From rosse at ncf.ca Mon Dec 1 10:00:28 2008 From: rosse at ncf.ca (Elspeth Ross) Date: Mon Dec 1 10:03:19 2008 Subject: [Fasd_canadian_link] From Russia With Love -- Dealing With Difficult Adoptions: U.S. Message-ID: <6.2.5.6.2.20081201095534.01ddf680@ncf.ca> "... the sisters' biological mother was an alcoholic... grandmother, who, they say, routinely abused them..." ."...In some cases, the biological mothers of these children suffer from alcoholism, leading children to suffer from fetal alcohol syndrome. Many of these children also have bonding and attachment issues...." http://abcnews.go.com/2020/story?id=6322100&page=1 ABC News 20/20 From Russia With Love -- Dealing With Difficult Adoptions Adoptive Parents Say They've Struggled to Integrate Foreign-Born Children By JUJU CHANG, JIM DUBREUIL and KETURAH GRAY Nov. 28, 2008? Watch Video WATCH: The Toughest Call: Part 1 WATCH: The Toughest Call: Part 2 WATCH: The Toughest Call: Part 3 PHOTOS: Getting Help for Troubled Adoptions After years of failed fertility treatments, Tanya and Mike Mulligan warmed to the idea of foreign adoption after seeing an ad in the newspaper touting a Russian program. The couple wanted to adopt older children who wouldn't require the late-night feedings, teething and potty training of an infant or toddler, and in July 2004 they traveled to a remote Russian orphanage to adopt two sisters, Margarita, then 11, and Elena, 8. The adoption agency appeared to have found a perfect match for the couple, right down to the blond hair that the sisters had, just like the Mulligans. "What we were told prior to the adoption was that they came from a loving family," said Tanya Mulligan, a nurse in Tampa, Fla., who was then in her early 40s. Once in the United States, Elena quickly embraced her adopted country and culture, watching "Finding Nemo" dozens of times to learn English. But Margarita was a study in contrasts. Less than a week after leaving Russia, the 11-year-old began to show troubling behaviors, losing herself in fits of rage for hours. "She started having a meltdown and crying, and we couldn't figure out what was going on," Tanya Mulligan said. "She was running around the house and wailing." Her adoptive parents didn't speak Russian and Margarita understood very little English. She was crying, out of control and because of the language barrier, there was little her parents could do, they said. Eventually, Mike Mulligan picked up a video camera and began filming Margarita's behavior, wanting to show Margarita's therapist and other family members how chaotic their lives at home had become. Foreign Adoption: Family Struggles As the Mulligans learned more about their daughters' pasts, they say they learned the girls' upbringing was far from the description of a loving family. The Mulligans said the sisters' biological mother was an alcoholic and a prostitute who left the girls and their baby brother with their grandmother, who, they say, routinely abused them. "Elena apparently got the brunt of it," Tanya Mulligan said. "[The grandmother] used to take her and swing her around the room and smash her face into the wall." Tanya Mulligan said the girls told her about one night when their grandmother kept hitting their baby brother with her cane until he stopped crying. The police came the next day and the girls were sent to the orphanage. They never saw their baby brother again and seemed traumatized by his disappearance. Wanting to give their daughters a new brother like the one they missed so much, the Mulligans -- who always wanted a son -- adopted a 4-year-old Russian boy named Sasha shortly after adopting their girls. Margarita and the boy, whom the Mulligans renamed Slater, were eventually diagnosed with reactive attachment disorder, or RAD, a common diagnosis for many children adopted from foreign orphanages where they were sometimes neglected and abused. Children with RAD have difficulty bonding with their new families and often act out. Over time, the Mulligans said, Slater was also diagnosed with the eating disorder pica, post-traumatic stress disorder, autism, low IQ, Tourette's syndrome and dyslexia. Today, he's a third-grader only capable of doing kindergarten-level work. "One of these diagnoses on their own would be a lot for a parent to handle," Tanya Mulligan said. Tanya and Mike Mulligan are now suing the adoption agency for damages, because they say they weren't told of their children's psychological conditions. But in court records obtained by "20/20," the adoption agency argues the Mulligans agreed to assume the risk that their adopted children "could arrive with undiagnosed physical, emotional, mental and /or developmental problems." The Mulligans' lawsuit is pending. The Unthinkable: Disrupting an Adoption Eventually, after life became unbearable, the Mulligans sent their daughter to a boarding school specializing in behavioral issues. But after two years, they realized they could no longer afford the $40,000-per-year tuition. In June, Margarita returned to her home in Tampa. "We are doing everything in our power not to return them," Mike Mulligan said. "We didn't set out to do this [adoption] to just, you know, simply exchange them or give them back." "I didn't want perfect children," his wife said. "But I didn't want a child that was going to hurt me. I didn't want a child that was going to disrupt my family and disrupt my marriage and make my relatives turn against me. I didn't want children that would make us feel like outcasts in our own neighborhood, isolate us and make us feel humiliated." In the last 20 years, foreign adoption has become more popular; Americans now adopt about 19,000 children per year from overseas. While the vast majority adjust successfully, surveys suggest anywhere from 10 percent to 25 percent of foreign adoptions end in disruption. Disruption refers to the ending or "disrupting" of an adoption. The majority of these children are from eastern Europe and have spent their formulative years either in institutionalized state-run care or with family members ill-equipped to care for them. In some cases, the biological mothers of these children suffer from alcoholism, leading children to suffer from fetal alcohol syndrome. Many of these children also have bonding and attachment issues. Like the Mulligans, many adoptive families deplete their savings and cash in retirement funds to pay for the doctors, tutors, psychologists and therapists that their kids need. The Department of Health and Human Services says that 81 children adopted from overseas were put into foster care in 14 states in 2006. For kids who are 16 and older, JobCorps -- which helps students learn a trade, earn a high school diploma or GED and get help finding a job -- is an option as a sort of aging-out program. But an undocumented number of children are simply lost, part of an underground, undisclosed network of children who are transferred between families, adoption experts say. When the Worst Happens At its most desperate, the situation between adoptive children and parents can turn deadly. Since the early 1990s, the murders of 15 Russian children by their adoptive parents have been documented. "People don't understand. These kids come at you every day & many times a day," Tanya Mulligan said. "It's like a battering ram and they just keep at you and keep at you and keep at you. And finally, they'll do something that endangers either a pet, or you or another child in the family and you snap." Peggy Hilt, 36, was one of those adoptive parents who snapped. She's serving 17 years in a maximum security prison in Virginia for the 2005 murder of her adopted daughter, Nina, 2. Hilt and her husband adopted Nina from Russia in 2004. Nina was the second child they'd adopted from Europe and Hilt said from the beginning she was withdrawn and often impossible to handle. "She would bang her head on the wall, she would pull her hair out if something frustrated her," she told "20/20." A stay-at-home mom, Hilt says she began drinking heavily in secret, downing close to a 12 pack of beer each day. The alcohol made her even more impatient with her children, as it did on the day when she finally lost patience with Nina. "Nina picked up a fork off the table and went towards [her sister] with it, and I saw red," Hilt said. "I grabbed her and I snapped. I hurt her. I didn't mean to hurt her. Then I kicked her with the side of my foot and told her to get up and then I put her up in her bed and struck her repeatedly." Two days later, Nina died from internal bleeding. Hilt admitted that what she did was inexcusable, but says she had never heard of RAD and didn't know that help was available to her. She said she's sharing her story hoping that no other woman has to walk in her shoes. The Adoption Whisperer Across the country, at the edge of Glacier National Park in Montana, Joyce Sterkel understands the despair that many adoptive parents and children feel. She raised three Russian-born teens, one of them a boy who had tried to poison his first adoptive mother. She has dedicated her life to preventing American parents from disrupting their adoptions. "It's like a divorce, with all the ramifications of a divorce," she said. "Legal, spiritual, emotional, financial -- it's a divorce. I think these parents are just hurt people that are afraid for their lives. I am the last person to judge them because I have seen children that, for lack of a better word, truly are sociopaths." In 1999, Sterkel opened the Ranch for Kids, a last stop for parents who can no longer handle their adoptees and are considering giving them up. It can house 40 kids at a time and is at capacity with a long waiting list. "It's really sad because many times the parents are at the end of their rope and they're crying on the other end of the phone, 'Please help!'" Sterkel said. Though she's a nurse and not a trained psychologist, Sterkel has an uncanny ability to reach these emotionally damaged children. "I'm very honest with them," she said. "And I'm straightforward and sometimes very blunt." The Mulligans, seeking help to avoid disrupting their adoption, spent several months consulting with Sterkel on how to deal with Margarita and Slater. "I still feel that there's a soul in there that can be salvaged, a heart that can be saved," Tanya Mulligan said. Rebuilding Families, One Step at a Time Sterkel suggested that all three Mulligan children -- even the seemingly unaffected Elena -- should visit the ranch. So this summer "20/20" flew them to Montana to stay at the ranch for a week. The Ranch for Kids is all about structure and obeying the rules. Every morning, the kids line up for a bare-bones breakfast and then head to their chores and classes. Some kids are on laundry duty while others muck-out horse stalls. A school on campus allows the kids to keep up with their studies. Sterkel is no-nonsense when it comes to disciplining both the parents and the kids. "It's the No. 1 sin of adoptive parents, is the overindulgence of commercial and material benefits," she said. "We're not here to entertain children. We're here to give you a work ethic and teach you how to work and how to be responsible. And how important the family is, your connections with people." Child psychologists say Sterkel is on to something, but it can take years to teach respect, set limits and build self-esteem. In the week that the Mulligan children spent at the camp, some progress was made. For Tanya and Mike Mulligan, there's a sense of camaraderie with other parents. "We're not alone," Mike Mulligan said. "We thought for the longest time -- other children are experiencing the same behaviors. The parents are at different breaking points. And the camp is really kind of a catch-all." Margarita had a breakthrough at camp, telling "20/20" that in Russia, she had been the favored daughter, but in America she feels like she plays second fiddle to Elena. "She's an extremely hurt kid," Sterkel said. "She has a lot of pain inside of her and she doesn't want you to see it." Margarita says she thinks her parents wanted to buy her love. "They always take us shopping. And, if they buy us things, they think that we like them because they're buying things for us," she said. At the end of the week, she had a surprise for her mother -- a hug. "I almost didn't know how to react," Tanya Mulligan said. "She actually reached for me and I was very, very surprised. I was very happy that for once she was reaching for me. Just once, it felt very good." The Mulligans are understandably afraid to put too much stock in such a moment, but say they're "cautiously optimistic." "There are millions of children out there that need parents," Mike Mulligan said. "Every child deserves to have a loving home. I think the message really that we're trying to send is 'be prepared.'" [] Click here for more information about Nina Hilt. [] Click here for more information about Joyce Sterkel's Ranch for Kids.20/20 News 2020 477 Comments -------------- next part -------------- An HTML attachment was scrubbed... URL: /pipermail/fasd_canadian_link/attachments/20081201/bfedf50d/attachment.html From rosse at ncf.ca Mon Dec 1 21:53:42 2008 From: rosse at ncf.ca (Elspeth Ross) Date: Mon Dec 1 22:03:07 2008 Subject: [Fasd_canadian_link] =?iso-8859-1?q?It=92s_all_about_choices_in_?= =?iso-8859-1?q?life_=26_The_Truth_?= about Alcohol (5 letters) Message-ID: <6.2.5.6.2.20081201215302.03c00970@ncf.ca> [There have been many letters about this. Here are five. Sorry I am missing the first article "Knowing the truth about alcohol".] http://www.leducrep.com/ArticleDisplay.aspx?e=1306751 Leduc Representative Leduc, Alberta Letters to the Editor It?s all about choices in life Posted 3 days ago [as of Nov. 24, 2008] Editor, I am taking this time to write you in regards to articles in the November 14, 2008 paper titled ?Knowing the truth about alcohol.? I enjoy getting the paper every Friday to see what is going on in our community. I do however take offence to this article. For example her saying that ?most people with FAE or FASD are born alcoholics, drug users, murders, rapists, homeless, gang members, or in jail if the live long enough.? and ?Sixty-seven per cent of people in Canadian prisons have FASD.? It has a lot to do with how you are brought up and a disability is only a disability if you let it be one. They do not need another reason to blame for why they rapped or murder someone. It is about what choices you make in life. Also I do enjoy having a drink on weekends but that does not mean I am not a healthy, happy functioning member of society. As in her article she said ??If people understood that brain damage is the result of drinking alcohol and that it is permanent and impairs people abilities to become the healthy, happy functioning members of society, then maybe things could change.? Are we forgetting that alcohol is legal, if it is so bad then why it is legal? Some people like to go out with friends and if that involves drinking so be it, we should not have to feel bad about it or read about it in the paper every week. She also said that it has been known to cause cancer so does everything else. There are worse things in this world that people could be doing, for example drugs, stealing, vandalizing. Why don?t you start talking about things like that the things that matter? This is not the first time she has wrote about alcohol and it probably wont be the last as one, but it is getting old. I have always enjoyed reading the Rep. Growing up in Leduc I have always liked to read the sports sections on Fridays to hear how the local sports teams are doing. In the past few months I have noticed a change in the sports section, it seems like the focus has gone from the local sports teams to horse back riding. Before my favorite column was always the Sports column. Now, I feel like every time I read the sports writers column I am being told all about horses (which I found some interesting facts on), how out of shade I am or that I am stupid for having a few drinks and enjoying myself with my friends. If the paper is so interested in facts about how bad things are for you maybe they should know that facts about horses. Injuries sustained as a result of horseback riding are common. Horse back riding is also 20 times more dangerous than motorcycling. More than 64 000 people attend the hospital with horse related injuries every year. I am not trying to knock down horseback riding, all I am saying is that all pastime have there risks but maybe it is time to start talking about more dangerous things to our community than drinking. I can guarantee I am not the only person who was offended by this article or her previous one. I have sent this letter to the Rep?s publisher and to your reporters. I have seen ads in the Rep for wine tastings, and bar grill openings. What I would like to know is how they feel about spending money on these ads jut to have articles published about how bad drinking is. John Schmidt, Resident of Leduc for 15 years. http://www.leducrep.com/ArticleDisplay.aspx?e=1319119 Leduc Representative Letters to the Editor The truth about alcohol worth telling Posted 3 days ago [as of Dec. 1] Editor: The article ?Knowing the Truth About Alcohol? and letter from Mr. John Schmidt caught my attention. The importance of this issue is so great that I feel I must respond. Firstly, a democracy is dependant on free and open discussion of issues facing us as well as recognizing the important role that newspapers, reporters, columnists and letters to the editors have in facilitating this discussion. Newspapers have a unique opportunity and responsibility to bring news and different viewpoints to us so we can think about them, discuss them, research them and form our own opinions. So my first question is: Why do you, Mr. Schmidt, take offense to this article? Not agreeing with the points made is one thing, taking offense is another. Do you really think a newspaper should suppress items and ideas that may offend someone or differ from their opinion or because companies that advertise alcohol products may not like this information? I respect Mr. Schmidt?s right to disagree with the article and say so in many different situations, but insinuating the editor should not have printed this article is contrary to the role of newspapers and democracy. The article presents information about the effects alcohol has in our communities and on our brain. It quotes several excellent sources. We should be concerned about alcohol consumption when there is such overwhelming evidence that alcohol is damaging to humans, especially on young people, particularly during the prenatal period and during the neurogenesis period (the production of new brain cells of adolescence and early adulthood). The information presented in this article is disturbing, but is it offensive? My second question is: Why do you doubt that FASD is a disability when the scientific evidence and medical communities have documented its existence? FASD is irreversible brain damage and is a lifelong disability. This is a disability that is 100 per cent preventable by avoiding consumption of any alcohol during pregnancy. Why take the chance? Behaviour that is characteristic of FASD, such as poor judgment, poor impulse control, easily influenced and difficulty with cause and effect reasoning has been well documented by medical and scientific personnel. FASD permanently impairs their judgment so they cannot consistently make good choices. All the love and good parenting in the world cannot undo the brain damage, just like you cannot choose to see if you are blind. Is alcohol harmless because it is legal? Cigarettes are legal ? are they harmless? My third question is: Why do you think that the truth about alcohol does not matter? It is a drug. It is destructive to our bodies and our communities, and therefore, what could be more important to write about? Lack of knowledge about this issue is a strong indication that it needs to be discussed more, not less. My fourth question is: Doesn?t the newspaper have a responsibility to cover all sports and recreation in the community, not just focusing on a few that may be your favourites. The recent features on local equestrian events (an Olympic event) have added a variety to the sports page. I agree there are risks to all activities, but it is well known that these risks increase greatly when alcohol is consumed. It is time to start talking about things that are dangerous to our community ? alcohol being one of them. Gloria Thomas Drayton Valley http://www.leducrep.com/ArticleDisplay.aspx?e=1319124 Leduc Representative Letters to the Editor More letters about the truth Posted 3 days ago [as of Dec. 1, 2008] Editor: I am writing this letter in response to the article The Truth about Alcohol and the letter to the editor from John Schmidt. I felt compelled to write for two reasons. First of all Ms. Pay has quoted some pretty credible sources for her information and secondly, Mr. Schmidt took it all out of context in his letter. Especially the part about drinking affecting the ability to be a healthy, happy contributing member of society. This specifically related to the point about drinking prior to age 25 and/or being exposed to alcohol prenatally. The facts and the science are there - there is no doubt that it causes brain damage. There are many credible websites with the statistics, research and solid science behind this information. Alcohol is not good for us and the only people with the money to brainwash us in to thinking otherwise through advertising is the alcohol industry itself! The World Health Organization (WHO) has definitely linked alcohol consumption to over 60 different types of cancer! Our own University of Alberta is currently doing a longtudinal study on the causes of cancer and their latest report indicates that alcohol consumption is emerging as a factor in the development of many cancers - second only to smoking. Everything causes cancer you say? Yes there is lots of research out there but if you look closer at it, much of it is preliminary and has poor research design. The WHO and U of A are very credible and have designed their studies in a strict scientific model. Alcohol is the only cause of Fetal Alcohol Spectrum Disorder (FASD), which permanently impairs the judgment of those born with it so that they cannot make good choices on a consistent basis. This is not an excuse, it is an explanation as to why there are so many out there who grew up in excellent homes and still went on to lead not so excellent lives. FASD is characterized by poor judgment, poor impulse control, lack of cause and effect reasoning and poor organizational skills. It is an invisible disability whose main symptom is poor choices and poor behaviour. We see that in people with traumatic brain injury and those with dementia but society?s love affair with alcohol has blinded them to the fact that those prenatally exposed to alcohol suffer similar difficulties in functioning because their brain is impaired. FASD is the leading preventable cause of disability in our country. Every baby born with FASD will cost taxpayers over $2 million in extra services in their lifetime. There are over 300,000 babies born with FASD in Canada every year making the cost of providing services to these individuals exceed the national debt. It is not their fault, they had no control over the damage their brains experienced prior to birth. It is often not even the birth mother?s fault. She either didn?t know she was pregnant, her Dr. told her it was ok to drink during pregnancy(and it happens) or she herself suffers from FASD (see above note about judgment and cause and effect reasoning to explain why this is a problem) or addictions. Unfortunately the Canadian Heart and Stroke foundation, The Canadian Cancer Society, The Canadian Medical Association, the Alberta Medical Association, the American Medical Association and all the other scientific communities do not put their money into advertising about the destruction alcohol does in our lives, but searching their websites will give you an indication of how alcohol is viewed. Even more unfortunate is the fact that the alcohol industry does put a lot of money into flimsy research and advertising about the so called health benefits of alcohol. The fact that it is a legal substance is irrelevant. It is still a mind altering drug that is harmful to the human body and especially the brain. Look up the timelines for cigarettes! It was less than 50 years ago that Dr?s were shown on advertisements extolling the benefits of smoking! Teachers and bus drivers were allowed to smoke in schools and on buses as late as the 1970?s. The link between cigarette smoking and lung cancer was made over one hundred years ago! This information was suppressed and disputed by the tobacco industry for over half a century as they poured money into advertising and flimsy research to keep the money flowing for their product and industry. Look where we are now! Let?s not take the same time to recognize the destruction alcohol has done to our communities. Alcohol impairs judgment - the probability of making good choices goes down in direct proportion to the level of impairment. Is Mr. Schmidt so offended because ?the truth hurts?? Lynn Perry Brazeau County http://www.leducrep.com/ArticleDisplay.aspx?e=1319121 Leduc Representative Letters to the Editor More letters about the truth Posted 3 days ago [as of Dec. 1, 2008] Editor: RE: The Truth about Alcohol What Mr Smith doesn?t seem to understand is that alcohol is not a problem for most people. However, the people that the article was referring to are people who had no choice whether they consumed or not. Their mothers made that choice for them, while they were still in the womb, while their brains and bodies were developing. For a fully-grown adult, alcohol in moderation, has been shown to have health benefits, but for an unborn child, alcohol can damage the brain and central nervous systems, organs, and general growth. Growing up, these children are brain damaged, much like someone in a car accident who receives a head injury. They do not have full control due to the damage done by alcohol while inutero. I?m sorry that Mr Smith felt offended, but if he is indeed a responsible user of alcohol, then he really has no reason to feel afronted. Only pregnant women who drink alcohol can cause fetal alcohol damage. Debra Haas Chilliwack, BC http://www.leducrep.com/ArticleDisplay.aspx?e=1319120 Leduc Representative Letters to the Editor More letters about the truth Posted 3 days ago Editor: RE: The Truth about Alcohol You people are totally missing the point. No one is saying you can?t go out and have a few drinks with friends. What millions of children and families are dealing with every second of their life - is the permanent brain damage that takes place when a pregnant woman drinks (this legal drug) we call alcohol. Just because something is legal doesn?t mean it?s safe. Alcohol does the most damage to a fetus compared to any other drug legal or illegal. And the sad thing is - It?s 100 per cent preventable. But what about families like mine - we ?unknowingly? adopted an older sibling set of biological brothers that are now suffering full blown FASD. Or should I say our whole family is suffering. Between trying to find a medical professional that has any experience with FASD teens, driving them to