Should Drinking during Pregnancy be Criminalised to Prevent Fetal Alcohol Spectrum Disorder?

The harmful effects of alcohol use during pregnancy have been well documented. Fetal alcohol spectrum disorder (FASD) is the collective term encompassing the various clinical diagnoses that can occur in a child who was exposed to alcohol prenatally. The affected child suffers a range of lifelong primary and secondary disabilities. There is no cure for FASD; but it is preventable if women do not drink during pregnancy. Should women be banned from; and/or punished for drinking during pregnancy for the sake of preventing fetal harm? This article considers the appropriateness of criminalising drinking during pregnancy as a means of preventing fetal harm and consequently FASD in children; and concludes that criminal approaches are unjustified; potentially discriminatory and likely to be ineffective

Views of Adolescents on Addressing Violence in Semi-Rural Secondary Schools in Mafikeng; North West Province

Background: Violence is a public health problem and often an issue of criminal justice.Violence in schools is a worldwide phenomenon and exposes adolescents to premature death. Purpose: The purpose of this study was to explore and describe adolescents' views on addressing violence in semi-rural secondary schools in Mafikeng. Research design and method: A qualitative; explorative; descriptive and contextual research design was utilised. Purposive sampling was used to select adolescents from semi-rural secondary schools in Mafikeng who fell between the ages of 13 and 20 years and who were involved in community youth groups or associations. In-depth focus group discussion using audiotape; reflexive notes and naive sketches were used for data collection. The central question which was asked was 'What are the adolescents' views on addressing violence in semi-rural secondary schools?' Data were analysed by means of open coding. Results: The results showed that adolescents understood the complexities associated with violence in this country; and they suggested multiple approaches and interventions. The adolescents were of the opinion that responsible communication patterns in the school environment could build healthy relationships between learners and educators and lead to a decrease in violence in the school setting. They also felt that enforcement of a secure teaching environment through encouragement of behavioural and attitudinal change guided by school codes of conduct and provision of firm security will help reduce violence in schools

Clinical Presentation and Complications in Patients with Unsafe Abortions in University of Calabar Teaching Hospital; Calabar; Nigeria

Background: Unsafe abortion still contributes significantly to high maternal morbidity and mortality particularly in developing countries despite concerted efforts being made to reduce it. Our objective is to determine the incidence; mode presentation and complications of Unsafe abortion. Method: This prospective study was carried out by directly interviewing patients managed for unsafe abortion over one and half years period (1st June 2003; to 31st December; 2004) in Maternity Annex of the University of Calabar Teaching Hospital Calabar; Nigeria. Results: Incidence of Unsafe abortion of 27.6of all gynaecological admissions was established. Most Patients (55.7) were age 20 30 years while 25.4were teenagers. There were 33 (27.1) students; 38.2were single women and 38.5had secondary education. The major reasons given for terminating the pregnancy included completion of education (25.4); fear of parental action (18.8) and in 17.2the father of the pregnancy was unknown. Medical officers (32.8) performed majority of the abortions while 10.7were self induced by the patients themselves. Main complications encountered included retained product of conceptions; haemorrhage; sepsis; injuries to genital tracts and intraabdomal organs. Conclusion: Unsafe abortion and it complications occurs in all socioeconomic groups. Efforts directed at reducing unintended pregnancy by comprehensive family planning programs and effective emergency post abortal care services will reduce the problem while the legal status of abortion is being debated

Experiences and Attitudes of Young Men towards Abortion in a Semi-Urban Community in Rivers State; Nigeria

Background: Most of the studies on abortion focused on the roles and responsibility of women; with very little attention given to the role played by men. Aim: To assess the experiences and attitudes of young men towards abortion in Mgbede Egbema; a semi-urban community in Rivers State; south-south Nigeria. Methods: A descriptive cross-sectional study design was employed; using a structured questionnaire and focus group discussion as study methods. The questionnaire was administered to all the registered male members of the community's youth association; while the focus group discussion was held with members of the youth association's vigilante committee; to gain more insight into the responses contained in the answered questionnaires. Results: A total of 181 questionnaires were administered and retrieved. The average age of the respondents was 23.1 years; and they were mostly single (77.9); with secondary school education (65.8); and combined Christianity with traditional religion (71.3). Almost all (93.4) had a girl friend; but the responsibility of preventing unwanted pregnancy rested almost entirely on the girl (75.7); and in the event of an unwanted pregnancy; 85.1of the respondents would recourse to abortion. Most of the respondents (74.6) would advice their sister to procure an abortion in the event of an out-of-wedlock pregnancy; but only 20.0of them would like to be actively involved in the process of procuring the abortion. All the respondents knew that abortion was illegal in Nigeria; but 47.5thought that the offence did not include the woman; while 29.8thought the offence was committed by the abortion provider alone. Most (64.6) of the respondents felt abortion should not be freely available; but 90.6of them would want the offenders to be prosecuted only in the event of serious complications; or death. Conclusion: There is a broad support for abortion among the respondents; but fears still exists that liberalization might lead to increase demand for the procedure. A review of the nation's abortion law is therefore recommended

