Group Identity as a Prognostic Factor of Mental Health in Preschool Children

Introduction. Victim stance of an individual may arise due to negative social relationships (Chojnacka, 2020) and may be associated with the experience of loneliness (Barbaro, 1999); lack of close friends and rejection by peers; lack of play partner and negative relationships in childhood (Chase, 1999). However, studies investigating the peculiarities of group identity development and the problem of loneliness in preschool children are insufficiently presented in the modern scientific literature. In this article, the phenomenon of victimhood, the experience of acceptance or rejection by a group of peers are considered in the context of preschooler’s mental health genesis. Purpose. The aim of the study is to determine the features of group identity development in preschool children in kindergartens based on the examples of children and the memories of adults. Materials and methods: an anonymous survey with open-ended and closed-ended questions was used (n = 247). The participants of the survey were parents of preschoolers attending modern preschool educational institutions (n = 140) and respondents who attended kindergarten as children (n = 107, aged 12 to 55). They were asked to evaluate the organization of groups in kindergarten; the features of interpersonal interaction of children; meeting the needs of children in child-care facilities; the main functions of the kindergarten and their level of trust in educators. Results: Kindergarten is a second important environment where a child continues to develop his group identity and ego-identity, and not just a place where children stay when parents are at work. Children who have difficulty interacting with their peers often face aggression from peers, experience feelings of loneliness, but not always receive help from their teachers. The majority of respondents (75.7%) answered that the experience of communication in kindergarten influenced their emotional state, self-esteem and communicative competence at school. Conclusions: The peculiarities of children's group identity in the preschool period are experiences of interest in interaction with a certain group of peers, the desire to be accepted and at the same time hostility towards or lack of interest in other peers. A significant percentage of experienced loneliness among modern children (35.5%) and adults (27.1%) who attended kindergarten more than 30 years ago indicates that this problem has existed for decades and requires more attention from scientists. Absence of play partners and frequent conflicts with peers lead to low self-esteem, fear of communication with children, other toxic experience and, as a consequence, to the risks of victimization in the future

“Pay attention when turning a corner”: an overview of mental health policies in Brazil

Introduction: Brazilian’s history of psychiatric care is complex and has some dark periods, but the country managed to get international recognition for its mental health policies in the last years. Those have been currently suffering setbacks. Purpose: Review the historical context of mental health in Brazil, assessing the changes made after 2016, and carry out a critical analysis of the current inclination. Methodology: literature and narrative review using official governmental documents. Results and Discussion: Through its history, Brazil’s had ups and downs in the care of mental health patients. After almost 30 years of policies that are centered around the individual, and not only the individual’s disease, the hospitalocentric model of care has been subtly making its comeback, together with normatives that revogue rights before acquired and corroborates with segregation of the mentally ill. Conclusions: The current changes in the Mental Health politics are not walking alongside the line with movements responsible for the implementation of a biopsychosocial care. It provokes and invites us to continue fighting for fair health programs and for the continuation of the Universal Health System

MENTAL HEALTH OF TEACHERS IN UKRAINIAN EDUCATIONAL ORGANIZATIONS

Introduction. Organizational educational environment may contain some destabilizing features (threats), which under certain conditions violate the psychological safety of a teacher and negatively affect his/her mental health and well-being in general. However, the effects of a destabilizing organization of professional activities on mental health and well-being have not been specifically studied, which necessitates appropriate research. Purpose: to research the indicators of teachers’ mental health in a destabilizing organization of professional activities

INTELLECTUAL DISABILITIES IN PRESCHOOLERS: MENTAL HEALTH DETERMINANTS DURING THE PRENATAL, NATAL AND POSTNATAL DEVELOPMENT STAGES

Introduction. A person’s mental health is a successful performance of a mental function, the result of which is a productive activity, establishing relationships with other people and an ability to adapt to change and cope with adverse life circumstances. Particularly acute is the issue of the potential negative impact of impaired development on the mental health and social functioning of children with mental and physical disabilities. Purpose. The purpose of the paper was to identify correlations between the mental health indicators of mentally retarded preschoolers and the specifics of the prenatal, natal and postnatal stages of their development. Methodology. Analysis of special medical, psychological and pedagogical literature; comparison and systematization of research material to determine the mental health indicators of preschoolers of mild and moderate degrees of mental retardation; mathematical methods of statistics. Results and Discussion. These studies show that the events of the prenatal/natal period have a significant impact on the further life of the child. It is a clear fact that close interaction between the mother and the unborn child is confirmed (the child learns to perceive the world together with the mother). However, for the relatively harmonious mental health and social functioning of a child with mental retardation, the mother’s behavior after the birth of the child is of paramount importance. This study does not reveal the entire specifics of mental health indicators of MRP, because the article presents the results of a study covering senior preschool age. School-age children were left out of consideration. Conclusions. The obtained results confirm the conditionality of mental retardation by negative factors of prenatal, natal and postnatal stages of development. It is important to correctly diagnose the existing manifestations of mental health disorders exactly at the preschool age, in order to implement appropriate measures for correction and development