probation, non-profit organizations so they can fulfill their 80 hours of community service hours, doctors appointment, therapy appointments along with having to supervise them 24/7 just to keep them SAFE. They are 15 & 13 year old beautiful teenage boys that look totally ?normal? but inside their brain is anything but ?normal?. It causes them to be impulsive and make terrible choices that are both dangerous to others and themselves. They don?t have any friends because they don?t know how to read social clues - things we take for granted - that keep people at a distance. All along looking at them and us (the parents) wondering why we can?t ?control? their behavior. There are millions of families suffering in silence because no one would ever suggest that alcohol be illegal even though it is the leading known cause of mental retardation and developmental disabilities. Each year as many as 40,000 babies are born with an FASD. The cost to the nation for FASD alone is about $6 billion a year. Why isn?t more attention focused on this cause - why does Breast Cancer get more press - do you think it might have something to do with the fact that most people drink and don?t want to be reminded that maybe they are responsible for their child?s ?learning disabilities?? It?s ugly! So you answer me - did my sons have a choice? Kathleen Said Huntington Beach, CA -------------- next part -------------- An HTML attachment was scrubbed... URL: /pipermail/fasd_canadian_link/attachments/20081201/f68e6336/attachment-0001.html From rosse at ncf.ca Mon Dec 1 21:54:39 2008 From: rosse at ncf.ca (Elspeth Ross) Date: Mon Dec 1 22:03:10 2008 Subject: [Fasd_canadian_link] A look at addiction and substance abuse Message-ID: <6.2.5.6.2.20081201213535.0399bd38@ncf.ca> [Teresa Kellerman recommends this article as factual and informative, and with quotes from an interview with Bonnie Buxton.] http://www.leducrep.com/ArticleDisplay.aspx?e=1306757 Leduc Representative Local news A look at addiction and substance abuse Posted By Sarah Pay Posted 10 days ago [as on Dec. 1, 2008] From Nov. 18 to 24 the Canadian government holds National Addictions Awareness Week (NAAW). This is a time to consider the impact of addictions on Canadians across the nation. Substance abuse whether it be alcohol, tobacco or drugs causes devastating affects on health problems and impacts individuals, families, communities and Canadian society. "It is important that we provide stable and addiction free communities for ourselves and most importantly our children in the future," said Tony Clement, Minister of Health for the Government of Canada, in a letter to the public about NAAW. According to Clement the cost to society for smoking is $17 billion, alcohol $14.6 billion and illicit drugs $8.2 billion per year. "I'm a family support worker, and I have found that overall in our work that addictions do play a part in most of the social issues that we face in our community," said Judy Dumont, Family Community Support Services (FCSS) Leduc support worker. "It is good to recognize that more education, more resources and the possibility of intervention is available to people." The FCSS has resources such as an addiction councilors, and they also collaborate with the police in educating young people in schools with programs like D.A.R.E and the Party Program. "What we do in our department for the youth is we try to encourage greater self-esteem, volunteerism, mentorship and leadership and we do a lot of that through the youth and through the schools," added Dumont. Alcohol Canada ranks among the top 50 drinking nations, drinking slightly less then the U.S. but twice as much as Cuba. Alcohol abuse is another public health concern that the government wants to address. According to a report from the CBC, the provinces that spent the most on alcohol is the Yukon Territory and the least is Manitoba. Sales of beer and spirits is growing slowly, but wine sales are rising drastically. Researchers, psychologists, physicians and social workers are claiming that alcohol abuse causes more damage then any other substance abuse in Canada. Although there is some evidence that alcohol can be good for your health, a recent report by Ontario's Center for Addiction and Mental Health (CAMH) concludes that "the net health consequences are overwhelmingly detrimental. " Years ago, tobacco companies began to put warning labels and graphic pictures on cigarette cartons of the consequence of smoking. A pediatric geneticist who specializes in FASD wants to put warning labels on alcohol containers with the message that alcohol and pregnancy do not mix, but this is not being considered by any alcohol companies or the industry. According to the Journals of Studies on Alcohol and report on Alcohol Facts You'll Never Hear from Big Booze, when the government is approached they do nothing because many government organizations and funding come largely from alcohol revenue The future It is estimated that one in 100 babies in Canada have Fetal Alcohol Syndrome Disorder (FASD), which causes a range of mild to severe mental deficiencies. (See more in side bar 'Not worth the risk') Health problems Alcohol is considered a carcinogen. It's known to cause liver damage, cancer, ulcers and reproductive problems. Heavy drinkers are also at risk for coronary heart disease, high blood pressure and stroke. There is conflicting research about light drinking, such as protecting some people from cardiovascular disease. But many studies say that light drinking causes reduction of brain volume and leads to memory problems. If women drink lightly, it increases their chances of contracting breast cancer by 40 per cent. Hope for the future Smoking used to be a popular social norm just as alcohol is today. People understand the negative health and social impacts of smoking and it is slowly becoming a thing of the past. Alcohol, like smoking, is highly addictive and the most unwatched harmful, social drug out there. Giving up old habits Scientists from the UK have done rigorous assessments on social and individual harm caused by 20 different substances. They concluded that alcohol and tobacco are rated as more dangerous then cannibas, LSD and ecstasy. "The point we are making is that all drugs are dangerous, even the ones that people know and love and use regularly, like alcohol," said David Nutt, psychopharmacologist at Bristol University, UK in a medical report. "This is a revolutionary way of thinking that will hopefully catch on before the world is completely submerged in alcohol and it needs to sober up before it is too late." If you think that you may have a drinking problem or would like to know more about the risk of alcohol consumption you can visit AADAC at www.aadac.com or contact the FCSS of Leduc at 780.955.6424. Smoking Our distant neighbors in the UK have activated a smokefree law much like our own law here in Alberta, where smokers are banned from smoking in public places. Since July 2007, researchers have discovered that 400,000 people have quit smoking and as a result they predict that 40,000 lives will be saved over the next 10 years. An American study discovered that smoking is not only bad for your health but it also impacts your social life in major ways. Every working environment has them - smoking clusters, the group of people that socialize while smoking during the workday. After watching people for 32 years, Dr. Nicholas Christakis of Harvard Medical School and James Fowler of the University of California, San Diego, discovered that these clusters are disappearing. The percentage of adult smokers in the United States fell to 21 per cent from 45 per cent. Some are hopeful this trend will follow here in Canada. According to Clement in the letter to the public addressing NAAW, the Canadian government hopes to reduce smoking from 19 per cent of Canadians to 12 per cent by 2011. Not worth the risk Fetal Alcohol Spectrum Disorder (FASD) is an invisible disability and the most preventable form of brain damage. Fifty per cent of pregnancies are unplanned which means that women can go up to two months with out knowing they are pregnant. If a baby is exposed to alcohol in the womb, it causes them permanent brain damage for life. If you are pregnant and know that you suffer from a drug, alcohol or smoking addiction you can find help at the FCSS in Leduc by contacting Laurel Fitzsimods who is a FCSS representative for the Edmonton and Area Fetal Alcohol Network. Often women who are caught in the cycle of addiction need help to stop harming their unborn child. No amount of alcohol is safe during pregnancy. According to the Fetal Alcohol Support group, an individual's place and success in society is almost entirely determined by neurological functioning. A child with a brain injury is unable to meet the expectations of parents, family, peers, school, and career and can endure a lifetime of failures. The largest cause of brain injury in children is prenatal exposure to alcohol. Often the neurological damage goes undiagnosed, but not unpunished. There are strategies that can work to help the child with an FASD compensate for some difficulties. Early diagnosis and intensive intervention and tutoring can do wonders, but the need for a supportive structure is permanent. About 50 per cent of pregnancies are unplanned. If you drink, don't have sex. If you have sex, don't drink. This is the slogan for the Prevention of FASD. FASD is not a threshold condition. It is a diverse continuum ranging from mild intellectual and behavioural issues to the extreme that often leads to profound disabilities or premature death. At the mild end, damage may be the loss of some intellectual functioning (IQ), visual problems and higher than normal pain tolerance. At the severe end, damage may be severe loss of intellectual potential, severe vision problems, dyslexia, serious maxilo-facial deformities, dental abnormalities, heart defects, immune system malfunctioning, behavioral problems, attention deficit disorders, hyper-activity, extreme impulsiveness, poor judgment, little or no retained memory, deafness, little or no capacity for moral judgment or interpersonal empathy, sociopathic behaviour, epilepsy, tremors, cerebral palsy, renal failure, heart failure or death. "In Canada, the cost of FASD now exceeds that of the country's national debt," Bonnie Buxton, founder of FAS World based in Toronto said in a press release. "Just caring for people now alive with fetal alcohol syndrome and fetal alcohol effects, will cost us at least $600 billion, which is the approximate size of the national debt." For more about FASD, you can check out www.faslink.org for much more information and Laurel Fitzsimods who is a Leduc FCSS representative for the Edmonton and Area Fetal Alcohol Network at 780.955.6424. Calling it quits Smoking is a battle between will and the highly addictive substances that are found in smoking products. Cutting back (gradually reducing on the amount and frequency) or quitting cold turkey is a common way people try to quit, but this is not always the best alternative. These are options that smokers can consider that have a higher success rate than self-quit methods. The AADAC web site contains a list of alternatives that are: group support programs, individual counseling, nicotine replacement therapy (NRT), nicotine-free pill (zyban), resources such as books, videos, workbooks, web-based programs and alternative therapies. For more information on these 'quit smoking tip's you can contact the AADAC website at http://www.aadac.com. Leduc AADAC can be found at 4901-50 Ave and you can call the center at 780.980.7580 for more information. -------------- next part -------------- An HTML attachment was scrubbed... URL: /pipermail/fasd_canadian_link/attachments/20081201/00bf9450/attachment-0001.html From rosse at ncf.ca Mon Dec 1 21:55:29 2008 From: rosse at ncf.ca (Elspeth Ross) Date: Mon Dec 1 22:03:12 2008 Subject: [Fasd_canadian_link] Young Drinkers Targeted In Ad Campaign: Australia Message-ID: <6.2.5.6.2.20081201215521.03a47458@ncf.ca> [Nothing here about pregnancy, but I wonder if any of the partnerships or programs which will be funded might include alcohol & pregnancy & FASD] http://www.health.gov.au/internet/ministers/publishing.nsf/Content/mr-yr08-nr-nr159.htm Australia The Honorable Nicola Roxon MP Minister for Health & Aging Young Drinkers Targeted In Ad Campaign 21 November 2008 The Australian Government today launched a series of ?in your face? advertisements aimed at tackling the binge-drinking epidemic among young Australians. As schoolies kicks off on the Gold Coast this weekend, this campaign is a wake-up call to young Australians about the dangers of binge-drinking. The theme of the campaign is ?Don?t turn a night out into a nightmare?, and demonstrates the violence, injury and humiliation that can result from binge-drinking. The campaign will spearhead the Government?s National Binge Drinking Strategy and is targeted at teenagers aged 15-17 years and young adults aged 18-25 years and their parents. The first TV ads will broadcast on Sunday. There will also be print, radio and internet ads, as well as ads in pubs, outside nightclubs and on street furniture. These are hard-hitting ads ? that?s because we are dealing with a group of people who think they are bullet proof. The campaign shows how a night out, which is full of positive expectations, can go horribly wrong. The ads are designed to confront young people with the facts about binge drinking: * Four Australians under 25 die due to alcohol related injuries in an average week. * On average, one in four hospitalisations of people aged 15-24 happens because of alcohol. * Seventy Australians under 25 will be hospitalised due to alcohol-caused assault in an average week. * One in two Australians aged 15-17 who get drunk will do something they regret. The message to parents is that they can positively influence their children?s attitudes and behaviour about drinking. The $20 million campaign will run over two years and will be executed in two stages. The initial year will launch and establish the campaign theme. The campaign is one plank of the Government?s National Binge Drinking Strategy, which includes: * $14.4 million to support community partnerships with sporting and other non-governmental organisations to help tackle binge drinking among young people. This includes $5.2 million to support local sporting clubs to build a culture of responsible drinking at the grassroots level. * $19.1 million to support innovative early intervention and diversion programs for young people. * Closing the dangerous tax loophole for alcopops, aimed at hooking young girls on drinking. Binge-drinking hurts our communities. It hurts our hospitals. It hurts mums and dads. And it hurts our kids. Binge drinking among young people has been a problem for a long, long time in Australia ? and it?s time to act. For all media inquiries, please contact the Minister's Office on 02 6277 7220. -------------- next part -------------- An HTML attachment was scrubbed... URL: /pipermail/fasd_canadian_link/attachments/20081201/13abe3ba/attachment-0001.html From rosse at ncf.ca Mon Dec 1 21:57:58 2008 From: rosse at ncf.ca (Elspeth Ross) Date: Mon Dec 1 22:03:14 2008 Subject: [Fasd_canadian_link] Launch of the Canadian FASD Training Online Database. Message-ID: <6.2.5.6.2.20081201215751.0399ed70@ncf.ca> Date: Fri, 28 Nov 2008 10:58:58 -0500 From: "Hampson, Jane" Subject: Launch of the Canadian FASD Training Online Database. The Canadian Centre on Substance Abuse (CCSA) is pleased to announce the launch of the Canadian FASD Training Online Database. This national database provides frontline workers, health and allied professionals with easy access to trainers and training programs to assist them in addressing FASD with individuals, families and caregivers. The database was populated through a call for submissions to the FASD training community and submissions were reviewed against a set of trainer core competencies and program guidelines. Only those trainers and programs that matched the core competencies or program guidelines are listed in the database. The database is a result of an 18-month project funded by the Public Health Agency of Canada (PHAC) and led by CCSA. The Canadian FASD Training Online Database represents the latest FASD resource available on CCSA?s website. CCSA has been a leader in providing credible information and resource referral on FASD at a national level since the mid-1990s. The database will be updated on a scheduled basis with further calls for submissions not yet determined. Please visit http://www.ccsa.ca to explore and use the new database. Jane Hampson Administrative Assistant, Communications and Corporate Services Adjointe administrative, Communications et services g?n?raux Canadian Centre on Substance Abuse / Centre canadien de lutte contre l'alcoolisme et les toxicomanies 75 Albert Street, Suite 300 / 75, rue Albert, bureau 300 Ottawa, (Ontario) K1P 5E7 Tel / T?l: 613-235-4048 x292 Fax / T?l?c: 613-235-8101 Email / courriel: jhampson@ccsa.ca www.ccsa.ca From rosse at ncf.ca Mon Dec 1 22:00:06 2008 From: rosse at ncf.ca (Elspeth Ross) Date: Mon Dec 1 22:03:16 2008 Subject: [Fasd_canadian_link] The great binge Message-ID: <6.2.5.6.2.20081201215959.039da3f8@ncf.ca> http://theontarion.ca/viewarticle.php?id_pag=2075 The Ontarian: University of Guelph's independent student newspaper 2008-11-27 The great binge U of G professors say it's short-term effects of binge drinking you should be worried about Daniel Bitonti University of Guelph students play flip cup on Halloween, one of many nights of the year that university students go all out and binge drink. Photo by Jamie MacDonald. Alison Laird was having trouble remembering the number of drinks she had on Friday night. "I had four drinks before I came out tonight, and then I made a drink and mixed it into a pop can. Four, then the one in the pop can, then four at the bar, then four, so twelve," she concluded. Her inebriated addition simply didn't add up. Whether she had six, eight or twelve drinks, Laird had clearly been binge drinking. Now inside her house, she was acting the way most binge drinkers do: with no inhibitions. She said whatever she pleased, stumbled aimlessly around the house, then raided the kitchen for whatever tasty treats she could find. When asked why she drank so much that night, she was frank: "Because it's funny," she said, giggling only to herself. "Alcohol will inept every neural pathway," said Fred Brauer, a molecular biologist at the University of Guelph. "You get the buzz, your inhibitions go, and then it's relief and happiness." Laird clearly had the buzz. According to Brauer, as well as Professor Francesco Leri of the department of psychology, binge drinking should be a cause for concern because of the serious short-term physiological effects on the body. The occasional binge drinker can rest their weary heads; there is little evidence to suggest serious long-term effects from binging. Laird is only one of several thousand university students across the country who binge drink on a regular basis. Binge drinking, as defined by the Centre for Addiction and Mental Health (CAMH), is consuming more than four drinks on one occasion for a female and five for a male. CAMH says 41 per cent of Canadians aged 20-24 will binge drink at least twelve times yearly. In the past few weeks, binge drinking has received media attention once again as Queen's University cancelled their infamous Homecoming celebration as the problem of vandalism and student recklessness had become too much for the university to ignore. During the annual festivities on Aberdeen Street, the police made 138 alcohol-related arrests and gave out over 600 fines. Leri, who said he has done extensive research into the effects of various drugs on the brain, said that Laird's uninhibited behaviour on Friday was no different than the uninhibited behaviour of the Queen's vandals?that is in terms of the way alcohol affected their brains. "Alcohol has an effect on a variety of different systems inside your body," said Leri. When an individual consumes a small dose of ethanol, something all alcoholic beverages contain, the result is the inhibition of the inhibitory neurons in the brains. "Shutting off the inhibitor centre in the brain leads to the release of inhibitions. If you inhibit something that's an inhibitor it can become a stimulant," says Leri. "People become very talkative, they become very easy going, their behaviour changes and they end up doing things they normally wouldn't do." But it's once an individual reaches a higher dose of ethanol intake, anything greater than 0.3 grams/100 ml of blood, that the inhibition of all neurons in the brain takes place. People at this point usually become unconscious. More than this and binge drinking can become fatal, as the result is the inhibition of important bodily systems. "One reason why people die from alcohol intake is because their respiratory system is shut off," says Leri. "People just stop breathing." Although Laird woke up the next morning after her binge feeling "like crap" and had to spend a good hour repairing the mess she had made in the kitchen, the damage to her body is only in the short-term. Brauer said that going out on a Friday night and having 10 beers, which is a heavy binge in itself, will most likely have no serious long-term effects. "With the occasional binge drink you just feel rotten," said Brauer. "It's only once you start drinking everyday that you get complications. Your brain gets smaller as there is damage to the neurons. There's cadiomyothapy, (the deterioration of the heart muscle) and few people appreciate that fact. You also usually have to drink really hard to get liver cirrhosis." Leri sees no connection between binge drinking at university and alcoholism later in life. "The risk of becoming an alcohol reaches its peak when someone becomes 45 years old. So that means that from 18 to 45 you always have a risk of becoming an alcoholic. Binge drinking with football buddies or whoever at university makes you no more likely to become an alcoholic." While Leri did say that exposure to any drug at an early age makes you more likely to have a problem with it, he said that no one he is aware of has ever proven that binge drinking can promote the pathology of an alcoholic. -------------- next part -------------- An HTML attachment was scrubbed... URL: /pipermail/fasd_canadian_link/attachments/20081201/ab90d8f3/attachment-0001.html From rosse at ncf.ca Mon Dec 1 22:00:22 2008 From: rosse at ncf.ca (Elspeth Ross) Date: Mon Dec 1 22:03:19 2008 Subject: [Fasd_canadian_link] =?iso-8859-1?q?Binge_drinking_hinders_=91be?= =?iso-8859-1?q?coming=92?= Message-ID: <6.2.5.6.2.20081201220014.039da540@ncf.ca> http://www.themuse.ca/view.php?aid=41485 The Muse: Memorial's student newspaper November 26, 2008 Binge drinking hinders ?becoming? Health Buzz By Natalie Holden The university experience is a time and place to, as Memorial University puts it, ?become.? Self-examination of your interests, motivations, political stance, spiritual views, likes and dislikes are all part of establishing your identity. For first-year students, the goal is to pursue higher education with the hope of eventual career plans. However, there is another experience synonymous with many students? university experience ? alcohol abuse. According to the CBC, in a survey conducted by the Centre for Addiction and Mental Health (CAMH), 32 per cent of undergraduates in Canada reported patterns of ?harmful? drinking. CAMH also said that net health consequences from alcohol are ?overwhelmingly detrimental.? Why? Harmful drinking, or binge drinking, is executed for the sole purpose of getting intoxicated. Some people black out and experience memory loss. A 1993 study on the relationship between brain damage and binge drinking found that binge drinkers were indeed at a higher risk of brain damage. Other studies support this evidence. Serious brain damage resulted in the brains of rats when they were repeatedly exposed to large quantities of alcohol followed by long periods of abstinence (to mimic binge drinking in humans). Clinical studies have looked at how alcohol abuse and binge drinking can hurt frontal lobe function. It?s interesting to note that the frontal lobes (the part of the brain located behind the forehead) are where some memories are built. As well, the frontal lobes control decision-making processes that allow for understanding socially acceptable behaviours, long-term planning, and negotiating between good and bad. The frontal lobes are not fully developed until age 25. Sadly, the most common years for binge drinking are before age 25. That 2005 frontal lobe study also showed that mood states in binge drinkers are more negative than in non-binge drinking adult teens and twenty-something year olds. Increased anxiety is related to withdrawal after binging episodes, which may increase the risk of alcohol addiction. Also, the younger a person is when they start to binge drink is directly linked with adverse effects in memory tasks. Scientifically speaking, alcohol abuse causes changes in the chemical language spoken among neurons in our brains. Neurons are cells that make up our spinal cord, brain, and peripheral nervous system. A 1995 study showed that lengthy periods of alcohol exposure in rats led to negative changes in neuron-to-neuron communication. This led to notable damage in the cerebellum. Among many things, the cerebellum contains information from our five senses and is also responsible for balance and co-ordination. In longterm alcoholics, cerebellum damage may result in difficulty controlling body movements and walking. Unfortunately, it is not as simple as knowing that X number of drinks over an X amount of time will cause a significant drop in IQ. However, there is seemingly unlimited information that shows the negative effects on the brain when we ingest too much alcohol. Should we really consider this to be an integral part of student life? How important is this behaviour in the process of ?becoming?? Is part of the fun supposed to be the Sunday morning puzzle to find out where you lost your wallet, jacket, or camera? It?s up to you to decide what you want out of your university experience. Natalie Holden has a degree in nutrition and is currently working towards an Honours degree in neuroscience. -------------- next part -------------- An HTML attachment was scrubbed... URL: /pipermail/fasd_canadian_link/attachments/20081201/888036fe/attachment-0001.html From rosse at ncf.ca Mon Dec 1 22:00:40 2008 From: rosse at ncf.ca (Elspeth Ross) Date: Mon Dec 1 22:03:21 2008 Subject: [Fasd_canadian_link] Should alcohol carry health warnings? No: U.K. Message-ID: <6.2.5.6.2.20081201220032.039b89e0@ncf.ca> "...for pregnant women, there are lots of conflicting messages from doctors about how much it is safe to drink. A large number of women are aware of the risks...." http://business.timesonline.co.uk/tol/business/industry_sectors/public_sector/article5247753.ece Timesonline London Public Sector From The Times November 28, 2008 Should alcohol carry health warnings? No With a government review about to publish its findings, we seek opinions on curbing alcohol misuse Jeremy Beadles, Chief executive of The Wine and Spirit Trade Association My view is