Burnout in teachers: an Italian survey.

Over the past 50 years, education has become more complex. The demand for quality and accountability in education had also increased. These demands have increased pressure on teachers, with the result that teaching is now regarded by teachers as highly stressful. The purpose of the study was to examine burnout among teachers in a region of Italy including the risk factors of burnout and the strategies used by teachers to prevent and deal with stress. The research was carried out on a sample of 508 teachers. The questionnaire incorporated the Maslach Burnout Inventory modified for Italian teachers--a 22 item questionnaire designed to assess the three aspects of burnout syndrome: emotional exhaustion, depersonalization and lack of personal achievement. The results highlight the presence of substantial levels of emotional exhaustion in a significant number of teachers. The rate of burnout among teachers is 19.7%. The data are lower than for a sample of Italy as a whole and than for European countries where rates of burnout range between 25% and 35%.

Evaluación prospectiva de pacientes con SDRA con sospecha de infección por influenza a H1N1 en terapia intensiva. Seguimiento a los 30 días del alta / Prospective evaluation of patients with ARDS with suspected H1N1 influenza infection in intensive therapy. Follow-up 30 days after discharge

El objetivo del presente es la caracterización de pacientes en terapia intensiva en el hospital de alta complejidad, y portadores de insuficiencia respiratoria aguda con requerimiento de asistencia ventilatoria mecánica, a su vez, el comportamiento de pacientes con infección por el virus influenza H1N1 que desarrollan síndrome de dificultad respiratorio agudo (SDRA).

The EAT-26 as screening instrument for clinical nutrition unit attenders.

OBJECTIVE: The aim of this study was to use the Eating Attitudes Test-26 (EAT-26) as a screening instrument on a specific population with a marked prevalence of binge eating disorder (BED) and eating disorder not otherwise specified (EDNOS). The EAT-26 questionnaire was used in order to identify the high-risk subjects for referral to clinical evaluation. METHOD: EAT-26 was administered to 845 subjects who, for the first time, came to the Nutritional Medicine Service looking for a diet between January 1999 and December 2002. From this initial sample, subsequently, 250 subjects were randomly selected and administered a semistructured clinical interview for DSM-IV (SCID I, version 2.0). RESULTS: Discriminant analysis provided a cutoff value of EAT-26=11. Logistic regression analysis indicated high Dieting (D) or Bulimia (B) subscale scores as a risk factor of EDNOS or bulimia nervosa (BN) cases, respectively; on the other hand, a high Oral Control (O) subscale score represented a protecting factor for BED cases. CONCLUSION: Our study tried to assess the usefulness of EAT-26 as a screening instrument for obese patients attending a Medical Nutritional Service. Results from this study suggest that a cutoff score of 11, lower than that indicated in the literature, improves the diagnostic accuracy of the EAT-26 in a high-risk setting regarding sensibility level (68.1%) and leading to a reduction of the false negative rate (31.9%).

Psychoeducation in the prevention of eating disorders: an experimental approach in adolescent schoolgirls.

The aim of this report is to analyse the impact of a psychoeducational preventive programme on the eating habits of a sample of adolescent schoolgirls. Of the 112 schoolgirls attending five classes, about 86% agreed to participate in the program. Of these, 63 participants belonged to the experimental group and 33 agreed to the control group. The psychoeducational sessions were performed once a month for each of three experimental classes. The programme involved discussions on the nature of eating disorders, on epidemiological aspects and on the importance of early detection of risk factors. The tests used to evaluate the sample were the EDI-2 and the PF-16. The results showed a significant improvement in bulimic attitudes, asceticism, feelings of ineffectiveness, and maturity fears. Anxiety traits were also better managed in the experimental group. Our conclusions suggest that correct information about eating disorders can ameliorate unhealthy attitudes towards eating behaviour.