Social Work Commons^™

Men As Caregivers At The End Of Life, Erik K. Fromme, Linda L. Drach, Susan W. Tolle, Patricia Ebert, Pamela Miller, Nancy Perrin, Virginia P. Tilden

School of Social Work Faculty Publications and Presentations

Background: Few studies have focused on men as caregivers at the end-of-life. The objective of this secondary data analysis was to examine the experiences of men involved in end-oflife caregiving, focusing on caregiver strain.

Methods: We used a random sample of Oregon death certificates to telephone survey family caregivers of Oregonians who had died 2 to 5 months earlier in private homes, nursing homes, and other community-based settings. Measurements included single-item indicators and embedded scales to measure caregiver strain and perceived decedent symptom distress. For the 25 husbands, sons, wives, and daughters who reported the highest levels of strain, we …

Focal Point, Volume 19 Number 01, Portland State University. Regional Research Institute

Research and Training Center - Focal Point

This issue of Focal Point examines the concepts of resilience and recovery and what they mean in the context of mental health care for children and adolescents. A resilience-and-recovery perspective highlights new ideas and strategies for transforming mental health care for children and adolescents.

Health Care Workers' Expectations And Empathy Toward Patients In Abusive Relationships, Christina Nicolaidis, Maryann Curry, Martha Gerrity

School of Social Work Faculty Publications and Presentations

Purpose: To understand attitudes that may affect health care workers' ability to provide appropriate long-term care for patients who stay with abusive partners.

Methods: We surveyed 278 health care workers in 31 primary care practices before their participation in an educational intervention.

Results: More than half of participants (51% to 60%) found it easy to empathize with a patient who decided to remain in an abusive relationship if the patient was described as poor or disabled, but few (25% to 39%) could empathize if the patient was described as educated or financially secure. A majority (57% to 59%) agreed with …

Management Of Menopause-Related Symptoms, Heidi D. Nelson, Elizabeth M. Haney, Laura Humphrey, Jill Miller, Anne Nedrow, Christina Nicolaidis, Kimberly K. Vesco, Miranda Walker, Christina Bougatsos, Peggy Nygren

School of Social Work Faculty Publications and Presentations

Although many measures have been developed to assess menopausal symptoms, few demonstrate standardization, validity, or reliability. Some measures are based on self-reports of the presence, severity, and frequency of individual symptoms, such as hot flashes. Others utilize cumulative or global scores based on lists or scales of symptoms attributed to menopause, such as mood, cognition, quality of life, sexual function, and somatic symptoms. Many studies base their measures on study-specific checklists, questionnaires, or scales. Ninety-two measures of menopausal symptoms were reported by studies included in this evidence review. This systematic evidence review focuses on five Key Questions relating to symptoms …

The Impact Of Domestic Violence On Depression In Teen Mothers: Is The Fear Or Threat Of Violence Sufficient?, Barbara Mary Sussex, Kevin Corcoran

School of Social Work Faculty Publications and Presentations

The purpose of this study was to assess whether the fear or threat of intimate partner violence (IPV) impacted depression and peer support among a population of pregnant and parenting female adolescents, and whether cessation made a difference. The sample consisted of 286 teen mothers participating in a substance abuse prevention intervention. Data were self-report assessed at 6-month intervals from entry through 18 months. IPV was defined by a report of avoidance of another within the past 6 months out of fear or threat of violence and was also assessed for those aged 18 and older with measures from the …

Adolescents Growing Up In Stressful Environments, Dual Diagnosis, And Sources Of Success, Albert R. Roberts, Kevin Corcoran

School of Social Work Faculty Publications and Presentations

This article considers the social and psychological challenges to youth in contemporary society. The authors examine the variety of social impediments that face youths in most of our social institutions, from schools and the juvenile justice system to the family. They underscore the need for prevention, health promotion, and comprehensive assessment. Further, they assert that ‘‘dual diagnosis’’ needs to be considered not as a ‘‘special population’’ but as the typical or common experience of at-risk youths once they are diagnosed at mental health centers or juvenile justice reception and diagnostic centers. They conclude that evidence-based assessment, intervention, prevention, and health …

The Oregon Mental Health Referral Checklists: Concept Mapping The Mental Health Needs Of Youth In The Juvenile Justice System, Kevin Corcoran

School of Social Work Faculty Publications and Presentations

This article summarizes the development of checklists to identify the mental health needs of youth in the juvenile justice system. With concept mapping as its base, a 31-item checklist was developed in three parallel forms and assessed on three samples: youth in a locked correctional facility and parents and juvenile justice professionals of adjudicate youth who were sentenced to community service. The instruments appear to have acceptable to very good internal consistency and moderate to strong coefficients of equivalence. Total symptoms were associated with internal and external problems for youth, suggestions from a trusted friend that one might have a …