that adding health warnings to bottles would add little to consumer perceptions of safe drinking and potentially alienate some people. There is definitely a duty to give consumers information to help them to make decisions about how much they drink. But putting health warnings on bottles risks being seen as a cureall to cover those people who drink too much. Research around labelling suggests that the people who read labels are aware of risks, whereas those who need to understand an issue don?t pay any attention. For instance, for pregnant women, there are lots of conflicting messages from doctors about how much it is safe to drink. A large number of women are aware of the risks. The consumers who need to be warned are not going to take advice from the label on the back of a bottle. Labelling on its own will never achieve behavioural change. There is so much information on a product that people develop label blindness. A lot of the time the only information consumers are looking for is about the product itself ? what a wine is going to taste like or what food it goes with. Another limitation of labelling is that there are different unit measurements across Europe. The Portuguese and Dutch have much higher levels of alcohol per unit, for example ? so our Government?s sensible drinking message doesn?t apply. There is also the complication of different languages. We operate as a single European marketplace and there is a lot of movement. We already have to include the words ?contains sulphites? on wine bottles in 27 different languages which takes up a lot of space; it?s not practical to include a health message from each country. Separate labels for every country would disrupt free market movement. We need to find better ways of communicating advice, not warnings. Warnings are flawed ? people don?t like being told what to do. It?s not as simple as tobacco where you can say that every cigarette kills you. A moderate amount of alcohol is actually good for you. To put ?drink kills? on a label would be factually inaccurate. One of the biggest target groups are young people who binge drink. However, people drinking in those circumstances often wouldn?t see labels. Meanwhile, the education that young people get on alcohol is for the most part poor and telling young people ?don?t drink? won?t work because they won?t accept it. We need to inform people about the risks of excess consumption ? and what excess means. They?ve had health warnings on alcohol in the US for a couple of generations with little effect. If you try and dictate to people how to live their lives they will ignore you. You need different tactics and techniques for different groups to get the message right. There are so many reports out on a weekly basis that eventually people switch off because they simply see them as scare stories. Simplistic health warnings on labels risk falling into this trap. -------------- next part -------------- An HTML attachment was scrubbed... URL: /pipermail/fasd_canadian_link/attachments/20081201/72e2efb5/attachment-0001.html From rosse at ncf.ca Mon Dec 1 22:00:56 2008 From: rosse at ncf.ca (Elspeth Ross) Date: Mon Dec 1 22:03:23 2008 Subject: [Fasd_canadian_link] Should alcohol carry health warnings? Yes: U.K. Message-ID: <6.2.5.6.2.20081201220048.039b8750@ncf.ca> [no mention of pregnancy] http://business.timesonline.co.uk/tol/business/industry_sectors/public_sector/article5247974.ece Timesonline London Public sector From The Times November 28, 2008 Should alcohol carry health warnings? Yes With a government review about to publish its findings, we seek opinions on curbing alcohol misuse Nicolay Sorensen, Director of policy and communications, Alcohol Concern We believe there should be unit labelling on alcoholic beverages, as well as information at the point of sale. The Department of Health has proposed a standard message for bottles and cans which we think is good. The ideal label would include how many units the beverage contains and a health message saying ?drinking to excess can harm your health?, or similar. People who binge drink or drink excessively are more likely to be victims of violent crime, require emergency treatment or damage their health in the long term. Alcohol-related hospital admissions are going up at an extraordinary rate. We are consuming more and more alcohol and we have to look at tackling this now. One of the issues is that while people recognise units, they don?t really understand them and their ability to recall the recommended guide-lines is very poor ? only one in ten can remember. Placing the daily recommended amount for men and women on bottles contextualises drinking in a much better way. The extent to which labels will regulate people?s drinking is up for discussion, but there is strong evidence that health warnings on cigarette packets did have an impact. The only problem was that people became desensitised to it which is why the messages change. You would have to work out different health messages on a rolling basis to stop them becoming routine. There is a proportion of the population that are going to be completely unaffected by labelling. Very dependent drinkers and underage drinkers on the whole are not concerned by health consequences and will not be affected by labels. We would like to see labelling as part of an overall increase in education about the long-term health consequences of alcohol misuse. Labels are not a cureall: appropriate labelling, social marketing and targeted advertising go hand in hand. It is true that unit measures are different across Europe but this can be overcome. If it means having separate labels for the UK then so be it. The practicality of labelling is a problem for the industry to resolve. It is part of responsible retailing to ensure that the labels we use in this country reflect the health problems that we have here. Alcohol problems cost the UK ?25 billion a year in hospital admissions, policing, absenteeism and so on. It is only fair that the drink industry should pick up part of the tab. There are health labels on just about all food and drink products ? we provide more warnings on a cup of coffee, saying ?contents hot?, than on an alcoholic beverage. You can look at the fat content of a ready-made meal or choose to ignore it. Without informing people about the potential dangers of alcohol, they cannot make the choice. If you are not drinking in a way which is damaging to your health or society then the label might be of little importance and you are free to ignore it. But there is no harm in giving people the information. -------------- next part -------------- An HTML attachment was scrubbed... URL: /pipermail/fasd_canadian_link/attachments/20081201/afdb359c/attachment.html From rosse at ncf.ca Mon Dec 1 23:26:28 2008 From: rosse at ncf.ca (Elspeth Ross) Date: Mon Dec 1 23:24:12 2008 Subject: [Fasd_canadian_link] Operation Romania Message-ID: <6.2.5.6.2.20081201232617.03cd7888@ncf.ca> "...'Many of them have cleft palates, fetal alcohol syndrome, brittle bone disease and varying forms of physical and mental disabilities,'..." http://www.decorahnewspapers.com/main.asp?SectionID=2&SubSectionID=10&ArticleID=18748 Decorah Newspapers Decorah, Iowa November 25, 2008 Operation Romania Cindy Ernst travels to Romania to care for failure-to-thrive infants By Lissa Greiner [Photo] Cindy Ernst with Daniel, a failure-to-thrive infant she cared for while in Tutova, Romania. (Submitted photo) "We feel that what we are doing is just a drop in the ocean. But the ocean would be less because of that missing drop," said Cindy Ernst of Kendallville, quoting Mother Theresa about the effect one person's actions can have on mankind. That's how Ernst said she and her daughter, Emily, a freshman at UNI, approached their two-week stay in Tutova, Romania last summer, where they and fellow travelers got the chance to care for failure-to-thrive orphans in a clinic setting. The Ernsts found out about the trip through the Iowa Voyagers, a University of Iowa alumni travel club. Ernst's husband, Jeff, is a U of I alumni, who opted to pass on the trip to Romania, but encouraged his wife and daughter to go. "As a family, we've traveled a lot and we're always searching for more pleasure trips. Then Operation Romania popped up and Emily and I decided to go. We both love babies and love kids," said Ernst, who traveled with a team of about 20 volunteers from the United States and Canada. About the project Operation Romania was started by Global Volunteers, a St. Paul, Minn.-based non-profit organization that engages American volunteers on short-term service projects around the world. Since 1999, more than 1,000 volunteers, most of them Americans, have participated in two- and three-week service programs to provide vital care for the youngsters at the Tutova, Romania clinic. Life in Tutova Ernst said Tutova is a small, rural community, where alcoholism and domestic abuse prevail. "What really affected me emotionally is on the streets you see little kids who are aggressively begging. Then on the side of the street, you see an older brother or sister who is probably using their younger sibling to get money for alcohol," she said. "Most of the younger people want out of there. The older people are used to Communist rule, so they don't necessarily like not being Communist. They were used to that life," she added. About the children Children housed in the Tutova Clinic are brought there because they are failing to thrive and might otherwise perish. "Most of the babies in this clinic were left by their parents or someone found them. I really don't know exactly how they came to be there, but they stay until they are five or six years old," said Ernst. "Many of them have cleft palates, fetal alcohol syndrome, brittle bone disease and varying forms of physical and mental disabilities," said Ernst. "Most of them come to the clinic extremely malnourished. The little baby I got came malnourished to the third degree." While helping at the clinic, Ernst and her companions each were put in charge of a baby or toddler for a two-week period. "As soon as we got there each day, we'd feed them their first bottle, which was something called a stew. We played with them, hugged them, kissed them. They loved to ride in the stroller," she said. "Mine's name was Daniel. I think he had fetal alcohol syndrome. He was nine months old and not crawling yet," she said. "What really broke our hearts was thinking about when there are no volunteers there, the ratio is something like two nurses to 25 babies," she said. Little oasis Ernst said for such an impoverished community, the landscape of Tutova was more beautiful than she had ever expected. "The facility was nice and clean. I had been so nervous that it would be crazy because of all the poverty ... but the clinic grows its own vegetables and has its own cow. The nurses prepared all of our meals and did all the laundry. It made us feel guilty - they only ate what we didn't eat," she said. "But the nurses liked having so many of us there to help." Saying good-bye Ernst said while she knew going in that her time with Daniel was temporary, she still was heartbroken when she had to say goodbye. "Leaving was awful and I'd have brought him home, but their law prohibits adoption outside of the European Union. In the late '80s and early '90s, the Romanian people were having babies just to sell them to whoever wanted to come and adopt them," she said. Still helping Back at home, Ernst stays in contact with the Tutova clinic, sending them boxes of medicine whenever she can. She is also sponsoring a baby who is in need of a series of cleft palate surgeries. "There's not a day that goes by that I don't wonder what Daniel is doing," she said. In addition, Ernst said she is interested in giving presentations to community groups about what they can do to help the children of Romania. To schedule a meeting, call Ernst at 563-547-2440. For more information about Operation Romania and Global Volunteers, visit www.globalvolunteers.org. -------------- next part -------------- An HTML attachment was scrubbed... URL: /pipermail/fasd_canadian_link/attachments/20081201/72898686/attachment.html From rosse at ncf.ca Mon Dec 1 23:26:44 2008 From: rosse at ncf.ca (Elspeth Ross) Date: Mon Dec 1 23:30:14 2008 Subject: [Fasd_canadian_link] Perils of drugs, alcohol brought home to students: Timiskaming Message-ID: <6.2.5.6.2.20081201232636.03cd7da8@ncf.ca> http://www.northernnews.ca/ArticleDisplay.aspx?e=1316121 Northern News Kirkland Lake, Ontario Perils of drugs, alcohol brought home to students Posted By RICK OWEN, NORTHERN NEWS Posted 5 days ago [as of December 1, 2008] Area young people got to experience what is like to be drunk without taking a drink. The Timiskaming Drug and Alcohol Awareness Coalition put on a Drug Awareness Day at KLDCS and ECJV during which students got to wear Fatal Vision Goggles and perform simple tasks like trying to walk a straight line and catching a ball. Many of the students were very surprised how even simple tasks were hard to do while wearing the glasses that simulate being impaired by alcohol. Zenobi Loach, of the coalition said the idea behind the event is to educate young people so they will be able to make the right decisions. While the goggles proved a hit students also took great interest in viewing the OPP's drug displays, which include many of the common street drugs. As well the students enjoyed drinking mocktails, which are fancy drinks that serve as an alternative to dinking alcohol. There was also a display to explain how drinking while you are pregnant could lead to your baby be born with Fetal Alcohol Spectrum Disorder and how that will affect you child and you the rest of your life. As well there was a display educating students about the negative affects smoking to tobacco will have on your health. Recently the coalition decided to form an Oxycontin Task force to education the public about the danger of misusing this highly addictive prescription drug. This, along with other prescription have become the drugs of choice of many people who abuse drugs. In the near future the coalition will be putting up posters in the community that were drawn by students to educate people about Oxycontin. -------------- next part -------------- An HTML attachment was scrubbed... URL: /pipermail/fasd_canadian_link/attachments/20081201/e1dfde8b/attachment.html From rosse at ncf.ca Tue Dec 2 16:53:40 2008 From: rosse at ncf.ca (Elspeth Ross) Date: Tue Dec 2 17:03:10 2008 Subject: [Fasd_canadian_link] Ontario video-link workshop on FASD by Karen Baker, psychologist Dec. 9 Message-ID: <6.2.5.6.2.20081202165331.03ec58a0@ncf.ca> Dr. Karen Baker, psychologist with Regional Support Associates in Walkerton Ontario, is giving a videoconference on FASD on Dec. 9, 2008 Karen Baker has presented on FASD in the Grey Bruce, Owen Sound area http://www.regionalsupport.on.ca/educat/vid_conf_program.htm#dec4 RSA Regional Support Associates Video-link Workshops - Program Dual Diagnosis Community of Practice Sponsored by the Dual Diagnosis Consultation Outreach Team - Royal Ottawa Hospital ...... Agencies within developmental services and/or dual diagnosis sectors present on various topics, challenging cases, and systemic issues related to intellectual disabilities and mental health. Some Agencies currently involved include: * Regional Support Associates * RMHC ? London * Northeastern Mental Health Center ? North Bay * Brockville DD ACTT * Windsor Regional Hospital * Grey Bruce Health Services * Surrey Place Center * Center for Addiction and Mental Health * Whitby Mental Health Center * Providence Continuing Care Centre: Dual Diagnosis Consultation Outreach Team * Kingston * Mental Health Center Penetanguishene ? Dual Diagnosis Team * Emerald Hall/Coast Capital District Mental Health Program Nova Scotia * Quest Behavioural Support Service ? Halifax * Cochrane Temiskaming Resource Center To find out how you may be able to connect to inter provincial grand rounds sessions please contact: Heather Prescott Videoconference Coordinator, Southern Network of Specialized Care (519) 433-7238 ext. 2226 Email: hprescot@wgh.on.ca FETAL ALCOHOL SYNDROME & FETAL ALCOHOL EFFECTS This session will expand your breadth of knowledge and help you better understand the basics of Fetal Alcohol Syndrome (FAS) and Fetal Alcohol Effects (FAE). Topics discussed will include cognitive implications, physical and behavioural characteristics, how to support individuals, how to support the family and much more. Feel free to bring forward non-identifying cases around FAS or FAE for discussion with Dr Baker. Presenter: Dr. Karen Baker, PhD., C. Psych Date Tuesday, December 9, 2008 Time 10:00am ? 12:30pm Presenters' Location RSA Walkerton (live presenter and audience) Ontario www.community-networks.ca PROVINCIAL NETWORKS OF SPECIALIZED CARE Proposed Videoconferenced Education Sessions - 2008/2009 (Updated August 22, 2008 - Subject to change) DECEMBER 2008 FETAL ALCOHOL SYNDROME & FETAL ALCOHOL EFFECTS This session will expand your breadth of knowledge and help you better understand the basics of Fetal Alcohol Syndrome (FAS) and Fetal Alcohol Effects (FAE). Topics discussed will include cognitive implications, physical and behavioural characteristics, how to support individuals, how to support the family and much more. Feel free to bring forward nonidentifying cases around FAS or FAE for discussion with Dr Baker. Date: Tues, December 9, 2008 Time: 10:00 AM ? 12:30 PM ET Presenter: Karen Baker, PhD, C. Psych Host/Presenter Site: Southern Network/ RSA Walkerton If you wish to join in any of the above videoconferences, please look for a convenient Central Region Location listed on the next page and contact the site coordinator to see if that site is participating. Pre-registration is essential as all sites are not always able to connect to all sessions ? don?t be disappointed, email or call ahead. Central Network of Specialized Care Videoconference Locations Agency Name & Community Site Contact Phone number Behaviour Management Services ? Barrie Patty Barnes pbarnes@yorkcentral.on.ca 705-792-6408 570 Bryne, Unit H, Barrie, ON L4N 9P6 Central West Specialized Developmental Services - Oakville Marnie Russell mrussell@cwsds.ca Phil Ogden pogden@cwsds.ca 905-844-7864 ext. 340 (Marnie) 53 Bond Street Oakville, ON , L6K 1L8 Children?s Treatment Network ? Midland Central Network of Specialized Care Office Louise Spicer lspicer@clhmidland.on.ca 526-0311-ext 322 230 Aberdeen Blvd, Midland, ON L4R 5N4 Christian Horizons ? West District - Kitchener Jenn Ward jward@christian-horizons.org (519) 650-0966 ext 123 4278 King St. East Kitchener, ON N2P 2G5 Christian Horizons ? Central District - Toronto Alicia Berry aberry@christian-horizons.org (416) 630-3646 x 242 55 Deerhide Crescent, Toronto, Ontario M9M 2Z2 Community Living Ajax, Pickering and Whitby (Forest View) - Burketon Station Marylou Melville marylou.melville@apwcommunityliving.org (905) 263 2256, ext. 21 2165 Concession 10, RR #2, Burketon Station, L0B 1BO Community Living Dufferin - Orangeville Karen Murphy-Fritz karenf@communitylivingdufferin.ca 519-941-8971 Ext. 165 29 Centennial Road, Unit #1, Orangeville, ON L9W 1R1 Community Living Huronia - Midland Carolyn Cowie ccowie@clhmidland.on.ca 705-526-4253 ext 212 339 Olive Street, Midland, L4R 2R4 COTA Health - Toronto David Gibson Gibson_d@cotahealth.ca 416 785-9230 x 1174 700 Lawrence Ave. West, Suite 362 Toronto, ON M6A 3B4 Developmental Services Access Centre - Waterloo Region Rehana Khanam. r.khanam@on.aibn.com 519-741-1121, ext. 201 1120 Victoria Street North, Unit #205, Kitchener, N2B 3T2 Kerry?s Place Autism Services - Brampton Colleen Butler cbutler@kerrysplace.org (905) 457-8711 ext 10 25 Van Kirk Drive, Unit 3 Brampton, ON L7A 1A6 Kerry's Place Autism Services - Aurora Cindy Desaulnier cdesaulnier@kerrysplace.org (905) 841-6611 Ext. 346 34 Berczy St, Suite 190, Aurora, ON L4G 1W9 Lake Ridge Community Support Services - Whitby Graham Wilson gwilson@lrcss.com 905-666-9688, Ext. 228 Please register at www.lrcss.com/VideoConference.html 900 Hopkins St, Unit 8 Whitby, ON L1N 6A9 Peel Behavioural Services Mississauga Edna Rebelo erebelo@thc.on.ca 905-712-4124 5770 Hurontario St. Suite 101, Mississauga, ON L5R 3G5 Trellis Mental Health and Developmental Services- Fergus Debbie Powell dpowell@trellis.on.ca 519-843-6191 ext 307 234 St. Patrick St. East Fergus, ON N1M 1M6 Tri-County Community Support Services - Peterborough Randy Ryans randyryans@cogeco.net Lorie Edwards lorie@cogeco.net 705-876-9245 Ext. 224 349 A George St. North Suite 303, Peterborough, ON K9H 3P9 Associate Sites Whtiby Mental Health Centre Hazel Pritchard pritchardh@wmhc.ca (905) 668-5881 Ext. 6019 700 Gordon St., Whitby Surrey Place - Sheppard ? North York Tahera Hossain tahera.hossain@surreyplace.on.ca (416) 925-2169 ext. 2701 245 Sheppard Ave. W. M2N 1N2 SPC ? South site ? downtown Dawn Brown dawn.brown@surreyplace.on.ca (416) 925-5141 x2317 2 Surrey Place Toronto M5S 2C2 Mental Health Centre Penetanguishene Jean-Marie Steward jsteward@mhcp.on.ca 705-549-3181 ext 2674 500 Church St, Penetanguishene Center for Addiction and Mental Health, Toronto Fiona Cai ? telemedicine coordinator Fiona_Cai@camh.net (416) 535-8501 x3320 1001 Queen Street West, Toronto Community Networks of Specialized Care www.community-networks.ca -------------- next part -------------- An HTML attachment was scrubbed... URL: /pipermail/fasd_canadian_link/attachments/20081202/e855a899/attachment.html From rosse at ncf.ca Wed Dec 3 16:00:29 2008 From: rosse at ncf.ca (Elspeth Ross) Date: Wed Dec 3 16:03:11 2008 Subject: [Fasd_canadian_link] Local mother shares story of daughter's fetal alcohol syndrome: Missouri Message-ID: <6.2.5.6.2.20081203112548.0470d050@ncf.ca> "...Midwest Regional Fetal Alcohol Syndrome Training Center. It's designed to educate doctors and other health care professionals about the dangers of any alcohol exposure during pregnancy. Dr. Tenkku is now expanding the program to seven other states...." http://www.ksdk.com/news/local/story.aspx?storyid=161472 ksdk.com St. Louis, Missouri Local mother shares story of daughter's fetal alcohol syndrome to raise awareness 1 day ago [as of Dec. 3, 2008] By Kay Quinn, Healthbeat Reporter KSDK -- Talk to some women and they'll tell you their doctors say it's okay to enjoy the occasional alcoholic drink during pregnancy. But a local expert says even light drinking is not safe for moms who are expecting, and she's got a $1 million grant from the government to spread the word to doctors and other healthcare providers. Research shows it can be very difficult for doctors to broach the subject of alcohol use with their pregnant patients. The mother of a child born with Fetal Alcohol Syndrome says if the public understood the irreversible effects on the unborn, more women would abstain during pregnancy. Pat Krippner of St. Louis, and her husband Ken, have fostered 15 children, adopted five and have two that are "homemade," as she calls it. Her youngest joined the family in 1979, at three and a half months, weighing just two and a half pounds. "We knew that she was 30 weeks gestation, that her mom had been known to be using alcohol and other drugs," says Krippner. Pat's daughter is now 29 and doing well in the world. She did not want to appear in this report or want us to use her real name, but she gave her mother permission to talk about fetal alcohol syndrome and the profound impact it's had on her life. "'Elizabeth' showed some of the major signs, she had a small head circumference," says Krippner, along with toe nail abnormalities, low birth weight, and irritability as a baby. 