News (1,512 posts)

Feeling unsupported by their political system makes young people feel vulnerable – especially in the face of a multitude of global crises. In their lifetime, the world has lurched from a global financial crisis to a worldwide pandemic and to war in Europe. They have to navigate housing shortages, a lack of mental health support, the climate emergency, artificial intelligence and changing identity and social roles. A perception of an “elite” system that is supposed to work for everyone, but excludes or even actively works against the sectors of society most affected by these crises, harms young people’s trust in democracy.

Secretary of State Marco Rubio made the announcement this week.

How would you react if someone cut in line behind you? Some people will warn others to follow the rules, even if it does not affect them. This is known as altruistic punishment, the act of punishing others for selfish behavior without reciprocal benefit.

As for the left, it’s not clear who the urbanists are anymore. Perhaps a new anti-sprawl coalition can emerge. If it does, it must move beyond cynicism about centralization and fetishes for markets and recognize that fixing the vast amounts of sprawl we’ve built—especially given its dire effects on the climate and on public health—requires some centralized coordination, but from a government equipped to protect the public good over the whims of rapacious plutocrats who are busier than ever dismantling our public institutions and cheapening what scraps of American public life still remain.

But between banning travel, banning communication, and banning spending, it felt like all functions of our job had just been completely stripped away, like the system had been completely crippled. There was no central, clear message. It felt a little bit like that was part of the plan.

I’m a scholar of foreign aid who researches what happens to the U.S. government’s local partners in the countries receiving this assistance when funding flows are interrupted. Most of these partners are local nonprofits that build schools, vaccinate children, respond to emergencies and provide other key goods and services. These organizations often rely on foreign funding.

This model, which reflects the fact that office buildings tend to have plumbing buried within their cores, can fit about three times as many apartments on each floor as a conventional design and shaves 25% to 35% off construction costs…. And for those in need of subsidized housing, this model makes far better use of government money: The $300,000 subsidy that builds a single low-income Denver studio could instead create 13 of these units there.

“Anti-gender” movements reject the social changes that come from an increase in rights for women and LGBTQI+ people. They promote a social order based on patriarchal gender norms, heterosexual marriage and a binary understanding of gender. They target schools because education has unique potential to influence social norms and attitudes for the long term.

Responding to the figures, Green Party MP Ellie Chowns warned that older populations have been “left out in the cold by successive governments who have refused to get to grips with the social care crisis we face…. This issue will only worsen over the years to come, contributing to spiralling costs and NHS backlogs”

New achievements in the field of this technology are seen as a source of hope for many patients with neurological disorders and have been making headlines recently. As neural implants have an effect not only on a physical but also on a psychological level, researchers are calling for particular ethical and scientific care when conducting clinical trials.

Russell Vought… nominee for budget chief, has a plan: cut taxes for the wealthy, eliminate regulations on corporate power, and slash spending on government programs the rest of the country depends on.

AH sits at his house in Zuni Pueblo, New Mexico. His son… died at a sober living home in Glendale, Arizona, in 2022.

The administration, which on Jan. 29 rescinded the memo ordering the funding suspension, has made clear that it may again seek to reduce or eliminate much of the money, totaling several hundred billion dollars, that funds many services that nonprofits provide, such as support for foster parents, after-school care and distributing food for free. Above: Food pantry staff members and volunteers hand out food in Chelsea, Mass., in November

Former Innu Chief Simeon Tshakapesh (left) cries in pain in 2017 while pleading for Innu children with then-Indigenous Affairs Minister Carolyn Bennett (right).

“Opioid neurotransmission regulates appetite and pleasure in the brain. In patients with anorexia nervosa, the brain’s opioidergic tone was elevated in comparison with healthy control subjects. Previously we have shown that in obese patients the activity of the tone of this system is lowered. It is likely that the actions of these molecules regulate both the loss and increase in appetite,” says Professor Pirjo Nuutila from the University of Turku, Finland.

The demolition is being proposed to make space for a planned new Health and Social Work building, which would allow the training of the “next generation of NHS staff” and is a key part of the university’s Estate Vision document.

Americans consume more illicit drugs per capita than anyone else in the world; about 6% of the U.S. population uses them regularly. One such drug, fentanyl – a synthetic opioid that’s 50 to 100 times more potent than morphine – is the leading reason U.S. overdose deaths have surged in recent years.

Introducing the Medicines and Medical Devices Access Initiative (MMD): a new collaboration that aims to improve patient access to safe, clinically and cost-effective healthcare products.

Students demonstrate in support of Palestinians at the U. of Washington in Seattle

Policy makers and pundits call the agenda “college for all,” referring to certificates and two-year degrees, in addition to four-year degrees. But many laypeople — and even some educators — devalue career and technical education, taking “college” in that prescription more traditionally. They believe success means a bachelor’s degree, and the only question is how to help everyone afford it.

Oranga Tamariki’s cuts to early intervention services in the community has advocates worried more children will end up in care. Providers were grappling with having to do more with less, while experts have said there will be a “greater cost downstream.”

Inside a sweeping attempt to regulate general education in Florida.

Professor Faye Mishna will act as this review’s lead. Mishna is a professor in the Factor-Inwentash Faculty of Social Work and the Department of Psychiatry, and her research focuses on bullying, specifically, cyberbullying and sexting among youth.

The week before Christmas, one couple received the devastating news their local council was cancelling care and reducing support – with no negotiation.