Midwest Evaluation Of The Adult Functioning Of Former Foster Youth: Outcomes At Age 19, Mark E. Courtney, Amy Lynn Dworsky, Gretchen Ruth, Thomas E. Keller, Judy Havlicek, Noel S. Bost

School of Social Work Faculty Publications and Presentations

The Midwest Evaluation of the Adult Functioning of Former Foster Youth (Midwest Study) is a longitudinal study that has been following a sample of young people from Iowa, Wisconsin, and Illinois as they transition out of foster care into adulthood. It is a collaborative effort involving Chapin Hall at the University of Chicago; the University of Wisconsin Survey Center; and the public child welfare agencies in Illinois, Iowa, and Wisconsin. This report concentrates on the outcomes of 19 year old youth as they "age out" of the child welfare system and transition to adulthood.

Participation In The Paid Labor Force By Caregivers Of Children With Emotional And Behavioral Disorders, Eileen M. Brennan, Ana Maria Brannan

School of Social Work Faculty Publications and Presentations

We explored the relationship between school-age children's emotional and behavioral symptoms and workforce participation of their family caregivers using structural equation modeling. Secondary analysis of data from the national evaluation of the Comprehensive Community Mental Health Services for Children and Their Families Program was performed with a subsample of 2,585 caregivers. Findings from structural equation modeling indicated that higher levels of internalizing and externalizing symptoms were significant predictors of more frequent school absences, less adequate childcare, and greater caregiver strain related to missing work. In turn, more adequate childcare and greater caregiver strain from missed work were associated with lower …

Work-Life Integration For Families Having Children With Mental Health Disorders, Eileen M. Brennan, Julie M. Rosenzweig, Barbara J. Friesen

School of Social Work Faculty Publications and Presentations

PDF version of a presentation given at the 37th World Congress of the International Institute of Sociology, Stockholm, Sweden, July 2005.

Families In Context: Work-Life Integration Experiences Of Parents Of Children With Mental Health Disabilities, Julie M. Rosenzweig, Jennifer R. Bradley, Katherine J. Huffstutter, Eileen M. Brennan

School of Social Work Faculty Publications and Presentations

PDF version of a presentation given at the Community, Work and Family Conference, Manchester, UK, March 2005.

Lessons About Recruiting Primary Care Practices To Domestic Violence Trainings, Jim Winkle, Christina Nicolaidis

School of Social Work Faculty Publications and Presentations

A few studies have evaluated continuing medical education programs on domestic violence, but they have generally used convenience samples and have not provided information regarding their recruitment strategies or the proportion of eligible providers that attended the interventions. (Davis, Kaups, Campbell, & Parks, 2000; Haney, Kachur, & Zabar, 2003; McCauley, Jenckes, & McNutt, 2003) In one study that did provide such information, investigators faxed invitations to 1887 physicians, of which only 121 (6%) responded that they were interested despite a $50-$100 incentive to participate in a short on-line program with free Continuing Medical Education (CME) credits (Harris, Kutob, Surprenant, Maiuro, …

Getting Your Money's Worth: What Early Childhood Directors Should Know About Working With Mental Health Professionals, Beth L. Green, Maria C. Everhart, Lynwood Gordon

School of Social Work Faculty Publications and Presentations

The increasing numbers of young children with challenging behaviors and emotional problems have led many child care providers and early childhood education programs to employ or contract with mental health professionals (Lavigne et al., 1996). Head Start Programs, for example, are required by federal performance standards to utilize services of mental health professionals that are "sufficient" to meet the needs of children and families. However, there has been little research to help program managers make informed choices about who might provide the best services, what services are most important to support staff and families, and how to make the best …

Racial Discrepancies In The Association Between Paternal Vs. Maternal Educational Level And Risk Of Low Birthweight In Washington State, Christina Nicolaidis, Cynthia W. Ko, Somnath Saha, Thomas D. Koepsell

School of Social Work Faculty Publications and Presentations

Background: The role of paternal factors in determining the risk of adverse pregnancy outcomes has received less attention than maternal factors. Similarly, the interaction between the effects of race and socioeconomic status (SES) on pregnancy outcomes is not well known. Our objective was to assess the relative importance of paternal vs. maternal education in relation to risk of low birth weight (LBW) across different racial groups.

