Showing posts with label family members. Show all posts
Showing posts with label family members. Show all posts
Monday, August 22, 2011
ENVIRONMENT DESIGN FOR THE MENTALLY AND PHYSICALLY HANDICAPPED
BY
JACOB WAISWA
DISHMA INC.
P.O. BOX 8885,
KAMPALA-UGANDA
WWW.SITUATIONHEALTHANALYSIS.BLOGSPOT.COM
WAISWAJACOBO@YAHOO.CO.UK
Distributors of the original manual wheel chairs did not make prior inquiries about nature of physical disability, injury or infection-causing disability. They distribute wheel chairs –regardless of their incompatible.
This contributes to more co-morbid cases –more deformations or defects than the already existing medical case of disability. The spine-cords and the back bone can get abnormally postured due to incompatibility of wheel-chair with the shape, comfort needs and size of the disabled person.
Care involves lifting the heavy disabled person on and off of the wheel chair at some point, care takers and most family member’s experienced burnt-out syndrome –sometimes leading to rejection and abandonment of the disabled children or persons. That renders them helpless as no one else helps them out to use toilet or bathroom –which increases infection on another hand.
The impoverished family members cannot afford meeting the necessary resources to access special education, to acquire accommodation space enough for rehabilitation exercises and facilities that enhance proper hygiene and sanitation, like appropriate toilet and bath place.
As a result, it also increases the risk of infection related to poor hygiene and/or improper disposal of waste “products,” and above all, they were left to sit stationary, which -with time affects locomotion in the limbs as arms and limbs rigidity ensues.
It is anticipated that the creation of the multipurpose wheel chair will not only create a big sigh of relief for families and caretakers, but it would also increase and sustain hope of disabled-persons living a more fulfilling and productive life.
They, for example, would be able to roll of the multipurpose wheel-chair onto the normal sleeping bed, adjust the back-rest to a rest bed when fatigued and conform-ably sleep -as though on the normal bed.
With the three bottom support-seat layers, he or she would be in position to use the top layer for official purposes –as to go to school, make visits, and to socialize or play, while the last layer would have a potty or toilet provision and bathing safety and support seat structured in a way that drains out water as the disabled persons bathes.
The product can be cheaply produced using local resources and donated to rehabilitation projects twice a year. The multipurpose wheel-chair, also, would help the disabled person pursue are physical developmental activities like washing, helping out in the job, brush his or her teeth, arts and crafts, support socialization, attend school with confidence and with far lessened burden to care-takers.
The multipurpose design would ease the development of the disabled person –mentally, physical, (able to do basic self-help ventures as going to bed, toilet, bathroom, being able to change clothes, economic (attend to economic endeavors as selling items, crafts making, for career development and the confidence to try and succeed in all ventures of life), and relief caretakers and families from the stress of physically lifting off and one the disabled person from the wheel-chair, and have the disabled person enjoy sustained hope and love from his or her family.
A lot of existing wheel-chair technologies would help fastens the development of the multipurpose wheel-chair. Much of the old wheel-chair components not indicated here could be used as well, for example, the brakes and others -which obviously must constitute the new design.
The multipurpose wheel-chair design would be presented hand-in-hand with an environment-fit design for the disabled-persons, supportive community linkages –as to and from policy makers, or have the design integrated into the usual environment systems of social interaction.
Such supportive systemic elements eventually enables disabled person to attain basic education, to have decent housing, to have love and respect, to access medical care, to get applied life skills training, attend rehabilitation workouts, and access to new technological advancements that improve their lives further. Such is a model other helpless physically or mentally handicapped children can benefit from as the project grows.
Monday, August 8, 2011
Pan-Africanism and Family Mental Health: Is there any Link?
Jacob Waiswa
Situation Health Analyst
Dishma-Inc.
P.O. Box 8885,
Kampala-Uganda
Tel. +256392614655/+256752542504
dishma.imhs@gmail.com
www.situationhealthanalysis.blogspot.com
Pan-Africanism is a spirit, it is love, a feeling and an action towards betterment of the land of Africa and the life of people of its origin abroad. Family mental health, on the other hand, is the state of wellness cognitively, spiritually, culturally, socially, economically, environmentally, and even physically in a family environment. To achieve mental wellness, all spheres of person’s life must be interacting harmoniously with each other.
From a case of a client –who suddenly left work and began walking “aimlessly” on streets of Kampala, back home and away from it, accusing every one of her troubles –including those that cared much, losing understanding of the environment by 50%; identify reasons for walking away from work and from home distrustful of everyone and everything, it was found vital to find the extent of pan-Africanism in helping patient recover.
Interventions involved holding discussions colleagues in the field of psychology, with religious leaders, with a psychiatrist in Jinja Psychiatric Ward, reading, analysis of existing data on mental health, analysis of held data verses reviewed literature and professional opinions and recommendations, analysis of observed client behaviors, use of cognitive-based therapy, analysis and consideration of traditional medicine, consideration and analysis of Christian and Muslim prayers (or exorcist powers).
Integrated spirituality to counter lack of trust for anyone and raise self-control, enactment to prove to self that people accused –indeed loved her and wished her well, counseling to give direction, re-socialization with the right people (caring and loving) to gain positive identity (social networking sites like face book were brought into play) and, equally important, drug therapy.