'Elizabeth' is also developmentally disabled, "but she's at the lower end of average," says Krippner, and "she was 18 months when she walked two years when she started to say a few words. She needed some extra help in school with reading, cursive writing still eludes her. She prints." "There is no safe amount of alcohol for drinking during pregnancy," says Dr. Leigh Tenkku, assistant professor and director of research in the department of Family and Community Medicine at St. Louis University School of Medicine. Dr. Tenkku says exposing the unborn to alcohol can cause behavioral, psychological and developmental problems that children never outgrow. She's spent six years developing a fetal alcohol education program called the Midwest Regional Fetal Alcohol Syndrome Training Center. It's designed to educate doctors and other health care professionals about the dangers of any alcohol exposure during pregnancy. Dr. Tenkku is now expanding the program to seven other states. "Part of the information we hear and that the research shows, is that health care providers find it difficult to talk about alcohol use," says Dr. Tenkku, "and so we're hoping this information will make it easier for them and that's one of our main goals." Krippner says her daughter Elizabeth enjoys working and is doing well today. She drives and is living with her boyfriend. But Krippner says her daughter's life hasn't always been easy. And she even gets a little emotional describing the gift her daughter is to her family. "I'm glad somebody didn't place her in an institution and think that's where she should be because we would have missed a lot," says Krippner. Again, Dr. Tenkku says there's no evidence that any drinking during pregnancy is safe, even that occasional glass of wine, and she urges all women to stop drinking if they are even trying to become pregnant. Look for links on this page to more information on fetal alcohol syndrome and fetal alcohol spectrum disorder, as well as a link to the Midwest Regional Fetal Alcohol Syndrome Training Center. KSDK -------------- next part -------------- An HTML attachment was scrubbed... URL: /pipermail/fasd_canadian_link/attachments/20081203/a5e17495/attachment.html From rosse at ncf.ca Thu Dec 4 10:22:05 2008 From: rosse at ncf.ca (Elspeth Ross) Date: Thu Dec 4 10:27:08 2008 Subject: [Fasd_canadian_link] Down's treatment before birth Message-ID: <6.2.5.6.2.20081204102157.04664ca8@ncf.ca> "...The researchers were interested in two short pieces of protein (called peptides) that have been shown to improve survival of nerve cells in the laboratory and to protect against learning defects in a mouse model of fetal alcohol syndrome...." http://www.nhs.uk/news/2008/11November/Pages/Downswombtreatment.aspx NHS choices Your health Your choices: U.K. Medical advice Behind the headlines Thursday November 27 2008 Down's treatment before birth Treating Down?s syndrome in the womb ?could help prevent some of the brain damage caused before the child enters the world?, according to The Daily Telegraph. The newspaper says a ?breakthrough? study showed that injecting pregnant mice with brain-protecting proteins reduced developmental delays similar to those found in children with Down?s syndrome. While this small study in mice with a Down?s-like condition found that the treatment improved some of the motor and sensory skills tested, there was no change in other skills. It is also still unclear whether these results would be maintained in the long term. Before this technology could be adapted and used as a medical treatment for humans, it would need much further animal testing including stringent safety tests before human trials. It is far too early to say whether this treatment will go on to help babies with Down?s syndrome. Where did the story come from? This study was conducted by Dr Laura Toso and colleagues from the National Institutes of Health and other research institutions in the US and Italy. It was published in the peer-reviewed medical journal, Obstetrics and Gynaecology. The research was funded by the Division of Intramural Research Program, National Institutes of Health, Eunice Kennedy Shriver National Institute of Child and Human Development, and the National Institute on Alcohol Abuse and Alcoholism. What kind of scientific study was this? This was an animal study looking at whether treatment with brain-protecting proteins in the womb would have an effect on the development of mice in a model of Down?s syndrome. In humans, Down?s syndrome is caused by carrying an extra partial or whole copy of a chromosome, known as chromosome 21. The researchers used a mouse model of Down?s syndrome, where mice carried an extra copy of about 55% of the genes found on human chromosome 21. This mouse strain with extra genes is known as Ts65Dn, and these mice have similar developmental delays to those seen in people with Down?s syndrome. Currently there is no treatment available to prevent these delays in development. The researchers were interested in two short pieces of protein (called peptides) that have been shown to improve survival of nerve cells in the laboratory and to protect against learning defects in a mouse model of fetal alcohol syndrome. The researchers took 10 pregnant Ts65Dn mice and randomly assigned four mice to receive peptide injections, and six mice to receive control injections (salt water). Injections were administered into the space around the organs in the abdomen, but not directly into the womb. Injections were given on days 8-12 of pregnancy (mouse pregnancies usually last between 18 to 21 days). The researchers also carried out the same experiment on normal (non-Ts65Dn) mice. The researchers were not told what treatments the mice were receiving or whether the mice were Ts65Dn mice or normal mice. Once the offspring were born, the researchers weighed them and tested their development daily from five to 21 days of age. Developmental tests assessed their motor skills (muscle development, movement and coordination) and their sensory skills. There were 10 different tests, five motor and five sensory (such as what day mice first opened their eyes, reflex tests, ability to climb a mesh screen and strength of grasp). Researchers used a scoring system to assess performance in each tests. A total of 20 offspring from Ts65Dn mothers were tested; six from mothers treated with peptide, and 14 from control mothers. A total of 27 offspring from normal mothers were tested; nine from peptide treated mothers and 18 from control mothers. Once again, the researchers did not know which group the offspring belonged to during testing. The researchers then compared the performance of the different groups of mice. They also looked at brain changes in the different groups of mice. What were the results of the study? The researchers found that the Down?s syndrome-like Ts65Dn offspring of untreated mothers had significant delays in achieving four of the five motor skills tested, and four of the five sensory skills when compared to the offspring of normal mice. However, Ts65Dn offspring from mothers treated with the peptide mixture showed no delay in achievement of three of these four delayed motor skills, and one of these four delayed sensory skills. Offspring from normal mice who had been treated with the peptide mixture achieved four of the five motor skills and two of the five sensory skills earlier than offspring of untreated normal mice. What interpretations did the researchers draw from these results? The researchers concluded that ?prenatal treatment with (the peptide mixture) prevented developmental delay in Down?s syndrome?. What does the NHS Knowledge Service make of this study?This small study in a mouse model of Down?s syndrome has highlighted the possibility of improving development with treatments in the womb. It is worth noting that the treatment did not improve all of the skills tested, and that the mice were only followed up for a relatively short period of time. It is unclear whether the improvements seen in mice would be seen in humans, and whether such improvements would significantly alter the impact of Down?s syndrome on the individual. Much more research in animals will be needed before this treatment could be tried in humans. In particular, much more information on the safety and long-term effects of this treatment is needed. Links to the headlines Down's syndrome symptoms could be prevented by protein jab in the womb. Daily Mail, 27 November 2008 Treatment of Down's Syndrome babies in womb could prevent symptoms. The Daily Telegraph, November 27 2008 Mouse Down's 'eased in the womb'. BBC online, November 27 2008 Links to the science Toso L, Cameroni I, Roberson R et al. Prevention of Developmental Delays in a Down Syndrome Mouse Model. Obstet & Gynecol 2008;112:1242-1251 Down's symptoms may be treatable in the womb. New Scientist, November 26 2008 -------------- next part -------------- An HTML attachment was scrubbed... URL: /pipermail/fasd_canadian_link/attachments/20081204/4dbc1004/attachment-0001.html From rosse at ncf.ca Thu Dec 4 10:22:50 2008 From: rosse at ncf.ca (Elspeth Ross) Date: Thu Dec 4 10:27:11 2008 Subject: [Fasd_canadian_link] Charity concert to support FASD: Alberta Message-ID: <6.2.5.6.2.20081204102243.0468ead8@ncf.ca> http://www.discoverfoothills.com/index.php?option=com_ezine&task=read&page=14&category=34&article=7700&Itemid=256 discoverfoothills.com Foothills, Alberta My community Charity Concert The annual Charity Christmas Concert goes December 7th to support of the Foothills Special Needs Association for Parents and Siblings (SNAPS) as well as the Foothills Fetal Alcohol Society. The Full Gospel Church in High River is hosting the event filled with local talent. Producer, Donna Kay says she's been involved with the concert from the start and says it's a great family event to attend. Tickets are $15 and can be purchased at any of the following... Okotoks: Sobeys Western Wheel SNAPS High River: Sobeys Mel Music Schmidtys Sheena's Sweets N Such From rosse at ncf.ca Thu Dec 4 10:23:04 2008 From: rosse at ncf.ca (Elspeth Ross) Date: Thu Dec 4 10:27:13 2008 Subject: [Fasd_canadian_link] Edgy $250k campaign targets young boozers: Nova Scotia Message-ID: <6.2.5.6.2.20081204102256.04663ab0@ncf.ca> [Nothing about pregnancy. Interesting tactic. See Comments online at the end] http://thechronicleherald.ca/services/contactus.html The Chronicle Herald Halifax, Nova Scotia Published: 2008-12-03 Edgy $250k campaign targets young boozers By CHRIS LAMBIE Staff Reporter The Nova Scotia Liquor Corp. spent $250,000 on an Internet ad campaign where one character talks about using a lawn trimmer around his private parts. The video, which can be seen at jonzed.com, features a cartoon character that alienates his friends through binge drinking. "I would rather trim my nut sack with a Whipper Snipper than ever hang out with you again," one real-life actor tells the Jonze character in the 8 1/2-minute video. The actor swears at Jonze over the telephone when the cartoon character tries to get him to go out drinking. "You passed out in my Mom's car, man," he says. "When you woke up, you scared the shit out of her." Other actors turn Jonze down for his past boozing antics. "Your flaming Sambuca shots lit my curtains on fire," says one. "You puked on my dog. Who does that?" says another. In a noisy bar, Jonze approaches a woman. "Do these pants make my package look too bulky?" he says. "I want to bag you like some groceries." In another scene, Jonze calls an ex-girlfriend from jail. "I never meant to cause you any sorrow. I never meant to cause you any pain. And I certainly never meant to pee in your underwear drawer. It looked like a urinal, I swear to God." The video is part of a campaign that started in October, said Rick Perkins, a spokesman for the Crown corporation. It's meant to target university students in Nova Scotia, particularly those between the ages of 19 and 24, "to educate them on the dangers of binge drinking," Mr. Perkins said. "It's designed around the philosophy that you've got to communicate to that demographic in a very specific and believable way that interests them. And we found that sort of preachy, lecturey-type things really don't draw them in to get the message. You've got to use humour and entertainment to get the message across." The line about the lawn trimmer "was a little on the edge, but it seems to have worked," Mr. Perkins said. "Our preliminary numbers . . . (show) about 25 per cent of the university population viewed it." That translates into about 10,000 students, he said. The campaign advertised the video in movie theatres, and distributed computer memory sticks in bars that contain trailers for the video and promotional cards meant to attract people to the website. It also employed in-stall advertising in bar washrooms. Contests on the website feature Macintosh computers and iPods as prizes for people who share the video with lots of their friends. The campaign is mostly aimed at young men, said Nelson Angel, vice-president of Revolve, the agency that developed the concept. "That audience is very fickle and they can hit the BS button pretty quick. With a consequential message like this, we needed to deliver in a tone and manner that was relevant and of interest." NDP MLA Howard Epstein doubts the $250,000 Jonzed campaign will be effective. "This strikes me as way too much money for something that's obscure. I can't see that we got value for this." The video is far too long, he said. "This stuff has been done before, it's been done better and probably not for nearly as much money," Mr. Epstein said. He didn't find the video's graphic content offensive. "Kids use that kind of language." The video's "edgy" content will hold their attention, said Ed McHugh, who teaches marketing at Dalhousie University and the Nova Scotia Community College. "Unless you do something like this, that age group that it's targeted at will just think it's just bureaucratic nonsense." The students he teaches would relate to the Jonze character. "They all know a guy like that . . . who just impulsively drinks all the time," Mr. McHugh said. "The good news is, if they get the viewership, the kids who will get the message may work on the Jonzes, the heavy drinkers. The problem will be that the heavy drinkers, if they see this video, most of them won't see themselves as being a Jonze. Most human beings, until they sort of hit a crisis, there's always a 'That's not me' syndrome." ( clambie@herald.ca) -------------- next part -------------- An HTML attachment was scrubbed... URL: /pipermail/fasd_canadian_link/attachments/20081204/dba2a43a/attachment-0001.html From rosse at ncf.ca Thu Dec 4 10:23:23 2008 From: rosse at ncf.ca (Elspeth Ross) Date: Thu Dec 4 10:27:16 2008 Subject: [Fasd_canadian_link] Two Cineplex theatres plan to serve alcohol: Ontario Message-ID: <6.2.5.6.2.20081204102315.046decf8@ncf.ca> [102 comments on this article online] "...The only other province that allows drinking in theatres is Alberta, which has similar restrictions and five licensed theatres. It's allowed in some parts of Europe and the United States, notably the Alamo Draft House in Austin, Tex., which is run like a dinner theatre...." http://www.thestar.com/printArticle/547480 Toronto Star Two Cineplex theatres plan to serve alcohol TheStar.com - Movies December 03, 2008 Raju Mudhar Entertainment Reporter If the blockbuster movie at your local multiplex turns out to be a bomb, you soon will be able to ease your pain. Two local Cineplex Odeon multiplexes are preparing to allow alcohol in their theatres, and it could happen as early as next week. "We are obviously delighted. This is something that our guests have been asking us for years," said Pat Marshall, spokesperson for Cineplex Entertainment, which is waiting for liquor board approval. "Our goal is to start selling at the Varsity Cinemas" as of Dec. 10. Both the Varsity and SilverCity in Oakville already have licensed lounges in the lobby and VIP theatres that will allow those 19 and older to tipple while they watch the latest releases. Licensed lounges in the concourse areas of theatres were allowed before, but amendments to the Liquor Licence Act allowing in-theatre drinking only took effect Oct. 23. At this point, no cinema has been approved for the additional capacity, although Cineplex's application is well underway. The idea is a pilot project that will end Nov. 30, 2009. Besides the requirement to set aside auditoriums for adults, theatres face other restrictions: * A currently licensed lounge with Smart Serve-trained staff (a program for bartenders and waiters). * An area physically separated and clearly distinguished from non-licensed areas. * A maximum of two single-drink servings to any individual in a single order. Because of these restrictions, a spokesperson for the Alcohol and Gaming Commission of Ontario doesn't believe many cinemas will qualify for the trial. "We don't see a lot of people being eligible simply because of the way that they are set up," said Lisa Murray. "If they wanted to change their configuration, we would have to make sure that there indeed was a separate area and that they had appropriately trained staff. They would be treated like every other licensed establishment, so we would make sure that they're not over-serving, serving before or after hours and, of course, not serving minors." The only other province that allows drinking in theatres is Alberta, which has similar restrictions and five licensed theatres. It's allowed in some parts of Europe and the United States, notably the Alamo Draft House in Austin, Tex., which is run like a dinner theatre. Marshall says the Varsity is already frequented mostly by adults, and the VIP theatres ? four in the Varsity, three in Oakville, each holding about 40 ? have larger seats with tables between them. Patrons pay a $5 premium to watch a film there. Theatres are seeking new sources of revenue, but licensing isn't necessarily feasible for revue houses such as the Fox and Bloor, which would have to switch to adult-only admission across the board. "If we had to license the whole place, we can't do that for all of our business hours, because it would be a detriment to our business," said Alex Woodside, a manager at the Bloor Cinema. "I mean, if we could have certain shows be licensed, that's something that we could consider, but the family market is huge for anyone in the cinema business." -------------- next part -------------- An HTML attachment was scrubbed... URL: /pipermail/fasd_canadian_link/attachments/20081204/a873f1f4/attachment.html From rosse at ncf.ca Thu Dec 4 10:23:37 2008 From: rosse at ncf.ca (Elspeth Ross) Date: Thu Dec 4 10:27:20 2008 Subject: [Fasd_canadian_link] Mental health plan a step closer: Ontario Message-ID: <6.2.5.6.2.20081204102329.046ddfa0@ncf.ca> [] http://www.healthzone.ca/health/articlePrint/547468 Healthzone.ca thestar.com Mental health plan a step closer December 03, 2008 Tanya Talaga Queen's Park Bureau FILE PHOTO The mother of Jordan Manners, the 15-year-old (above) who was shot dead in a hallway at C.W. Jefferys Collegiate, blamed a 'culture of silence' among teachers for her son's death. (May 28, 2007) In a rare show of Progressive Conservative-Liberal unity, Health Minister David Caplan says he will support an Opposition resolution for all parties to work together on a provincial mental health strategy. Conservative MPP Christine Elliott (Whitby-Oshawa) is expected to introduce a private member's resolution tomorrow calling for an all-party committee to come up with a mental health strategy. "Mental health and addictions issues cut across all partisan lines," Caplan said. "If we can come together, we can come up with a strategy and way forward." For years, Elliott said she has heard from constituents who have trouble accessing mental health services for themselves or loved ones. "Events of recent weeks have added greater urgency to that, but it is something that I've noted for some time needs co-ordination," she said in an interview. The recent Roots of Youth Violence report prepared by Roy McMurtry and Alvin Curling recommended $200 million be urgently put into mental health programs, said Elliott. The government commissioned the report after the shooting of Toronto high school student Jordan Manners in May 2007. Elliott "certainly agrees" with the funding increase but said her idea for a working group came from Senator Michael Kirby's comprehensive report on mental health in Canada, called Out of the Shadows at Last. "We need to have a provincial strategy set up to respond to that and to be able to take advantage of any programs that come forward as a result of it," she said. There are capacity issues relating to children and youth, admitted Caplan. As the population ages, seniors will demand more services. The last Liberal budget set aside $80 million over the course of three years, additionally, for mental health services, said Caplan. "This is a high priority for us," he said. Improving mental health programs and access in Ontario has been an interest of Caplan's. The health minister meets every other month with two dozen mental health experts, patient advocates, clinicians and service providers to gather advice and ideas with the intention of creating a provincial mental health and addictions strategy. Elliott's resolution will help them determine the status of mental health services in the province today and what resources are needed for the future, Caplan said. "These are two very important steps to the development of the strategy," he said. -------------- next part -------------- An HTML attachment was scrubbed... URL: /pipermail/fasd_canadian_link/attachments/20081204/9a5bbb77/attachment.html From rosse at ncf.ca Thu Dec 4 10:23:51 2008 From: rosse at ncf.ca (Elspeth Ross) Date: Thu Dec 4 10:27:23 2008 Subject: [Fasd_canadian_link] Province commits $100, 000 to FASD awareness & prevention: Saskatchewan Message-ID: <6.2.5.6.2.20081204102344.046ddd10@ncf.ca> http://www.gov.sk.ca/news?newsId=b9cbebbe-3505-4b4a-8edf-0d73ea6886be Government of Saskatchewan News Release - December 1, 2008 PROVINCE COMMITS $100,000 TO FASD AWARENESS AND PREVENTION The Saskatchewan Prevention Institute is receiving $100,000 in funding from the Saskatchewan Liquor and Gaming Authority for Fetal Alcohol Spectrum Disorder (FASD) awareness and prevention. "Current First Nations and M?tis Relations Minister June Draude and former Saskatchewan Party MLA Arlene Jul? dedicated immense time and effort to this issue when we were in opposition," Minister responsible for the Saskatchewan Liquor and Gaming Authority Dan D'Autremont said. "Building on their leadership, our government remains committed to raising awareness in Saskatchewan communities about the dangers of drinking alcohol while pregnant and helping reduce the devastating effects of FASD." The funding will be used by the Institute to help develop new activities that will focus on raising awareness across the province at the grassroots level. Funding will also support the development of new multimedia material that will be used to teach local community leaders about FASD as well as raise awareness with the general public. As well, the grants will continue to support an FASD Speakers' Bureau which focuses on increasing FASD education among front-line workers, caregivers and professionals across Saskatchewan. Saskatchewan Prevention Institute program co-ordinator Bev Drew said continued support from the government will help ensure a multi-faceted approach to FASD prevention continues. "Our FASD prevention efforts across the province are greatly enhanced by the funding we receive from the Saskatchewan Liquor and Gaming Authority," Drew said. "This funding allows us to offer and support a variety of FASD awareness and education activities in every corner of the province." -30- For more information, contact: David Morris Saskatchewan Liquor and Gaming Authority Regina Phone: 306-787-1721 Email: dmorris@slga.gov.sk.ca -------------- next part -------------- An HTML attachment was scrubbed... URL: /pipermail/fasd_canadian_link/attachments/20081204/9054b4b6/attachment.html From rosse at ncf.ca Fri Dec 5 10:02:53 2008 From: rosse at ncf.ca (Elspeth Ross) Date: Fri Dec 5 10:09:11 2008 Subject: [Fasd_canadian_link] Even moderate drinking in pregnancy harmful: study Message-ID: <6.2.5.6.2.20081205100243.05882b28@ncf.ca> "...Disney and her colleagues looked at 1,252 17-year-olds..." http://www.reutershealth.com/archive/2008/12/03/eline/links/20081203elin001.html Reuters Health Health eLine Even moderate drinking in pregnancy harmful: study Last Updated: 2008-12-03 15:12:12 -0400 (Reuters Health) By Anne Harding NEW YORK (Reuters Health) - Children born to women who have as little as one drink a week during pregnancy are more likely to have symptoms of behavior problems as teens, according to research published this month in the journal Pediatrics. "If women stop drinking during pregnancy, they can save themselves a lot of heartache later. Being the parent of a child with conduct disorder is really frustrating," Dr. Elizabeth R. Disney of Chase Braxton Health Services in Baltimore, one of the researchers on the study, told Reuters Health. The ill effects of heavy drinking during pregnancy, specifically the cluster of social and cognitive problems known as fetal alcohol syndrome, are well known, Disney and her team note in their report. There is also evidence that even a low level of prenatal alcohol exposure is associated with aggressiveness, delinquency and other so-called "externalizing behaviors." But women who drink during pregnancy are themselves more likely to have these and other problems -- and may tend to choose mates that have such problems as well, the researchers point out. To better understand the independent role of alcohol exposure in pregnancy, Disney and her colleagues looked at 1,252 17-year-olds enrolled in the Minnesota Twins Family Study and their parents. Among boys, about 36 percent had symptoms that would qualify them for a "definite or probable diagnosis" of conduct disorder, according to the researchers, while about 10 percent of girls did. Such symptoms include shoplifting, being aggressive to animals and people, setting fires, and skipping school. Overall, about 31 percent of teens born to mothers who admitted to having at least a drink a week while pregnant had conduct disorders, compared to 21 percent of kids whose mothers didn't drink at all. The moms who drank alcohol while pregnant - 13 percent of the total, who averaged about three drinks a week -- were also more likely to smoke. Both parents in these families were more likely to have externalizing behaviors. But when the researchers accounted for these and other possible "confounding" factors they found that prenatal alcohol exposure was independently linked to a significantly greater number of behavior problems. Among mothers who had been diagnosed with alcoholism, 44 percent of those who drank while pregnant had children with conduct disorder, compared to 20 percent of mothers with alcoholism who didn't drink during pregnancy. These findings show that women are better off completely avoiding alcohol during pregnancy, Disney concludes. "I hope that the sacrifice of giving up drinking for the nine months of pregnancy will be worth it in the long run for the payoff of having an easier and better behaved teenager," she said. SOURCE: Pediatrics, December 2008. -------------- next part -------------- An HTML attachment was scrubbed... URL: /pipermail/fasd_canadian_link/attachments/20081205/0dbf715e/attachment.html From rosse at ncf.ca Sat Dec 6 15:58:43 2008 From: rosse at ncf.ca (Elspeth Ross) Date: Sat Dec 6 16:03:06 2008 Subject: [Fasd_canadian_link] Clinic here gets boost from state: Spokane WA Message-ID: <6.2.5.6.2.20081205164933.03964e48@ncf.ca> http://www.spokanejournal.com/spokane_id=article&sub=3825 Journal of Business Spokane, Washington Special report December 5, 2008 Clinic here gets boost from state UW satellite site at SHMC to receive part of $100,000 set aside for evaluations By? ? Jeanne Gustafson A clinic here that diagnoses fetal alcohol syndrome and related disorders is one of three statewide that will share in $100,000 in state funding next year aimed at keeping the service available. The clinic, operated by Sacred Heart Medical Center & Children's Hospital, is one of three satellite clinics in the University of Washington's Fetal Alcohol Syndrome Prevention & Diagnostic Network. The other two are in Everett and Yakima, Wash. The clinic here has been operating since 1997. The three clinics each will receive a portion of $100,000 that the Washington state Department of Social and Health Services' Division of Alcohol and Substance Abuse (DASA) has allocated to the network for its next fiscal year, which begins July 1, 2009. The Sacred Heart clinic's share of the money will be based on how many children it evaluates during the fiscal year, says Helle Jorgensen, the program's coordinator here. It costs between $2,000 and $3,000 to evaluate one child, Jorgensen says. The clinic reviews the cases of up to two children each month, and has a long waiting list of children who have been referred to it because they display symptoms of fetal alcohol syndrome. Fetal alcohol syndrome consists of physical and mental disabilities, characterized by abnormal facial features, growth deficiencies, and central nervous system problems, that are the result of alcohol use by a mother during pregnancy. Sacred Heart has been funding the clinic since it took the operation over from the Spokane County Health District in 2003. State funding will help ensure the continuation of the program here, at least during fiscal 2009, Jorgensen says, but adds that it's unclear whether the program will be expanded or if the state funding will continue beyond next year. Currently, a team of professionals that includes a pediatrician, a clinical psychologist, an occupational therapist, and a speech therapist, meets once a month to evaluate testing that has been done on children referred to the clinic for diagnosis. Some of the tests are done at the clinic, but often some of the learning tests already have been administered by the child's school, and others might already have been done by the child's pediatrician or other professionals. The fetal alcohol diagnostic team reviews the tests, which include intelligence tests, growth and development charts, an analysis of facial features that can indicate fetal alcohol syndrome, and other related tests. After reviewing the data and diagnosing disorders ranging from alcohol-related neurodevelopmental disorder to full-blown fetal alcohol syndrome, the team provides recommendations for therapeutic interventions for the alcohol-affected children it evaluates. Those therapies include speech therapy and occupational therapy, although the clinic doesn't provide them. About 10 percent of the children who are referred have full-blown fetal alcohol syndrome, she says. The program serves children from infanthood up, Jorgensen says. She