‘We’ but Not ‘Me’

Speaker-exclusive ‘we’ (SEW) is an under-researched area of linguistics. In this paper, health professionals’ and non-health professionals’ perceptions and attitudes towards the speaker-exclusive ‘we’ are investigated to explore differences and similarities in both German and Australian contexts. Data were collected through the distribution of an online matched guise survey. Findings of 40 Australian and 36 German participants show a strong correlation between speaker-exclusive ‘we’ usage and feelings of intimacy and familiarity in German and English. Australian attitudes towards SEW appear to be more positive and/or indifferent, whereas most Germans tended to dislike the use of SEW

Therapists\u27 Experiences of Trauma, Compassion Fatigue, and Compassion Satisfaction: The Role of Post Traumatic Growth

Experiencing traumatic events can have a profound impact on human beings, ranging from mild distress to severe symptomology. The mental health professionals that serve traumatized populations are also at risk of exposure in their work. While there are many factors that contribute to negative and positive consequences of clinical work with trauma, the influence of a therapist’s own trauma seems to have mixed findings. This study was designed to better understand the role of a therapist’s personal trauma on negative and positive associations of clinical work, specifically compassion fatigue and compassion satisfaction. There were no significant correlations found between the experience of personal trauma and compassion fatigue and compassion satisfaction. However, mediation analysis showed that post traumatic growth partially mediates the amount of compassion satisfaction experienced by therapists who are at risk for PTSD. In addition, compassion satisfaction partially mediates the relationship between PTSD and compassion fatigue. These findings have significant implications for training and supervision of therapists working in the field

Zu dem zweinamigen merowingischen Prätendenten Ballomeris–Gundovald

The focus is on the name(s) of the Merovingian pretender Ballomeris–Gundovald (†585). Notwithstanding the prejudice of many historians Ballomeris is not an invective but a given name. The component -meris was characteristically for traditional names of princely Francs (4th to 6th century), the component gunthi- appears more ‘modern’. (Furthermore the stems balþa > ballo ‘brave’ and vald ‘to rule’ were often confused.) So the change of name reflects the changing role from illegitimate son of a king to a claimant for dynastical participation and at least for kingship. Unfortunately the perspective of the prejudice mentioned above hampered for a long time the consideration of Ballomeris as a name (not as a word) and blocked the use of onomastics in this case

Prognostic Factors Influencing Infection-related Mortality in Patients with Acute Leukemia in Korea

We retrospectively reviewed the medical records of 284 patients with neutropenic fever following chemotherapy for acute leukemia at the Catholic Hematopoietic Stem Cell Transplantation Center from January 1998 to December 1999, to identify prognostic factors for infection related mortality. Twenty-eight patients died of infections. There was no difference in median age, gender ratio, or underlying disease between the dying and surviving groups. Bacteria were the main pathogens following chemotherapy, and Gram positive organisms predominated in the dying group. Pneumonia and sepsis were the main causes of death. There were 72 cases of invasive fungal infection and their mortality was 27.8%. Invasive fungal infection and previous history of fungal infection were independent prognostic factors for outcome. Recovery from neutropenia was the significant protective factor for mortality. In conclusion, the prognostic factors identified in this study could be useful for deciding on more intensive treatment for those patients at greater risk of death. To our knowledge, this is the first Korean study delineating prognostic factors in acute leukemic patients with infectious complications

Dapsone-induced agranulocytosis leading to perianal abscess and death: a case report

<p>Abstract</p> <p>Introduction</p> <p>Dapsone (diaminodiphenylsulfone) is used for the treatment of intractable skin diseases such as pemphigus and leprosy. The side effects of Dapsone are anemia, leukopenia, and liver dysfunction. Here, we present a case of agranulocytosis-induced septic shock, which was a side effect of Dapsone.</p> <p>Case presentation</p> <p>An 82-year-old Japanese woman was transferred to our hospital with fever, leucopenia, and respiratory arrest. At the previous hospital, she had been administered Dapsone for linear IgA bullous dermatosis. At the time of admission, she presented with methemoglobinemia and septic shock, which was due to immunosuppression caused by the normal dose of Dapsone. Although her overall health initially improved, her condition deteriorated because of septic shock caused by an anal fistula. She died of sepsis on hospital day 80.</p> <p>Conclusion</p> <p>One of the side effects of Dapsone is agranulocytosis. Patients with agranulocytosis may be in danger of developing anal fistula. Therefore, care must be taken if a patient with agranulocytosis develops a decubitus ulcer in the sacral region, since it could develop into a fistula-in-ano.</p