Inculcated positive life values (as part of on-going counseling), like respect, love, tolerance forgiveness, flexibility, peaceful coexistence, harmony, patience, building on positives out of a trying situation, exploring personal development goals, giving back to society, appreciation of diverse cultures and religions, friendliness and talking as way to positive change others, exposure to inspiration books -containing lots of wisdom and/or life-skills -including the Bible and some elements of Islamic teaching.
Cognitive based therapy was highly effective at creating realistic images in the mind of the victim; psychologists met (4:1) preferred to address the case spiritually by seeking interventions of powerful, prayerful Christians; traditional healers where not in any way rightful in their work –only exploited the client by asking huge sums of money –sometimes for no positive results.
In the earliest stages of her illness, churches and Duwa prayers did not yield results despite the client spending a period of six months of residence at a church. They inflicted more fear to glue the patient to their services –so as to continue thriving financially.
The Jinja medical official associated the problem with unsatisfied libido –which made sense as it had been found that the client was a victim of a failed relationship –more so having given everything to secure it in vain.
Analyses of them all showed that the client had been abused during her teenage years causing her to be distrustful with exception of her friends and boy-friend.
That, then, got worsened by father’s abuse in the 20s and neglect by family members she thought were responsible for her wellbeing.
The final trigger was when the boy-friend she loved so much too off-loaded her –and whoever had hurt her in the past (including job loss) was made responsible with statements such as, “she took my boyfriend, she is be-witching me, I saw her during prayers by pastor and sheikh and so she was responsible.”
Nigerian movies were misleading as the patient, a fan of them, took all images for the truth and applying them in the day-to-day running of life. Such images included: a big scale of witchcraft, evils spirits, relationship breakdowns and confrontation –which greatly constituted her perceptions of the environment –be it towards people, animals, or objects.
A combination of drug therapy, good feeding, drinking a lot of fluids to meet bodily needs, counseling, re-experiencing motherly love –as if she was being reborn and re-introducing prayers at this stage, re-socialization to develop a new positive identity –using facilities like face-book to make connections to caring old friends and family members by phone as well as conducting visits to trustworthy and goodwill personalities –while keeping a temporary distance away from people listed to have hurt her –for at least a year, and re-orientation to the work settings were very effective at re-shaping her.
While churches and traditional healers remained prominent in healing practices, initially their approaches were not in anyway useful as they worsened the client’s state of mental wellness through imparting more fear that: “so” and “so” were responsible for the problem at hand.
Spirituality became most effective when introduced at the time a client was being furnished with mother’s love and care –who sooner introduces her to a worthwhile faith for further healing.
The ability of religion to solve human problems cannot be disputed. It is important to note the fact that, there are people in its leadership –who have selfish interests and continuously misguided clients for the sole aim of ripping big –financially. In fact, spirituality being above human understanding and power is excellent haven for the neglected sections of society, the mistreated, and the suffering ones.
When individuals lose trust and confidence in others or every other thing in life, it became an escape route or emergency door (by to going spiritual). But it all began with believing in order to experience the healing effect. Positive religions had means to restore broken social relationship and to cope with rejection.
Numerous studies indicate that the quality of child up-bringing influenced future of a child life confidence of the self, improved intelligence quotient, resilience and sense of trust in the self (self esteem). Brain studies demonstrated that early years were critical in the development of intelligence, personality, and social behavior before the age of three.
On the other hand, the media influences negatively the attitudes already held by individuals –where if a movie showed robbery, adultery, witch-craft, confrontations and murders, viewers took them for real life issues –and went on to form values based on what they have seen.
Mental health interventions call for a wholesome package of inputs that constitute food, fluids to drink, supported information by way of counseling, rightful spiritual guidance and rightful associates –who kept using constructive and positively transformational statements away from hurting people of the past and present.
Encouraging reading culture and exposure of books that impart real life values and skills empowered young people –such that: where there is no parent or doctor intervened in their life. Self liberation came from with knowledge and exposure to right role models. Megna in 2010 once wrote, “Through reading, I have learned a lot about life and the world I never would have known by watching TV for instance.”
In the final analysis, the client had been abused during her teenage years causing her to be distrustful with exception of her friends and boy-friend. That then got worsened by further abuse in 20s and neglect of family members she thought were responsible for her wellbeing.
The final trigger was when the boy-friend she loved so much too off-loaded her –and whoever had hurt her in the past was made responsible with statements such as, “she took my boyfriend, she is be-witching me, I saw her during prayers by pastor and sheik and so was responsible.”
It was a combination of abusive family, neglect and failed love relationship. These combined with negative media influences as Nigerian movies, limited social support to give guidance on coping and problem-solving gave for way panic attacks.
It is therefore important to note that children need love, understanding and acceptance through their teens -which cannot at all feature in broken families or under step-parent care (especially step-mothers).
Such can be a ground for all forms of child abuse -including unexplained torture, rebuking, bullish from mainly the male guardian, constant scrutiny in search for anything reflective of a negative label, and denial of equal opportunities with other children in the home.
Because of that, it is worthwhile that children in their adolescence grow up with their biological parent; in this case -the mother –while ensuring access to physical support through legal and gender support systems.
