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Live Webcast to Examine
Mental Health Care System for Children
From: The Carter Center
"Children's Mental
Health: Navigating the System," the final event in the 2004-2005
Conversations at The Carter Center series, will be Webcast live Thursday, April
14, 2005, from 7 to 8:30 p.m. on http://www.cartercenter.org/. Panelists
include mental health a legislative activist and an award-winning journalist --
men whose lives have been impacted by the realities of obtaining adequate
mental health care for their own children.
http://www.ascribe.org/cgi-bin/behold.pl?ascribeid=20050407.125802&time=13%2031%20PDT&year=2005&public=1
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**Children, Youth &
Families
Teens Believe Oral Sex is Safer,
more Acceptable to Peers
According to a University of California - San Francisco study,
young adolescents believe that oral sex is less risky to their health and
emotions than vaginal sex, more prevalent among teens their age and more
acceptable among their peers. They are also more likely to try oral sex.
http://www.eurekalert.org/pub_releases/2005-04/uoc--tbo033105.php
Psychological
Interventions can Reduce Child Abuse and Neglect
A study from Penn State's College of Education,
suggests that psychological treatments are effective in reducing the cognitive
and psychosocial injuries that arise from child maltreatment. The study shows
that treatments are helpful in reducing cognitive, psychosocial injuries that
result from child abuse and neglect.
http://www.eurekalert.org/pub_releases/2005-03/ps-pic033105.php
Vital Signs: Indicators of
the Nonprofit Safety Net for Children in the Washington,
D.C., Region
According to The Urban Institute, from organizations that
provide child care and early childhood education programs for preschoolers to
groups that supply after-school and computer literacy programs for teenagers,
nonprofits play crucial roles in the lives of children in the Washington, D.C.
metropolitan area.
http://www.urban.org/Template.cfm?Section=Home&NavMenuID=3&Template=/TaggedContent/ViewPublication.cfm&PublicationID=9238
Many Young Children Spend
Long Hours in Child Care
An analysis from The Urban Institute finds that in 2002, a
large percentage of preschool children with employed mothers were in full-time
care each week. Forty-two percent of children under age 5 with employed mothers
spent at least 35 hours a week in child care. The proportion is even greater
(50.6 percent) among children whose mothers worked full-time. These findings
reinforce the important role that child care plays in the lives of America's
youngest children and the need for policymakers to pay close attention to the
quality of that care.
http://www.urban.org/Template.cfm?Section=Home&NavMenuID=3&Template=/TaggedContent/ViewPublication.cfm&PublicationID=9232
Early Home Environment and
Television Watching Influence Bullying Behavior
According to an article in
the April issue of the Archives of Pediatrics & Adolescent Medicine, four-year-old
children who receive emotional support and cognitive stimulation from their
parents are significantly less likely to become bullies in grade school, but
the more television four-year-olds watch the more likely they are to bully
later.
http://www.eurekalert.org/pub_releases/2005-04/jaaj-ehe033105.php
Rethinking Welfare Rules From
a Marriage-Plus Perspective
A policy brief from the Center for Law and Social Policy describes
some of the research addressing the effects of the different welfare policies
over the years on family formation decisions. The brief then provides a
framework for preliminary analysis of how to proceed. Finally, the brief
concludes with some suggested concrete policies that would neither discourage
marriage nor disadvantage children being raised in single-parent families.
PDF: http://www.clasp.org/publications/marriage_brief6.pdf
Implementation and Outcome
Evaluation of the Intensive Juvenile Justice Aftercare Program
The Office of Juvenile
Justice and Delinquency Prevention (OJJDP) announces the availability of
"Implementation and Outcome Evaluation of the Intensive Aftercare Program:
Final Report." The OJJDP-sponsored Intensive Aftercare Program (IAP)
addresses a critical problem facing the nation's juvenile justice system: how
to reduce recidivism among high-risk parolees through intensive supervision and
services after they have been released from detention. The Report presents the
findings from a 5-year, multi-site evaluation of the implementation and
outcomes of IAP.
