Advances in vaccinating immunocompromised children.

Purpose Of Review: Immunocompromised children are a largely under-vaccinated population and are vulnerable to acquiring vaccine-preventable infections (VPIs). A variety of factors contribute to poor vaccine coverage including: severity of underlying illness, sporadic contact with primary care physicians, and lack of awareness among specialty providers regarding vaccination status. In this review, we report recent data regarding incidence of VPIs, new approaches to vaccine use, rates of vaccine coverage, and strategies to optimize vaccine administration in immunocompromised populations.

Reduction of emergency department use in people with disabilities.

Objectives: To examine emergency department (ED) use by individuals with disabilities in safety-net clinics that have adopted the patient-centered medical home (PCMH) model.

Study Design: This is a retrospective matched cohort study. Prior to matching, we identified 2269 nonelderly Medicaid beneficiaries with disabilities from a Los Angeles Medicaid managed care plan in PCMH clinics and 21,897 in non-PCMH clinics.

The accuracy of food intake charts completed by nursing staff as part of usual care when no additional training in completing intake tools is provided.

Background & Aims: Dietary intake tools that require ongoing training may not be valid and useful in a busy acute care setting. We compared nutrient intakes of inpatients using weighed food records (WFR) with food charts completed by nursing staff who hadn't received recent intake tool training.

Methods: The weight of individual foods remaining on patients' main meal trays was deducted from a reference tray weight.

Study of a novel curriculum on electronic communication in family medicine residencies.

Electronic communication between physicians and patients is common but can carry risks to users--both patients and physicians. Little is known about electronic communication between physicians and patients and even less about electronic communication during residency. We studied knowledge and practices before and after a controlled test of a novel curriculum teaching e-mail communication with patients using residents and faculty in 16 family medicine residencies in the United States.

Obstacles faced by deaf people in the criminal justice system.

Deaf people, especially those who are not well educated, are at risk for serious injustices when they enter the criminal justice system. The present study describes these risks at all stages of the legal process, including arrest, trial, probation, prison, and parole. These dangers are greatest for those who are poorly educated, read at a fourth-grade level or lower, have poor communication skills (American Sign Language and English), and lack awareness of their legal rights.

Violent offenders in a deaf prison population.

Previous research suggested an unexplained difference in the patterns of offending behaviors among deaf people when compared to hearing people. This study, conducted in Texas, compares the incidence and types of violent offenses of a deaf prison population in comparison to the hearing prison population. Sixty-four percent of deaf prisoners were incarcerated for violent offenses in comparison to 49% of the overall state prison offender population.

Appreciating diversity through stories about the lives of deaf people of color.

One way of enhancing appreciation of cultural diversity within the American Deaf community is by collecting and analyzing stories about Deaf people of color. The authors examined biographical profiles in national print and visual media published since 1988. The materials focused on life stories of individuals identified as Deaf persons of color (e.

Deaf sex offenders in a prison population.

Very little is known about deaf sex offenders. This descriptive study of a population of 41 deaf sex offenders incarcerated by the state of Texas provides information about the prevalence of sexual offenders in the deaf prison population, the educational achievement and IQ scores of deaf offenders, and the incidence of secondary disabilities in this population. The rate of sexual offending by deaf offenders was 4 times the rate of sexual offending by hearing offenders with 30% recidivism in the population.

Linguistic diversity in a deaf prison population: implications for due process.

The entire deaf prison population in the state of Texas formed the basis for this research. The linguistic skills of prison inmates were assessed using the following measures: (1) Kannapell's categories of bilingualism, (2) adaptation of the diagnostic criteria for Primitive Personality Disorder, (3) reading scores on the Test of Adult Basic Education, and (4) an evaluation of sign language use and skills by a certified sign language interpreter who had worked with deaf inmates for the past 17 years. Deaf inmates with reading scores below the federal standard for literacy (grade level 2.

Issues in the sexual molestation of deaf youth.

An overview is provided of issues involved in sexual abuse in schools (as well as the general problem of child molestation in society), some characteristics of pedophiles and hebephiles, and data on how sexual molesters are dealt with by the criminal justice system. Specific information is provided on how sexual abuse becomes an issue in schools for children who are deaf, what can be done to prevent it, and symptoms to look for in identifying deaf children who are being victimized.

Entertainment television and hearing students' attitudes regarding the pediatric cochlear implant.

The cochlear implant, a bionic technology that restores sound sensation in some patients, has become ethically controversial in the 20 years since its introduction. This controversy recently has entered American entertainment culture, with the issue of pediatric implants emerging in episodes of popular TV programs. This pilot study examines the effects of one such TV episode on the attitudes of hearing college students with minimal prior exposure to the controversy, using a posttest-only control group design.