Patience and persistent matters a lot as no specific time line can be attached to complete healing. It is the kind that takes between one and half to two years. Moral support continues into the youthful and adult years –since no man is an island. We need each other for strength, encouragement, mutual assistance to achieve life goals.
With the concept of pan-Africanism too in line with the values of unity, cooperation, love in development, it serves a purpose in directing supportive forces against a social evil and assimilation of negative past together for a positive future –henceforth a means to control and prevent psychological trauma from individual level, to family level, to national level, and to global level –benefiting Africans in Africa and in Diaspora directly, and indirectly everyone –through meetings, bargaining and negotiation at different levels to solve problems and keep peace.
Thursday, October 7, 2010
FAMILY MENTAL HEALTH-BASED APPROACHES TO SUSTAINABLE GLOBAL PEACE -A CASE OF ABUSED AND NEGLECTED CHILDREN IN UGANDA
BY
JACOB WAISWA
GRADUATE PEACE AND CONFLICT PROGRAM
P.O. BOX 7062,
MAKERERE-UNIVERSITY
KAMPALA-UGANDA
jwaiswa@arts.mak.ac.ug
Introduction:
The study rotates around family conflicts (or family mental health issues) which, if mismanaged, potentially, spills over into the wider community. It goes further to trace individual concerns (inner conflicts) that families consciously or unconsciously perpetuate –which, if not given due attention, like a time-bomb, blows up into serious social costs like substance abuse, aggressive and risky behaviors, increased HIV/AIDS prevalence, low productivity, poverty and looming ignorance to solve those problems. It is, thus, pertinent to address such problems from the environment around the root (individuals at family level) in order to achieve sustainable peace in the wider community (global peace).
A family is a fundamental social group in society typically consisting of one or two parents and their children (thefreedictionary.com, retrieved October 7, 2010) defines. Family mental health is critical determinant of future wars, turmoil and their consequences while parenting justified parenthood through realization of noble roles in respect of child development and growth that sees the child re-socialize and project himself or herself to independence, learn to co-exist peacefully with family members and society as well as be in position to prioritize among the various interaction sources in the environment to achieve defined goals in life. Fancher R. (2010) explained, “…Because what other people think determines what opportunities you're going to have in life, and other people already have that power, whether you and your therapist recognize it or not."
Background
There are nearly 54 million people around the world with severe mental disorders such as schizophrenia and bipolar affective disorder (manic-depressive illness). Estimated 154 million people suffer from depression. People living in developing countries are disproportionately affected. Mental disorders are increasingly prevalent in developing countries, the consequence of persistent poverty-driven conditions, the demographic transition, conflicts in fragile states and natural disasters. At the same time, more than 50% of developing countries do not provide any care for persons with mental disorders in the community. These disorders bring significant hardship not only to those who suffer from them, but also to their caregivers -- often the family, given the lack of mental health resources found in developing countries (WHO, 2007).
Throughout the world, more than a billion people are seriously ill or malnourished resulting into death of some ten million children each year in Africa alone. The Earth’s population nearing 6 billion continue to grow by more than 90 million each year, more than 90% of that growth is in developing countries. This constantly expanding population increases the need for food, housing, water and industry –which brings further damage to land, water, and air from industrial and other pollutants.
The Problem
The poor quality of childhood upbringing characterized by malnutrition, visual inputs, poor model objects, neglect and domestic violence has a toll on child’s wellness and peace, peace and wellness of his or her family, community and global peace. To address the existing global conflict situation we need track personal history, mend it and prevent future conflicts through early diagnosis of children growth and development antagonisms.
Main Objective of the Intervention:
The main objective of the intervention is to proactively deal with violence against children and family level to achieve sustainable global peace.
Intervention Objectives:
The intervention set out to find out how best to make X’s movements safe, to identify origins of the sudden break down of mental functioning, develop ways to recovery of X, and X’s recovery and its implication on peace of the family and wider community.
Scope of the Intervention:
The scope of the intervention is child abuse and neglect in families and their implication on peace in the wider community (global peace).
Significance of the Intervention:
The significance of the intervention is to reach sustainable peace for future generations to thrive by addressing conflict issues (or psychological concerns) right from within individuals in the families to the wider community.
The Case:
There was a case involving a youth (X) who had suddenly broken down –mentally and began loitering on the streets in areas perceived to be secure –since trust had been lost for everyone and everything. No longer could X work, live in a family setting and trust friends. X was sleepless and often rushed out of bed claiming some people wanted to take X’s life.
The Case Interventions:
The interventions involved consulting various mental health professionals in psychiatry and psychology fields, faiths known for their healing powers, seeking networks of people thought to have cared a lot about X, enactment to review and re-show loving and caring scenes with people said to have victimized X, cognitive-based approaches to re-instate truthfulness or rightfulness of situations from the wrongfully perceived states, subjecting X to new environments free from people held responsible for X’s problem, medical care to assess X’s physiological state, examination of X’s love life, and signing in X to the world of social networking (i.e. facebook.com).