says that though it's best to intervene as early as possible, learning disabilities often don't become apparent until children are in school. Contact Jeanne Gustafson at (509) 344-1264 or via e-mail at jeanneg@spokanejournal.com. -------------- next part -------------- An HTML attachment was scrubbed... URL: /pipermail/fasd_canadian_link/attachments/20081206/3ca1faa7/attachment.html From rosse at ncf.ca Sat Dec 6 16:09:28 2008 From: rosse at ncf.ca (Elspeth Ross) Date: Sat Dec 6 16:15:07 2008 Subject: [Fasd_canadian_link] Aboriginal People [mental health & addictions] Message-ID: <6.2.5.6.2.20081206160905.0396f560@ncf.ca> [No mention of FASD in this document] "...Colonization has caused an epidemic of child apprehensions. Children are apprehended today mainly because of deprivation and poverty, not because of sexual abuse and violence.2 Many caregivers did not learn how to care for and raise healthy children;..." page 4 www.heretohelp.bc.ca BC Partners for Mental Health and Addictions Information Visions: BC's Mental Health and Addictions Journal Vol 5 No. 1 Summer 2008 Aboriginal People Aboriginal People (link to PDF, 32 pages) Visions BC's Mental Health and Addictions Journal BC Partners for Mental Health and Addictions Information Vol. 5, No. 1 Summer 2008 This is on Mental health & addictions Lots on child/ren 52 hits alcohol 33 hits Nothing on fetal alcohol Nothing on FASD Nothing on pregnant/cy except re depression -------------- next part -------------- An HTML attachment was scrubbed... URL: /pipermail/fasd_canadian_link/attachments/20081206/42418c92/attachment.html From rosse at ncf.ca Sat Dec 6 17:19:02 2008 From: rosse at ncf.ca (Elspeth Ross) Date: Sat Dec 6 17:21:08 2008 Subject: [Fasd_canadian_link] Picture This: Life as a Parent of Children with FASD Message-ID: <6.2.5.6.2.20081206171852.038a6ea8@ncf.ca> Skipped content of type multipart/related-------------- next part -------------- From rosse at ncf.ca Tue Dec 9 21:49:18 2008 From: rosse at ncf.ca (Elspeth Ross) Date: Tue Dec 9 21:53:04 2008 Subject: [Fasd_canadian_link] Start early on kids and alcohol Message-ID: <6.2.5.6.2.20081209214908.03ffeed0@ncf.ca> [It is good to see FAS mentioned in writing about efforts to educate about alcohol for children & youth. See the suggestions about what to do.] "... Alcohol use contributes to school dropouts, teen pregnancy and juvenile crime. Victims include infants damaged by fetal alcohol syndrome...." www.mtexpress.com/index2.php?ID=2005123891 Idaho Mountain Express Ketchum, Idaho December 5, 2008 Start early on kids and alcohol A 2005 study put the annual cost of underage drinking in Idaho at $228 million. By KEN ROBISON Ken Robison is an Idaho Safe and Drug Free Schools advisory board member and a former legislator. Before they reach age 12, most Idaho children have seen or heard hundreds of advertising messages promoting the use of alcohol. By age 18 nearly half will be drinking, at least occasionally, and one in five will engage in binge drinking. Despite the efforts of parents, schools, police, courts, community organizations and state agencies, Idaho has a huge underage drinking problem. One reason is that children and adults get too little information, including results of recent research: ? Children who drink before age 15 are four times more likely to become alcohol dependent. The addiction rate is also higher for those starting at 18, 19 or 20 rather than 21. ? Much brain development occurs between the pre-teen years and age 21. Use of alcohol impairs critical "brain wiring" affecting memory, learning ability, decision making, judgment and impulse control. Early drinkers may never reach their full potential. ? Underage drinkers are more likely to use illicit drugs. A survey showed that children drinking before 15 were 22 times more likely to use marijuana and 50 times more likely to use cocaine. ? Alcohol is a major killer of youth, contributing to auto crashes, drowning and suicide. Last year 28 Idaho children and young adults died in crashes with young drinking drivers. Thirty per cent of 12th graders had ridden with a drinking driver in the past month. ? Nationally, binge drinking kills as many young people as all other drugs combined. Children can consume lethal amounts of alcohol without passing out. ? Alcohol use contributes to school dropouts, teen pregnancy and juvenile crime. Victims include infants damaged by fetal alcohol syndrome. A 2005 study put the annual cost of underage drinking in Idaho at $228 million. Add to that millions spent on law enforcement, courts, jails, prisons and health care related to alcohol abuse by adults who started drinking before age 21. What can be done? Parents are the first line of defense. Studies show that parents have the greatest influence on the behavior of adolescents. Non-drinking teens give parental disapproval as the No. 1 reason they choose not to use alcohol. Prevention literature offers strategies: Set clear rules, have daily positive communication and interaction, know where children are and whom they are with, insure that their social settings are alcohol-free. Eat dinner together. Find ways to check on kids when no adults are at home. Underage drinking is a community as well as a family issue. Civic organizations and government leaders can promote prevention. Teens can provide leadership. Community coalitions can work with schools, law enforcement and courts. -------------- next part -------------- An HTML attachment was scrubbed... URL: /pipermail/fasd_canadian_link/attachments/20081209/923f697d/attachment-0001.html From rosse at ncf.ca Tue Dec 9 21:49:32 2008 From: rosse at ncf.ca (Elspeth Ross) Date: Tue Dec 9 21:53:10 2008 Subject: [Fasd_canadian_link] Light a tree, light up a life: California Message-ID: <6.2.5.6.2.20081209214924.03fff018@ncf.ca> [Here is a good example of FASD included.} "...Money is used for, among other things, counseling for victims, early childhood education, parenting classes and treatment of fetal alcohol syndrome disorders...." http://www.chicoer.com/opinion/ci_11143685 ChicoER.com Chico, Northern California Editorial: Light a tree, light up a life Chico Enterprise-Record Posted: 12/05/2008 12:00:00 AM PST Our view: The children's fund has proven to be a smashing fundraising success, with more than 13,000 individual donations. The holidays are always brighter when children are around. The wonder in a child's face as a Christmas tree is lighted or as a present is unwrapped is unparalleled. Perhaps that explains why people are always in such a giving mood as the Christmas tree in City Plaza is illuminated. The tree lighting coincides with a fundraising endeavor and candlelight march called "Celebrate the Child." Before the tree-lighting ceremony, people will assemble at Children's Playground near First Street and The Esplanade. They'll walk to City Plaza, where volunteers will accept donations for the Frank Watters and Mary Anne Houx Children's Fund. The fund raises money for abused and neglected children. Thanks to the benevolence of regular citizens, and matching funds from government, the fund has raised more than $1.3 million since 1994. Until last year, for each dollar donated, an additional two dollars in federal and state funding could be obtained by the county. Since 1994, more than 13,000 contributions have been made to the fund, both at the tree lighting and through property tax bills. Citizens have donated $465,451. State and federal funds have nearly tripled that, for a total of $1,315,451. That money is used to combat child abuse and neglect in Butte County, which is little noticed but is a major problem. Money is used for, among other things, counseling for victims, early childhood education, parenting classes and treatment of fetal alcohol syndrome disorders. The fund started in 1994 when Frank Watters, a Chico State University professor, asked how he could help the county, which was flat broke. Houx, a supervisor at the time, and Watters talked about how to help programs that were being harmed by the county's budget problems and decided programs that aid child abuse victims needed the most help. That's how the children's fund was born. Reports of child abuse and neglect have decreased over the years but it's still a big problem. The county averages about 4,800 reports of child abuse and neglect annually. The fund helps counsel, educate and hopefully reunite families. Citizens who can't attend the ceremony tonight can also make tax-deductible donations with their property tax bills (look for the flier with your bill) or can send a check to the Frank Watters and Mary Anne Houx Children's Fund, c/o Butte County Treasurer, 25 County Center Drive, Oroville, CA, 95965. -------------- next part -------------- An HTML attachment was scrubbed... URL: /pipermail/fasd_canadian_link/attachments/20081209/679a2c4c/attachment-0001.html From rosse at ncf.ca Tue Dec 9 21:49:47 2008 From: rosse at ncf.ca (Elspeth Ross) Date: Tue Dec 9 21:53:13 2008 Subject: [Fasd_canadian_link] Court dismisses sentence appeal in assault case: Nova Scotia Message-ID: <6.2.5.6.2.20081209214939.03ffec40@ncf.ca> "...the sentencing judge was well aware of Mr. Reykdal?s substance abuse problems and took into account the fact he has fetal alcohol syndrome...." http://thechronicleherald.ca/NovaScotia/1094545.html Halifax Chronicle Herald Court dismisses sentence appeal in assault case By JENNIFER STEWART Court Reporter Sat. Dec 6 - 4:47 AM A Truro man who pleaded guilty last year to robbery and assault with a weapon has had his sentence appeal dismissed. Glen Jarred Reykdal represented himself before the Nova Scotia Appeal Court last month, where he argued that the five-year term he received for the robbery charge was too long a sentence for his first term in a federal institution. The 27-year-old received six years in prison overall ? five for a 2006 robbery in Bridgewater and one for attacking a Truro man in his home a year later. He also received a concurrent sentence for breaching a court order. The Appeal Court heard last month that on June 9, 2006, Mr. Reykdal and two other men stormed into a room at the Argyle Inn and held up the two men inside. They ransacked the room and took the men?s wallets, including $300, clothing and other personal belongings. The victims were not seriously hurt, although one required five stitches above his eye. In a second robbery, on May 30, 2007, Mr. Reykdal and another man knocked on the door of Connor Jessom. Thinking it was a friend, the victim opened the door, and the two men burst inside. Mr. Reykdal, drunk and high on drugs, attacked Mr. Jessom with a wrench. He then removed the battery from a smoke detector and tried to make Mr. Jessom eat it. Mr. Reykdal eventually pleaded guilty to the charges and was sentenced in March. In her decision, released earlier this week, Justice Nancy Bateman noted that the sentencing judge was well aware of Mr. Reykdal?s substance abuse problems and took into account the fact he has fetal alcohol syndrome. She said she was not persuaded that the judge had erred in deciding on a lengthy custodial sentence, especially considering Mr. Reykdal?s criminal history, which includes convictions for break and enter, assault and breaches. ( jstewart@herald.ca) -------------- next part -------------- An HTML attachment was scrubbed... URL: /pipermail/fasd_canadian_link/attachments/20081209/7cb5bb09/attachment-0001.html From rosse at ncf.ca Tue Dec 9 21:50:04 2008 From: rosse at ncf.ca (Elspeth Ross) Date: Tue Dec 9 21:53:16 2008 Subject: [Fasd_canadian_link] Veteran foster parents assumed guilty Message-ID: <6.2.5.6.2.20081209214956.03ffe9b0@ncf.ca> "...Almost every child she has cared for has been badly damaged by fetal alcohol syndrome, experienced mom says ..." www.canada.com 6 Dec 2008 Edmonton Journal dhenton@thejournal.canwest.com Veteran foster parents assumed guilty, experienced mom says Children in her care often harm themselves, leaving her vulnerable to charges Last week?s conviction of a foster mother for manslaughter in the death of a three-year-old boy in her care has been watched closely by other foster parents. One momwho has been caring for foster children for a decade says it got her thinking: ?That could have been me.? She says she has had kids who have tried to harm themselves in many ways, and if they had been successful in killing themselves, she fears she would have been hung out to dry. The mom ? we?ll call her Anne, because she is forbidden by law to talk publicly about her adopted kids ? says if people knew what happened daily in foster homes they would be shocked. ?If you were to talk to anybody on the street, they wouldn?t have a clue what these kids are capable of doing. I have had kids who would bend over and run head first into a wall, who would pull their hair out by the roots, who would try to hang themselves. People don?t understand that these kids have suffered such a tremendous amount of abuse, they are just not normal.? Anne says when she was given her first foster child to care for, she wasn?t wellprepared for what was in store. ?I thought: ?What is this? These aren?t kids. These are animals.? ? Almost every child she has cared for has been badly damaged by fetal alcohol syndrome, and most have suffered tremendous physical abuse at the hands of their natural parents. ?I think you almost have to kill your kids before they take them away from you. These kids have suffered terribly.? She said one five-year-old would go ?ballistic? every time she tried to bathe her, and would smash her head violently against the walls and the tub. The child, who had apparently often been left alone by her mother, was prone to violent self-destructive tantrums and would claw the back of her hands until they were raw and bleeding. ?The only way to control her was to wrap her in a blanket and rock her in a rocking chair.? Anne said if that child, whom she had for five years, had killed herself in her care, she might be in jail today, because there would have been no witnesses and she would have had to convince a jury that the improbable had happened. ?You have absolutely no rights ? none. It is so traumatizing because no one defends you,? she says. ?The agency you work for won?t even talk to you. You are guilty until you?re proven innocent.? She says many foster parents have had to deal with children who don?t want to be in the home and have made up stories about being mistreated. ?No matter what the story is, you have to deal with that story and you hope that you can. If an allegation is made, they can come in and remove the kids and everybody just kind of shuns you.? She says the only protection foster parents have is to meticulously document everything that happens in the home. ?You have to be very careful with everything you do and report and record everything.? Anne thinks confidentiality in the foster care system, while necessary to protect the children, also makes it difficult to find out what is happening in foster homes and stifles the ability of foster parents to talk about concerns. It also prevented other foster parents from coming forward to support the foster mother who was on trial, she says. ?You are not allowed to talk. Probably a lot of people would have come forward. I just don?t know who wouldn?t. I even thought about it.? Given her experiences, Anne can?t understand why there wouldn?t have been a reasonable doubt raised in the minds of the jurors in the foster mother?s case. ?If I got up there and went over some of the stuff I have seen, there?s no way they could convict her,? she contends. The unidentified foster mother convicted last week will be sentenced Jan. 19. -------------- next part -------------- An HTML attachment was scrubbed... URL: /pipermail/fasd_canadian_link/attachments/20081209/f668a7e5/attachment-0001.html From rosse at ncf.ca Wed Dec 10 11:44:11 2008 From: rosse at ncf.ca (Elspeth Ross) Date: Wed Dec 10 13:22:08 2008 Subject: [Fasd_canadian_link] Jodie Kulp's books gaining recognition for FASD Message-ID: <6.2.5.6.2.20081210114126.03b28628@ncf.ca> Date: Wed, 10 Dec 2008 01:21:48 +0000 The post below was made by Jodie Kulp on another FASD support group. Her books are gaining awareness for FASD. The Best I Can Be just won an award and she has a new book about FASD, fiction, entitled the Whitest Wall which just came out in Sept. and is available at Amazon: http://www.amazon.com/Whitest-Wall-Bootleg- Brothers/dp/0963707264/ref=sr_1_1?ie=UTF8&qid=1228871780&sr=1-1 Pretty exciting!! Here is her post: Liz and I just found out that The Best I Can Be will be receiving the Mom's Choice Gold Award for 2009! That is exciting as we may be able to access more public awareness concerning the needs of our young people and adults. Please feel free to pass this information along to other members. We will be making up a press release shortly. The Mom's Choice Awards? is known for establishing the benchmark of excellence in family-friendly media, products and services. This annual competition recognizes authors, inventors, companies, parents and others for their efforts in creating quality family-friendly media products and services. Parents, educators, retailers and the media trust the Mom's Choice Awards? for product reviews and evaluations. Products and services bearing the MCA seal help parents, caregivers, educators and retailers select quality materials and products for children and families. Happy Holidays from our home to yours - Meanwhile The Whitest Wall is getting great reviews regarding an introduction to FASD without being hit on the side of the head with it - now if we could just get them into the bookstores!. - The Kulps From rosse at ncf.ca Fri Dec 12 14:00:17 2008 From: rosse at ncf.ca (Elspeth Ross) Date: Fri Dec 12 14:40:12 2008 Subject: [Fasd_canadian_link] Psychologist: Addison has impairment: New Hampshire (2 articles) Message-ID: <6.2.5.6.2.20081212140006.01d0f920@ncf.ca> http://www.unionleader.com/article.aspx?headline=Psychologist%3A+Addison+has+impairment&articleId=9a9b8102-4f9a-4950-a16a-18a9572bc4df Union Leader Manchester, New Hampshire Psychologist: Addison has impairment By KATHRYN MARCHOCKI New Hampshire Union Leader Staff Tuesday, Dec. 9, 2008 MANCHESTER ? The man convicted of killing a Manchester police officer suffers from a mental impairment most likely caused by pre-birth exposure to alcohol and other stresses of a troubled home life, a defense expert said yesterday. [Photo] A neuropsychological assessment of Michael K. Addison, 28, revealed he has some deficits in the frontal lobe of the brain that impair his cognitive flexibility and impulse control, licensed psychologist Benjamin Presskreischer told a Hillsborough County Superior Court jury. Presskreischer said he based his opinion on standardized tests he conducted on Addison last year, an interview with Addison and Addison's prior records. The psychologist blamed "in utero exposure to alcohol, maltreatment as a child, possible exposure to fighting and any time he may have been hit in the head, though not to the degree he had to be treated in the hospital." "Those are all possible, I should say, likely, related reasons why there is something in this particular region of the brain that isn't working well," he explained. Brain scans and MRIs reveal no evidence of any structural brain abnormality in Addison's brain, Presskreischer said. He said it is not unusual for someone with a neuropsychological disorder to have negative brain scans. Intelligence tests showed Addison has average or near average intelligence, above-average memory, and his concentration and attention functions are intact, Presskreischer said. But a neuropsychological assessment showed reveal Addison has difficulties with cognitive flexibility, problem solving and impulse control, he said. One test in particular revealed Addison suffered from "a very severe impairment" that involves repeatedly responding to a situation the same way even though it is not correct and having difficulty coming up with alternative solutions, Presskreischer said. Presskreischer said he disagrees with the findings of the state's expert who he said not only minimized the impact of the fetal alcohol exposure on Addison but also the effect of a troubled childhood. "I think he minimized the impact of a very complicated, neglectful, sometimes violent, sometimes chaotic, sometimes abandoning early relationships and environment, which also has a significant impact on brain development and brain functioning," Presskreischer continued. Addison's biological mother, Cheryl Kiser, who died in February from chronic cocaine use, was described as a violent alcoholic who took little interest in her son. Presskreischer was the latest witness called by the defense during the sentencing phase of Addison's capital murder trial. Brain function impairment is one of 28 mitigating factors the defense hopes to persuade jurors are reason enough to spare Addison the death penalty and send him to prison for the rest of his life instead. Addison was convicted last month of capital murder of the 2006 shooting death of Manchester police Officer Michael L. Briggs, 35. The defense is expected to rest its case today. The state will follow with rebuttal witnesses. Judge Kathleen A. McGuire said she expects the case will go to the jury Thursday. Addison's cousin also testified that relatives did their best to help Addison, but felt "we had lost him" by time Addison turned 16 and was arrested for pulling a loaded handgun on another high school student and pulling the trigger twice. [Photo] Dr. Benjamin Presskreischer testifies during the sentencing phase of Michael Addison's trial. (AP) "Sometimes ... I felt, you know, maybe we let him down a little bit, you know?" said Addison's cousin, Mario Wilson, 33, who grew up in Boston's Roxbury neighborhood and now works as an executive recruiter and lives in Jacksonsville, Fla. "You know, I love him ... We tried as best as possible to hold onto him. But I think, around the time he went to Burke, we just lost him," Wilson added, referring to his cousin's 1996 handgun assault on another Jeremiah E. Burke High School student. Addison pointed the weapon at another student's face and pulled the trigger. The gun did not fire. "As a youth advocate, I kind of take those things personal," said Wilson, who at that time was studying at Boston College and working as a youth advocate at a Boston community center., Wilson said he spent so much time with Addison growing up that the two were regarded as brothers. While always a troublesome and "mischievous" boy, Addison came back from North Carolina in 1995 significantly changed, Wilson said. "He had a lot more of a street mentality," Wilson said, noting Addison developed "more of a gang mentality, rough ... kind of following with the wrong group of people." Addison mostly lived with his maternal grandparents and adoptive caretakers in Brockton, Mass., from birth until he was about 12. He moved to North Carolina when he was about 13, relatives said. Marvin Rudenstein, a retired Brockton public school teacher, taught Addison in junior high where he remembered him as a student with a "great smile" and good personality who did well in his individualized special education classes. He said he later placed Addison in at least one regular class. http://www.fox44.net/Global/story.asp?S=9491663 FAX44 News Burlington, Plattsburg, Montreal Alcohol exposure discussed in NH murder trial Associated Press - December 9, 2008 1:55 PM ET MANCHESTER, N.H. (AP) - A medical witness for the defense says Michael Addison is aggressive, hyperactive and has difficulty adapting to new situations - all problems that can be attributed to fetal alcohol exposure. A number of Addison's family members testified that his mother, Cheryl Kiser, drank heavily during her pregnancy with Addison. Dr. Benjamin Presskreischer (PRESS-kri-chur), a neuropsychologist, testified Tuesday that this could have impeded Addison's brain development. 