Clandestine Abortion in Port Harcourt: Users' Profile and Motivation

Background: Most of the information on abortion in Nigeria are based on information from women hospitalized for abortion complications. However a lot of abortions; especially those carried out by medical doctors do not cause enough complications to register in hospital statistics. This study is to explore the profile of women that obtain these relatively safe abortions; and to ascertain their reasons for opting for an abortion. Methods: A cross sectional study was carried out in five clinics located in various parts of Port Harcourt; Nigeria; known to provide abortion services. Data on all the women that sought abortion in the clinics between January and March 2007 were collected by the attending doctors. Results: A total of 793 women sought abortion in the clinics within the three months study period; a daily average of 1.76. The clients had an average age of 23.73 years (s.d 7.3); and a large proportion were not yet married (72.01); had no children (67.97); were still in school or learning a trade (66.08); and were having their first termination of pregnancy (68.22). Clients that identified themselves as widowed; divorced or separated made up 17.78of the total. The commonest reasons cited for the decision to terminate the pregnancy were that the women were not yet married (63.43); and that they were still students or learning a trade (60.15). Few women gave contraceptive failure (3.91) or the fact that they did not want any more children (3.66) as a reason for the abortion. Conclusions: Abortion on demand is still very common in Nigeria in spite of legal restrictions. Amending the abortion laws would assist in resolving this paradox

Personality and Criminal Outcomes of Homeless Youth in a Nigerian Jail Population: Results of PDS and MAACL-H Assessments

Objective: The unprecedented incidence of armed robberies and the involvement of young people in these crimes necessitated - as part of a comprehensive study on homelessness and criminal behaviour in Nigeria - an assessmet and comparison of homeless youths incarcerated in prisons with a control group of non-prison and never-homeless youths from the general population using the Psychopathic Deviate Scale (PDS) and the Multiple Affect Adjective Checklist hostility subscale (MAACL-H).Method: Through in-depth interviews using a questionnaire; data were collected from 100 randomly selected homeless inmates in three Nigerian medium-security prisons aged 15 to 26 (mean = 17.2); and another 100 non-prison and never-homeless youths from the general population aged 15 to 31 (mean = 25.2).Results: Hypothesis 1 showed a higher score on the PDS (mean = 29.3) and MAACL-H (mean = 21.7) among the homeless group than the non-prison and never homeless group (PDS mean = 21.2) and (MAACL-H = mean 12.5); (PDS (t = (98) = 6.62; p .05) and MAACL-H (t

Personality and Criminal Outcomes of Homeless Youth in a Nigerian Jail Population:Results of PDS and MAACL-H Assessments

Objective: The unprecedented incidence of armed robberies and the involvement of young people in these crimes necessitated - as part of a comprehensive study on homelessness and criminal behaviour in Nigeria - an assessmet and comparison of homeless youths incarcerated in prisons with a control group of non-prison and never-homeless youths from the general population using the Psychopathic Deviate Scale (PDS) and the Multiple Affect Adjective Checklist hostility subscale (MAACL-H).Method: Through in-depth interviews using a questionnaire; data were collected from 100 randomly selected homeless inmates in three Nigerian medium-security prisons aged 15 to 26 (mean = 17.2); and another 100 non-prison and never-homeless youths from the general population aged 15 to 31 (mean = 25.2).Results: Hypothesis 1 showed a higher score on the PDS (mean = 29.3) and MAACL-H (mean = 21.7) among the homeless group than the non-prison and never homeless group (PDS mean = 21.2) and (MAACL-H = mean 12.5); (PDS (t = (98) = 6.62; p .05) and MAACL-H (t

Criminal Capacity in Children Accused of Murder: Challenges in the Forensic Mental Health Assessment

Around the world there appears to have been an increase in child-perpetrated crimes; with South Africa being no exception. Of particular concern is the involvement of children in the perpetration of violent crimes; such as murder. This phenomenon is resulting in greater focus on the role of psychiatric and psychological testimony in the trials of accused youths. While mental health professionals have long been involved in the forensic assessment of adults; their role in the assessment of child accused is less well documented. As a result there is still a great deal of development and refinement needed in this area; in order that the task can be executed with more clarity and precision. Currently; South African law contains the presumption that a child under the age of seven years is doli incapax i.e. he or she cannot be held criminally responsible); while there is a rebuttable doli incapax presumption in the case of children between the ages of seven and 14 years. The age of the accused; together with developmental and social competence indices; are crucial variables that influence the acceptance or rebuttal of the doli incapax presumption. The paper discusses the challenges in the forensic mental health assessment of children accused of murder

Criminal Capacity in Children Accused of Murder: Challenges in the Forensic Mental Health Assessment

Around the world there appears to have been an increase in child-perpetrated crimes; with South Africa being no exception. Of particular concern is the involvement of children in the perpetration of violent crimes; such as murder. This phenomenon is resulting in greater focus on the role of psychiatric and psychological testimony in the trials of accused youths. While mental health professionals have long been involved in the forensic assessment of adults; their role in the assessment of child accused is less well documented. As a result there is still a great deal of development and refinement needed in this area; in order that the task can be executed with more clarity and precision. Currently; South African law contains the presumption that a child under the age of seven years is doli incapax i.e. he or she cannot be held criminally responsible); while there is a rebuttable doli incapax presumption in the case of children between the ages of seven and 14 years. The age of the accused; together with developmental and social competence indices; are crucial variables that influence the acceptance or rebuttal of the doli incapax presumption. The paper discusses the challenges in the forensic mental health assessment of children accused of murder