Findings:
The challenges of children growing in broken families included; the big burden to achieve life goals on their own –with no hope of parental intervention, inability to make wise health decisions, difficulty to ensure personal safety and healthy social relations, generation of high pressure to achieve and to break development barriers (mentally, socially and institutionally), the fear of dropping out of school due to inability to pay fees on his or her own that catapults into failure to concentrate and excel academically in order to attain a good career, inability to solve problems associated with choosing and having healthy relationships, and inability to manage chronic stress that characterizes his or her family life a condition that, potentially, pursues child into adulthood –and in responsible social positions. Also, there are critical challenges of lack of social support coupled with the lack of confidence to seek it –as viable path to building resilience required for the child succeed in life.
It was, then, upon community to proactively change the situation through actively granting political, economic, and socio-cultural and safety rights –to significantly avert insecurity in all its manifestations right from family level. It was concluded from an intervention in the life of an abused and neglected child that the amount of resilience resulting from positive reinforcement from friends, teachers and inspiring leaders or roles models from media products, supported adaptability or coping -and some kind of positive spiritual inclinations greatly catapulted abused and neglected children through traps of childhood suffocation, underachievement, psychopathological enclaves and demeaning parental hostilities.
It was noted that involvement of godly impressions as part of the intervention in addressing psychological implications of child abuse, worked best in situations –where the victim trusted no one –including those who really loved them. However, every intervention counted and complimented each other.
In addition, community interventions at village level, national level, regional and global forces of peace restructuring, reconciliation required actual provision of physical needs to victims of domestic violence –ensuring access to development needs and support information on successful human development –as critical means to control and prevent wars and psychological trauma. From the inner peace of individual family members, society can register sustainable peace.
Limitations of the Interventions:
There is never standard time of recovery; it can be very frustrating if you set your own time. Recovery is very gradual, slow, sometimes showing reversals and stagnation. However, with endurance, optimism and timeless patience, positive results show up.
Discussion:
According to the en.wikipedia.org (2010), Insecurity is a feeling of general unease or nervousness that may be triggered by perceiving of oneself to be unloved, inadequate or worthless (whether in a rational or an irrational manner). A person who is insecure lacks confidence in their own value and capability; lacks trust in themselves and/or others, or has fears that a present positive state is temporary and will let them down and cause them loss or distress by "going wrong" in the future. Insecurity may cause shyness, paranoia and social withdrawal, or alternatively it may encourage compensatory behaviors such as arrogance, aggression, or bullying. Insecurity is often rooted in a person's childhood years.
Indeed some of the outcomes can be in form of aggressive attitudes, fears, anxieties, and broken ambitions –which later go behavioral in form of acts like substance abuse, irrational decision making, forming socially dangerous alliances or relationships (as means to “address” personal insecurities), registering underachievement in all or selected aspects of life, concerns of anti-social personality disorders, problems associated with authoritative and abusive parenting, poor role-modeling along the path to becoming future parents, high levels of crime and prostitution (and its associated problems), and violence in homes and in the wider society –all of which are true manifestation of structural violence with roots right in the family.
Incidentally, some of the products from such families attain high social positions and, so, society begins to meet the costs. Such (products) are generated from broken families because of the conditions dictated by the negative past.
A 2005 national (US) study of psychiatric disorders revealed the origins of childhood anger –which included rejection by peers and siblings, parental anger, marital conflicts, low self-esteem, difficulty in trusting, separation and divorce, poor body image and academic difficulties (Fitzgibbons P., 2005).
But media too is another form of abuse for children (or adolescents). It influenced adolescent’s later years either to the good or for worst of that child. Psychologist Jeffrey Johnson, PhD, in a report by The Washington Post (2002) noted, “The more people watch [TV], the more they perceive the world to be frightening place. They are prepared to respond aggressively.”
It is important to look at children as human capital of the future through integrating health nutrition and early childcare services for young children in developing countries (Young, M. 1996). According to her, childhood problems are greatly influenced by poverty. Poor children in their earliest years faced problems such as stunted mental and physical development, and the lack of preparation for school set the stage for low academic achievement, high drop-out, functional illiteracy, lack of productivity in the work force, and even delinquency and dependence on society.
Brain studies demonstrate that early years are critical in the development of intelligence, personality and social behaviour before the age of three. Childhood education can reduce social costs in such areas as school repetition, juvenile delinquency and drug use (Young, M. 1996).
Absence of love, trust, and feeling of insecurity on the part of the child influences later development outlooks and, in years to come, it will be society that either benefits or suffers. Forgiveness reduces excessive anger in children and in teenagers and may prevent the development of later psychiatric disorders by giving children and teenager a proven method for resolving anger (Fitzgibbons, P. 2005).
By 2002, domestic violence was rife in Uganda as married couples in Eastern town of Jinja were still at war using –using knives, fuel, and other weapons –resulting in serious injuries and death. Violence is highly ‘contagious’ or learned. It swiftly spreads into the minds of growing up children who adopt that tool in future conflicts whether among peers or in a similar situation as marriage.
However, in his book ‘Toddler Taming –A Parent Guide to the First Four Years’ Green, C. 1992:7 outlines the foundation as; love (feeling wanted and welcome); consistency (knowledge where they stand and where they will be tomorrow); tackle tension (which is the most destructive influence in today’s child rearing); a good example to follow; reasonable expectations (what is normal and to expect); fun and enjoyment; and confidence.
Conclusion and Recommendation (s):
Family and individual members in it cannot be separated from the wider community. Indeed communalism is medicine of its own. The wider community had inexhaustible reserves for the family to access for survival and wellness purposes –which is a foundation for community survival and wellness –in return.