1 of the mitigating factors the defense is trying to prove is Addison's "impaired brain function." Addison was convicted last month of killing Manchester Police Officer Michael Briggs; a jury is deciding whether he should be sentenced to life in prison or death. Presskreischer said Addison's mental problems could have also been caused by witnessing violence in his home or the absence of his mother when he was young. -------------- next part -------------- An HTML attachment was scrubbed... URL: /pipermail/fasd_canadian_link/attachments/20081212/43fdd55e/attachment-0001.html From rosse at ncf.ca Fri Dec 12 14:00:31 2008 From: rosse at ncf.ca (Elspeth Ross) Date: Fri Dec 12 14:40:16 2008 Subject: [Fasd_canadian_link] Drs. say killer knows right from wrong: New Hampshire Message-ID: <6.2.5.6.2.20081212140024.072b4f00@ncf.ca> http://www.nashuatelegraph.com/apps/pbcs.dll/article?AID=/20081210/NEWS02/312109960/-1/XML15 Nashua Telegraph Hudson, New Hampshire State/New England Published: Wednesday, December 10, 2008 Drs. say killer knows right from wrong MANCHESTER (AP) ? A medical expert for the prosecution said Michael Addison lacks empathy, has issues with authority figures and has trouble following the rules. But Dr. William Barr and a defense medical expert who testified earlier Tuesday agreed that whatever issues Addison has, he can still tell right from wrong and make choices. The two differed, however, on whether his mother's excessive drinking while pregnant with him affected his own behavior. Barr, chief of neuropsychology at New York University medical center, interviewed and ran a battery of psychological tests on Addison in October. Barr testified Tuesday that the attributes he noted during the interview are signs of anti-social behavior. Though Addison displayed signs of anti-social behavior he did not show signs of negative effects from fetal alcohol exposure, Barr said. This completely counters the defense's medical witness, Dr. Benjamin Presskreischer. He testified Tuesday morning that Addison's aggressive behavior and his difficulty adapting to new situations could be attributed to fetal alcohol exposure. -------------- next part -------------- An HTML attachment was scrubbed... URL: /pipermail/fasd_canadian_link/attachments/20081212/50dc580c/attachment-0001.html From rosse at ncf.ca Fri Dec 12 14:00:44 2008 From: rosse at ncf.ca (Elspeth Ross) Date: Fri Dec 12 14:40:19 2008 Subject: [Fasd_canadian_link] Philanthropist's fondest pleasure was meeting needs of society: Edmonton Message-ID: <6.2.5.6.2.20081212140036.071f67d0@ncf.ca> "...Mrs. McDaniel worked with Catholic Social Services to develop and fund pilot programs for the prevention of fetal alcohol spectrum disorder..." http://www.financialpost.com/story.html?id=1054899 Financial Post Philanthropist's fondest pleasure was meeting needs of society Don Retson, The Edmonton Journal Published: Wednesday, December 10, 2008 EDMONTON - In sifting through the many handwritten notes of their mother, the family of Joan McDaniel stumbled upon a gem of a line that she wrote just last August. "All that belongs to God and all that we own or possess must be used with an eye to the needs of the larger community," Mrs. McDaniel wrote. Dan McDaniel says that the one sentence perfectly encapsulated what his mother was about. In 2007, Mrs. McDaniel was honoured by Catholic Social Services for her social, philanthropic and humanitarian vision and leadership. In presenting the Msgr. Bill Irwin Award of Excellence, Father Mike McCaffery described Mrs. McDaniel as a visionary leader whose keen intellect, strong faith and tenacity enabled her to attain success in everything she undertook. The McDaniel Family Foundation she formed in 1997 dispersed millions of dollars to several charitable organizations. "Joan is an exceptionally generous and humble woman who shuns attention and accolades," McCaffery said, adding that Mrs. McDaniel and her late husband Francis improved the quality of life for many disadvantaged people. On Oct. 13, Frances Joan McDaniel died of cancer. She was 76. Born in Edmonton, Mrs. McDaniel was the ninth of 15 children. After graduating from St. Mary's Girls' High School in 1950, she worked for several years as a receptionist for two pediatricians at Le Marchand Mansion. In 1954, she married her high school sweetheart, Francis Joseph McDaniel. Together, they started F.J. McDaniel Plastering Ltd., which later became F.J. McDaniel Construction Ltd. The company grew from a small enterprise to a flourishing corporation of about 250 employees. Mrs. McDaniel attended to running the office while her husband worked on-site. In 1976, Frank McDaniel died, leaving her to run the business while raising her eight daughters and two sons. As founder of the McDaniel Family Foundation, Mrs. McDaniel used her business knowledge to find areas within the community in need of assistance. At the 2007 event where she was honoured, Father McCaffery said it was Mrs. McDaniel's "career" as a philanthropist that she found to be the most important and most worthwhile work she had ever done. "Joan quietly went about doing miracles for people without seeking recognition, while trying to give back to a society which gave her so much," he said. Over the past decade, Mrs. McDaniel worked with Catholic Social Services to develop and fund pilot programs for the prevention of fetal alcohol spectrum disorder. The programs included First Steps (1999), a mentorship program geared towards women at risk of having a child with the disorder or who already had a child with the disorder. In a Journal interview in 2000, Mrs. McDaniel spoke of the importance of the mentorship program. "There's no greater preventable condition that has such horrendous, long-term ramifications to the individual mom, the baby and the community." A foundation gift of $500,000 to Catholic Social Services led to the construction of McDaniel Manor. The manor, which opened in 2006, provides a barrier-free home for 10 seniors with severe physical and developmental disabilities. A woman of steadfast faith, her Roman Catholic church was always important to Mrs. McDaniel. She served the Edmonton Archdiocese in various roles, including chairwoman of the archdiocese's financial committee and as a member of the board of governors of St. Joseph's University College. In August 2008, Mrs. McDaniel received the devastating news that her cancer had spread. Her faith helped her cope. "God will take care of me; he always has," she told family members. On Thanksgiving Day, Mrs. McDaniel died peacefully at home with friends and family by her side. She is survived by her children: Daniel, Sharon, Joan Lough, Shauna Speck, Maureen King, Angela Kulhawy, Colleen, Patricia Young, Francis Jr. and Kathleen. dretson@thejournal.canwest.com -------------- next part -------------- An HTML attachment was scrubbed... URL: /pipermail/fasd_canadian_link/attachments/20081212/4e52478a/attachment-0001.html From rosse at ncf.ca Fri Dec 12 14:00:58 2008 From: rosse at ncf.ca (Elspeth Ross) Date: Fri Dec 12 14:40:22 2008 Subject: [Fasd_canadian_link] RTI International to Conduct Health Communication Research for CDC on Birth Defects Message-ID: <6.2.5.6.2.20081212140049.071f6620@ncf.ca> "...The main research focus areas of the study include preconception health among women and couples and the prevention of birth defects such as fetal alcohol syndrome and cleft lip and palate...." http://carolinanewswire.com/news/News.cgi?database=001news.db&command=viewone&id=4014&op=t Carolina Newswire Raleigh, North Carolina RTI International to Conduct Health Communication Research for CDC on Birth Defects 12-10-2008 RESEARCH TRIANGLE PARK, N.C. ? As part of an effort to promote healthy births, researchers at RTI International will work with the U.S. Centers for Disease Control & Prevention to develop health communication research and social marketing campaigns. RTI researchers were awarded a five-year contract to conduct several projects that will increase understanding of how to best deliver information about the prevention of birth defects and early detection of developmental disabilities. The information will target various audiences including women and men of reproductive age, parents, early educators and health care providers. "This research will contribute to our understanding of what information is most valuable to different people and how best to reach those audiences," said Lauren McCormack, Ph.D., director of RTI's Health Communication Program. As part of the project, RTI researchers will work with the CDC to understand what various audiences know about behaviors that could help or harm the healthy development of babies and children. The main research focus areas of the study include preconception health among women and couples and the prevention of birth defects such as fetal alcohol syndrome and cleft lip and palate. Other research areas being conducted include understanding perceptions about Down syndrome and learning what pregnant women could and would be willing to do to protect themselves and their families during pandemic flu. RTI News Media Contacts Email: news@rti.org Lisa Bistreich: 919-316-3596 Patrick Gibbons: 919-541-6136 About RTI International RTI International is one of the worlds leading research institutes, dedicated to improving the human condition by turning knowledge into practice. Our more than 3,800 professionals provide research and technical services to governments and businesses in more than 40 countries in the areas of health and pharmaceuticals, education and training, surveys and statistics, advanced technology, international development, economic and social policy, energy, and the environment. For more information, visit www.rti.org. -------------- next part -------------- An HTML attachment was scrubbed... URL: /pipermail/fasd_canadian_link/attachments/20081212/e41baa0b/attachment-0001.html From rosse at ncf.ca Fri Dec 12 14:03:13 2008 From: rosse at ncf.ca (Elspeth Ross) Date: Fri Dec 12 14:40:25 2008 Subject: [Fasd_canadian_link] Drinks cheap but social costs high: doctors: Nova Scotia Message-ID: <6.2.5.6.2.20081212140304.072bdc48@ncf.ca> [These doctors include "unplanned pregnancy" as an alcohol-related injury that they "regularly see". Good. When are we going to see doctors including "unplanned pregnancy with risk of FASD for the baby" in statements about alcohol's effects? Is FASD not also a social cost? Is it that doctors don't see FASD until years after the birth, or that they don't see it at all?] http://www.cbc.ca/health/story/2008/12/11/cheap-drinks-doctors.html cbcnews Health Drinks cheap but social costs high: doctors Last Updated: Thursday, December 11, 2008 | 12:26 PM ET CBC News A group of doctors in Halifax is calling on the province to set minimum drink prices this holiday season. The physicians at Dalhousie University Health Services say they're tired of dealing with alcohol-related injuries. "There's a lot of evidence in our clinic that we see people after nights when there are the cheap drink nights. The students tell us where they're going to drink," said Dr. Katherine Robinson. Robinson is one of 10 doctors who signed a letter to the local MLA describing how they regularly see the effects of overdrinking, which include: * Physical injury either from accidents or from assaults. * Sexual assaults. * Unplanned pregnancy. * Sexually transmitted diseases. * Alcohol poisoning, including severe hangovers. Preyra, the New Democrat MLA for Halifax Citadel, said $1 drinks may be cheap for students, but the costs for the community are high. "In effect, the taxpayers and the communities are bearing the burden of that excess," he said. Dalhousie student union president Courtney Larkin expects some students on tight budgets would hate to see the discount drinks disappear. "We do pay the highest tuition in Canada here at Dalhousie, so every dollar counts. And so some students will be upset and others will see the benefit," Larkin said. Cheap drinks were cited as fuel for a big brawl involving dozens of people outside a downtown bar late last year. The Dome lost its liquor licence for a few days. The suspension was lifted after the bar promised to drop its $1-a-drink special and beef up security. Another bar in Halifax continues to advertise $1 drinks. A government committee struck to look into the issue of high-risk drinking recommended that bars be required to charge at least $2.50 for a shot of liquor or a beer. The province responded by saying it wouldn't set a minimum drink price for bars. -------------- next part -------------- An HTML attachment was scrubbed... URL: /pipermail/fasd_canadian_link/attachments/20081212/182f8233/attachment-0001.html From rosse at ncf.ca Fri Dec 12 14:03:26 2008 From: rosse at ncf.ca (Elspeth Ross) Date: Fri Dec 12 14:40:28 2008 Subject: [Fasd_canadian_link] Changing views on FASD: NWT & Justice & Education Message-ID: <6.2.5.6.2.20081212140317.072bdc48@ncf.ca> http://nnsl.com/northern-news-services/stories/papers/dec11_08fas.html Northern News Services online Northwest Territories Changing views on FASD Roxanna Thompson Northern News Services Published Thursday, December 11 2008 LIIDLII KUE/FORT SIMPSON - A presentation delivered in Fort Simpson last month aimed to change perceptions of fetal alcohol spectrum disorder (FASD). "It's not all doom and gloom like they thought in the past," said Doreen Reid, FASD consultant and project co-ordinator with the Department of Justice. [Photo] Doreen Reid, the FASD consultant and project co-ordinator for Community Justice and Community Policing, holds the booklet of information she distributed during a series of presentations she gave in Fort Simpson on fetal alcohol spectrum disorder. - Roxanna Thompson/NNSL photo "People with FASD do have strengths, " she added. If given support when it's needed, people with the disorder can be successful in some ways, she said. Reid and Charlotte Joa, the restorative justice coordinator with the department, delivered seven presentations in Fort Simpson on Nov. 19 and 20. Reid's goal with the presentation is to shift the perception of FASD away from it being an alcohol-based disorder to viewing it as a brain injury. The difference changes the focus from seeing the child of a drinking mother to seeing someone who has a traumatic brain injury, said Reid. If FASD is viewed as a brain injury people living with the disorder will be more likely to get support and the general population will be more interested in learning about FASD, she said. It's important to understand the difficulties and challenges someone living with FASD faces on a daily basis and how we can work with them at their level, said Reid. She told her 18-person audience that identifying and fostering the potential of a person with FASD is the best way to achieve success. Reid also gave a series of presentations in the schools for students in Grades 5 to 12 that focused on prevention. Reid told students if women didn't drink while they're pregnant and men supported their wives their generation could stop FASD. "We can wipe this out completely," she said. From a justice perspective, Reid also said people with FASD are more likely to enter the justice system both as victims and offenders. Awareness about FASD is improving but there is still a lot of misinformation and misunderstanding about the disorder, said Reid. Hilda Day, the community justice co-ordinator for Fort Simpson, invited Reid to present in the community. Part of the goal of community justice is prevention and that happens through increased awareness, said Day. "I think with more awareness there will be more services offered that are tailored to individual needs so there will be more support for people with FASD," said Day. -------------- next part -------------- An HTML attachment was scrubbed... URL: /pipermail/fasd_canadian_link/attachments/20081212/d000e1ed/attachment-0001.html From rosse at ncf.ca Fri Dec 12 14:03:40 2008 From: rosse at ncf.ca (Elspeth Ross) Date: Fri Dec 12 14:40:31 2008 Subject: [Fasd_canadian_link] A few drinks a week may slow women's brain decline: aged 70 - 82 Message-ID: <6.2.5.6.2.20081212140332.072bdc48@ncf.ca> "...Out of 3,000 women ages 70 to 82 years..." http://www.reutershealth.com/archive/2008/12/11/eline/links/20081211elin024.html Reuters Health Information A few drinks a week may slow women's brain decline Last Updated: 2008-12-11 14:28:15 -0400 (Reuters Health) By Anne Harding NEW YORK (Reuters Health) - New research published in the Journal of the American Geriatrics Society provides more evidence that moderate drinking may be good for older women's brains. Out of 3,000 women ages 70 to 82 years, those who had one to seven drinks a week had better cognitive function than their teetotaling peers, Dr. David J. Stott of the University of Glasgow and his colleagues found. And after about 3-years of follow-up, the low-to-moderate alcohol drinkers had less decline in their cognitive function than the non-drinkers. "The size of the effect seems to be equivalent to that of several years of aging," Stott told Reuters Health in an interview. He noted that the findings back up several other studies, including the Women's Health Study, that have found the older brain benefits for moderate drinking. "The emphasis I think must be on this kind of modest amount of alcohol," Stott added. "If you drink to excess then it's clearly bad for you, it's probably bad for our memory and bad for your brain as well." Stott and his team evaluated the effects of alcohol consumption and cognitive function in 5,804 older people participating in a clinical trial evaluating cholesterol-lowering drugs called statins. While 42 percent of women and 71 percent of men reported drinking alcohol, the majority drank only moderately. Just 8 percent of women consumed more than the equivalent of one drink daily (the upper limit of alcohol intake recommended by U.S. guidelines), while 17.7 percent of men averaged more than two drinks a day, which is the upper limit recommended for men. There was no difference in cognitive function at the study's outset between the men who drank and the non-drinkers. But women who drank scored higher than non-drinkers on every test of cognitive function the researchers conducted, such as their speed of information processing and verbal memory. The relationship remained statistically significant even after Stott and his team accounted for study participants' level of education, whether or not they smoked, their body mass index, and their history of blood vessel disease -- all of which can be related to both cognitive function and drinking. Over time, alcohol consumption didn't seem to affect men's likelihood of cognitive decline. But again, the women who drank low or moderate amounts of alcohol (one to three drinks or more than three to seven drinks a week, respectively) showed less decline in cognitive function than did nondrinkers. There are several possible explanations for the gender difference in the effect of alcohol on cognitive function, Stott noted. For example, he explained, women have higher levels of estrogen, which could be protecting their brains. The researcher emphasized that the amount of alcohol the women in the study were drinking was very modest, and the findings shouldn't be taken to mean that drinking more is better. SOURCE: Journal of the American Geriatrics Society, December 2008. -------------- next part -------------- An HTML attachment was scrubbed... URL: /pipermail/fasd_canadian_link/attachments/20081212/bd239b1e/attachment-0001.html From rosse at ncf.ca Fri Dec 12 14:04:06 2008 From: rosse at ncf.ca (Elspeth Ross) Date: Fri Dec 12 14:40:33 2008 Subject: [Fasd_canadian_link] Ill-prepared to help LD students Message-ID: <6.2.5.6.2.20081212140356.072bdc48@ncf.ca> [In our Ottawa FASD & Education working group & FASD Group of Ottawa we talk about how teachers lack training on dealing with students with FASD. Here is a study on lack of training on learning disabilities.] http://communities.canada.com/vancouversun/blogs/reportcard/archive/2008/12/08/ill-prepared-to-help-ld-students.aspx Vancouver Sun Ill-prepared to help LD students By Janet Steffenhagen 12-08-2008 Teachers and pyschologists have little information about learning disabilities when they enter their professions and have no guidelines to help them in their work with LD students. That's the conclusion of a study released today by the Learning Disabilities Association of Canada, which found that no province or territory requires teachers or pscyhologists working with children to take even a single course on learning disabilities. Furthermore, there are no regulations to ensure consistent and informed practice in identifying and working with LD children, it says. "The findings of this study underscore the need for enhanced professional knowledge, especially in light of the shift towards inclusive classrooms," the association says in a release. "Given Canada's increasingly mobile and diverse population, the time has come for a national understanding of Learning Disabilities and of the processes to accommodate these students," adds Mildred Cahill, an education professor at Memorial University who conducted the study with her colleague David Philpott, an associate professor of special education. There are more than three million Canadians with learning disabilities, the release says. Read the study here. Pan-Canadian Perspective on the Professional Knowledge Base of Learning Disabilities -------------- next part -------------- An HTML attachment was scrubbed... URL: /pipermail/fasd_canadian_link/attachments/20081212/d9c85021/attachment.html From rosse at ncf.ca Fri Dec 12 14:04:20 2008 From: rosse at ncf.ca (Elspeth Ross) Date: Fri Dec 12 14:40:36 2008 Subject: [Fasd_canadian_link] Pan-Canadian Perspective on the Professional Knowledge Base of Learning Disabilities Message-ID: <6.2.5.6.2.20081212140412.072b7628@ncf.ca> http://www.righttolearn.ca/ ldac - acta Learning Disabilities Association of Canada Read the new study A Pan-Canadian Perspective on the Professional Knowledge Base of Learning Disabilities (pdf, 483 kb) The new applied research study took 2 years to develop. The study surveyed Ministries of Education across the country to identify requirements for teachers and psychologists working with students who have learning disabilities, and the existence of policies to guide their work. The study concludes that Canada's Ministries of Education have no specific guidelines for teachers or psychologists to address the needs of students with learning disabilities. A Pan-Canadian Perspective on the Professional Knowledge Base of Learning Disabilities by David Philpott and Mildren Cahill. Ottawa: Leaning Disabilities Association of Canada. Released December 8, 2008. -------------- next part -------------- An HTML attachment was scrubbed... URL: /pipermail/fasd_canadian_link/attachments/20081212/04412c28/attachment.html From rosse at ncf.ca Fri Dec 12 14:17:01 2008 From: rosse at ncf.ca (Elspeth Ross) Date: Fri Dec 12 14:40:39 2008 Subject: [Fasd_canadian_link] Canadian petition on leaning disabilities Message-ID: <6.2.5.6.2.20081212141230.03ea7dd8@ncf.ca> Here is a petition from the website of the Learning Disabilities Association of Canada For Canadians http://www.righttolearn.ca/ ldac - acta Learning Disabilities Association of Canada "The right to learn - the power to achieve" Sign Our Petition We call on the governments of Canada to support The Learning Disabilities Association of Canada's (LDAC) Policy on Educational Accommodations for Individuals with Learning Disabilities (pdf, 126 kb). The Policy states that all students who are diagnosed as having a learning disability, as defined by LDAC, be guaranteed full access to appropriate accommodations, which will enable them to optimize their potential, in accordance with the mandates of the Canadian Charter of Rights and Freedoms and the Human Rights legislation of the Provinces and Territories........... -------------- next part -------------- An HTML attachment was scrubbed... URL: /pipermail/fasd_canadian_link/attachments/20081212/92cbfd58/attachment.html From rosse at ncf.ca Fri Dec 12 14:12:54 2008 From: rosse at ncf.ca (Elspeth Ross) Date: Fri Dec 12 14:40:42 2008 Subject: [Fasd_canadian_link] Parents seek controversial homegrown program: Toronto Message-ID: <6.2.5.6.2.20081212141244.045fb610@ncf.ca> This is interesting. Would Arrowsmith help children with FASD? http://www.thestar.com/printArticle/549929 Toronto Star TheStar.com - Education Parents seek controversial homegrown program 'Incredible jewel' targets areas of the brain that need to be retrained December 08, 2008 Andrea Gordon Family Issues Reporter [Photo] VINCE TALOTTA/TORONTO STAR FILE PHOTO Dr. Norman Doidge, a Toronto psychiatrist, calls the Arrowsmith program a 'jewel.' Toronto's two public school boards will this week hear from parents who want them to offer a unique made-in-Canada program for children with learning disabilities. The Toronto District School Board will be asked tonight to introduce the Arrowsmith program in a pilot project. At a meeting on Wednesday, the Catholic board, which launched Arrowsmith 10 years ago and is reviewing it, will hear from anxious families urging them to continue. The groundbreaking program, created 30 years ago by Barbara Arrowsmith Young of Toronto, is unusual because it's aimed at "fixing" learning dysfunctions through a series of cognitive exercises to strengthen weak areas of the brain. This goes against the conventional notion that learning disabilities are lifelong and children should be taught to work around them with accommodations ? such as computers for poor fine motor skills and handwriting, or calculators for those struggling with math. The approach, while controversial, has steadily attracted followers as a result of growing research into neuroplasticity, which demonstrates the brain is not hardwired for life and can be taught to reconfigure itself, as shown in people recovering from strokes. "You have in that program an incredible jewel," Dr. Norman Doidge, renowned Toronto psychiatrist and author of The Brain That Changes Itself, told a Toronto Catholic District School Board meeting last month. Doidge, who has researched neuroplasticity programs around the world, said Arrowsmith is one of a kind. Clint and Evette Harder of Scarborough agree. Their 8-year-old daughter was diagnosed with severe learning dysfunctions, making her early school years painful and unsuccessful. Since enrolling in Arrowsmith at Holy Spirit Catholic School last year, she has learned to read and write, enjoys school and no longer comes home crying and calling herself stupid. "She's grown by leaps and bounds," Evette Harder says. "And her confidence has skyrocketed." The 67 students currently enrolled in the Catholic board's Arrowsmith program don't focus on academics. Instead, they work on underlying cognitive problems through a series of intensive repetitive exercises. In one, for example, they trace pages of symbol sequences while wearing an eyepatch to target a specific part of the brain that needs strengthening. The idea is that after an average of two to four years in the program, the children have overcome their disabilities enough to return to a regular classroom, where they are able to catch up on academics. Toronto's Catholic Board is the only public system to offer the program, also available full-time at the private Arrowsmith School in Toronto for $19,000 a year. It is offered at private schools in Peterborough, Vancouver and several U.S. cities. In September, the Learning Disabilities Association of Saskatchewan began providing it, for a fee, to 12 students in Saskatoon. The board, facing a budget deficit and a recent furor over trustees' use of public funds, is reviewing all its programs for learning-disabled students and will present a full report next month. Board documents show Arrowsmith costs $174,000 a year, not including teacher salaries and classroom material ? or roughly $2,500 per student. Clint Harder is among those who believe the investment will pay off. "We know this will allow our children to escape the clutches of their learning disabilities," he said in last month's presentation to the board. Parents will make a second pitch at this Wednesday's meeting. Harder presented 40 letters of support from parents who had tried everything from intense special ed to reading programs to private tutors, without success. One family recently moved back to Toronto from Spain to enroll their son. That meeting also heard testimonials from Shirley Brown Vitullo, who has taught Arrowsmith for 10 years at St. Theresa Shrine Catholic School, and a Grade 8 student who has returned to a regular classroom, where he's earning marks in the 70s and 80s without extra support. Vitullo Brown said in an interview she's committed to the approach because it empowers students to learn and builds on their successes. "I feel positive that the parents and the children's progress will speak loudly and they will retain this program," she said. Three separate studies of Arrowsmith students in the past five years have shown they had increased their rate of learning academic skills (such as math and reading comprehension) by 1.5 to 3 times their rate prior to the program. A January, 2007, report found that among 42 Catholic board students who had moved on to high school, report card averages were 79 per cent. Sixty-nine per cent of the kids were not receiving resource support; a quarter were receiving one period a day or less. Toronto trustee Irene Atkinson believes the evidence is compelling. "I think it's time the Toronto board offered this opportunity to some of our students who would benefit from it," she says. Christina Buczek of Etobicoke, vice-chairman of the Toronto board's special education advisory committee, has a son attending the Arrowsmith School on Saturdays. But she says it should be available to parents who can't afford to pay. That's why Buczek plans to move a motion at tonight's committee meeting calling for a two-year pilot project based on Arrowsmith and Fast ForWord, another neuroplasticity-based program. "It offers a lot of hope to a lot of people with brain disabilities," she said. -------------- next part -------------- An HTML attachment was scrubbed... URL: /pipermail/fasd_canadian_link/attachments/20081212/103b90bc/attachment.html From fasdcommunications at sasktel.net Thu Dec 11 15:13:01 2008 From: fasdcommunications at sasktel.net (FASD Network Communications) Date: Mon Dec 15 10:27:16 2008 Subject: [Fasd_canadian_link] FASD Network News and Free Training Opportunities Message-ID: <00ad01c95bd5$44e1a510$cea4ef30$@net> Skipped content of type multipart/alternative-------------- next part -------------- A non-text attachment was scrubbed... Name: