The Rehabilitation Engineering Center (Palo Alto, California) has developed a wide range of patient services which provide assistance to the disabled community in northern California and various research activities which have had impact on the disabled population nationally. The Center has three philosophical goals: to assist each child toward as…

This self-study manual, for use by individuals or groups, was developed as a resource for social work practitioners and focuses on the assessment, intervention, and prevention of adolescent abuse and neglect. The introduction presents the philosophy of continuing education on which the manual is based, an overview of the manual, and an article on…

A psychoanalyst, a psychiatrist, a psychopathologist, and a biometrician debate the classification of behavior disorders by each presenting one paper and discussing another. Aspects discussed are the historical review of classification of behavior disorders and one current perspective; a cross-cultural approach to psychopathology and its…

One of a series dealing with community services for handicapped children, this guide for public health personnel gives problems common to all types of handicapping conditions, a general philosophy of community services, and an outline of guiding principles on which to base a community program. The topics covered are concepts, facts, causes, and…

In exploring the bases of learning disabilities, the following areas are considered: a working definition of perceptual handicaps; the relationship of perceptual handicaps to IQ; diagnosing perceptual handicaps; effective learning experiences for the perceptually handicapped child; and recommendations for developing new curricula. The appendixes…

To examine the characteristics of expertise, a study at the University of Minnesota cardiac clinic compared differences in diagnostic ability and strategies between novices (fourth year medical students) and experts (specialists in pediatric cardiology). The investigator presented a model for expertise based on knowledge of subject matter content…

Reported are the recommendations resulting from a review of the Early and Periodic Screening, Diagnosis, and Treatment Program (EPSDT). The concept of developmental assessment, as used in the EPSDT, is explained. The introduction provides a summary of the recommendations. Areas covered and for which recommendations are discussed include the role…

Tests of intelligence and structured measures of emotional status, aptitudes, and achievement alone do not suffice in predicting the vocational adjustment of the mentally retarded. Since the main concern is the evaluation of the many aspects of behavior which make the individual a unique and changing person, a format was developed which included a…

A discussion of screening tests for phenylketonuria recommends and provides some data on two tests, lists five disadvantages of urine tests, and discusses three new tests. Also considered are the role of the central laboratory facility and seven suggestions for screening different types of infants at different times. Treatment or followup programs…

To modify behavior and teach basic skills and subject matter, 16 emotionally disturbed deaf boys were involved in a pilot project to enable them to return to regular classes. The program featured a small staff-pupil ratio, application of behavior modification techniques, engineered instruction, individualized self-instructional curriculum…

The beneficial and harmful effects of acting out are studied in a series of short essays by numerous authors. Included are four articles on the theoretical and dynamic considerations of acting out, along with five clinical manifestations of acting out involving suicide and criminality in adolescents and adults. Special forms of harmful acting out…

This report covers Phase I of the Burn Injury Education Demonstration Project, a four-phased project designed to explore the feasibility of using educational intervention strategies to increase knowledge and appropriate behaviors and attitudes to reduce the number and severity of burns. Phase I involved a comprehensive needs assessment conducted…

A year-long interdisciplinary continuity-of-care elective for second-year, preclinical students in a medically underserved inner-city neighborhood is described. Students were able to learn the skills needed to implement and evaluate long-term health care and to assess the cost effectiveness of various approaches to such care. (MLW)

This digest discusses the difficulty of assessing the speech and language of culturally and linguistically diverse students and recommends strategies for identifying communication disorders. It begins by reviewing what qualifies as a communication disorder, discussing the limitations of speech and language tests, and outlining test considerations.…

This study, written in both English and Spanish, examined the decision-making process of Hispanic families living in the United States who have a child with a hearing loss. Twenty-nine families in four different geographical areas shared their experiences in learning about their child's disability, searching for appropriate interventions, and…