Methods: We conducted a retrospective population-based cohort study using Washington state birth certificate data from 1992 to 1996 (n = 264,789). We assessed the associations between maternal or paternal education and LBW, adjusting for …

Applying The Transtheoretical Model To Cigarette Smoking By Pregnant And Parenting Adolescent Females, Barbara Mary Sussex

Dissertations and Theses

An unacceptably high number of pregnant and parenting adolescent females smoke cigarettes, and the majority who quit during pregnancy relapse within six months postpartum. This dissertation examined measures from the Transtheoretical Model of Change (TMC) and variables associated with smoking behavior in a population of pregnant and parenting females 18 years-of-age and under. Data were from the baseline survey of 245 young women enrolled in a three-year randomized controlled trial through a teen parent program in Portland, Oregon. The objectives were: 1) to investigate whether factors identified in the literature as associated with initiating and quitting smoking were associated with …

Focal Point, Volume 18 Number 01, Portland State University. Regional Research Institute

Research and Training Center - Focal Point

This issue highlights recent work at the Research and Training Center on Family Support and Children's Mental Health in Portland, Oregon. The Center's work is guided by a vision of family–professional partnership within systems of care serving children with emotional or behavioral disorders and their families.

Supporting Families Of Children With Serious Emotional Or Behavioral Disorders In A 24/7 World, Julie M. Rosenzweig, Eileen M. Brennan, April Burris, Christine Mary Shea

School of Social Work Faculty Publications and Presentations

PDF version of a presentation given at the Training Institutes on Developing Local Systems of Care for Children and Adolescents with Emotional Disturbances and their Families, San Francisco, CA, June 2004.

Models Of Inclusion In Child Care: Child Care That Works For Children With Emotional And/Or Behavioral Challenges: Family Member Perceptions, Shane Ama, Eileen M. Brennan, Sara Berman, Jennifer R. Bradley

School of Social Work Faculty Publications and Presentations

Although 5-10% of employed parents care for a child with emotional or behavioral challenges (EBCs) (Emlen, 1997), family support resources are notably lacking. A recent focus group study of 41 working parents (Rosenzweig, Brennan, & Ogilvie, 2002) found child care to be particularly difficult to find and maintain for families that included children with EBCs. Participants reported a number of barriers to child care arrangements that could successfully meet their family's needs. First, since few qualified providers had the expertise to meet the needs of children with EBCs, arrangements were difficult to find. A combination of the lack of quality …

Violence, Mental Health, And Physical Symptoms In An Academic Internal Medicine Practice, Christina Nicolaidis, Maryann Curry, Bentson H. Mcfarland, Martha Gerrity

School of Social Work Faculty Publications and Presentations

OBJECTIVE: To assess how physical and/or sexual intimate partner violence (IPV), child abuse, and community violence relate to long-term mental and physical problems; to examine the overlap between different forms of violence and the impact of experiencing multiple forms of violence.

DESIGN: Cross-sectional survey.

SETTING: Three general internal medicine practices affiliated with an academic medical center.

PARTICIPANTS: English-speaking women aged 25 to 60.

MEASUREMENTS: Telephone or in-person interview and chart review.

RESULTS: One hundred seventy-four women completed interviews. A majority of participants experienced more than one form of violence. In separate multivariate analyses, each form of violence was associated with …

Promoting Inclusion In Child Care Centers: Learning From Success, Jennifer R. Bradley, Shane Ama, Maria Gettman, Eileen M. Brennan, Peris W. Kibera

School of Social Work Faculty Publications and Presentations

The purpose of this article is to share findings from research on nine child care centers that successfully provided child care for children with emotional and behavioral challenges alongside their peers without specific challenges (Brennan, Bradley, Ama, & Cawood, 2003). Following a brief overview of the research study, we focus a lens on the classroom, where staff selected and developed practices that included all children. The lens is then widened to view a broader picture of inclusion, such as the ways that the centers work with families, and the structure and culture of the organizations.

Focal Point, Volume 17 Number 02, Portland State University. Regional Research Institute

Research and Training Center - Focal Point

The authors of the articles in this issue of Focal Point represent a spectrum of Wraparound's stakeholder groups—family members, service providers, trainers, and researchers. From their different perspectives, they discuss the issues of quality and fidelity. What is striking is the extent to which these perspectives converge in their descriptions of successful practice and implementation. This Focal Point issue is evidence that substantial progress is being made in bringing a clearer focus to the Wraparound vision.

Pedagogy For The Economically Privileged: “Tuning In” To The Privileged Learner, Ann Curry-Stevens

School of Social Work Faculty Publications and Presentations

Today’s activists are challenged by the sheer scope of losses by social movements. We have lost most significant battles and have moved into a defensive position struggling to retain earlier gains in social policy. The gap between rich and poor continues to widen, and it is clear that we need new allies in the struggles for justice. The middle class has been eyed as potential allies, with the hope that in bringing their resources, information, and power to bear, progressive social change will result. This paper draws from dissertation research on a pedagogy for the privileged: research that involves transformative …

Focal Point, Volume 17 Number 01, Portland State University. Regional Research Institute

Research and Training Center - Focal Point

This issue of Focal Point offers insight on cultural reciprocity, clinical outcomes for diverse youth, culturally competent research practices for African-American communities, identifying behavioral strengths in Black children, and cultural competence in services.

