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Biomedical subjects

A Leckie

Publications and source records attributed to A Leckie.

6 recordsLinked to original sources

Adult children of alcoholics in treatment programs for anxiety disorders and substance abuse.

Studies of the first-degree relatives of patients with alcoholism and anxiety disorders have identified a significant overlap of these disorders. Forty percent of the patients in an outpatient anxiety disorder program were adult children of alcoholics (ACOA), a proportion similar to that found in the substance abuse program. The ACOAs in both programs were younger, had higher co-dependency scores and were younger when they had their first psychiatric contact than the controls. The adult children of alcoholics who had anxiety disorders were more likely to be female and their alcoholic parents were less likely to have had psychiatric antecedents to alcoholism. Aside from substance abuse, similarities in sociodemographic variables and the impact of the parents' alcoholism were noted, reinforcing the hypothesis that vulnerabilities to anxiety disorders and alcoholism overlap.

Adult

The adult children of alcoholics in a psychiatric population.

The issues confronting adult children of alcoholics (ACOA) are well publicized but their empirical basis remains limited. The screening of 250 consecutive psychiatric admissions to a general hospital revealed a significant prevalence of ACOAs across diagnoses. Compared to the other patients, the ACOA group was younger but with no other socioeconomic difference. The diagnoses of substance abuse and phobic disorders were more frequent. The group was psychiatrically hospitalized at an earlier age. The impact of an ACOA status varied with the parental biological relation and gender, and with the premorbid antecedents of parental alcoholism.

Adult

Change with time in patients' reactions to committal.

The influence of time on patients' reactions to involuntary committal is a variable seldom considered in reports. The reactions to committal of thirty-four subjects interviewed one week/one month/three months/six months post committal are reported. Generally committal was viewed neutrally. The major changes in attitudes related to knowledge of the fact of committal and of rights of appeal. The importance of these findings for the management of committed patients is stressed.

Adult

Patients' attitudes at the time of their commitment.

The discussion concerning who should be committed and by whom, has dominated the psychiatric literature for many years (1). More recently, the issue of whether committal allows merely for incarceration in the least restrictive alternative or whether it also entitles patients to be treated against their will, if necessary, has also received attention (2-5). As yet, few studies have attempted to define the characteristics of the committed population (6-11). Even fewer studies have attempted to define what patients themselves thought of their committal to hospital (12-15) and for the most part, have not obtained their opinions regarding the broader issues of committal that are being debated in the professional literature. This study seeks to elicit the opinions of patients in these matters.

Attitude to Health

On evaluating patient satisfaction: methodological issues.

The survey of patient satisfaction with the mental health services provided is recommended but involves a methodological dilemma. Concerns include a definition problem, the delineation of a representative sample, the selection of a survey technique and the type of questions to be used. A literature review and the authors' own experience with the process are presented. The investigation of patient satisfaction while, as yet, limited in the critical information it can provide for the evaluation of services, will help pinpoint areas where the most patient dissatisfaction exists. The process can also be useful therapeutically, but patient satisfaction, although an important outcome measure, is not systematically related to other measures of treatment success. Methodological suggestions to improve the validity of the data gathered conclude the paper.

Commitment of Persons with Psychiatric Disorders

Patients' reactions to their commitment.

The authors surveyed the reactions toward commitment of 61 respondents out of a sample of 100 patients who had been committed to hospital during a one year period. The patients reported little change in their life situation as a result of committal and most viewed committal quite neutrally. They generally felt uninformed of their rights and indicated little intent to appeal the commitments, but wished to be assured that their rights were being considered and protected. Most saw psychiatrists as the professional group best equipped to bring about a committal. The importance of consumer surveys in controversial areas such as this is underscored.

Adolescent