This is so because from the community the family obtained enabling policies, social services, physical and psychological security as well as development opportunities for junior members’ progress into the future. Such guaranteed security for the family, inner peace for individuals members of the family and, eventually, sustainable community peace.
As the family continues to play its children development roles –providing both moral and physical support, the community, too, begins to identify its development concerns and wishes in that child. That, though, can either be for the good or worse. Responsibility on the part of family and community and eventual decisions made, thus, contributes to mental wellness of the child that characterizes freedom from the means to psychological trauma as violence.
A multi-sectoral approach to peaceful building is core in recovery and, thus, ought to be put into consideration in any intervention design. This is so because human needs are holistic by nature. But, families must be very careful with what they sow in a developing child, so that society resources can be channeled to prosperity concerns. However, more research is needed to measure extents of each of the various interventions made. It would be interesting to find out differences in the degrees of impact for each intervention.
References:
En.wikipedia (2010) ‘Emotional insecurity’ Available at http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Emotional_insecurity last modified on 19 September 2010
Fancher R. (2010). ‘The Necessity of Moral Engagement’ Available at http://www.mentalhelp.net/poc/view_doc.php?type=doc&id=40302&cn=91 Retrieved on October 7, 2010
Fitzgibbons P. (2005). ‘Protecting the Emotional Health of Children’ Available at http://www.maritalhealing.com/conflicts/conflictsinchildren.php Retrieved on October 7, 2010
Green, C. (1992) Toddler Taming: A Parent’s Guide to the First Four years. Vermilion London (UK) P.7
Odeke, A. (2002) Domestic Violence Ripe in Uganda. BBC Monday, May 20, 2002 Available at news.bbc.co.uk/2/hi/Africa/1998977.stm Accessed November, 2010
The Washington Post (2002) Ed. by K. Hewlett (2002) Monitor on Psychology June, 2002 p. 13 Vol. 33. N0. 6
The free dictionary (2010) ‘Family’ Available at http://www.thefreedictionary.com/family Retrieved on October 7, 2010
Watch Tower Bible and Tract Society of Pennsylvania (1993) What is the Purpose of Life? P.1
WHO (2007) ‘Community Mental Health Services Will Lessen Social Exclusion, Says WHO.’ Available at http://www.who.int/mediacentre/news/notes/2007/np25/en/index.html Retrieved October 7th, 2010
Young, M. (1996) The Benefits of Early Child Development Program World Bank
JACOB WAISWA
GRADUATE PEACE AND CONFLICT PROGRAM
P.O. BOX 7062,
MAKERERE-UNIVERSITY
KAMPALA-UGANDA
jwaiswa@arts.mak.ac.ug
Introduction:
The study rotates around family conflicts (or family mental health issues) which, if mismanaged, potentially, spills over into the wider community. It goes further to trace individual concerns (inner conflicts) that families consciously or unconsciously perpetuate –which, if not given due attention, like a time-bomb, blows up into serious social costs like substance abuse, aggressive and risky behaviors, increased HIV/AIDS prevalence, low productivity, poverty and looming ignorance to solve those problems. It is, thus, pertinent to address such problems from the environment around the root (individuals at family level) in order to achieve sustainable peace in the wider community (global peace).
A family is a fundamental social group in society typically consisting of one or two parents and their children (thefreedictionary.com, retrieved October 7, 2010) defines. Family mental health is critical determinant of future wars, turmoil and their consequences while parenting justified parenthood through realization of noble roles in respect of child development and growth that sees the child re-socialize and project himself or herself to independence, learn to co-exist peacefully with family members and society as well as be in position to prioritize among the various interaction sources in the environment to achieve defined goals in life. Fancher R. (2010) explained, “…Because what other people think determines what opportunities you're going to have in life, and other people already have that power, whether you and your therapist recognize it or not."
Background
There are nearly 54 million people around the world with severe mental disorders such as schizophrenia and bipolar affective disorder (manic-depressive illness). Estimated 154 million people suffer from depression. People living in developing countries are disproportionately affected. Mental disorders are increasingly prevalent in developing countries, the consequence of persistent poverty-driven conditions, the demographic transition, conflicts in fragile states and natural disasters. At the same time, more than 50% of developing countries do not provide any care for persons with mental disorders in the community. These disorders bring significant hardship not only to those who suffer from them, but also to their caregivers -- often the family, given the lack of mental health resources found in developing countries (WHO, 2007).
Throughout the world, more than a billion people are seriously ill or malnourished resulting into death of some ten million children each year in Africa alone. The Earth’s population nearing 6 billion continue to grow by more than 90 million each year, more than 90% of that growth is in developing countries. This constantly expanding population increases the need for food, housing, water and industry –which brings further damage to land, water, and air from industrial and other pollutants.
The Problem
The poor quality of childhood upbringing characterized by malnutrition, visual inputs, poor model objects, neglect and domestic violence has a toll on child’s wellness and peace, peace and wellness of his or her family, community and global peace. To address the existing global conflict situation we need track personal history, mend it and prevent future conflicts through early diagnosis of children growth and development antagonisms.
Main Objective of the Intervention:
The main objective of the intervention is to proactively deal with violence against children and family level to achieve sustainable global peace.