Network News December.pdf Type: application/pdf Size: 819327 bytes Desc: not available Url : /pipermail/fasd_canadian_link/attachments/20081211/5a6bb1a9/NetworkNewsDecember-0001.pdf -------------- next part -------------- A non-text attachment was scrubbed... Name: Diane Malbin Registration.pdf Type: application/pdf Size: 75744 bytes Desc: not available Url : /pipermail/fasd_canadian_link/attachments/20081211/5a6bb1a9/DianeMalbinRegistration-0001.pdf -------------- next part -------------- A non-text attachment was scrubbed... Name: Speakers' Bureau Criteria and Application.pdf Type: application/pdf Size: 452507 bytes Desc: not available Url : /pipermail/fasd_canadian_link/attachments/20081211/5a6bb1a9/SpeakersBureauCriteriaandApplication-0001.pdf -------------- next part -------------- A non-text attachment was scrubbed... Name: Speakers' Bureau Poster.pdf Type: application/pdf Size: 204381 bytes Desc: not available Url : /pipermail/fasd_canadian_link/attachments/20081211/5a6bb1a9/SpeakersBureauPoster-0001.pdf From rosse at ncf.ca Tue Dec 16 22:16:18 2008 From: rosse at ncf.ca (Elspeth Ross) Date: Tue Dec 16 22:34:12 2008 Subject: [Fasd_canadian_link] Light drinking during pregnancy will not make your child smarter! Message-ID: <6.2.5.6.2.20081216221601.042e7db8@ncf.ca> http://www.belfasttelegraph.co.uk/opinion/letters/light-drinking-during-pregnancy-will-not-make-your-child-smarter-14108279.html Belfast Telegraph Belfast, Northern Ireland Letters Light drinking during pregnancy will not make your child smarter! Friday, 12 December 2008 A rash of recent newspaper stories suggesting that light drinking during pregnancy may be beneficial for an unborn child are alarming to many of those in the medical community. These misleading and irresponsible reports followed a recently published study by the University College, London suggesting that 3-year-old children whose mothers drank "lightly" during pregnancy were not at risk for certain behavioral problems. The erroneous interpretation by the lay press about some "beneficial" effects of drinking during pregnancy was NOT part of the study's findings. Indeed, the comments by the media also run counter to research studies indicating that low levels of alcohol can damage a fetus. The results from the study by Dr. Yvonne Kelly and colleagues must be interpreted with extreme caution for reasons that were overlooked in subsequent news reports. First, the "light drinkers" in this study were more socially and economically advantaged compared to both the heavier drinkers and the women who did not drink during pregnancy. Higher socio-economic status is generally associated with better nutrition, prenatal care and postnatal care-giving environments. The study's authors suggested that any apparent differences in child development between the light drinkers and abstainers may be due to social factors, not drinking. Second, the study focused only on children up to three years of age. Generally, the adverse effects of light drinking during pregnancy are subtle and may go undetected in young children. However, other group studies of more moderate or "social" drinking levels during pregnancy have shown an adverse impact on multiple aspects of development through adolescence and young adulthood, even when important environmental factors are taken into account. Third, "light drinking" was defined in the study as anyone who had "no more than one or two drinks a week or no more than two drinks on an occasion." This broad categorization includes patterns of drinking that have been shown to affect fetal brain development in laboratory research studies. Public health policymakers, health care providers, and the public all want to understand the dangers of alcohol consumption during pregnancy. Studies of pregnant women may not provide clear answers. But carefully controlled laboratory research studies clearly show that the blood alcohol levels that occur with "light drinking" can interfere with biological processes that are critical for proper development of the fetal brain. Repeated consumption of this amount of alcohol during pregnancy has also been shown to cause functional brain damage and behavioral problems. It is an inconvenient fact of life that alcohol is a "teratogen," that is, a chemical that can cause physical or functional birth defects. Prenatal exposure to alcohol is widely accepted to be a risk factor in child development, which may be associated with other prenatal or environmental risk factors. Other risk factors include smoking, stress, poor nutrition and diseases affecting a mother's health, such as diabetes, obesity and high blood pressure. As risk factors accumulate, developmental outcomes are usually less positive. The consensus recommendation of the hundreds of scientists and clinical investigators, who study Fetal Alcohol Spectrum Disorders, along with public health officials around the world, is very clear - a woman should abstain from drinking during pregnancy as part of an overall program of good prenatal care that includes good nutrition, adequate exercise, sufficient rest, and proper prenatal health care. Fetal Alcohol Spectrum Disorders Study Group -------------- next part -------------- An HTML attachment was scrubbed... URL: /pipermail/fasd_canadian_link/attachments/20081216/6e661c4d/attachment-0001.html From rosse at ncf.ca Tue Dec 16 22:15:02 2008 From: rosse at ncf.ca (Elspeth Ross) Date: Tue Dec 16 22:34:16 2008 Subject: [Fasd_canadian_link] Shocked at advice on drinking while pregnant Message-ID: <6.2.5.6.2.20081216221454.042e4448@ncf.ca> http://www.belfasttelegraph.co.uk/opinion/letters/shocked-at-advice-on-drinking-while-pregnant-14108276.html Belfast Telegraph Belfast, Northern Ireland Letters Shocked at advice on drinking while pregnant Monday, 15 December 2008 We are alarmed to learn of a recent article in your publication "A drink or two may be good for baby" on October 31, 2008, and others reporting the results of a recent epidemiological study entitled "Light drinking in pregnancy, a risk for behavioral problems and cognitive deficits at 3 years of age?" published by Dr. Yvonne Kelly and colleagues in the International Journal of Epidemiology. The lay press interpretation suggesting the possibility of some "beneficial" effects of drinking during pregnancy described in these articles was not part of the research study's findings. We are very concerned that this erroneous and potentially dangerous interpretation of the results has gained considerable traction in the lay press. Indeed, any suggestion that light drinking during pregnancy may provide cognitive advantages or other beneficial effects could lead to more unborn children being placed at increased risk. Maternal drinking during pregnancy is a serious health issue. There is a considerable body of laboratory research and clinical evidence confirming the adverse consequences of maternal drinking on fetal brain development and behavior. Public health officials and health organizations worldwide, including the World Health Organization, the U.S. National Institutes of Health, and the U.S. Centers for Disease Control and Prevention, have cautioned that women must ABSTAIN from drinking alcohol during pregnancy because it will have adverse life-long consequences for their babies. We wish to submit the attached editorial response to the report "A drink or two may be good for baby", that appeared in your publication in an effort to provide your readers with more information regarding what is known about maternal alcohol consumption during pregnancy and the reasons why the study by Kelly and colleagues should be interpreted with caution. Because of the current holiday season, we feel that this message is particularly timely and request your help to bring it to the public attention. Fetal Alcohol Spectrum Disorders Study Group -------------- next part -------------- An HTML attachment was scrubbed... URL: /pipermail/fasd_canadian_link/attachments/20081216/54c17db4/attachment-0001.html From rosse at ncf.ca Tue Dec 16 22:13:51 2008 From: rosse at ncf.ca (Elspeth Ross) Date: Tue Dec 16 22:34:18 2008 Subject: [Fasd_canadian_link] Children With Disabilities Arrested For Behavior: Minnesota Message-ID: <6.2.5.6.2.20081216221343.041c0a40@ncf.ca> "...Thomas Brinker didn't understand why he was arrested either. Thomas has fetal alcohol syndrome...." http://wcco.com/health/children.disabilities.arrested.2.886567.html wcco.com Minneapolis, MN Dec 12, 2008 11:05 pm US/Central Children With Disabilities Arrested For Behavior Reporting Amelia Santaniello (WCCO) For parents of children with special needs, outbursts can be a problem, and they don't stop at home. More Minnesota kids with autism and developmental disabilities are actually getting arrested for having tantrums at school. That's landing students in treatment centers, where they live alongside the worst sex offenders. "I dropped him off for band, and when I came back to pick him up, his teacher motioned for me to come in," said mother Kathryn Jacobson. Kathryn Jacobson told the I-TEAM she knew something was wrong when she arrived at Franklin Middle School in Thief River Falls to pick up her son. "He was really upset, sobbing and really upset. And she (the teacher) said 'You're not in any trouble Dakota, you're not in any trouble,'" she recalled. "Two hours later I think it was, we get a call from the assistant principal saying Dakota's in trouble." Dakota had a pocket knife in his coat. He didn't threaten anyone, but bringing any kind of weapon to school is a felony in Minnesota. While most kids understand why you wouldn't want to do that, Dakota did not. "He's 13 and he's autistic," explained his mother. Children with autism can have trouble understanding rules. His mom says he was just trying to be like his dad, Brian. "Brian is on the volunteer fire department, carries a knife hooked up to his belt, so he kind of likes to emulate his dad," said Jacobson. Police and the Pennington County Court weighed Dakota's Autism diagnosis, but still charged him with a felony that ended up on his record. "I was very afraid. I was hoping it was a dream, that's what I was hoping," said Dakota." [Photo] Thomas Brinker has fetal alcohol syndrome. At 19, he threw paint on a teacher's sweater during a tantrum at his District 287 school. CBS Thomas Brinker didn't understand why he was arrested either. Thomas has fetal alcohol syndrome. At 19, he threw paint on a teacher's sweater during a tantrum at his District 287 school. Thomas was cited for disorderly conduct. His father told the I-TEAM the school never told him about it. "I was not notified of the citation, and Thomas was living at a group home at the time," said father James Brinker. After missing a court date, Thomas was arrested and put in the Hennepin County Jail. "I was just furious at the school that they would involve the judicial system as behavior management," said Brinker. The disorderly conduct charge was eventually dropped after Thomas was found incompetent to stand trial. That was just the beginning of the Brinker's ordeal. "They recommended that he went to the METO program," said Brinker. METO is the Minnesota Extended Treatment Options program. Its one place courts send people to live if their developmental disability turns dangerous. Thomas' family doesn't think throwing paint rises to that level. "I had to sign a piece of paper in fact, [saying] that I knew there were sexual offenders on the premises," said Brinker. "He got to METO because of a court system that failed him, a school that definitely failed him." Roberta Opheim is the state's ombudsman for Mental Health and Developmental Disabilities. She told the I-TEAM Thomas shouldn't have ended up there, but a lot of people like him do. "When they don't or can't participate in their own trial, they are sometimes sent to mental health facilities," she said. Opheim recently reviewed the METO program and found problems with the frequent use of metal handcuffs and leg hobbles. "It became so routine that people didn't even identify it as a problem," she said. Thomas was restrained on one occasion. "There always used to be a premise in the law that you had to have the criminal intent to harm someone. We've lost that standard," said Opheim. "Intent is important, but I think it's very difficult for us to evaluate and render that judgment," said Wade Setter. Setter runs the Minnesota Center for School Safety which helps guide school resource officers. He said school resource officers go through no special training to handle children with special needs. The I-TEAM learned no uniform policy exists as to what schools can and should share from a student's medical history with police. There's all sorts of restrictions at the federal and state level about sharing different types of information, which is a particular challenge," explained Setter. Teachers sometimes don't follow their own behavioral intervention plan for how to calm down a particular student. Setter wants school resource officers to see those plans and to be trained in emotional disorders. We're in the process of developing it," said Setter. Thomas is spending more time with his family and is about to be released from the METO program into a new group home. Dakota is still struggling. "I sometimes try not to think about it, but sometimes it just pops up in my mind and it just makes me feel sad," said Dakota. Dakota's felony drops off his record after six months, if he doesn't bring another weapon to school. Thomas is still at the METO facility for throwing paint. His care costs taxpayers more than $900 a day. -------------- next part -------------- An HTML attachment was scrubbed... URL: /pipermail/fasd_canadian_link/attachments/20081216/9d0e610a/attachment-0001.html From rosse at ncf.ca Tue Dec 16 22:12:37 2008 From: rosse at ncf.ca (Elspeth Ross) Date: Tue Dec 16 22:34:21 2008 Subject: [Fasd_canadian_link] Beer with your popcorn? Ontario allows drinking at the movies Message-ID: <6.2.5.6.2.20081216221230.03eb6880@ncf.ca> http://www.cbc.ca/canada/ottawa/story/2008/12/15/alcohol-cinema.html cbcnews.ca Canada Beer with your popcorn? Ontario allows drinking at the movies Last Updated: Monday, December 15, 2008 | 12:20 PM ET CBC News The Cineplex cinema chain is giving some movie-goers in Toronto and Oakville, Ont., the chance to drink alcohol in the theatre for the first time. Until now, that was only permitted in Alberta. Cineplex cinemas the Varsity in Toronto and Silver City in Oakville are allowing customers to order drinks for their VIP screening rooms, with a limit of two drinks. Both cinemas have had a licenced lounge in the lobby for a few years, but drinks couldn't be taken outside the designated area. The company is trying to enhance the movie-going experience by giving patrons the option of having a drink in the screening rooms, spokesperson Pat Marshall said. "Our guests asked us to do this," she told CBC News. "People couldn't understand why they could consume an alcoholic beverage in the lounge, but 25 feet away they couldn't take that drink into the auditorium. It just didn't seem right to them." Ontario's Alcohol and Gaming Commission has changed its rules to allow alcohol in cinemas, but only where there is a licensed lounge in place and those under 19 are restricted from entering. VIP cinemas, usually smaller screening rooms with a higher ticket price, qualify because they are separate rooms that don't allow children. Mixed reactions Movie-goers had mixed feelings about the new regime, which began last week. "Well I think it's very mature and perfect and it should have been here a long time ago in Toronto," said John Stephens, who was at the Varsity to see Milk. "The VIP rooms are very comfortable and they have a little side table. It's like being in your own home without all of the expense of having a big screen like this. And then the addition of being able to have a beer or a wine is a perfect mix with the room," he said. But some said it was unnecessary to have more places to sell alcohol. "I think there's enough alcoholic establishments all over the city with every bar and restaurant. I think this is a venue that should be alcohol free," said movie-goer Jeffrey Shier. Nobody had a quarrel with the price of drinks. A beer cost $4 ? cheaper than most popcorn at the cinema concession stand. Ontario is experimenting with allowing liquor in cinemas for one year at this point, and plans to reconsider the law by November 2009. With files from Mike Crawley -------------- next part -------------- An HTML attachment was scrubbed... URL: /pipermail/fasd_canadian_link/attachments/20081216/de3270c9/attachment-0001.html From rosse at ncf.ca Tue Dec 16 22:11:16 2008 From: rosse at ncf.ca (Elspeth Ross) Date: Tue Dec 16 22:34:26 2008 Subject: [Fasd_canadian_link] The Red Road: A Sun Media special report: 15 parts Message-ID: <6.2.5.6.2.20081216221109.042bcab0@ncf.ca> [I found adoption mentioned in parts 4 & 6, FASD in parts 6 & 8 More to come] http://www.winnipegsun.com/news/canada/redroad/ http://www.winnipegsun.com/news/canada/redroad/2008/12/06/7696671.html#/news/canada/redroad/2008/12/06/pf-7696671.html Winnipeg Sun Monday, December 15, 2008 News Canada The Red Road A Sun Media special report Last Updated: 6th December 2008, 4:45pm Story Poverty, incarceration, racism, cultural isolation, diabetes, HIV infection, homelessness, alcoholism, drug addictions and a host of other social ills plague Canada's urban aboriginals. In a 15-part Sun Media special report, we probe the tragic human consequences behind our collective failure to confront the issues facing this country's First Nation's people. Video Toronto Sun columnist Mark Bonokoski explores the powerful and Click here to watch the video Toronto Sun columnist Mark Bonokoski explores the powerful and human stories that lie beneath the troubles of our First Nations people in a 15-part series entitled the Red Road. Play Video... http://www.winnipegsun.com/news/canada/redroad/ Winnipeg Sun Monday, December 15, 2008 News Canada Last Updated: 6th December 2008, 4:45pm The Red Road Poverty, incarceration, racism, cultural isolation, diabetes, HIV infection, homelessness, alcoholism, drug addictions and a host of other social ills plague Canada's urban aboriginals. In a 15-part Sun Media special report, we probe the tragic human consequences behind our collective failure to confront the issues facing this country's First Nation's people. * Full Story * Hero to the Native children * Cold case injustice * Tragic legacy, historic apology * Suffer the children * Murder, abuse and Native injustice * Profiles of the urban Native * Culture clash * Pow wow in Toronto Last Updated: 12th December 2008, 5:35pm PART 9: Refuge for homeless By MARK BONOKOSKI, Sun Media As morning breaks at Na-Me-Res, Darren Mayo, a young Saskatchewan-born Cree, conducts the daily smudging ceremony at this homeless Native men?s residence in central Toronto ? burning a crumbled ball of sweetgrass in a bowl, and letting the aromatic vanilla-like smoke waft throughout the rooms as he makes his rounds. Last Updated: 14th December 2008, 5:20am PART 8: Traditional medicine By MARK BONOKOSKI, Sun Media In a world filled with the racial stereotypes that political correctness eschews ? think monied Jews, cheap Scots, dumb Poles, and mobster Italians ? the ?drunken Indian? has long retained its ignoble place on the historic mantlepiece of humanity?s slanders. Last Updated: 12th December 2008, 5:11pm PART 8: Follow the path of the Ojibway By MARK BONOKOSKI, Sun Media In a booklet called Anishnabe 101 ? The Basics of What You Need to Know to Begin Your Journey on the Red Road (published by the Circle of Turtle Lodge out of Golden Lake, Ont.) ? the five Native plant medicines are described as such: Last Updated: 12th December 2008, 3:55pm PART 7: The elder and the Native artist By MARK BONOKOSKI, Sun Media In May of 1985, Alex Jacobs received a phone call at his Thunder Bay home from Toronto Police Sgt. Bob Crawford, then one of the few Native cops on the force, asking him to come to Toronto to officially identify the body of a young woman found dead in Grange Park. Last Updated: 12th December 2008, 3:45am PART 6: Victim of the streets By MARK BONOKOSKI, Sun Media Born in the Couchiching First Nation reserve near the Northern Ontario outpost of Fort Frances, Catherine Beaver was put up for adoption within moments of her first breath to save her from a life with hopelessly alcoholic and abusive parents, all which adversely put into play the often harsh law of unintended consequences. Last Updated: 10th December 2008, 7:18am PART 5: First Nations School teaches 'who we are' By MARK BONOKOSKI, Sun Media Until the 2007 shooting death of 15-year-old Jordan Manners at C.W. Jefferys Collegiate, and the ensuing clamour for everything from cops in the hallways to an Afrocentric elementary school, the First Nations School of Toronto rarely showed up on the media?s radar screen. Last Updated: 10th December 2008, 7:13am PART 4: Hero to the Native children By MARK BONOKOSKI, Sun Media One of the darkest days in the life of Kenn Richard came when his pride and joy -- Native Child and Family Services of Toronto -- was linked back in August to the outrageously brutal death, and the alleged pre-mortem scalping, of 7-year-old Katelynn Sampson. Last Updated: 9th December 2008, 4:03am PART 3: Cold case injustice By MARK BONOKOSKI, Sun Media On a July evening four years ago, Lana Jackson answered the door to her west-end Toronto apartment, and listened as two Toronto cops told her that her younger sister?s remains had been found in backwoods Alberta, and finally identified positively through dental records. Last Updated: 8th December 2008, 10:46am PART 2: Tragic legacy, historic apology By MARK BONOKOSKI, Sun Media On the 11th of June, Prime Minister Stephen Harper stood up in the House of Commons and issued an historic and formal apology for the tragic legacy of the Indian residential school debacle and then sought forgiveness for the students? suffering, and for the ?damaging impact the schools had on aboriginal culture, heritage and language.? Last Updated: 7th December 2008, 8:57am PART 2: Suffer the children By MARK BONOKOSKI, Sun Media The concept of residential schools to assimilate aboriginal youth has roots in the 1600s but accelerated following the War of 1812 and the failed American invasion of Upper Canada. First Nations people played a vital role in military campaigns to repel the Americans, however, after the war the incentive to appease aboriginal leaders evaporated. Last Updated: 7th December 2008, 7:16am PART 1: Murder, abuse and Native injustice By MARK BONOKOSKI, Sun Media So little has changed over so many years, with the prevailing winds of out-of-sight, out-of-mind still filling the sails of apathy over Native issues. Last Updated: 6th December 2008, 7:53am PART 1: Profiles of the urban Native By MARK BONOKOSKI, Sun Media It was an exhaustive report, five volumes of research, investigations and recommendations conceived in the wake of the anger and bloodstains of the Oka crisis of 1990. Last Updated: 6th December 2008, 7:53am PART 1: Culture clash Quotes from the Report of the Royal Commission on Aboriginal Peoples (1996): -------------- next part -------------- An HTML attachment was scrubbed... URL: /pipermail/fasd_canadian_link/attachments/20081216/f319e20b/attachment-0001.html From rosse at ncf.ca Tue Dec 16 22:09:55 2008 From: rosse at ncf.ca (Elspeth Ross) Date: Tue Dec 16 22:34:29 2008 Subject: [Fasd_canadian_link] Traditional medecine Message-ID: <6.2.5.6.2.20081216220946.041c08f8@ncf.ca> "...clients on record...dealing with medical gamut from alcoholism, fetal alcohol spectrum syndrome, diabetes, AIDS/HIV, and tuberculosis to mental health issues..." http://www.winnipegsun.com/news/canada/redroad/2008/12/12/7752971.html Winnipeg Sun Winnipeg, Manitoba Monday, December 15, 2008 News Canada PART 8: Traditional medicine By MARK BONOKOSKI, Sun Media Last Updated: 14th December 2008, 5:20am [Photo] Joe Hester, executive director of Anishnawbe Health Toronto. (Mark Bonokoski, Sun Media) In a world filled with the racial stereotypes that political correctness eschews ? think monied Jews, cheap Scots, dumb Poles, and mobster Italians ? the ?drunken Indian? has long retained its ignoble place on the historic mantlepiece of humanity?s slanders. It is an ugly epithet, but not one without a modicum of credibility. It had to come from somewhere, and writing it off as simply a predisposition among Natives to alcoholism is both ignorant and dismissive. ?We cannot deny the collusion of cultures at contact (with the Europeans) centuries ago,? says Joe Hester, a Cree, and executive director of Anishnawbe Health Toronto. ?And it manifested itself, years later, with both the colonial and the residential school syndromes. ?It created a whole array of issues and problems that are certainly related to Native health, specifically,? he says. For Joe Hester, the problem with alcohol in the aboriginal community began with the colonial whisky traders out West who introduced it to Natives as a bargaining chip, after which it worked its way further into the psyche with the Indian Act of 1876 and its decamping of Natives into reserves. It then dug a deeper hole with the yanking of upwards of 150,000 Native children from their homes in the mid-1900s, and forcing them into residential schools where physical and psychological brutality, plus the estrangement from their traditional culture, were used to whitewash the ?Indian out of them.? ?It was the attempted destruction of a people. That?s what really occurred,? says Hester. ?It didn?t quite do away with us, but it came very, very close.? As one anthropologist explained the project, the goal was to turn Natives into the equivalent of an apple cultured from some tube in a laboratory ? keeping them red on the outside, but turning them white on the inside. ?If you take away who you are. If you kill your self-esteem and you take away your self worth, well, many did turn to the bottle to escape,? says Hester. ?And terribly, and tragically, you found a diabolical happiness that was leading to your own destruction. ?Certainly alcohol wasn?t something that was part of our culture (prior to contact),? says Hester. ?It just wasn?t there. ?It?s a terrible stereotype ? the ?drunken Indian.? Even though we see it as a disease, alcoholism is a symptom of something deeper that?s going on in your life. ?Unfortunately society tends to look at what is visible from a distance, and refuses to look a little closer,? says Hester, who admits he fought the demon himself before bringing it to its knees more than 20 years ago. When the hunter-gatherer lifestyle of Natives was taken away, and reserves were created as supposed guardianships under the Indian Act, it was only then that the Native population began experiencing diseases that they had never witnessed before ? diabetes from foods that were far removed from traditional, tuberculosis from over-crowding in substandard reserve housing and, of course, a rise in alcoholism that is, in itself, persistently progressive. ?It quickly becomes inter-generational,? says Hester ?Whether it?s genetic, or a predisposition, I don?t know, but if you are in an environment (on a reserve) where it seems to be the normal course of things throughout the day, well you tend to emulate it, do you not? ?It becomes an escape from an historic pain.? At Anishnawbe Health Toronto, there are 7,500 to 8,000 clients on record at its three downtown locations, dealing with medical gamut from alcoholism, fetal alcohol spectrum syndrome, diabetes, AIDS/HIV, and tuberculosis to mental health issues that, according to Hester, are ?90% related to historical contact and 10% that are clinical.? To deal with the majority of its medical docket, Anishnawbe Health relies on Native culture ? traditional healers, elders and medicine people, aboriginal songs, dances, stories, prayers and ceremonies ? but does not negate the use of more clinical approaches if staff doctors and registered nurses see the need. Joe Hester, who has been with Anishnawbe Health for 15 years, and the last 10 as its executive director, sees the solution for the mental health issues among his clientele as being best addressed through Native culture and traditions. ?If you talk to elders, they will tell you that Native culture and traditions are much more alive in the urban area,? he says. ?They want that connection in their lives. ?We have a sweat lodge not far from here. We have sacred fires here. Our ceremonies are thousands of years old,? he says. ?We do something unheard of. ?We put our traditional people at the front end of our intake assessment process. That doesn?t mean we don?t value other approaches to health and well-being, because we do. ?We have psychiatrists, psychologists. We have counsellors. We have dental workers. We have mental-health workers, we have a diabetic program, and we have family counsellors,? says Hester. ?Over 100 personnel. ?But, to look at the historical aspect, and how it manifests, we also believe that illness starts in the spirit. ?And the person who is expert in that area, and therefore an integral part of the intake process, is the traditional healer,? says Hester. ?Only the traditional healer can truly take us home, but try to convince a Western mentality that our approach to health is legitimate. ?It?s next to impossible ? even though there are a lot of indigenous medicines on the pharmacy shelves of today. ?And medicines that go back centuries.? *** In a booklet called Anishnabe 101 ? The Basics of What You Need to Know to Begin Your Journey on the Red Road (published by the Circle of Turtle Lodge out of Golden Lake, Ont.) ? the five Native plant medicines are described as such: 1. Tobacco: Its status is No. 1. It is used as an offering before anything is harvested from Mother Earth, is believed to open the door between our world and the spiritual world, and is used to carry prayers to the Creator. Never meant to be used in a recreational sense as it is today, it was used as a proper way to ask a favour. The bigger the favour, the more tobacco is to be offered. Tradition holds that if the person is able to do what is being asked, the tobacco will compel them to do so. 2. Sage: It is the woman?s medicine. While it is said to be a masculine plant, it reduces or eliminates negative energy. Often in women?s circles, only sage is used in smudging ceremonies. While there are many varieties of sage, this sage is not the one available as a spice. In Eastern Ontario, this variety of sage is commonly known as Pearly Everlasting, a silvery-green, single-stalk plant with a crown of white, fuzzy blossoms. It grows everywhere, especially where there is poison ivy, and is best picked in late August. 