Nighttime fears are very common in preschool years. During these years, children's fantasy-reality differentiation undergoes significant development. Our study was aimed at exploring the links between nighttime fears and fantasy-reality differentiation in preschool children. Eighty children (aged: 4-6 years) suffering from severe nighttime fears were compared with 32 non-fearful controls. Fears were assessed using child and parental reports. Children viewed images depicting fantastic or real entities and situations, and were asked to report whether these were imaginary or could occur in real life. The results revealed that children with nighttime fears demonstrated more fantasy-reality confusion compared to their controls. These differences in fantasy-reality differentiation were more pronounced in younger children. Additional significant associations were found between fantasy-reality differentiation and age and specific characteristics of the stimuli. These preliminary findings, suggesting a developmental delay in fantasy-reality differentiation in children with nighttime fears, have significant theoretical and clinical implications.
The current research joins previous studies in examining post-traumatic stress disorder (PTSD) and burnout among healthcare workers. The research focuses on the experiences of pediatric residents working in an emergency department both in normal times and during the Covid pandemic. Research conducted prior to and during the Covid pandemic outbreak shows negative psychological effects among healthcare workers. Most of that research was conducted within the positivistic-quantitative paradigm. The current study is qualitative and focuses on pediatric residents who provide medical services to a unique population in a peripheral region of Israel, namely the Bedouin-Arab population. The research questions are the following: What characterizes pediatric residents' work, in general and during the pandemic? Do they show signs of burnout and secondary trauma? How do they perceive their work with the Bedouin-Arab population, especially during the pandemic? The study, conducted within the phenomenological genre, included 14 pediatric residents in a large hospital in Israel's periphery. Semi-structured clinical interviews were employed, in addition to questionnaires that examined PTSD and burnout to enhance the reliability of the findings. The results show that all residents reported stressful incidents in which patients' physical integrity was threatened. The residents described the special nature of the medical cases they treated in routine times and during the pandemic outbreak, which stems mostly from the specific characteristics the population of Israel's periphery. While at the early stages of the pandemic, the residents experienced reduced work pressure, they reported substantial difficulties later in the crisis, which intensified their sense of physical and emotional stress. Most residents re-How to cite this paper:
Intimacy and sexuality are fundamental issues in human nature, but have been neglected in the rehabilitation of mental health patients, particularly those admitted into psychiatric wards. Patients’ sexuality is excluded from the discourse; yet it exists in the daily lives of the patients. The study examines the sexual needs and challenges of people with severe mental illnesses admitted to an isolated psychiatric ward. 13 men were interviewed in a semi-structured interview regarding their sexuality and the challenges they meet when experiencing and expressing their sexuality as patients in an isolated ward. A thematic analysis was conducted. Two principal themes were identified: 1. Challenges in realizing sexuality within the isolated ward. This theme included sub themes: performing sexual acts and exposure to sexuality within the ward; medications' side effects; dialogue with the staff; sexuality in the ward presented as crossing limits; and absence of a space to fulfill sexuality. 2. Suggestions for improvements in the hospital, stemming from the patients' experiences and ideas, such as starting an open dialogue with the staff, supplying patients with measures for protected sex, and more. The findings highlight the lack of healthy expression of sexuality inside the wards, despite its importance for improving patients’ well-being during their rehabilitation. Medical staff and policymakers should be aware of the sexual aspects of hospitalization in a psychiatric ward. The study also indicates the need for national policy that will address patients' sexual needs, including clear instructions that consider the uniqueness of the target population.
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