Intervention Objectives:
The intervention set out to find out how best to make X’s movements safe, to identify origins of the sudden break down of mental functioning, develop ways to recovery of X, and X’s recovery and its implication on peace of the family and wider community.
Scope of the Intervention:
The scope of the intervention is child abuse and neglect in families and their implication on peace in the wider community (global peace).
Significance of the Intervention:
The significance of the intervention is to reach sustainable peace for future generations to thrive by addressing conflict issues (or psychological concerns) right from within individuals in the families to the wider community.
The Case:
There was a case involving a youth (X) who had suddenly broken down –mentally and began loitering on the streets in areas perceived to be secure –since trust had been lost for everyone and everything. No longer could X work, live in a family setting and trust friends. X was sleepless and often rushed out of bed claiming some people wanted to take X’s life.
The Case Interventions:
The interventions involved consulting various mental health professionals in psychiatry and psychology fields, faiths known for their healing powers, seeking networks of people thought to have cared a lot about X, enactment to review and re-show loving and caring scenes with people said to have victimized X, cognitive-based approaches to re-instate truthfulness or rightfulness of situations from the wrongfully perceived states, subjecting X to new environments free from people held responsible for X’s problem, medical care to assess X’s physiological state, examination of X’s love life, and signing in X to the world of social networking (i.e. facebook.com).
Findings:
The challenges of children growing in broken families included; the big burden to achieve life goals on their own –with no hope of parental intervention, inability to make wise health decisions, difficulty to ensure personal safety and healthy social relations, generation of high pressure to achieve and to break development barriers (mentally, socially and institutionally), the fear of dropping out of school due to inability to pay fees on his or her own that catapults into failure to concentrate and excel academically in order to attain a good career, inability to solve problems associated with choosing and having healthy relationships, and inability to manage chronic stress that characterizes his or her family life a condition that, potentially, pursues child into adulthood –and in responsible social positions. Also, there are critical challenges of lack of social support coupled with the lack of confidence to seek it –as viable path to building resilience required for the child succeed in life.
It was, then, upon community to proactively change the situation through actively granting political, economic, and socio-cultural and safety rights –to significantly avert insecurity in all its manifestations right from family level. It was concluded from an intervention in the life of an abused and neglected child that the amount of resilience resulting from positive reinforcement from friends, teachers and inspiring leaders or roles models from media products, supported adaptability or coping -and some kind of positive spiritual inclinations greatly catapulted abused and neglected children through traps of childhood suffocation, underachievement, psychopathological enclaves and demeaning parental hostilities.
It was noted that involvement of godly impressions as part of the intervention in addressing psychological implications of child abuse, worked best in situations –where the victim trusted no one –including those who really loved them. However, every intervention counted and complimented each other.
In addition, community interventions at village level, national level, regional and global forces of peace restructuring, reconciliation required actual provision of physical needs to victims of domestic violence –ensuring access to development needs and support information on successful human development –as critical means to control and prevent wars and psychological trauma. From the inner peace of individual family members, society can register sustainable peace.
Limitations of the Interventions:
There is never standard time of recovery; it can be very frustrating if you set your own time. Recovery is very gradual, slow, sometimes showing reversals and stagnation. However, with endurance, optimism and timeless patience, positive results show up.
Discussion:
According to the en.wikipedia.org (2010), Insecurity is a feeling of general unease or nervousness that may be triggered by perceiving of oneself to be unloved, inadequate or worthless (whether in a rational or an irrational manner). A person who is insecure lacks confidence in their own value and capability; lacks trust in themselves and/or others, or has fears that a present positive state is temporary and will let them down and cause them loss or distress by "going wrong" in the future. Insecurity may cause shyness, paranoia and social withdrawal, or alternatively it may encourage compensatory behaviors such as arrogance, aggression, or bullying. Insecurity is often rooted in a person's childhood years.
Indeed some of the outcomes can be in form of aggressive attitudes, fears, anxieties, and broken ambitions –which later go behavioral in form of acts like substance abuse, irrational decision making, forming socially dangerous alliances or relationships (as means to “address” personal insecurities), registering underachievement in all or selected aspects of life, concerns of anti-social personality disorders, problems associated with authoritative and abusive parenting, poor role-modeling along the path to becoming future parents, high levels of crime and prostitution (and its associated problems), and violence in homes and in the wider society –all of which are true manifestation of structural violence with roots right in the family.
Incidentally, some of the products from such families attain high social positions and, so, society begins to meet the costs. Such (products) are generated from broken families because of the conditions dictated by the negative past.
A 2005 national (US) study of psychiatric disorders revealed the origins of childhood anger –which included rejection by peers and siblings, parental anger, marital conflicts, low self-esteem, difficulty in trusting, separation and divorce, poor body image and academic difficulties (Fitzgibbons P., 2005).
But media too is another form of abuse for children (or adolescents). It influenced adolescent’s later years either to the good or for worst of that child. Psychologist Jeffrey Johnson, PhD, in a report by The Washington Post (2002) noted, “The more people watch [TV], the more they perceive the world to be frightening place. They are prepared to respond aggressively.”