The mental health of the Ukrainian nation as a driving force for economic growth

Introduction: Achieving a high level of social welfare requires investment in human capital, and its sufficiency and rational use is a necessary condition for the development of the state. The health of the nation as a factor of state formation and security of the state is a basic component of human capital and competitiveness of the country and is closely integrated with the economy, science, and defense. Purpose: The purpose of our study is the system of protection and preservation of the mental health of Ukrainians, in the framework and context of economic development. Methodology: The study was conducted based on statistical data of the Center for Medical Statistics of the Ministry of Health of Ukraine for the period 2016–2020. The following methods were used: analytical, medical statistics, comparative analysis, system approach. Results: The incidence and prevalence of mental and behavioral disorders among the entire population of Ukraine, as well as among the adult population, working-age and old age, depending on the place of residence and sex, were studied and analyzed. Conclusions: The problems of the current state of mental health of Ukrainians are studied and the ways of solving these problems are suggested. The retrospective dynamics of the dependence of the level of psychological health of the population and economic development of the country are analyzed. The tendencies of prevention and improvement of the level of public awareness about the role of mental health on the example of the leading countries of the world are analyzed

Experience in correcting eating disorders in the clinic of mental illness

Introduction: Eating disorders - a class of psychogenic behavioral syndromes associated with eating disorders. The class of these disorders includes anorexia nervosa, bulimia nervosa, compulsive overeating, as well as several other disorders, which are included in the international classification, to section F 50-F 59. Purpose: The purpose of our study is to trace the dynamics of individual eating disorders in patients with various mental illnesses under the influence of corrective therapy. Methodology: Were examined 77 patients with various mental diseases who have had eating disorders. The first (I) group included 33 patients. They have added Metoclopramide at a dose of 20 mg/day to the main treatment. The second group (II) - 44 patients who received the drug Ondansetron at a dose of 4 mg/day, respectively. The condition of all patients was assessed according to the following scales: Eating Attitudes Test (EAT-26), 36-Item Short-Form Health Status (SF-36). Body mass index (BMI) was calculated to study the dynamics of weight. All examinations of patients were performed at the beginning and after 14 days of treatment. Results: According to the EAT-26 scale the average score in the I group was 29 ± 2.8 points, and in the II - 30.1 ± 2.4, respectively. According to the SF-36 questionnaire, the average total score in the I group was - 69.5 ± 1.8 before treatment, 79.5 ± 1.6 - after treatment improved by 12.5% (p <0,05). In group II - 70.8 ± 1.2 and 89.4 ± 1.5, improving by 20.8%, respectively (p <0.05). Under the influence of the therapy, the patients' manifestations of eating behavior decreased, which contributed to the growth of BMI: in group I - by 2.1 ± 1.3 kg, in group II - by 3.5 ± 2.3 kg, which is 1.6 times more. Conclusions: The drug Ondansetron, intended for the correction of eating disorders, in combination with therapy of the underlying pathology, was likely to be more effective than Metoclopramide hydrochloride, which should be considered in practical psychiatry

Virtual Round care model in a Covid-19 Geriatric sub intensive unit

Introduction. Telepresence provides clinicians the ability to monitor patients as well to communicate with all the members of the healthcare staff. Covid-19 Units cope with high complexity in providing care and an integration amount the care team and the patients’ relatives should be carried out to obtained successful outcomes and preventing complication. Virtual rounding (VR) has been successfully applied to cope with this task in the last 2000 years in medical units. Covid-19 patients due to safety rules may be prone to isolation and lack of communication with their family. Purpose. The aim of our study was to evaluate the effect of structured virtual round protocol in a geriatric Covid-19 unit on anxiety and depression for the patients and their relatives. Methodology. All the patients admitted to the geriatric Covid-19 unit from 1 February 2021 to 30 April were studied. Inclusion criteria to the study were the followings: no severe cognitive impairment (MMSE =>24) or neuro sensorial deficits; informed consent to participate to the study. Forty-nine 49 (75% of patients) met the inclusion criteria. All the subject who were found to be eligible to the study underwent a VR standard protocol of care. VR was consisted with: 1) a video call with a tablet device conducted by a psychologist that established a cooperative communication between the health care staff (nurses and MD, their relatives) at the bed sides; 2) a video call with the patient’s relatives in which it was clearly explained the standard care and the role of each healthcare member was also included. Anxiety and depression levels were assessed for the patients at baseline after the end of the protocol by the Hospital Anxiety and Depression Scale (HADS). Patients’ relatives were investigated for depression at baseline and after the end of the protocol by the Beck Depression Inventory- Primary Care (BDI-PC). The Beck Depression Inventory for primary care has seven items with each item rated on a 4-point scale (0–3). It is scored by summing ratings for each item (range 0–21). Items are symptoms of sadness, pessimism, past failure, loss of pleasure, self-dislike, self-criticalness, and suicidal thoughts and wishes. The Hospital Anxiety and Depression Scale (HADS) is a self- assessment scale found to be a reliable instrument for detecting states of depression and anxiety. The anxiety and depressive sub-scales are also valid measures of severity of the emotional disorder. The questionnaire comprises seven questions for anxiety and seven questions for depression, and takes 2–5min to complete. For both scales, scores less than 7 indicate non- cases, 8-10 mild, 11-14 moderate, 15-21 severe. JMP software by SAS (v.16) was used for the statistical analysis. Results. The present study included forty-nine 49 patients (67% male), mean age of 69.9 ±14.7 years with one relative for each patient. The average mean of the hospitalization for each patients was 17.6 ± 5.7 days The mean VR duration time was 60±5.5 minutes. VR showed a significant decrease in both Anxiety and depression for patients: (HADS Depression baseline 10.6 ±3.1 vs 6.9 ±2.7 end p<0.01) (HADS Anxiety baseline 10.2 ±3.4 vs 6.8 ±3.0 end p<0.01). VR has also reduced depression in the relatives of patients (BDI-PC 3.6 ±2.4 vs 1.9 ±1.9 p<0.01). Discussion. VR has reduced anxiety and depression in patients hospitalized in a sub-intensive COVID 19 unit and it also has been found to be effective in decreasing depression in the relatives of these patients Limitation. However, the study has some possible limitations considering its small size and that it was mono centric Conclusions. Our data confirm the efficacy of VR in the sub-intensive care setting. This evidence supports the key role of a multidisciplinary team, focusing on the importance of social and psychological support during the hospital stay. More studies will be consequently necessary to better validate the importance of VR as a standard care tool in intensive/sub- intensive care units for the elderly patients

