited to witness their first murder, but only from a distance. Gradually over the years they could strive to achieve the rank of bhuttote, or strangler. Thuggee membership was for life, all the way up to the elderly Thugs who still did what they could for the group as cooks or spies—yet the wives and daughters of these men might never know the truth about the male members of their family. Their extreme secrecy combined with their mastery of murder made the Thugs the deadliest secret society in all of history. In the early 19th century they were credited with 40,000 deaths annually, stretching back as far as anyone cared to count. Some estimates put the overall death toll as high as 2,000,000, but with the cult potentially operating for more than 500 years before formal records were kept, the true number is impossible to determine. Even as the evidence began to mount, most members of India's British-run government remained dismissive of claims that a secret cult of murderers was terrorizing the countryside. It would be the efforts of a single soldier that would eventually turn this apathy around. After nearly a day's travel with his new companion, Lieutenant Subhani did not regret allowing Moklal to join him. The man was talkative and well-educated, and his conversation seemed to shorten the long journey considerably. As dusk approached, Moklal explained that his destination, a wayside grove where he planned to spend the night, was just ahead. â€Å"There I am meeting my friends. Please, stay with us tonight, and let me repay you the courtesy of escorting me today. † Subhani, tired from the day’s journey and already beginning to think of where he and his men might make camp, agreed. A fire was burning by the time they reached the campsite, while around it an animated group of men were gathered. A flurry of introductions went around—many of these men were business associates of Moklal, it was learned, while others were family—and soon Subhani and his orderlies felt like part of the group, eating and laughing with the men. William Henry SleemanSir William Henry Sleeman was a sober, no-nonsense Bengal Army officer who from early on dedicated his career to the eradication of Thuggee. Faced with a wall of disbelief and indifference from his superiors, he transferred to the Civil Service where he could gain enough authority to wage his war personally. As a district magistrate by the 1820s, he gathered a force of Indian policemen under him and set torooting out the cult with a variety of innovative policing methods. By examining common attack sites and listening for reports of suspicious figures, Sleeman and his men formulated predictions of where the next large attack was likely to occur. They would then turn the Thugs’ own methods against them—disguised as merchants, the officers would wait at the chosen site for a group of Thugs to approach, and ambush them. Information obtained from the prisoners was used to plan the next strike. But Sleeman’s job would not be easy, as one of the Thuggee cult’s defining characteristics was its pervasiveness within Indian society. In an era where strict caste divisions dominated every aspect of life, Thuggee was unique for transcending all such social barriers. Anyone from a farmer to an aristocrat could be a Thug. Many were even Muslims who, in a truly inspiring feat of rationalization, managed to reconcile their practice of human sacrifice to a goddess with their religion’s strict ban on idolatry and murder. When members of the brotherhood were not terrorizing travelers, they lived as normal—often upstanding—citizens, with ordinary social lives and occupations. It was impossible to know who might be with the Thugs, even among one’s closest friends. What was more bizarre, and endlessly frustrating for Sleeman, was the level of protection the Thugs seemed to enjoy within India. Though they clearly had the country living in fear, a strange ambivalence toward the cult existed. Local police and officials turned a blind eye to reports of Thug activities, while peasants would simply work around the bodies that occasionally appeared in their fields and wells. Landowners and Indian princes often explicitly shielded known Thugs, to the point that they would sometimes violently clash with British soldiers on the hunt. The reasons for this strange reaction to the cult are varied and complex. In the case of the lower-ranked members of society, it most often may have simply been out of fear or superstition; it was believed by some that the goddess Kali would take revenge on those who interfered with her followers. The rich and powerful, for their part, may have had some vested interest in Thug activity: bribery, perhaps, or they may simply have been charmed by master con artists. Some poor villages accepted the murder and robbery of rich travelers as simply a way of bringing wealth into the region—for many, Thugging was apparently viewed as a regular tax-paying profession, as noble as any other. Whatever the cause, it meant that Sleeman’s men were more often than not met with silence as they probed residents for information. But a few factors were in Sleeman's favor. First, the Thugs’ beliefs forbade them from killing certain groups, including women, fakirs, musicians, lepers—and Europeans. Thuggee was thus unable to retaliate against its English persecutors even when it had the opportunity. Second, once captured, most Thugs cooperated with authorities willingly—one might even say gleefully. Staunch fatalists, the imprisoned Thugs believed their situation was the result of their displeasing the goddess. They therefore showed little remorse in turning in their brothers, believing that anything that happened to them would be the will of Kali. Some suspect that Thuggee prisoners even deliberately accused innocent men; unable to strangle in person during their incarceration, sending men to the gallows was a convenient way of keeping up their obligation to Kali. As for those condemned todie, it is said that each went to his death with no trace of emotion, often requesting only that he be allowed to place the noose around his own neck. With informants pouring in at an ever-increasing rate, Sleeman’s campaign against the Thugs gained ground beyond anyone’s expectations. Within a few years the cult was crippled, and by the end of the 19th century the British declared Thuggee extinct. Sleeman was hailed as a hero by most of India, and in many parts of the country he is still revered. But there are those who have wondered if the British were too quick to congratulate themselves. It is difficult for some to imagine how a secret fraternity that had survived for centuries and engrained itself into every facet of Indian society could have been eliminated in so short a time. Certainly, the mass killings are a distant memory, and India no longer lives in fear of its shadow. But in some remote areas, rumors still linger about the yellow-sashed strangers who welcome travelers with open arms and a friendly smile. It was dark when Subhani and his new friends had finished eating. For a time they sat in comfortable silence, with only an occasional quiet exchange passing between men seated across the fire next to one another. But no one had yet turned in for sleep. Moklal turned from the fire to Subhani. â€Å"Perhaps a smoke before bed? † he offered. The Lieutenant nodded gratefully. Moklal smiled, then looked up at someone apparently standing behind Subhani. â€Å"bring the Tobacco â€Å"