The social and economic impact of rehabilitation and incarceration of drug users in Grenada

OBJECTIVE: To quantify the cost for rehabilitation, incarceration and loss of productivity for drug users, as well as general statistics for drug use in Grenada. SUBJECTS AND METHODS: Data were obtained from various sources, and used in equations to assess different variables. Data from various institutions were also looked at to examine any trends that could be seen from January 2013 to June 2013. RESULTS: The calculated cost and length of stay for each prisoner in Grenada for drug use is EC $25 787.25. The number of substance use-induced hospital admissions and the cost per day is EC $2 092 501.55 for the 101 patients that were admitted over a six-month period. The calculation for number of people undergoing treatment and cost associated with the treatment is EC $617 680. Amount of wages lost due to premature death from substance use is EC $881 083.48. The costs for arresting and maintaining drug users is EC $2 682 120.74. The cost associated with loss of wages for being imprisoned is EC $2 714 148.08. The statistics from the various institutions showed that 76% of the individuals are males and the major problem substance in Grenada is marijuana, accounting for approximately 45% of the reported substances, and simple possession is the majority violation. CONCLUSION: Grenada spends a significant amount on incarcerating and rehabilitating individuals for substance use and the majority of those are for possession of marijuana. The next step is to come up with a plan to reduce the costs that accrue to the country in order to deal with illicit substance use.

Maternal moods predict breast-feeding in Barbados

This study was designed to identify psychosocial variables affecting early infant feeding practices in Barbados. The sample included 93 healthy women and infants born at the Queen Elizabeth Hospital who were extensively evaluated 7 weeks, 3 months, and 6 months after birth. Maternal moods were assessed with the Zung Depression and Anxiety Scales and the General Adjustment and Morale Scale. Feeding practices were evaluated using a questionnaire developed for this population. The prevalence of mild depression in this population was 16 percent at 7 weeks and increased to 19 percent at 6 months, whereas there were very few cases of moderate-to-severe depression. Disadvantaged environmental conditions, including less information-seeking by the mother, lower family income, and poor maternal health, were closely associated with increased symptoms of depression and anxiety in all women. However, significant predictive relationships between mood and feeding practices remained even when the effects of the home environment were controlled. Specifically, depressive symptoms at 7 weeks postpartum predicted a reduced preference for breastfeeding at current and later infant ages. Conversely, feeding practices did not predict maternal moods at later ages. These findings have important implications for public policy dealing with programs promoting breastfeeding. Early interventions designed to treat mild postnatal depression should be instituted early in the postpartum period to improve the chances for successful breastfeeding.(Au)

The identity of mixed parentage adolescents

Theories about black identity are discussed in relation to a study of adolescents with one white and one African or African-Caribbean parent. Interview findings on their racial self-definition, attitudes to their mixed parentage, and allegiance to black and white people and cultures reveal a wide range of racial identities and cultural allegiances. Differences are related to type of school, social class, and the degree of politicisation of the young person's attitudes to race. The findings are discussed in relation to the issue of interracial adoption and fostering, and to recent debates about the concept of an essential black identity.(AU)

Gender and age variations in the self-image of Jamaican adolescents

The purpose of the study was to investigate the relationships among gender, age, and self-image of adolescents attending three secondary schools in Jamaica. The relatively few studies that have been done regarding self-perceptions of these youths are not only dated but have utilized a unidimensional conceptualization of the self. The Offer Self-Image Questionnaire which employs a multidimensional construct of the self was administered to a sample of 174 Jamaican adolescents ranging in age from 14 to 18 years (M=15.90 years, SD=1.21). Results revealed statistically significant effects for both gender and age. Gender was found to be significant on one self-image dimension: Morals, while age differences were evident on six dimensions: Social Relationships, Morals, Sexual Attitudes, Mastery of the External World, Vocational and Educational Goals, and Emotional Health. The results in some instances were contrary to those of past research. Discussion focused on cultural socialization and other factors affecting youth in Jamaican society.(Au)

Coping mechanisms in tropical spastic paraparesis (TSP)

