Family Estrangement and Hospital Readmission Rates Among Severely Mentally Ill Adults

Most crisis stabilization, and mental health treatment in general, is delivered solely to the individual in crisis, by professionals who are careful to protect the individual’s right to privacy. An unintended consequence of this objective, unfortunately, can be the undermining of the potentially significant role played by family members in the treatment, maintenance, and stabilization of individuals with mental illness. Without family involvement, some individuals burdened by mental illness slowly and steadily decline. This study investigates how familial relationships impact mental health problems, specifically psychiatric hospital readmissions. The goal of this study is to determine whether being estranged from one’s family increased the number of times an individual was readmitted to an inpatient psychiatric hospital. This study makes use of de-identified, archival data from Ventura County Behavioral Health (California), to examine the association between family support and inpatient hospital readmission rates. This data set provides information regarding clients’ previous hospitalizations, if any, Crisis Team contacts, number of years of outpatient mental health treatment, and documented family support. Furthermore, this study aims to identify possible recommendations for improving family involvement in an individual’s care in an attempt to reduce the number of inpatient psychiatric hospital readmissions. These treatment recommendations will seek to improve the quality of life for the individual suffering from mental illness, as well as their family; as well as strive to save scarce resources (personal and societal). In summary, this study aims to shine light on a bleak and controversial issue that is impacting millions of Americans. Better research may lead to earlier diagnosis and better treatment of mental illness, leading to longer, happier lives for individuals who are touched by mental illness. The consequences of inadequate treatment for the mentally ill population are too devastating to ignore. May they no longer have to bear the burden of incarceration, potentially avoidable hospital readmissions, homelessness and the stigma that follows them wherever they go. This Dissertation is available in Open Access at AURA: Antioch University Repository and Archive, http://aura.antioch.edu and OhioLink ETD Center, http://www.ohiolink.edu/et

Interaction Between Winter Dominance and Territory Defense in Male Pronghorn Antelope, Antilocapra Americana

In a territorial population of pronghorn from Antelope Island, UT, interaction between male dominance and territory defense was examined. High-ranking males were more likely to defend territories. Closely ranked animals engaged in more dominance interactions than distantly ranked individuals, and middle-ranked animals were involved in disproportionately more interactions than either high- or low-ranking animals. Large males possessed large horns and prongs as well as small cheek patches. Results from a factor analysis suggested that large males defended territories with a high density of sage. However, in this study, we did not observe pronghorn feed on sage during the territorial season. Though male pronghorn practiced resource defense polygyny, large, dominant males did not defend territories with a high density of green vegetation or green forbs. Large males appeared to defend territories with low visibility. In 1996, intruders entered areas that contained females throughout the territorial season. During the next year, highly visible, small territories received the most intrusions. Together, these observations suggest defense of tactical locations. Defending a tactical location may help females avoid harassment and males hide the presence of females. Different populations of pronghorn practice different mating systems. To understand this variation, we examined the behavior patterns/rates of individual territorial and bachelor males. The highest rates of activity and behavior patterns occurred in March/April and in September. Territorial males cheek rubbed at a higher rate than bachelors. Territorial males were more active and SPUD (sniff, paw, urinate, and defecate) marked at a higher rate than bachelor males in 1996. After the formation of a bachelor herd in 1997, bachelor males showed higher rates of male-male interactions than territorial males. Territorial males maintained the same activity and behavioral rates in the presence and absence of females. Dispersion pattern of scent marks was more clumped in the presence of females. These findings suggest cheek rubs function more as a space-claiming behavior while SPUD marking is more strongly associated with male-male interactions. Comparison to male behavior in nonterritorial populations indicates that the behavioral mechanisms are present in all populations to accommodate shifts in social systems

Undergraduate Research Develops Transferable Skills More Successfully Than Other High Impact Practices

Undergraduate research enhances student learning and professional development, including self-reported learning gains and solidified career goals. However, it is unclear how undergraduate research affects direct measures of student learning relative to other High Impact Practices (HIPs). FGCU assesses critical thinking, information literacy, & written communication skills among graduating seniors annually, allowing us to compare HIPs directly. Seniors that complete research-focused capstones perform significantly better than students completing service-learning or internship experiences. Research appears to strengthen students’ use of evidence, which then improves the overall development of these transferable skills

An examination of cultural motives, festival motivator attributes, desired experiences and authenticity in tourists to Oktoberfest in Helen, Georgia