http://www.ojjdp.ncjrs.org/publications/PubAbstract.asp?pubi=12063
**Civil Society/Civic
Engagement
Does Parole Work?:
Analyzing the Impact of Postprison Supervision on Rearrest Outcomes
An analysis from The Urban Institute finds that the majority of
prisoners released in the United States are subject to some period of supervision in the
community, often called "parole." Despite its widespread use, very
little is known about whether parole in fact increases public safety outcomes
or improves reentry transitions. This study compares prisoners released to
supervision-via mandatory and discretionary release-with prisoners released
unconditionally.
http://www.urban.org/Template.cfm?Section=Home&NavMenuID=3&Template=/TaggedContent/ViewPublication.cfm&PublicationID=9233
**Community Development
Housing and So Much More
Catholic Charities USA has
been awarded nearly $2 million from the U.S. Department of Housing and Urban
Development (HUD) to fund 40 agencies’ housing counseling programs. The grant
is the largest grant CCUSA had ever received for the National Housing
Counseling Program, and it is also the largest housing grant given by HUD for
fiscal 2004-2005 to a national organization for comprehensive housing
counseling programs.
http://www.catholiccharitiesusa.org/search/content_displays.cfm?fuseaction=display_document&location=11&id=572
AAHSA Applauds
Introduction of Legislation to Create Interagency Council on Seniors Housing
and Service Needs
American Association of Homes
and Services for the Aging President applauded the introduction of legislation
proposing creation of an Interagency Council on Housing and Services Needs of
Seniors. The commission is modeled after the Interagency Council on the
Homeless and the legislation calls for coordination of activities to maximize
the impact of existing services, reduce and eliminate duplication in service
provision and access to service, and minimize regulatory burdens and costs at
the local level.
http://releases.usnewswire.com/GetRelease.asp?id=166-04052005&site=rss
Urban Neighborhoods Affect
How People Think About Health
According to a Purdue University
urban sociologist the number of days people stay home ill is influenced by
neighborhood poverty and whether they receive subsidized health care, such as
Medicaid. "As state policy-makers decide whether to cut or invest in
their state health insurance programs, such as Medicaid, they need to better
understand factors, both systemic and individual, that influence whether and
how people seek treatment for illnesses such as diabetes and high blood
pressure."
http://www.ascribe.org/cgi-bin/behold.pl?ascribeid=20050404.142448&time=14%2053PDT&year=2005&public=1
Pediatricians must
Confront Community-Based Threats to Health
A special supplement of the
journal Pediatrics released by the American Academy of Pediatrics recommends
that pediatricians must look beyond the walls of the examining room and into
their own communities to understand and confront the socioeconomic and
environmental threats to the health of children and adolescents, such as poor
nutrition, exposure to violence, and substance abuse.
http://www.eurekalert.org/pub_releases/2005-04/uorm-pmc040105.php
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Get more information on these
issues at http://www.ecommunityissues.com.
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**Economic Security
The Price
Is Wrong: Getting the Market Right for Working Families in Philadelphia
A report from Brookings
delves into why thousands of dollars are currently drained from the budgets of Philadelphia's
working families through higher prices for everyday goods and services. These
higher prices—higher than those paid by better off families for the exact same
goods and services—hold back all aspiring middle class families, undermining
the city's innovative efforts to combat decades of decline.
http://www.brookings.org/metro/pubs/20050404_PriceIsWrong.htm
African Americans
Struggling in Latest Recovery
An Economic Policy Institute analysis answers
the question of how African Americans are faring compared to the trend for all
jobseekers, both in this recovery and historically? Get the facts at a glance
in an analysis of unemployment and employment trends, in this week's Snapshot.
http://www.epinet.org/content.cfm/webfeatures_snapshots_20050406
Walking the Talk --
Community Colleges Where Everyone Wins
City College of San Francisco and Community
College of Denver were
honored, in 2004, with the MetLife Foundation Community College Excellence
Award. This award recognizes the crucial role that community colleges play in
helping youth and adults meet their educational and career goals. It celebrates
colleges that demonstrate a singular, institution-wide commitment to low-income
students, first-generation college-goers, and working adults.
