An ecological approach to evaluating a system of care program: dollars making sense.

System of care (SOC) models in North America were developed in response to the needs of children with a severe emotional disturbance. Such children experience problems across life spheres including issues at home that put them at risk of abuse and neglect, difficulties at school including special education classification and dropping-out, and involvement with the juvenile courts. SOC evaluations and research suggests that an overreliance of evaluative research efforts on standardized scales and preconceived measurable outcomes have resulted in a loss of other important data.

Longitudinal effects of selective serotonin reuptake inhibitor therapy and cytokine-related depression on hepatitis C viral logs during antiviral therapy.

Objectives: The aim of this study was to determine the longitudinal effects of selective serotonin reuptake inhibitor (SSRI) therapy and cytokine-related depression on levels of hepatitis C virus (HCV) during treatment with combination therapy.

Background: Prior studies have investigated the association between cytokine-related depression and sustained virological response, but it is unknown whether anti-inflammatory properties of SSRIs used to treat cytokine-related depression inadvertently contravene proinflammatory properties of pegylated interferon (Peg-IFN), in effect reducing therapeutic efficacy.

Study: In a retrospective cohort design, patients being treated with Peg-IFN or interferon in combination with ribavirin at a gastroenterology clinic were followed from initiation of therapy until 24 weeks after the completion of therapy.

Birth cohort testing for hepatitis C virus: implications for clinical social workers in health care settings.

The Centers for Disease Control and Prevention recommends one-time hepatitis C virus (HCV) testing for baby boomers born between 1945-1965 in the United States. This public health initiative is known as birth cohort (baby boomer) testing for HCV. The intent of birth cohort testing is to identify and mobilize undiagnosed HCV-infected persons into care and treatment.

Ethnomedical syndromes and treatment-seeking behavior among Mayan refugees in Chiapas, Mexico.

This survey investigated the prevalence of ethnomedical syndromes and examined treatments and treatment-seeking in Mayan Guatemalans living in United Nations High Commissioner for Refugee (UNHCR) camps in Chiapas, Mexico. Methods included a rapid ethnographic assessment to refine survey methods and inform the cross-sectional survey, which also examined mental health outcomes; 183 households were approached for interview, representing an estimated 1,546 residents in five refugee camps and 93% of all households. One adult per household (N = 170) was interviewed regarding his or her health; an additional 9 adults in three surveyed households participated and were included in this analysis; of the 179 participants, 95 primary child-care providers also answered a children's health questionnaire for their children.

The influence of perceived health status on poor women's confidence in leaving welfare: implications for social work.

This article focuses on the realities poor women living in Georgia face in the pursuit of employment. The inquiry focuses on 107 women (84.1% African American, 15.

Factors associated with poor mental health among Guatemalan refugees living in Mexico 20 years after civil conflict.

Context: From 1981 to 2001, 46 000 refugees who fled the 36-year civil conflict in Guatemala for Chiapas, Mexico were under the protection of the United Nations High Commissioner for Refugees.

Objectives: To estimate the prevalence of mental illness and factors associated with poor mental health of underserved Guatemalan refugee communities located in Chiapas, Mexico, since 1981 and to assess need for mental health services.

Design, Setting, And Participants: Cross-sectional survey of 183 households in 5 Mayan refugee camps in Chiapas representing an estimated 1546 residents (adults and children) conducted November-December 2000.