It is important to look at children as human capital of the future through integrating health nutrition and early childcare services for young children in developing countries (Young, M. 1996). According to her, childhood problems are greatly influenced by poverty. Poor children in their earliest years faced problems such as stunted mental and physical development, and the lack of preparation for school set the stage for low academic achievement, high drop-out, functional illiteracy, lack of productivity in the work force, and even delinquency and dependence on society.
Brain studies demonstrate that early years are critical in the development of intelligence, personality and social behaviour before the age of three. Childhood education can reduce social costs in such areas as school repetition, juvenile delinquency and drug use (Young, M. 1996).
Absence of love, trust, and feeling of insecurity on the part of the child influences later development outlooks and, in years to come, it will be society that either benefits or suffers. Forgiveness reduces excessive anger in children and in teenagers and may prevent the development of later psychiatric disorders by giving children and teenager a proven method for resolving anger (Fitzgibbons, P. 2005).
By 2002, domestic violence was rife in Uganda as married couples in Eastern town of Jinja were still at war using –using knives, fuel, and other weapons –resulting in serious injuries and death. Violence is highly ‘contagious’ or learned. It swiftly spreads into the minds of growing up children who adopt that tool in future conflicts whether among peers or in a similar situation as marriage.
However, in his book ‘Toddler Taming –A Parent Guide to the First Four Years’ Green, C. 1992:7 outlines the foundation as; love (feeling wanted and welcome); consistency (knowledge where they stand and where they will be tomorrow); tackle tension (which is the most destructive influence in today’s child rearing); a good example to follow; reasonable expectations (what is normal and to expect); fun and enjoyment; and confidence.
Conclusion and Recommendation (s):
Family and individual members in it cannot be separated from the wider community. Indeed communalism is medicine of its own. The wider community had inexhaustible reserves for the family to access for survival and wellness purposes –which is a foundation for community survival and wellness –in return.
This is so because from the community the family obtained enabling policies, social services, physical and psychological security as well as development opportunities for junior members’ progress into the future. Such guaranteed security for the family, inner peace for individuals members of the family and, eventually, sustainable community peace.
As the family continues to play its children development roles –providing both moral and physical support, the community, too, begins to identify its development concerns and wishes in that child. That, though, can either be for the good or worse. Responsibility on the part of family and community and eventual decisions made, thus, contributes to mental wellness of the child that characterizes freedom from the means to psychological trauma as violence.
A multi-sectoral approach to peaceful building is core in recovery and, thus, ought to be put into consideration in any intervention design. This is so because human needs are holistic by nature. But, families must be very careful with what they sow in a developing child, so that society resources can be channeled to prosperity concerns. However, more research is needed to measure extents of each of the various interventions made. It would be interesting to find out differences in the degrees of impact for each intervention.
References:
En.wikipedia (2010) ‘Emotional insecurity’ Available at http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Emotional_insecurity last modified on 19 September 2010
Fancher R. (2010). ‘The Necessity of Moral Engagement’ Available at http://www.mentalhelp.net/poc/view_doc.php?type=doc&id=40302&cn=91 Retrieved on October 7, 2010
Fitzgibbons P. (2005). ‘Protecting the Emotional Health of Children’ Available at http://www.maritalhealing.com/conflicts/conflictsinchildren.php Retrieved on October 7, 2010
Green, C. (1992) Toddler Taming: A Parent’s Guide to the First Four years. Vermilion London (UK) P.7
Odeke, A. (2002) Domestic Violence Ripe in Uganda. BBC Monday, May 20, 2002 Available at news.bbc.co.uk/2/hi/Africa/1998977.stm Accessed November, 2010
The Washington Post (2002) Ed. by K. Hewlett (2002) Monitor on Psychology June, 2002 p. 13 Vol. 33. N0. 6
The free dictionary (2010) ‘Family’ Available at http://www.thefreedictionary.com/family Retrieved on October 7, 2010
Watch Tower Bible and Tract Society of Pennsylvania (1993) What is the Purpose of Life? P.1
WHO (2007) ‘Community Mental Health Services Will Lessen Social Exclusion, Says WHO.’ Available at http://www.who.int/mediacentre/news/notes/2007/np25/en/index.html Retrieved October 7th, 2010
Young, M. (1996) The Benefits of Early Child Development Program World Bank
Wednesday, November 25, 2009
MANAGING TAKE-OFF STAGE OF AN INCOME GENERATING PROJECT
Starting a income generating project is a very challenging. It is an outcome of several ideas tried one after another -sometimes at ago. Several failures prompt some proprietors to visit the spiritual world for intervention. It has taken some Ugandan businessmen crazy and fierce actions like human sacrifice. Human sacrifice has been more pronounced this year -with the greatest proportion of victims being children.
Whereas some have had project successes either by coincidence or mere inspiration after consulting the spiritual world, others have taken on proven dynamics necessary for project success. At the beginning, it is nothing but a one-man project. Positively, this helps to minimize costs by saving what would have been incurred at hiring several project assistants.
But there is always a time -when the project branches out into different growth lines, so much that the project founder fails to be at all points. For the the sake of trust, the founder will prefer hiring able family members. The challenge to it, however, is that family issues often override business interests -by way of hired relatives siphoning from project resources to solve family financial crises. The nature of relationships will always provide certain excuses for wrong business or management decisions. Compromise will be the order the the day -regardless of how much revenues are stifled and the direction the project may have turned to.