http://releases.usnewswire.com/GetRelease.asp?id=153-04062005&site=rss
**Education
No Child Left Behind
Report
The Center on Education
Policy has released its third in a series of reports on the implementation of
the No Child Left Behind Act. From the Capital to the Classroom, Year 3 of the
No Child Left Behind Act, is a comprehensive analysis of how the law is being
implemented at the state, district and local levels. Based on a survey of 49
states, 314 school districts and 36 case studies of school districts, the
report provides the most up-to-date information about the law's implementation
and shares the opportunities and challenges that it has presented for states
and districts.
http://www.ctredpol.org/pubs/nclby3/
New Insight into Brain and
Speech Promises help for Learning Disabilities
Learning disabilities such as
dyslexia are believed to affect nearly one in 10 children. To better study
them, Northwestern University scientists have developed a data-driven
conceptual framework linking for the first time the source-filter model of
acoustics with the cortex's "what" and "where" pathways via
the auditory brainstem. In doing so, they have developed a non-invasive
diagnostic tool that can quickly identify children with certain learning
disabilities.
http://www.eurekalert.org/pub_releases/2005-04/nu-nii040405.php
**Health
Snapshot: Health Care
Costs 101, 2005 Edition
This snapshot from the
California HealthCare Foundation provides a visual representation of costs and
financing trends over the past decade, as well as predictions of future costs.
Taken from several public and private data sources, the presentation is meant
for anyone interested in an overview of health care financing issues in California and
the nation.
http://www.chcf.org/topics/healthinsurance/index.cfm?itemID=109369
Reports Show Progress on
Health Coverage is Threatened as States Continue to Face Growing Pressures to
Control Costs
Two Kaiser Commission on Medicaid and the
Uninsured 50-state surveys show states continue to face budget pressures
that could limit public coverage. One survey shows all states plan more
Medicaid cost-containment actions in FY2005 and the second shows that after
recent gains, securing Medicaid and SCHIP coverage is more difficult for
low-income families in 23 states.
http://www.kff.org/medicaid/kcmu100404pkg.cfm
Public Health and Advocacy
Organizations Seek Removal of 4Parents.gov, a New HHS Web Site
145 organizations sent a
letter the Secretary of the Department of Health and Human Services, Michael
Leavitt, to express concern with the Department of Health and Human Services'
(DHHS) recently launched Web site http://www.4parents.gov.
They asked that the Web site be immediately taken down and that a formal review
be launched of its content and techniques for communication and behavioral
learning. These 145 organizations uniformly feel that the Web site presents
biased and inaccurate information as fact and does not address the needs of
many youth, including sexually active youth, youth who have been or are being
sexually abused, and lesbian, gay, bisexual, transgender and questioning youth.
http://releases.usnewswire.com/GetRelease.asp?id=45145
HHS Launches African
American Obesity Initiative
The Department of Health and
Human Services announced the award of $1.2 million to improve efforts to reduce
obesity among African Americans through a new partnership with national African
American organizations. The National Association for Equal Opportunity in
Higher Education will work with the National Urban League and the National
Council of Negro Women. Initiatives planned by these organizations include
prevention, education, public awareness, and outreach activities intended to
bring about a greater understanding of the impact of obesity on other
conditions.
http://www.hhs.gov/news/press/2005pres/20050407.html
Joslin Diabetes Center Announces New Nutrition Guidelines
As Americans' waistlines
continue to expand, contributing to a burgeoning epidemic of type 2 diabetes,
the scientific jury is in and the verdict is clear: weight loss and increased
physical activity is directly related to improved diabetes control. To help
Americans fight the dramatic increase in type 2 diabetes, Joslin Diabetes Center has
crafted new nutrition and physical activity guidelines for overweight and obese
individuals with type 2 diabetes and those at risk for developing diabetes
(pre-diabetes).