Setting The Pace: Model Inclusive Child Care Centers Serving Families Of Children With Emotional Or Behavioral Challenges, Eileen M. Brennan, Jennifer R. Bradley, Shane Ama, Natalie Diane Cawood

School of Social Work Faculty Publications and Presentations

Approximately 10% of American children experience an emotional or behavioral disorder that causes some level of impairment in their development, learning, or functioning in daily life, and the numbers of those affected appear to be growing (U.S. Public Health Service, 2000). With the entry of many family caregivers into the workforce, increasing numbers of children with these challenges are enrolling in child care settings that offer services to infants, toddlers, young children, or school aged youth (Shonkoff & Phillips, 2000). Child care settings can provide a unique opportunity to address the needs of children with emotional or behavioral challenges and …

Embedding Multicultural Competencies In Rehabilitation Psychology Practice, Richard H. Dana

Regional Research Institute for Human Services

This article identifies the several issues in the process of client assessments, especially for multicultural groups. The Multicultural Assessment-Intervention Process (MAIP) model is discussed as a useful tool for meeting these issues. The model's applications and specific procedural steps are discussed.

2002 Oregon Crime Victims’ Needs Assessment Final Report, Deborah Elliott, Alice Galloway, Karen Cellarius, Mary Louise Mcclintock, Mary Ellen Johnson, Mandy Davis, John Knutson

Regional Research Institute for Human Services

On behalf of the Crime Victims’ Assistance Section of the Oregon Department of Justice, Portland State University’s Regional Research Institute for Human Services conducted an 18-month (July 2001-December 2002) needs assessment of the current state of crime victims’ services and victims’ needs in Oregon. The primary objectives of the needs assessment were to identify:

• Gaps in the current service delivery system, including linkages among agencies
• Range and quality of services
• Barriers to accessing services, particularly among underserved populations
• How well Crime Victims’ Rights are implemented
• Model national and statewide programs

This report is a compilation of the findings gathered from …

Intimate Partner Abuse Could We Have Known? A Qualitative Analysis Of Data From Women Who Survived An Attempted Homicide By An Intimate Partner, Christina Nicolaidis, Maryann Curry, Yvonne Ulrich, Phyllis Sharps, Judith Mcfarlane, Doris Campbell, Faye Gary, Kathryn Laughon, Nancy Glass, Jacquelyn Campbell

School of Social Work Faculty Publications and Presentations

OBJECTIVE: To examine in-depth the lives of women whose partners attempted to kill them, and to identify patterns that may aid in the clinician’s ability to predict, prevent, or counsel about femicide or attempted femicide. DESIGN: Qualitative analysis of 30 in-depth interviews. SETTING: Six U.S. cities. PARTICIPANTS: Thirty women, aged 17–54 years, who survived an attempted homicide by an intimate partner. RESULTS: All but 2 of the participants had previously experienced physical violence, controlling behavior, or both from the partner who attempted to kill them. The intensity of the violence, control, and threats varied greatly, as did the number of …

Focal Point, Volume 16 Number 02, Portland State University. Regional Research Institute

Research and Training Center - Focal Point

The articles in this issue describe a variety of strategies communities have used to systematically engage the perspectives of family and community members. With these strategies in place, family and community members have the opportunity to play a central role in making and monitoring concrete action plans for increasing cultural competence.

Focal Point, Volume 16 Number 01, Portland State University. Regional Research Institute

Research and Training Center - Focal Point

Strengths-based practice is not just about supporting consumers as they identify and use their own positive capacities and assets. It is also about finding community assets which help link the consumer to these potential informal and community supports. For many people—consumers and providers alike—there is a great appeal to the idea of building an individual’s strengths while drawing on the community to build a supportive, individualized network of relationships and involvements. Yet when it comes down to planning and providing services and supports for children with emotional and behavioral disorders and their families, it is often difficult to see whether …

In Thought, Word, And Deed: Suicidal Behaviors Of Adjudicated Youth, Kevin Corcoran, Thomas Crofoot Graham

School of Social Work Faculty Publications and Presentations

This study examines suicide ideation, plans, and attempts by youth in two juvenile justice settings: incarcerated youth (n=83) and youth with community service sentences (n=144). The incarcerated sample reported 51% suicide ideation while the community sample reported 22%. For both samples, suicide contemplators were quite likely (60-70%) to have a suicide plan, while about 35% reported a suicide attempt in the past 12 months. Contemplators were distinguishable from noncontemplators on scores for external problems of delinquency and aggression, internal problems of anxiety, depression, withdrawal and somatic complaints, general depression, and general health status. The results have implications for assessment, triage, …