Helen, Georgia is nestled in a valley of the southern Blue Ridge Mountains along the Chattahoochee River in northeast Georgia. Originally a logging community serving as a stop for tourists to Anna Ruby Falls, Helen is now a faux-Bavarian town and the third largest tourist draw in the state. Research exists on \u27theme towns\u27 paying tribute to their cultural background by hosting seasonal events to boost tourism. There are also studies on residents of a town with an Oktoberfest, but little research exists concerning places using a not-native history to accomplish similar goals of producing cultural events that tourists see as authentic. This is of special interest considering that the Helen Chamber of Commerce hosts an annual Oktoberfest to simulate the original festival in Munich, Germany at their festhalle, despite not being a historically German settlement. Originally, the Chamber of Commerce festhalle was the only Oktoberfest, but now the rest of Helen celebrates The purpose of this study was to determine whether Oktoberfest tourists were culturally motivated to chose Helen\u27s 43rd Annual Oktoberfest, festival attributes and experiences were important to tourists, whether they viewed Helen as an authentic host, and finally if these differed between the Chamber of Commerce\u27s festhalle and the Konig Ludwig Biergarden. Tourist interviews were conducted at these two locations during October 2013. The study found that tourists valued the Oktoberfest experience shared with their group and placed equal importance on the festival having German beer and food, and dancing. Tourists to the Chamber of Commerce festhalle were more culturally motivated, placed more importance on German music and clothing, and found the festival to be more authentic than tourists at the Konig Ludwig Biergarden

Survey and home range analyses of wintering shorebirds using the Lanark Reef Shorebird Complex, Franklin Co., Florida

Radio telemetry was used to document spatial variation in use by wintering shorebirds at a series of sites believed to form the Lanark Reef Shorebird Complex in Franklin County. Fifty and 95% convex polygon home range estimate for Willets (Catoptrophorus semipalmatus) averaged 0.52 km 2 and 14.85 km2, respectively. Fifty and 95% convex polygon home range estimate for the Black-bellied Plover (Pluvialis squatarola) averaged \u3c0.01 km2 and 0.10 km 2, respectively. Fifty and 95% convex polygon for the Marbled Godwit (Limosa fedoa) and Long-billed Curlew (Numenius americanus ) was 0.32 km2, and 6.72 km2, and 0.36 km2 and 24.41 km2, respectively. Black-bellied Plovers appeared to have the smallest distance between locations followed by Willets, Long-billed Curlews and Marbled Godwits.;Replicate shorebird surveys were conducted on the reef and count data were regressed against four environmental variables (wind speed, tide height, cloud cover, and temperature). Regression results (R2 adj) accounted for 45% and 66% of the variance in total shorebird counts on the Reef for 1996 and 1997, respectively. Shorebird total counts were positively correlated with tide height for 1996 and 1997 (P \u3c 0.01)

Seed Yield Prediction Models of Four Common Moist-Soil Plant Species in Texas

Seed production by moist-soil plant species often varies within and among managed wetlands and on larger landscapes. Quantifying seed production of moist-soil plants can be used to evaluate wetland management strategies and estimate wetland energetic carrying capacity, specifically for waterfowl. In the past, direct estimation techniques were used, but due to excessive personnel and time costs, other indirect methods have been developed. Because indirect seed yield models do not exist for moist-soil plant species in east-central or coastal Texas, we developed direct and indirect methods to model seed production on regional managed wetlands. In September 2004 and 2005, we collected Echinochloa crusgalli (barnyard grass), E. walterii (wild millet), E. colona (jungle rice), and Oryza sativa (cultivated rice) for phytomorphological measurements and seed yield modeling. Initial simple linear and point of origin regression analyses demonstrate strong relationships (P \u3c 0.001) among phytomorphological and dot grid methods in predicting seed production for all four species. These models should help regional wetland managers evaluate moist-soil management success and create models for seed production for other moist-soil plants in this region

Accounting Ethics: A Reluctant Progression Forward

Ethics is a discipline that encompasses the moral duties and obligations of individuals as they deal with what is good and bad, and as such, it is the backbone of a civilized society. This paper takes an in-depth look at the philosophical foundations of ethics, especially accounting ethics, and offers proposals to improve ethical oversight and behavior

PANIC: A Near-infrared Camera for the Magellan Telescopes

PANIC (Persson's Auxiliary Nasmyth Infrared Camera) is a near-infrared camera designed to operate at any one of the f/11 folded ports of the 6.5m Magellan telescopes at Las Campanas Observatory, Chile. The instrument is built around a simple, all-refractive design that reimages the Magellan focal plane to a plate scale of 0.125'' pixel^{-1} onto a Rockwell 1024x1024 HgCdTe detector. The design goals for PANIC included excellent image quality to sample the superb seeing measured with the Magellan telescopes, high throughput, a relatively short construction time, and low cost. PANIC has now been in regular operation for over one year and has proved to be highly reliable and produce excellent images. The best recorded image quality has been ~0.2'' FWHM.Comment: 8 pages, 5 figures. To appear in "Astronomical Telescopes and Instrumentation," Proc SPIE (Glasgow), June 2004. Version with higher resolution figures is available at http://cfa-www.harvard.edu/~pmartini/professional/publications/panic.pd