Cllr Paul Marshall, Leader of the County Council and Cllr Amanda Jupp, Cabinet Member for Adults Services write…. “the adult social care sector is facing serious challenges in relation to ever increasing demand, rising costs and workforce challenges, all of which are contributing to unquantifiable impacts, not only on social care providers but also on the public.”

Social worker Hannah (above) finds the multidisciplinary approach has helped her practice. “Our OT colleagues are really helpful in terms of exploring all options and helping people to maintain their independence,” she says.

Sudbury did not receive provincial funding for a supervised drug consumption site, but the Ministry of Health announced Monday that the city will get funding for one of the 27 Homelessness and Addiction Recovery Treatment (HART) Hubs across the province. Above: Downtown Sudbury from the air.

Katelyn Page, a social worker in the Rapid Access to Addictions Medicine (RAAM) Clinic, was well-acquainted with Niagara Health prior to joining the organization in 2015.

This directive will only create chaos, confusion, and inefficiency across the country. The millions of people in America who rely on federal programs to help meet their basic needs must be able to trust that they will have uninterrupted access to the critical resources these programs provide. People must be able to depend on the promises made by Congress.

The Office of the Public Advocate’s Worst Landlord Watchlist is an information-sharing tool that enables tenants, public officials, advocates, and other concerned individuals to identify which residential property owners consistently flout City laws intended to protect the rights and safety of tenants.

BTB, left, poses for a photo with her daughter T in an undated handout photo. BTB was shot and killed by her husband… a retired RCMP officer in October. Robert Wright, a social worker, therapist and director emeritus of the non-profit Peoples’ Counselling Clinic in Halifax, said Nova Scotia is behind in its efforts to identify and address early signs that point to a risk of intimate-partner violence.

She will have a feeding tube put in next week. Then she must pack up her life and leave the family home. “[All of this] has nearly broken me as a person,” she whispers. “The burden of the disease is enough, but when you add having to fight for everything … It feels like I’m being humiliated at the time I’m most vulnerable.” Those with power would do well to listen.

Approximately one billion people worldwide suffer from various psychiatric conditions. Korea is one of more serious cases, with approximately 1.8 million patients exhibiting depression and anxiety disorders, and the total number of patients with clinical mental diseases has increased by 37% in five years to approximately 4.65 million. A joint research team from Korea and the US has developed a technology that uses biometric data collected through wearable devices to predict tomorrow’s mood and, further, to predict the possibility of developing symptoms of depression.

An anti-panhandling billboard set up by the Office of the Attorney General in Hagåtña is vandalized

After decades of practising psychotherapy, I believe it has little foundation in science and often causes harm

“A lot of the power of executive orders is in the messaging,” says Gretchen Goldman (above), President of the Union of Concerned Scientists, an advocacy group based in Cambridge, Massachusetts. And the message thus far is clear, she says: “The administration is trying to undermine the government experts themselves, as well as the processes by which we make science-based decisions in government.”

A padded cell used to hold people awaiting psychiatric evaluation and court-ordered treatment at the Adams County jail in Natchez, Mississippi. A law that went into effect in July seeks to decrease the number of people being jailed solely because they need mental health treatment.

So nature is throwing this AI generated pasta at the wall to see if it sticks? Is this AI testing OR AI promotion?

“Unconscious ignorance undermines the foundations of democratic debate, trust in science, and respect for knowledge,” Carofiglio said, describing it as an attitude that poisons public discourse and fuels misinformation. On the other hand, he argues that we should embrace conscious ignorance—an intellectual humility that helps us recognize our own limitations while remaining receptive to the knowledge of others. This form of ignorance, like the Socratic “I know that I know nothing,” is the foundation of true competence.

There was a 65% increase in the number of children and young people being admitted to general acute medical wards in hospitals in England because of a mental health concern between 2012 and 2022, finds a new study led by UCL researchers.

For all of humanity’s many, many flaws, one of our most redeeming characteristics as a species is an almost-universal desire to connect with one another. When terrible things happen and communities find themselves under threat, people invariably step up and offer to help.

Death by accident is 10% higher in rural counties, but with few counselors and social workers, grieving families face barriers to processing their loss and accessing critical mental health support.

Although obsessive compulsive disorder (OCD) can be treated, research has shown that people with the disorder tend to have a lower quality of life than neurotypical people. Many struggle to achieve the same levels of education and financial stability as people without the disorder. Researchers theorized one cognitive process could be to blame: decision making.

The U.S. Department of Labor found widespread noncompliance and violations of federal law in how health plans and insurers cover mental health care, findings that mirror a recent ProPublica investigation.

Jim Gallagher on the problems of framing public policy in Scotland – and where the voluntary sector fits in

Flagship policy dropped after significant opposition in Scottish Parliament and from local government leaders. Above: The Scottish Government building in Victoria Quay, Leith

A neutral assessment of the differences between your own and others’ possessions, experiences or accomplishments could help you explore what those differences mean to you and what, if anything, you’d like to do about them. But reacting to perceived differences with self-defeating thoughts about your own worth can have destructive effects.

The stronger unions become, the greater workers’ ability to demand better. As the San Francisco chapter of the Wages for Housework campaign put it in 1977:

Prostitution is one way of getting our wages…. We are forced to sell our bodies… in marriage, in the street, in typing pools or in factories. And as we win wages for all the work we do, we develop the power to refuse prostitution—in any of its forms.

Coalition of social workers gathers in Albany.