As long as your\u27re resilient you\u27ll succeed: School disaffected adolescents\u27 perspectives on their willingness to engage in high injury-risk graffiti-writing activities

A lack of sense of school belonging can be a destabilising aspect in disaffected students’ lives, so much so that they will often seek an alternative sense of belonging outside of the school arena. Gaining out-of-school acceptance within the non-conforming, graffiti subculture is dependent upon proving one’s worth through willing engagement in visual acts of high-risk daring. This exemplar study examines the health-risk injuries sustained by eight adolescent crew leaders within the graffiti subculture. The study’s findings reveal four reoccurring sources of graffiti-related injury (ie. tagging hard-to-reach places, fighting rival crews, graffing under the influence, and eluding Police capture). A second finding emanating out of the study is the perception among teenage crew leaders that they needed to be seen to be resilient, in terms of overcoming their graffiti sustained injuries, if they are to succeed in their desire of maintaining their status both within their crew and broader graffiti youth subculture. Finally, the societal need to establish a non-conforming/delinquent bridging pathway to social inclusion is discussed

Taylor, Stephen (Steven) Marvin (1834 - 1920)

This biographical summary was created by the Works Progress Administration (WPA) between 1936 and 1939

Graffiti Offenders\u27 Patterns of Desistance from, and Persistence in, Crime: New Insights into Reducing Recidivist Offending

While graffiti is a gateway crime towards more serious criminal offending, little is known about graffitists\u27 patterns of desistance from, and persistence in, crime. This paper addresses this knowledge shortfall through an examination of the Western Australian Police Information Management System (IMS) database for three age-groups (i.e. preteens, adolescents, adults) and three categories of graffiti offenders (Early Desisters, Limited Persisters, Chronic Persisters). Descriptive and chi-squared statistics reveal that: i) nearly three-quarters of all of the 667 preteen, adolescent and adult graffiti offenders desisted from further offending after their first or second contact with police; ii) the mainly adolescent cohort of Limited Persister offenders account for the majority of all recorded violent crime; and c) most graffiti offenders are processed through the court system for both their graffiti and non-graffiti-related offences. The implications for designing recidivist intervention programmes that target offenders at the different stages of their offending are discussed

Patients’ recommendations for a patient-centred public antiretroviral therapy programme in eThekwini, KwaZulu-Natal

Background: The South African antiretroviral therapy (ART) programme, which is in its second decade of existence, includes many successes and challenges. This study provides patients’ recommendations to address the challenges they currently experience at four antiretroviral (ARV) clinics based in urban public hospitals in order to provide a patient-centred service.Objectives: To use patients’ recommendations to develop intervention strategies to improve patients’ experiences of the public ART programme.Method: A three-stage, sequential, mixed-method study was implemented. Stage 1 recruited five patients from the four sites to formulate and test a structured questionnaire prior to data collection. Stage 2 recruited a stratified random sample of 400 patients (100 from each hospital) to complete the administered structured questionnaire. Stage 3 purposively selected 12 patients (three from each of the four sites) to participate in in-depth audio-recorded interviews using an interview schedule.Results: The 412 patients prioritised six recommendations, which are as follows: waiting areas should be enclosed to protect patients from the elements (rain, sun, lightening, wind and cold); patients should not have to return their files to the main hospital or ARV clinic themselves; stable patients should collect their ARV drugs every three months; pharmacy opening and closing times should be revised to suit patients’ needs; HIV-positive patient representatives should be elected at each ARV clinic to address patients’ concerns and/or challenges to ensure that the programme could be more patient-centred and ARV clinic operating times should be extended to open later during weekdays and over weekends.Conclusion: Patients living with HIV have a valuable contribution to make in assessing service delivery and making recommendations to create a patient-centred healthcare environment, which will feasibly increase their adherence to ART

Visual Recognition Difficulties: Identifying Primary School Students\u27 Directional Confusion In Writing Letters And Numbers

Background: Occupational therapists often assess primary school learners for letter and number reversal tendencies using scales which require recognition of reversed letters and numbers; however, these scales do not generally look at learners’ written production of letters and numbers to measure their reversal tendencies. This study aimed to determine whether learners reverse the same letters and numbers in reading and in writing. Method: This study utilised the Richmond Reversal Rating (RRR) Scale to identify which language symbols 118 primary school learners found difficult to recognise as being reversed when reading a series of letters and numbers and writing 20 letters and nine numerals. Analysis: Nonparametric correlations and parametric Chi-square statistics were used to investigate differences in the learners’ reading recognition and written production. Results: Letters and numbers reversed in recognition (reading) and writing were similar. Moreover, eleven letters and three numbers were identified as difficult to orientate on a page. Conclusion: Explicit teaching to remediate letter and number reversals and font use are paramount to improving language symbol orientation

PREVALENCE OF MULTIPLE ADDICTIONS AND CURRENT TREATMENT BY DRUG TREATMENT CENTRES IN DURBAN, SOUTH AFRICA

Substance-use disorders (SUD) cause severe problems both globally and locally. Research suggests that multiple addictions create a more complex illness. This study investigated whether in-patients admitted for SUD at three drug treatment centres in Durban, South Africa had other, undiagnosed addictions. It utilised a three-phase concurrent mixed-methods design and initially screened for gambling and sex addiction. Results showed that, of the sample of 123 participants, 54% had either sex or gambling and 24% had both addictions which current treatment programmes neither assessed for nor treated. Recommendations include suggestions to update current assessment and treatment approaches and the need to train professional staff at drug treatment centres

A behavioural change intervention study for the prevention of childhood obesity in South Africa: protocol for a randomized controlled trial.