http://www.eurekalert.org/pub_releases/2005-04/jdc-jdc040605.php
Surgery More Effective
than Diet and Exercise for Severely Obese People
According to an analysis from
RAND,
weight loss surgery helps severely obese people lose more weight than dieting
and exercise alone. People who undergo such surgery typically lose about 45 to
65 pounds and maintain their lower weight for 10 years or longer.
http://www.rand.org/news/press.05/04.04.html
Differential Heart-Attack
Risks among Blacks, Whites remain Mystery
Dallas heart study researchers from Rice University and
The University of Texas have ruled out one of the most prominent explanations
of why elevated levels of the fat-carrying protein "lipoprotein(a)"
lead to increased risks for heart attacks among whites but not among
African-Americans. The study, published in Circulation, points to the need for
more research to find out whether African-Americans have a genetic mechanism
that protects them from Lp(a) risks.
http://www.eurekalert.org/pub_releases/2005-04/ru-dhr040505.php
National Agendas in
Tackling Health Disparities
In 2002, the Institute of
Medicine released the report "Unequal Treatment: Confronting Racial and
Ethnic Health Disparities," (http://www.iom.edu/), which revealed that
minorities tend to receive lower-quality health care than whites do, even when
insurance status, income, age and severity of conditions are comparable. In
2003, the National Institutes of Health (NIH) revealed its Roadmap for Medical
Research (http://nihroadmap.nih.gov/). With an emphasis on interdisciplinary
collaboration, the Roadmap has funded the creation of a center on health
disparities and pregnancy outcomes and has called for professional training of
future clinical research leaders from diverse backgrounds.
http://www.ascribe.org/cgi-bin/behold.pl?ascribeid=20050405.121004&time=12%2037%20PDT&year=2005&public=1
**Hunger & Nutrition
2005 National Anti-Hunger
Policy Conference Preserving and Improving the Federal Nutrition Safety Net
Presentations from National
Anti-Hunger Conference are available online. This year's conference brought
together over 400 advocates from anti-hunger, food bank, CACFP, child care,
direct service, human needs, religious, children's, immigrant, health,
education, and other groups from across the nation.
http://www.frac.org/Conference/2005/index.html
Food Stamp Participation
in January 2005
According to the Food
Research and Action Center, food stamp participation dipped in January 2005 to
25,458,113, an over-the-month decline of 29,290, but an over-the-year increase
of nearly two million people. The Food Stamp Program growth in recent months
reflects continuing joblessness, state actions to improve access, and the
effects of the food stamp reauthorization implementation.
http://www.frac.org/html/news/fsp/01.05_FSP.html
**Substance Abuse
Kids Today Take Fewer
Risks than Parents Did, Study Says
According to the Child
Well-Being Index, today's youth do less drugs and binge drinking than their
parents did at the same age and also commit fewer crimes, but many eat poorly
and are overweight.
http://www.jointogether.org/saredirect/?Object_ID=576567&Type=sa
CASA: Parents Put Kids at
Risk of Addiction
According to a report from
the National
Center on Addiction and Substance Abuse, many children in the U.S. are at
higher risk of addiction and physical or mental illness because their parents
either smoke; use illicit drugs, or abuse alcohol. The "Family Matters:
Substance Abuse and the American Family" white paper said that 13 percent
of U.S. children under age 18 live in homes where parents use illicit drugs, 24
percent have parents who are binge drinkers or heavy drinkers, and 37 percent
live with parents who smoke or use other tobacco products.
http://www.jointogether.org/sa/news/summaries/reader/0%2C1854%2C576575%2C00.html
Cost Effectiveness of
Substance Abuse Treatment Examined
A new document, "The
Economic Benefits of Drug Treatment: A Critical Review of the Evidence for
Policy Makers," reviews hundreds of studies relating to the cost
effectiveness of treatment services for people with alcohol and drug problems.
http://www.jointogether.org/saredirect/?Object_ID=576580&Type=sa
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The WebClipper Digest is
HandsNet's weekly overview of crosscutting human services news from throughout
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RELEASE or NEW REPORT that you would like included in the Digest, please
contact us at editor@handsnet.org .
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msaunders@handsnet.org