Tropical spastic paraparesis (TSP), a slowly progressive spinal cord disorder has gained much attention since the discovery of its cause, the retrovirus human T lymphotropic virus type I (HTVL-I), which is similar to the virus responsible for the acquired immunodeficiency syndrome. This study was designed to determine the relationship between socio-demographic and psycho-social factors and the coping skills of TSP patients treated at the University Hospital of the West Indies during 1995. The sample consisted of 45 patients who were identified by way of a face to face interview. From the findings of the study it was seen that there was a relationship between family support, social status and social coping. Other socio-demographic and psycho-social factors such as age, sex, marital status and self esteem showed no relationship. The study suggested the need for a team approach in the management of TSP patients aimed at bringing out the most adapted coping strategies of which the patient is capable. (AU)

The educational structure and the self-image of Jamaica adolescents

The offer Self-image questionaire was used to assess the self-image of 141 Jamaican adolescents attenting three types of secondary (High, Technical, and New Secondary) schools in Jamaica. Owing to the different status given each type of school, differences among students' self-perceptions were hypothesized as a function of the type of secondary school they attended. Analysis showed significant differences on dimensions of the self-image of Jamaican adolescents relative to the hierarchical status afforded their respective schools. Adolescents attending the more prestigious (High) schools scored significantly better than peers from the less prestigious Technical and New Secondary schools on eight self-image dimensions of impulse control, emotional tone, social relationships, morals, sexual attitudes, vocational and educational goals, emotional health, superior adjustment. Students from Technical schools had significantly better adjustment scores than New Secondary students on social relationships, Sexual attitudes, and emotional health. Results are discussed with regard to the Jamaican Cultural

Social integration and suicide in the Caribbean Islands

Among the Caribbean islands, suicide rates were higher for the more populous islands, confirming a prediction from Durkheim. (Au)

Presentation of Leslie Brown, Research Officer of the Youth Training & Employment Partnership Programme (YTEPP) at the Seminary Workshop on Social and Community Development Issues in the 1990's and Beyond

Mr. Bowrin's plea is: Give our youth a break! He defined youth in terms of energy and continuity. As young adults, they have special needs; as agents of rejuvenation, they are society's future. He cited four areas where youth is being disadvantaged:- i Unmet psycho-social needs. For example, the need for financial independence, the need to own a home and start a family. Since these needs are not being met in the normal course of events, many young people are turning to socially unacceptable ways in an attempt to cope with their frustration. The recent appearance of youth gangs on the local scene is a case in point. ii Dependency syndrome. Youths continue to be dependent on their parents far beyond the traditional age limit. Apart from fostering an attitude of dependency, which in itself is undesirable, this situation is a potential cause of domestic friction; not to mention the fact that it runs counter to Government's stated policy of developing self-reliance. iii Unpreparedness for a changing environment. Traditional education has not prepared our youth for self-employment. In a shrinking job market, they find themselves caught between unavailability of jobs on the one hand, and their own inability to create jobs for themselves, on the other hand. Suggested solutions:- i Retraining for self-employment; ii Collaboration between business, professionals, the university, and youth and community groups with a view to providing the youth with the financial and technical assistance necessary to establish and maintain their own businesses. iii Voluntary Community Service; iv Cultivation of hobbies as a way of structuring time

A preliminary study of the coping skills and attitudes of the main caregivers of the elderly and some implications for health education

Technological and medical advances together with improvements in public health measures have resulted in substantial gains in life expectancy for populations world wide. The challenges now are to improve the quality of life for individuals and to increase the period of independence for the growing numbers of elderly. The challenges are especially strong in the third world and Jamaica is no exception. This preliminary study was undertaken to describe the elderly living in the August Town/Hermitage/Goldsmith Villas areas of East Rural St. Andrew, to describe and determine their coping skills and attitudes and to ascertain the implications for health education. Findings indicated that the coping capacity of caregivers in the area was very good, their attitudes towards the elderly positive and that, far from having an adverse effect on their lives, caring may have filled a void. Findings also indicated that the main caregivers of the elderly were female relatives, and that family support was strong. Some implications for health education were that there was among caregivers and the church, untapped resources which may be usefully explored (AU)

