Championing person-first language: a call to psychiatric mental health nurses.

At the heart of recovery-oriented psychiatric mental health care are the dignity and respect of each person and the ways in which helping professionals convey a person's uniqueness, strengths, abilities, and needs. "Person-first language" is a form of linguistic expression relying on words that reflect awareness, a sense of dignity, and positive attitudes about people with disabilities. As such, person-first language places emphasis on the person first rather than the disability (e.g., "person with schizophrenia" rather than "a schizophrenic"). This article champions the use of person-first language as a foundation for recovery-oriented practice and enhanced collaborative treatment environments that foster respect, human dignity, and hope.

Service utilization and event reaction patterns among children who received Project Liberty counseling services.

OBJECTIVES: This study examined service utilization and event reaction patterns among children who used crisis counseling services provided under Project Liberty for 27 months after the September 11, 2001, terrorist attacks on the World Trade Center. METHODS: The authors analyzed logs of 681,318 service encounters submitted by Project Liberty counselors, paying particular attention to demographic characteristics and reported event reactions. RESULTS: Nine percent of service recipients reached by community-based Project Liberty providers were children, whereas census data for the 15 counties and boroughs served by Project Liberty indicated that children constituted 25 percent of the population. Service use as a function of race or ethnicity and of gender was consistent with census data. Similar to findings for adults, the most common emotional event reactions reported for children were experiencing sadness and tearfulness, being anxious and fearful, having difficulty concentrating, experiencing irritability and anger, having intrusive thoughts or images, and having difficulty sleeping. Behavioral event reactions listed on service logs suggested that older children (12 to 17 years) were more likely to use drugs whereas elementary school-age children were more likely to display signs of anxiety, isolation and withdrawal, and difficulties with concentration and memory. CONCLUSIONS: Sensitivity to differences in the event reaction patterns shown by younger and older children may be useful in refining treatments to help reduce the psychological impact of children's trauma after terrorist incidents.

Impact of a media campaign for disaster mental health counseling in post-September 11 New York.

OBJECTIVE: After the September 11, 2001, terrorist attacks on the World Trade Center, the New York State Office of Mental Health (NYOMH) initiated a three-phase multifaceted, multilingual media campaign that advertised the availability of counseling services. This study evaluated the association between patterns of spending within this campaign and the volume of calls received and referred to a counseling program. METHODS: Spending on television, radio, print, and other advertising was examined, as was the corresponding volume of calls to the NetLife hotline seeking referrals to counseling services. RESULTS: From September 2001 to December 2002, $9.38 million was spent on Project Liberty media campaigns. Call volumes increased during months when total monthly expenditures peaked. Initially, flyers, billboards, and other material items accounted for most monthly expenses. Over time, spending for television and radio advertisements increased, whereas other advertising declined. Temporal patterns show that in periods after an increase in media spending, call volumes increased independently of other sentinel events such as the one-year anniversary of the attacks. CONCLUSIONS: Sustained advertising through multiple media outlets appeared to be effective in encouraging individuals to seek mental health services.

A qualitative examination of the needs of families faced with the option of organ donation.

Fewer than half of families approached about organ donation provide consent. Identifying specific support needs of family members in these situations is critical to help them cope and for improving consent rates. This focus group study retrospectively investigated donor and non-donor family members' perceived social support needs while facing the death of their loved one. Implications for nursing care and other interventions are discussed for interested healthcare providers.