The first 10 years of operation of the Red Cross House for runaway, throwaway and homeless adolescents in Reykjavík, Iceland

Neðst á síðunni er hægt að nálgast greinina í heild sinni með því að smella á hlekkinn View/OpenObjective: The Red Cross House (RCH) is a 24-hour emergency shelter in Reykjavik, Iceland for adolescents. On the occasion of its 10th anniversary it was decided to analyse the data collected since inauguration. Material and methods: During the first 10 years of running 475 adolescents, age 10-18, (grouped into runaways, throwaways and homeless adolescents) registered 927 visits. The admission records of the RCH were used for collecting data for subsequent analysis. Results: The runaways and throwaways were more alike one another than the homeless. Most of the parents were living apart suggesting that conflicts were more likely to take place in stepfamilies and single parent families and the situation at home had enforced one parent to leave home. Many of the guests were school-dropouts particularly those coming from the country. A majority had been in contact with the social services, and many boys had been dealt with by the police. Prior use of alcohol, tobacco and drugs was common. Conflicts within the family was the most usual reason for the runaways and throwaways seeking assistance. The most common reason for the homeless visiting was having nowhere to stay, alcohol or drug abuse. Conclusions: The plight of the homeless was more serious than that of the runaways and throwaways. The homeless usually had a prior history of having run away or been throwaways from home. The preventive work of the RCH is reflected in keeping young people off the streets and offering assistance before it is too late.Tilgangur: Í tilefni 10 ára starfsafmælis Rauðakrosshússins var ákveðið að vinna úr upplýsingum sem skráðar höfðu verið um hjálparþurfi unglinga frá 1985 til 1995. Efniviður og aðferðir: Á tímabilinu voru skráðar 927 komur 475 unglinga á aldrinum 10-18 ára sem röðuðust í heimanfarna, heimanrekna og heimilislausa. Skráningarblað athvarfsins var notað við gagnaöflun. Niðurstöður og ályktanir: Rannsóknin leiddi í ljós talsverðann mun á heimanförnum og heimanreknum annars vegar og heimilislausum hins vegar. Fæstir foreldra unglinganna voru í sambúð. Margir gestanna höfðu hætt skyldunámi og skáru landsbyggðarunglingar sig úr. Meirihluti unglinganna hafði verið í tengslum við félagslegar stofnanir og margir drengjanna sætt afskiptum lögreglu. Rannsóknin sýndi að neysla tóbaks, áfengis og fíkniefna var útbreidd meðal þeirra sem leituðu til athvarfsins. Árekstrar innan fjölskyldu var algengasta ástæða komu heimanfarinna og heimanrekinna til Rauðakrosshússins. Húsnæðisleysi og eigin neysla voru helstu ástæður fyrir því að heimilislausir leituðu aðstoðar. Ályktanir: Almennt stóðu heimilislausir mun verr að vígi en heimanfarnir og heimanreknir. Heimilislausir unglingar eiga líklega flestir forsögu sem heimanfarnir eða heimanreknir. Þeir eru því viðvörun um þær hættur, sem heimanfarnir og heimanreknir standa frammi fyrir ef ekki finnst viðunandi lausn á þeirra málum, svo sem vandamál í skóla, aukin neysla, afbrot og húsnæðisleysi. Forvarnarstarf Rauðakrosshússins felst í því að halda þessum unglingum frá götunni og bjóða þeim hjálp áður en vandamálin verða yfirþyrmandi

Whole genome characterization of sequence diversity of 15,220 Icelanders

Understanding of sequence diversity is the cornerstone of analysis of genetic disorders, population genetics, and evolutionary biology. Here, we present an update of our sequencing set to 15,220 Icelanders who we sequenced to an average genome-wide coverage of 34X. We identified 39,020,168 autosomal variants passing GATK filters: 31,079,378 SNPs and 7,940,790 indels. Calling de novo mutations (DNMs) is a formidable challenge given the high false positive rate in sequencing datasets relative to the mutation rate. Here we addressed this issue by using segregation of alleles in three-generation families. Using this transmission assay, we controlled the false positive rate and identified 108,778 high quality DNMs. Furthermore, we used our extended family structure and read pair tracing of DNMs to a panel of phased SNPs, to determine the parent of origin of 42,961 DNMs.Peer Reviewe