BACKGROUND: South Africa is currently undergoing a nutrition transition, and overweight and obesity is on the increase in South African children. Urbanization and other health determinants have led to reduced physical activity and unhealthy eating that have increased the risk of adverse chronic health conditions. This study aims to provide evidence of the effectiveness of a school-based intervention study that targets diet and physical activity for the prevention of child and adolescent overweight and/or obesity. METHODS: We will employ a mixed method study design which is divided into two phases. Phase 1, namely the qualitative elicitation research phase will inform the development of the quantitative intervention phase (phase 2), consisting of a cluster-randomized trial, based on input from key stakeholders. The study will be undertaken in 16 government-funded primary schools in the iLembe district of KwaZulu-Natal, South Africa. The study will target learners in Grades 4 and 7, their parents, Life Orientation educators, school principals and members of school governing bodies. Assessment for the primary objective (BMI Z scores), and the secondary objectives (change in knowledge, attitudes and behaviours regarding diet and physical activity) in both study arms will be conducted at baseline in March 2020 and at the end of the study in October 2020. DISCUSSION: The study will be a novel combined mixed methods/RCT design that focuses on diet, physical activity school and family-based interventions in the context of rapidly increasing overweight and obesity prevalence in KwaZulu-Natal. To encourage behaviour change and management of malnutrition, education including diet and physical activity, is an important strategy that must be considered. Nutrition education extends beyond the dissemination of food information; it includes addressing the needs of participants, empowers and encourages decision-making and choice of foods, change in nutrition attitudes, beliefs and influences based on resources available and within cultural boundaries. TRIAL REGISTRATION: Pan African Clinical Trial Registry PACTR201711002699153. Protocol registered on 16 November 2017

Photoaging photography: Mothers\u27 attitudes toward adopting skin-protective measures pre- and post-viewing photoaged images of their and their child\u27s facial sun damage

One of the major sources for children to gain knowledge of skin-protective measures is from their parents. Therefore, an imperative exists for parents to model and reinforce the sun-safety practices they want their children to adopt. Although Australian mothers have been the recipients of two extensive sun-safety public health campaigns, little is known about their attitudes, behaviors, and application of health promotion knowledge toward their and their child’s ultraviolet (UV) sun exposure. Ten mothers with children aged 4 to 12 years were asked a series of questions about their sun-safety practices, both pre- and post-viewing an UV photoaged photograph of their and their child’s face. Interpretive Phenomenological Analysis identified four themes and 12 subthemes. The findings reveal that mothers expressed divergent views on skin protection pre- and post-inspecting their and their child’s photoaged photographs. At one end of the viewing spectrum, mothers expressed an opinion that some degree of skin damage was an inevitable reality in Australia’s sunny climate, and on the other end of the viewing spectrum mothers expressed their desire to keep themselves and their child out of the sun. Mothers in the mid-range of the spectrum stated that their parenting task was one of transferring the responsibility for adopting skin-protective measures from themselves to their preteen children. The combination of mothers viewing their own photos as well as their child’s photograph serves to enhance the difference seen in photoaging damage, which in turn provides greater impetus for mothers to be concerned about photoaging in general

\u27You get forced to live with randoms ... and that makes you stronger as a person\u27. Homeless Western Australian teenagers\u27 perspectives on their experiences of residing in crisis accommodation

Homelessness is a growing, but poorly understood, social phenomenon. It is hypothesised that the fulfilment of homeless teenagers’ psychosocial needs supports normative development and facilitates mental well-being. This exemplar phenomenological study investigated the crisis accommodation living experiences of eight homeless teenagers aged 16 to 19 years and interpreted these experiences in relation to Maslow’s hierarchy of human need. The findings reveal that homeless teenagers achieve a measure of resilience by overcoming their safety fears and subsequently establishing a sense of belonging within the homeless community. Finally, the teenagers’ ability, under difficult circumstances, to establish an identity, individuality, and integrity seemingly provided them with sufficient internal fortitude that they were then able to set and achieve their personal goals

Young australian adults’ reactions to viewing personalised uv photoaged photographs

Background: Despite two nationwide sun-protection awareness campaigns, young Australian adults continue to sunbathe. Since their primary motivation for tanning is appearance enhancement, it may well be that campaigns that highlight the negative effects of tanning on appearance are more effective than campaigns that emphasise the health risks associated with sun exposure.Aims: This study aims to explore young adults’ reactions to viewing a photoaged photograph of the sun damage already visible in their facial image.Methods: Semi-structured interviews were conducted with seven females and three males aged 20-30 years. The interview transcripts were transcribed verbatim and were then subjected to Interpretive Phenomenological Analysis (IPA).Results: Three themes and eight sub-themes emerged from the analysis. Collectively they revealed that participants’ fear-based reaction to their photoaged photographs triggered in them feelings of unattractiveness, which in turn motivated them to change to their existing sun-tanning behaviours.Conclusion: Although media-popularised representations of suntanned skin being the desired norm were identified as a barrier to skin-protective behavioural change, personalised ultraviolet (UV) photoaged photographs, when accompanied by an explanation of the skin damage that unprotected ultraviolet radiation (UVR) exposure causes, were effective in changing young adults’ sun-tanning intentions. Hence, a need exists for positive non-tanning appearance-related messages to be incorporated into sun exposure education campaigns