Analysis of current approaches to the treatment and quality of life improvement in patients with gastroesophageal reflux disease in case of its combination with the syndrome of undifferentiated connective tissue dysplasia

When the structure of the connective tissue is disturbed, the probability of developing pathology of the internal organs increases. The gastrointestinal tract is one of the systems that is most often involved in the pathological process in the case of such disorders. Due to its mesenchymal origin, the esophagus is one of the first to suffer. Normalization of mineral metabolism, correction of immunological and bioenergetic status are the main tasks in the treatment of such patients. Therapy with magnesium drugs, vitamins, anabolic drugs, ?-blockers, aldosterone antagonists, and amino acid drugs should also be used for this purpose. Patients in this group should also take drugs that contain vitamin D3

Emotional potential in the children's team

Introduction. Increased interest in the study various groups that perform joint activities in social, organizational, economic, sports psychology and work psychology nowadays. The urgency is: the fast changing forms of work organization based on the high economic interest and responsibility all members of the group; relative production-economic and organizational-managerial independence of labor collectives, which contributes to the self-organization development and self-government forms improvement; the team fitness issue is becoming more and more relevant. Purpose. The purpose of the paper is to investigate the group psychological work influence on the children emotional intelligence development and the processes of psychological stability and cohesion in a sport team. Methodology. We used the comprehensive diagnosis of the child's personality and status in the group (n=622). The main accent was made on the level of emotional intelligence (EQ) and sociometric status of the child. The main hypothesis: the higher the child`s EQ level, the higher its sociometric status. The standard PASW Statistics method was used to process the statistics. Results. Sociometric tests: 223 children had a low sociometric status (36%); 242 - satisfactory and within the norm limits (39%), 75 - above the average (12%), and only 81 had a high sociometric status (13%). The EQ level indicators (integrative level): 317 respondents had a low EQ level (51%); 218 - the average level (35%) and only 87 respondents had a high EI level (14%). Conclusions. After the implementation of the author's program for adaptation and the child emotional intelligence development, we have results: Sociometric test: only 56 children have lower sociometric status (9%); 144 - satisfactory and average (23%); 223 - above average (36%) and 199 - high sociometric status (32%). EQ level (integrative level), we also have positive changes: only 111 respondents remained with a low level of emotional intelligence (18%); 386 developed the level of emotional intelligence to the average (62%) and 125 had a high level of emotional intelligence (20%)

The overview of utilizing complementary therapy to relieve stress or anxiety in emergency department patients: animal-assisted therapy, art therapy, and music therapy

The Emergency Department could be a stressful environment for patients. Anxiety and depression may develop due to the atmosphere, in addition to patients’ concerns for their health conditions. The condition could potentially affect the experience of the patient in the Emergency Department and the quality of life after the visit. Pharmacological therapy could be administered to the patients. However, adverse effects may be associated with the treatment. Less aggressive complementary treatment approaches are presented in this article. Controlled clinical trials and randomized pilot studies of different complementary therapies, including animal-assisted therapy, art therapy, and music therapy, were conducted. The complementary therapies discussed in this article showed positive outcomes for patients with hospital-induced anxiety and has no adverse effect reported. Hence, hospitals may consider introducing complementary therapies, such as those mentioned in this study, to improve the patients’ experiences in the Emergency Department