As bankruptcy crops in, the project founder will find it painful to attack or blame family members -which, in turn, accelerates the problem. Indeed, it would take proprietor a long time before changing the action of bringing family into business for another. It becomes even worse when the founder has to a few other assignments outside the business or project line.
To succeed beyond this level, the project owner must rethink family continued family involvement in affairs of the firm. He or she can do this by investigating losses -either by himself or someone else. However, an independent report would be comprehensive, most interesting and highly motivating to implement.
Following that, the founder can embark on key adjustments -which may be; to strengthen the monitoring and evaluation team, teach family members basics of business-monitoring accompanied by stern warning for those implicated in revenue losses. However, the statement of caution must carry consequences and be made clear. Possibly, repercussions should be written on paper and copies given out to every member working for the firm. A brief summary of them can be pinned on the walls as reminders.
And of course, he (project owner) must review them weekly or monthly -to ensure effectiveness and efficiency towards the projected goal. A choice too may be made to reorient them in basic business skills and ethics. If it is about pressure to fulfill their career goals, career guidance can be integrated to provide them with different channels to success. While if old bad stories occur, the family member involved must be firmly relieved of his or her daily business input.
Usually, it is by asking him or her to go for a holiday -until “certain company issues are rectified.” The proprietor may not have to be exact about the kind of issues. Some money to take him or her through life after the current job to another one can be given.
This shows continued care for the worker until his or her last step out of the company -while at the same time humbly asking him or her out to go home -as “investigations” get underway. As already noted, it is just diplomacy at work. It will take him or her several months to learn that, indeed, the job is gone. Perhaps until the promised phone-call for long time fails to show up.
It will not be so long when the proprietor soon starts to build trust and confidence in human resource outside the family. But, even for them, they must have recommendations from renown and trustworthy people in order to reduce risks due to theft and mismanagement.
Whoever is brought in, given his or her desired skills, abilities and personality-fit, must be put on probation to undergo a period of on-job training and evaluation. Such are intended to have the trainee adopt the much-desired business values to pursue over a considerable period of time. This also empowers him or her to make autonomous decisions pertaining to project or company goal -where for contentious ones, he or she simply seeks the proprietor's intervention or advice.
Jacob Waiswa
Situation Health Analyst
www.situationhealthanalysis.blogspot.com
Whereas some have had project successes either by coincidence or mere inspiration after consulting the spiritual world, others have taken on proven dynamics necessary for project success. At the beginning, it is nothing but a one-man project. Positively, this helps to minimize costs by saving what would have been incurred at hiring several project assistants.
But there is always a time -when the project branches out into different growth lines, so much that the project founder fails to be at all points. For the the sake of trust, the founder will prefer hiring able family members. The challenge to it, however, is that family issues often override business interests -by way of hired relatives siphoning from project resources to solve family financial crises. The nature of relationships will always provide certain excuses for wrong business or management decisions. Compromise will be the order the the day -regardless of how much revenues are stifled and the direction the project may have turned to.
As bankruptcy crops in, the project founder will find it painful to attack or blame family members -which, in turn, accelerates the problem. Indeed, it would take proprietor a long time before changing the action of bringing family into business for another. It becomes even worse when the founder has to a few other assignments outside the business or project line.
To succeed beyond this level, the project owner must rethink family continued family involvement in affairs of the firm. He or she can do this by investigating losses -either by himself or someone else. However, an independent report would be comprehensive, most interesting and highly motivating to implement.
Following that, the founder can embark on key adjustments -which may be; to strengthen the monitoring and evaluation team, teach family members basics of business-monitoring accompanied by stern warning for those implicated in revenue losses. However, the statement of caution must carry consequences and be made clear. Possibly, repercussions should be written on paper and copies given out to every member working for the firm. A brief summary of them can be pinned on the walls as reminders.
And of course, he (project owner) must review them weekly or monthly -to ensure effectiveness and efficiency towards the projected goal. A choice too may be made to reorient them in basic business skills and ethics. If it is about pressure to fulfill their career goals, career guidance can be integrated to provide them with different channels to success. While if old bad stories occur, the family member involved must be firmly relieved of his or her daily business input.
Usually, it is by asking him or her to go for a holiday -until “certain company issues are rectified.” The proprietor may not have to be exact about the kind of issues. Some money to take him or her through life after the current job to another one can be given.
This shows continued care for the worker until his or her last step out of the company -while at the same time humbly asking him or her out to go home -as “investigations” get underway. As already noted, it is just diplomacy at work. It will take him or her several months to learn that, indeed, the job is gone. Perhaps until the promised phone-call for long time fails to show up.
It will not be so long when the proprietor soon starts to build trust and confidence in human resource outside the family. But, even for them, they must have recommendations from renown and trustworthy people in order to reduce risks due to theft and mismanagement.
Whoever is brought in, given his or her desired skills, abilities and personality-fit, must be put on probation to undergo a period of on-job training and evaluation. Such are intended to have the trainee adopt the much-desired business values to pursue over a considerable period of time. This also empowers him or her to make autonomous decisions pertaining to project or company goal -where for contentious ones, he or she simply seeks the proprietor's intervention or advice.
Jacob Waiswa
Situation Health Analyst
www.situationhealthanalysis.blogspot.com
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