Barna og unglingasími Rauðakrosshússins

Neðst á síðunni er hægt að nálgast greinina í heild sinni með því að smella á hlekkinn View/OpenFarið var yfir öll skráð símtöl sem borist höfðu barna og unglingasíma Rauðakrosshússins frá opnun árið 1987 alls 26.837. Markmið rannsóknarinnar var meðal annars að kanna símahegðun og ástæður símhringinga ungmenna og fullorðinna. Skráningablað símaþjónustu Rauðakrosshússins var notað sem mælitæki, sem skiptist í tvo hluta: almennar upplýsingar um símhringjanda og ástæður hringingar. Í samræmi við niðurstöður annarra rannsókna hringdu mun fleiri stúlkur en piltar. Meðalaldur í hópi barna og unglinga var 14 ár, en 36 ár meðal fullorðinna. Helmingur þeirra sem hringdu í hópi barna og unglinga var utan af landi (49%). Skýring kann að vera að félagsleg þjónusta sé í lágmarki í dreifbýli og persónuleg nálægð folks valdi því að unglingur kjósi frekar að leita með vandamál sin til utanaðkomandi aðila. Flest börn og unglingar hringdu á milli 12 og 16 í símaþjónustuna eftir skóla þegar foreldrar voru ekki heima. Þegar litið var á umræðuefni kom fram í flestum tilvikum munur á ungmennum og fullorðnum. Umræðuefni barna og unglinga tengdust þeim sem algeng eru í bernsku og gelgjuskeiði. Flestir fullorðinna hringdu til að leita ráða vegna barns. Stór hluti ungmenna og fullorðinna hrindi vegna vanlíðunar. Einnig kom fram verulegur munur á milli kynja eftir umræðuefnum. Hins vegar var aðeins í fáum tilvikum munur á milli fólks af höfuðborgarsvæðinu og landsbyggðinni eftir umræðuefnum.Telephone calls received since the inauguration of the Childline at the Red Cross House in Reykjavik in 1987 were included in this study. The purpose of the investigation was to find out the reason for calling and to compare the telephone calls received from children and adolescents with those from adults. The 26837 telephone calls registered at the Childline during the period 1987 till the end of October 1995 formed the basis for data analysis. The Childline registration sheet was used for collecting data for subsequent analysis. The registration sheet filled in by the employee is divided into two parts: general information about the caller and the reason for calling. More girls than boys called the Childline which is in accord with previous findings. About half the calls made by children and adolescents were from the country, the reason being limited social services available in the country. Another explanation is the closely knit community in the country encouraging seeking outside support. Most of the calls were made by the children and adolescent callers between 12:00 and 16:00 p.m. after school while the parents were at work. There is a marked difference between adults and children and adolescent callers in relation the subjects of discussion. Children and adolescents talked about matters relating to those common during adolescence, e.g. love, relationships with adults, questions relating to body image, sex, questions pertaining to pregnancy and abortion. Most of the adults sought advice about their child. Many callers in both groups were in low spirits when they called. A gender difference was reflected in girls calling in relation to difficulties experienced in love, pregnancy and abortion. More women than men contacted the Childline seeking advice relating to her child whereas men sought advice for their personal problem. The experience of the Childline underlines the importance of such a service being available for children and adolescents in an emergency, for seeking advice and being able to talk to someone when in need.Telephone calls received since the inauguration of the Childline at the Red Cross House in Reykjavik in 1987 were included in this study. The purpose of the investigation was to find out the reason for calling and to compare the telephone calls received from children and adolescents with those from adults. The 26837 telephone calls registered at the Childline during the period 1987 till the end of October 1995 formed the basis for data analysis. The Childline registration sheet was used for collecting data for subsequent analysis. The registration sheet filled in by the employee is divided into two parts: general information about the caller and the reason for calling. More girls than boys called the Childline which is in accord with previous findings. About half the calls made by children and adolescents were from the country, the reason being limited social services available in the country. Another explanation is the closely knit community in the country encouraging seeking outside support. Most of the calls were made by the children and adolescent callers between 12:00 and 16:00 p.m. after school while the parents were at work. There is a marked difference between adults and children and adolescent callers in relation the subjects of discussion. Children and adolescents talked about matters relating to those common during adolescence, e.g. love, relationships with adults, questions relating to body image, sex, questions pertaining to pregnancy and abortion. Most of the adults sought advice about their child. Many callers in both groups were in low spirits when they called. A gender difference was reflected in girls calling in relation to difficulties experienced in love, pregnancy and abortion. More women than men contacted the Childline seeking advice relating to her child whereas men sought advice for their personal problem. The experience of the Childline underlines the importance of such a service being available for children and adolescents in an emergency, for seeking advice and being able to talk to someone when in need