No abstract

Specialized holidays for burn-injured children are currently considered an important part of their rehabilitation. These holidays, or Camps, aim to help children face the challenges of their burn injury and treatment in a fun and supportive environment. Manchester Children's Burns Camps have been run by professionals from the Burns Unit at Booth Hall Children's Hospital together with volunteers since 1983. Formal evaluation has been a crucial component of these Camps since 1999. The purpose of this study was to summarize the findings of the evaluation process over the last 5 years, and to discuss any issues raised by the results. Standardized measures were administered to 97 children and their parents over this time period. These measures, designed to assess self-esteem, social relationships and general emotional and behavioural well-being, were completed before and after the children attended the Camp. The quantitative data showed little consistent evidence of change on these measures over the 5 years. However, the qualitative data shows consistent themes of increased confidence and improved coping with the burn injury, amongst others. The discrepancy between the quantitative and qualitative results is discussed, and implications and challenges for further evaluation of Burns Camps are raised.

A minimally aversive cognitive-behavioural intervention was found to eliminate the inappropriate masturbation of an 11-year-old boy with mild learning disabilities. Intervention strategies included discussion and education surrounding appropriate masturbatory behaviour, imagery and distraction techniques and positive reinforcement via parental involvement. Improvements were maintained at one-month and 12-month follow-ups. The discussion focuses on a number of ethical issues raised by this intervention.

No abstract

No abstract