Social integration of the physically disabled in Barbados

An emergent concern with the rehabilitation and social integration of disabled people in developing nations has created a need to identify cultural beliefs and behaviours which may affect the integration of the disabled into normative social roles. The focus of this study is the social integration of physically disabled adults among the nonelite, coloured population of Barbados, West Indies. This paper analysed the role participation of 30 physically disabled adults within the context of Barbadian beliefs and behaviours related to the disabled and to the 'normal' adult. Although village Barbadians do not expect the physically disabled to fulfill normative roles, some disabled individuals in this study do perform adult activities, such as maintaining employment and engaging in sexual relationships. However, very few of them participate in the reciprocal relationships among peers and neighbours through which village Barbadians achieve status and 'respect' as adults. (AU)

Behaviour disorders among a sample of Jamaican adolescents

Most maladjusted children's behaviour is different in quantity rather than quality from the behaviour of other children. The prevalence of behaviour disorders among a sample of 13 and 14 year old Jamaican high school and all age school adolescents was examined. The identification of aetiological factors involved in behaviour disorders was also attempted. Teachers can improve their assessment of maladjustment in children through observations of children's behaviour. The Revised Behaviour Problem Checklist R.B.P.C. was found to be a useful measure of common behaviour disorders and showed that Jamaican adolescents had a higher prevalence of behaviour disorders than their North American counterparts. An instrument assessing the adolescent's psycological adjustment - the Personality Screening Inventory P.S.I. was also found to be an indicator of behaviour disorders, and it seems that the R.B.P.C. used in conjunction with the P.S.I. would provide a more complete picture of the adolescent's problems. Males scored higher on most subscales of the R.B.P.C. Maladjusted behaviour was also seen to be affected by long periods of separation from parents especially if the child was quite young. Adolescents from the lower social class groups were significantly higher on behaviour disorders than the middle social class groups. However, this finding may also have been a function of low intellectual level. These results suggest that identification of behaviour disordered children in Jamaica is imperative, so that literacy can be improved and more importantly the normal personality, behavioural and emotional development of tomorrow's adults can be assured (AU)

Self-conception and psychosocial adjustment: a study of some high school adolescents

This study attempted to test and define some conceptual and empirical issues related to the role of self-conception in psychosocial adjustment. Self esteem was found to be of importance in the process of awareness of and feeling about personal and social identity (AU)

Bahamian alcoholism: an expression of social maladjustment - abstract

Alcoholism in the Bahamas is probably the most important health problem. The amount of alcohol imported increased from 256,658 gallons in 1955 to 512,953 in 1967 and the per caput consumption rose from 9 litres in 1957 to 11.3 litres in 1967 The crude psychiatric admission rate for alcoholism is 41 percent in Nassau compared with 2-3 percent in the United Kingdom and 2.0 percent in the U.S.A. A questionnaire on medical and surgical admissions to the General Hospital showed that 51 percent of patients denied drinking at all - a figure perhaps in keeping with the strong attitude of denial characteristic of the local alcoholic. Reference to post mortem material shows that stigmata of excessive alcohol intake were present in 13 percent of cases. Examination of the social phenomena associated with alcoholism showed that males and females exhibited different drinking patterns - the males drinking in the evenings in exclusively masucline company while female drinking is more concealed and is done in homes. The majority of patients have little insight, low self-esteem, poor motivation and a high neuroticism score on the Eysenck Personality Inventory. A theory is advanced that the male alcoholic has difficulty with mature heterosexual relationships and may be latently homsexual. The major factors influencing the high incidence of alcoholism are cheap liquor, numerous bars, the occupational hazards of the tourist industry, boredom, the matrifocal structure of the society, maternal deprivation and certain aspects of social change in the Bahamas. Treatment is both on outpatient bases but the relapse rate is high (AU)

Returning to the community: discharge planning

Discusses the conditions and follow-up actions involved in discharging a patient

Returning to the community: the community

Looks at burn injury as a type of social phenomenon occurring in social groupings of people, stratified by the circumstances of their life, habits and customs as well as by the techniques available to them for resolving conflict

Widowhood: the social and economic consequences

Widowhood marks an important point in the life cycle of many older women and is a reality with which the majority of women in Jamaica can expect to contend in their old age. The reasons are that women tend to outlive their spouses (life expectancy was 72.6 years for women and 68.1 years for men in 1982), and that wives are typically younger than their husbands and therefore have a greater probability of outliving them. Consequently, there are more widows than widowers in Jamaican society, and the same holds true not only for Jamaica but for most developing and developed countries. .... This paper intends to show that Jamaican women over the age of 60 years suffer severe hardships socially and especially economically as widows (AU)