3. Cedar: It offers protection and grounding. Most Native ceremonies include making a protective ring of cedar around the activity circle. Boughs can be hung at the entrances of homes. Small leaves can be kept in a medicine bag and worn daily, or can be put in shoes when extra grounding is needed. Cedar tea is often served during times of teaching and circles, so that the mind can focus on the task at hand. 4. Sweetgrass: It is perhaps the best known of Native medicines. It is said to be a feminine plant that teaches kindness because it bends without breaking. It is considered to be the hair of Mother Earth. Known for its gentle scent, it is used in smudging ceremonies to push out negative energy and attract positive energy. It grows in wetlands and is picked in mid-summer. 5. Strawberries: Their medicine is reconciliation. They teach how to forgive, and are shared in ceremonies to remind that life is too short to hold grudges. Tomorrow: The homeless -------------- next part -------------- An HTML attachment was scrubbed... URL: /pipermail/fasd_canadian_link/attachments/20081216/8be19aca/attachment-0001.html From rosse at ncf.ca Tue Dec 16 22:09:03 2008 From: rosse at ncf.ca (Elspeth Ross) Date: Tue Dec 16 22:34:32 2008 Subject: [Fasd_canadian_link] Victim of the streets Message-ID: <6.2.5.6.2.20081216220855.03eb6a40@ncf.ca> Skipped content of type multipart/related-------------- next part -------------- From rosse at ncf.ca Tue Dec 16 22:07:37 2008 From: rosse at ncf.ca (Elspeth Ross) Date: Tue Dec 16 22:34:35 2008 Subject: [Fasd_canadian_link] Disputed tests give misleading data Message-ID: <6.2.5.6.2.20081216220727.03e2f798@ncf.ca> "...Wealthy schools don't have to cope with high rates of fetal-alcohol syndrome..." www.canada.com 13 Dec 2008 Times Colonist Disputed tests give misleading data Bravo to the teachers who are resisting standardized Foundation Skills Assessment testing. It's time to get rid of this narrow, misleading assessment. Year after year, the FSA results are the same: Kids in affluent areas are doing great while those in lowincome neighbourhoods are not. The implication is that high-performing schools are doing something right and that schools with weaker results can somehow pull up their socks. This is a dangerous misconception. Wealthy schools do not have to deal with hungry kids. Wealthy schools don't have to cope with high rates of fetal-alcohol syndrome or uninvolved, possibly drugaddicted parents. The average exam scores in these schools are going to be low. How dare we suggest that teachers struggling to make a difference in those underprivileged schools could do better, based on average FSA scores? Many high-ranking "elite" schools don't even accept students with learning disabilities, weak academic records or behavioural issues. Current educational research clearly shows that doing well on a test is not necessarily correlated with mastering course concepts. Some people can become very, very good at taking tests. Others experience exam anxiety and do poorly in spite of knowing the material well. A two-hour, high-stress exam snapshot should not be relied upon to tell us what our kids have learned, or how well our schools are performing. The data is misused by the Fraser Institute and that is a blatant manipulation of the truth. Richard Brunt Victoria -------------- next part -------------- An HTML attachment was scrubbed... URL: /pipermail/fasd_canadian_link/attachments/20081216/68951afc/attachment-0001.html From rosse at ncf.ca Tue Dec 16 22:05:02 2008 From: rosse at ncf.ca (Elspeth Ross) Date: Tue Dec 16 22:34:38 2008 Subject: [Fasd_canadian_link] Disabilities savings plan set to roll out Message-ID: <6.2.5.6.2.20081216220454.041acd20@ncf.ca> [Don't know if FASD qualities as a disability for this savings plan? It is for people "severely disabled"] www.canada.com 14 Dec 2008 Ottawa Citizen BY NORMA GREENAWAY Disabilities savings plan set to roll out Government will top up deposits by up to $4,500 a year Imagine putting $1,500 into a savings account and having the government top that up with $4,500. And imagine that happening every year for several years. [Photo] BRUNO SCHLUMBERGER, THE OTTAWA CITIZEN Julie and Kalman Fejes of Ottawa will open a Registered Disabilities Savings Plan for their daughter, Ildiko, this month. Sound too good to be true? Not for Kalman and Julie Fejes. They are parents of an adult daughter with Down syndrome who is expected to qualify for the maximum in federal grants and bonds for 11 years under a new program being rolled out this month as the latest addition to Canada?s social safety net. The program, dubbed the ?peace of mind? plan by some, is designed to allow families and friends to build ? with the help of some hefty government assistance ? a financially secure future for severely disabled loved ones. ?Even if we aren?t around, the rent still has to be paid,? said Julie Fejes, referring to the reality her daughter faces if, as they hope, she outlives them and can no longer count on them to help her make ends meet. The Ottawa couple is ready to slap down $1,500 to open a Registered Disability Savings Plan account before the end of December. The move will trigger a federal contribution of $3,500 in matching funds, as well as a $1,000 federal ?bond,? for a total investment of $6,000 this year Ildiko Fejes, 38, works about 17 hours a week as a library clerk for the CRTC. She qualifies for a maximum $1,000 government bond because her annual income is below $21,000. She also qualifies for the maximum government savings grant of $3,500 because her family?s annual income is less than $75,769. Under the system, the government provides $3 for every dollar on the first $500 invested, and $2 for every $1 contributed on the next $2,000 for a total of $3,500 a year. For those whose family income is more than $75,769, the government puts in $1 dollar for each dollar contributed to a maximum of $1,000 a year. The RDSP, which became a legal entity on Dec. 1, is an appealing option for those who face the prospect of not outliving their severely disabled children, siblings or friends. Ildiko?s father, a retired computer specialist, says he hopes the money invested in the account will grow to a nest egg of about $100,000 by the time Ildiko turns 50. The government grants and bonds end at that time, but others can contribute to a person?s RDSP until the beneficiary reaches age 59 or dies. Currently surrounded by a solid network of family and friends, Ildiko, a former Special Olympics athlete who is considered high functioning, has been living on her own in an apartment for about the last three years. Contributions to the RDSP would not be tax free, but the income earned on those contributions would not be taxed until the disabled person started to receive income from the plan. BMO/Bank of Montreal plans to offer RDSPs starting Dec. 22. Other banks and financial institutions are expected to follow. The government, which earmarked $115 million for the program this year, will get off light for now because there is so little time left for people to open accounts and qualify for the grants and bonds before Jan. 1. It has said it expects to spend about $200 million a year once the program is rolling. Another important piece of the puzzle has been getting provinces and territories to commit to exempting RDSP assets and withdrawals from social assistance calculations. Ontario signed on two weeks ago, removing the last hurdle to the Fejeses? plan to open a registered account in their daughter?s name before year?s end. B.C., Alberta, Saskatchewan, Ontario and Newfoundland and Labrador had agreed earlier to exempt RDSP assets and income from social assistance, while Quebec has opted for a limited exemption. Canwest News Service -------------- next part -------------- An HTML attachment was scrubbed... URL: /pipermail/fasd_canadian_link/attachments/20081216/aeed4f43/attachment-0001.html From rosse at ncf.ca Tue Dec 16 22:03:51 2008 From: rosse at ncf.ca (Elspeth Ross) Date: Tue Dec 16 22:34:41 2008 Subject: [Fasd_canadian_link] Woman sentenced to four years for bank robbery Message-ID: <6.2.5.6.2.20081216220344.03e2f968@ncf.ca> "...She suffered fetal alcohol syndrome and is developmentally disabled, her adoptive mother said earlier...." http://www.mlive.com/grpress/news/index.ssf/2008/12/woman_sentenced_to_four_years.html mlive.com Grand Rapids Press Grand Rapids, Michigan News Woman sentenced to four years for bank robbery by John Agar | The Grand Rapids Press Friday December 12, 2008, 3:22 PM [Photo] Alisa Patterson GRAND RAPIDS -- Alisa Patterson has led a troubled life, but her family members describe her as warm and caring, with an easy laugh. Another description -- bank robber -- is getting her locked up for the next four years. Patterson, 28, of Grand Rapids, admitted she robbed the Chase bank at 4375 Breton Ave. SE in February -- one of six robberies police linked to Patterson and her co-defendant, Thomas Gordon, 27. Patterson was sentenced Thursday by U.S. District Judge Robert Holmes Bell. Gordon is to be sentenced next week. In a plea agreement, the defendants each are charged in only one bank robbery. Gordon pleaded guilty in a May holdup at the Comerica bank at 4065 Plainfield Ave. NE. He wrote a letter that Patterson handed tellers. "Hi! I'm back," it said. "I got a .357 handgun. Do you know what caliber this is. It will tear all the stomach tissue apart. ..." Patterson said Gordon and a woman threatened her if she did not take part in the robberies. In a letter to the court, she wanted to "express a sincere apology to the courts and society for my role, actions and behavior in this matter. I have had the opportunity to examine my life and accept some things about myself that I had not dealt with prior to this indictment." She said her father's 2007 death was the "start of my depression and the downward spiral of my life." An aunt described her as a "good girl," but "naive" and "gullible." She also has health concerns, including congestive heart failure. She suffered fetal alcohol syndrome and is developmentally disabled, her adoptive mother said earlier. The mother cares for Patterson's two children. Her lawyer, Scott Mertens, said Patterson had a difficult childhood, and she was on Ritalin for attention-deficit disorder from the ages of 3 to 15. "At a time when she is obviously experiencing such incredible darkness, Ms. Patterson has always greeted me with a smile and kind words," her lawyer wrote in court papers. "However, I also see a vulnerable and scared little girl who carries the weight of the world on her little shoulders ... ." Patterson has to pay $16,000 in restitution, which includes money taken in all the robberies. Once out of prison, she will serve three years on supervised release. E-mail John Agar: jagar@grpress.com -------------- next part -------------- An HTML attachment was scrubbed... URL: /pipermail/fasd_canadian_link/attachments/20081216/a6d2ed9b/attachment.html From rosse at ncf.ca Tue Dec 16 22:03:02 2008 From: rosse at ncf.ca (Elspeth Ross) Date: Tue Dec 16 22:34:44 2008 Subject: [Fasd_canadian_link] Uniform poverty measure urged: Alberta Message-ID: <6.2.5.6.2.20081216220253.03e2fca0@ncf.ca> "...a single mother who has fetal alcohol spectrum disorder, said the bills stack up quickly and it's difficult to make ends meet..." http://www.canada.com/calgaryherald/news/city/story.html?id=b27c22da-5a90-4b99-9553-e023ef421274 Calgary Herald Calgary, Alberta Uniform poverty measure urged Jamie Komarnicki Calgary Herald Thursday, December 11, 2008 An advocate group for disabled Albertans is calling on the government to adopt a uniform measurement of poverty to better aid the province's less fortunate. For the 37,000 recipients of the Assured Income for the Severely Handicapped program, the holidays are an especially difficult time, said Colleen Huston of the Disability Action Hall. The group has launched a petition and postcard campaign urging the government to adopt the Statistics Canada low income cut-off measurement as a way to gauge poverty in the province. A small group gathered on the steps of the McDougall Centre on Wednesday to describe the plight faced by many disabled Albertans. Christina Stebanuk, 35,a single mother who has fetal alcohol spectrum disorder, said the bills stack up quickly and it's difficult to make ends meet. "I don't like Christmas.I can't afford to buy my son the presents he wants," she said. Although the provincial government doesn't follow the same guidelines as Statistics Canada, the current AISH payment--a maximum of $1,088 a month--has gone up 28 per cent over the past five years, a spokeswoman for the Ministry of Seniors and Community Supports said Wednesday. The AISH program also offers a variety of benefits to aid recipients, said Jennifer Guzzwell. "We recognize, especially with the economy, it's difficult for our AISH clients.We do as much as we can," she said. But Huston said the low in-come cut-off measurement is a reliable guideline to determine how many people are living in poverty, including the majority of AISH recipients. Jkomarnicki@theherald. Canwest.com -------------- next part -------------- An HTML attachment was scrubbed... URL: /pipermail/fasd_canadian_link/attachments/20081216/7dee132f/attachment.html From rosse at ncf.ca Tue Dec 16 22:01:51 2008 From: rosse at ncf.ca (Elspeth Ross) Date: Tue Dec 16 22:34:47 2008 Subject: [Fasd_canadian_link] A lifetime of devotion Message-ID: <6.2.5.6.2.20081216220137.042bd070@ncf.ca> "...What they didn't know was that Ashley's birth mother consumed heavy doses of drugs and alcohol during her pregnancy, leaving her with fetal alcohol syndrome.... "...have applied for money through thePassport initiative, designed to help those with disabilities, who are making the transition from high school into adulthood.... "...across the province, 2,100 families are currently on the wait list to receive Passport funding...." http://www.theobserver.ca/ArticleDisplay.aspx?e=1341993 Sarnia Observer Sarnia, Ontario Local news Editor?s note: This is the third in a four-part series about aging parents caring for their handicapped children. SPECIAL REPORT: A lifetime of devotion Posted 2 days ago [as of Dec. 17, 2008] By TARA HAGAN The Observer The snow begins to drizzle outside as John and Judy Shepley gaze from their livingroom window. Surrounded by towering trees, their Alvinston home is the perfect picture of what the couple always wanted: a private escape in the country; their own little haven. At age 65, the Shepleys appear to be a typical retired couple. Seated around the fireplace they seem relaxed, content. But in their minds, worry and stress have taken over. They live uncertainly, wondering what will come next. For them, work hasn't stopped for two decades. They've never had a break, a vacation, a moment to relax. Their aging limbs are frail; their eyes tired. Their's is a never-ending job. In the centre of the room Ashley, their 20-year-old daughter, is on her knees. She holds up a copy of the movie Beethoven, and then, on all fours, clumsily hauls her five-foot-nine, 180-pound body to the VCR and pops in the tape. The film comes on the TV screen and Ashley begins laughing hysterically, clapping her hands, and rolling on the carpet with joy. After countless miscarriages, Shepleys had been told they were unable to have children and adopted Ashley, a Blackfoot from Alberta, at the age of three weeks. When she arrived, they knew they were doing the right thing; the couple had the family they'd been longing for. "I was so full of joy, so happy about it," says Judy. What they didn't know was that Ashley's birth mother consumed heavy doses of drugs and alcohol during her pregnancy, leaving her with fetal alcohol syndrome. At age three, Ashley still hadn?t learned to walk, and it was then that doctors made a horrific discovery. Her brain, feet, mouth and nervous system are underdeveloped, leaving her functioning at the level of a three year old. "She needs a lot of attention," says Judy, seated across the room from her husband. "I've been home ever since we got her." Ashley requires constant one-on-one care. She cannot be left alone, has limited communication, and suffers from seizures. At times, she can be physically aggressive, John explains, noting that while driving, their daughter will reach from the back seat and wrap her arms around their necks. Judy, who spent years carrying Ashley around, in and out of her wheelchair, has crippling back problems and high blood pressure. "Sometimes, I don't know if I can do it anymore," she says, beginning to cry. "We exercise... I try to go on." She recalls the day she came home to find John lying lifeless on the floor. It was February, 2007, and he had suffered a heart attack, followed by two more the same month. He underwent triple bypass surgery and shortly after was hospitalized with pneumonia. The Shepleys never imagined their lives would turn out like this. "There's things I just don't do anymore," said Judy, who has given up work, a social life and dreams of traveling. "My wife and I are patient and long suffering," says John. "The load is very stressing, physically and emotionally. Our whole life has changed." Ashley recently graduated from Lambton Central high school in Petrolia, which means she is now home full-time. Each day, the couple get a break when a Red Cross worker comes to the home for two hours, and they often take advantage of weekend respite through Community Living. "We're just making it," says Judy. "If I didn't have this help. I don't know what I would do." But not a day goes by they don?t worry about the future. "After we're gone ? then what? What happens to her?" says John. "Life is going to go on and we have to think about these things, to be fair to Ashley and to society. "A lot of parents are worried like that." Both have agreed they want Ashley in their home as long as possible. When they're no longer able to look after her, the couple would like her to have residential placement. But the local waitlist is staggering ? currently sitting at 106 individuals. In the past, the Shepleys have applied for money through the Passport initiative, designed to help those with disabilities, who are making the transition from high school into adulthood. Individual families must apply for the money, provided by the Ministry of Community and Social Services, which is often used to purchase additional day support services. "That way, I could have a girl here all day long," said Judy. "And I could still be here with Ashley. That would be my desire." But across the province, 2,100 families are currently on the wait list to receive Passport funding. In Sarnia alone, the wait list is 87 names long. And since 2006 only 17 local families have received the money. The Shepleys say they have given up hope on getting those funds. Judy and John say they don't know how they've done it ? day in, day out ? for 20 years. But they're not complaining. "It's not Ashley's fault, you know?" says John. "It's God's grace; it's our love for her," Judy says. "Some people can't handle it but I was made to, because I love her." On Saturday, read about the Real People Campaign and its goal of obtaining more government funding for stressed out families. Article ID# 1341993 -------------- next part -------------- An HTML attachment was scrubbed... URL: /pipermail/fasd_canadian_link/attachments/20081216/5fa37af6/attachment.html From rosse at ncf.ca Wed Dec 17 09:09:06 2008 From: rosse at ncf.ca (Elspeth Ross) Date: Wed Dec 17 09:18:18 2008 Subject: [Fasd_canadian_link] Slim chance for parole from a prison of the mind Message-ID: <6.2.5.6.2.20081217090857.0464e890@ncf.ca> "..A 15- year-old Ontario girl pleaded guilty to second-degree murder....in the Welland foster home.....was described as displaying signs of fetal alcohol syndrome..." http://www.theglobeandmail.com/servlet/story/RTGAM.20081124.wmhicrs24/BNStory/mentalhealth/?pageRequested=all&print=true Globe & Mail Toronto Breakdown: Canada's Mental-Health Crisis Slim chance for parole from a prison of the mind It was a federal program meant to get mentally ill young offenders into treatment and out of prisons and lives of crime. It could decide the future of Canada's youngest violent criminals, including an Alberta girl who murdered her parents and brother. But five years after its creation, the IRCS system is hamstrung by restrictive laws and scarce health-care resources, critics say DAWN WALTON From Monday's Globe and Mail November 24, 2008 at 4:38 AM EST CALGARY ? Canadian courts are rarely using an innovative federal program designed to rehabilitate mentally ill teens responsible for horrendous crimes, raising concerns that Canada's most troubled youth are returning to the streets without treatment. When Ottawa introduced the Youth Criminal Justice Act in 2003, officials predicted 50 young offenders a year would qualify for the new intensive rehabilitative custody and supervision order - a regime based on the premise that because young minds are malleable, they are also treatable. But now, more than five years into the program, no more than two dozen teens overall have received the sentence. Experts say the legislation is too restrictive and that Canada lacks the mental-health resources to deal with adolescent criminals. Some complain this last-ditch resource is being bypassed for frivolous reasons, such as offenders being caught smoking or oversleeping. Ottawa says it has taken some steps to remedy the situation, but those who work in the system argue that more needs to be done. The most notorious offender to receive an IRCS order is an Alberta girl, identified only as J.R., who became Canada's youngest triple murderer after being convicted in the 2006 stabbing deaths of her mother, father and younger brother - crimes committed when she was just 12 years old. [Photo] Jeremy Steinke, 25, is on trial in Calgary for first-degree murder in the deaths of his girlfriend?s parents and brother. The girlfriend, 12 years old at the time of the crimes, has been convicted and is serving her sentence in a psychiatric hospital. (Anne Petrie/The Canadian Press) J.R.'s parents had banned her from seeing her boyfriend, Jeremy Steinke, then 23, who is now on trial, charged with three counts of first-degree murder. At her own trial, J.R. was described as "seriously disturbed" and given the maximum 10-year sentence under the IRCS program, which she is serving at an Alberta hospital. J.R. is, in a sense, a test case. Canada has a disproportionately large number of mentally ill youngsters in the criminal justice system. Those who work with adolescent offenders are hopeful that a rigorous treatment regime with psychiatrists, psychologists and therapists will help rehabilitate even the most disturbed minds. "It's like the last possible chance these children have," said Ken McCaffrey, a veteran Crown prosecutor in Calgary. "It's not like I have a great faith, as much as you have to be willing to take a chance. Otherwise these kids' lives, their script has been written for them." FIRST STEPS B.J.A. was just 14 when he peered over his sleeping mother, who was curled up on the living room sofa in her Calgary home, and stabbed her 10 times in the neck and head, a court would later learn. He let her bleed to death, put the knife - its tip broken from striking bone - in the dishwasher, tossed a bloody shirt into the laundry and trotted off to bed. The teen's older brother discovered the gruesome scene on the morning of Oct. 11, 2001. B.J.A., who cannot be identified, was "unemotional" when interviewed by police and even "bragged" about the killing, the prosecutor told the court. The apparent motive: His 42-year-old mother had grounded him from seeing his girlfriend. The boy pleaded guilty to second-degree murder and, after being examined by mental-health experts, was diagnosed as having schizoid personality traits. In 2004, he became the first person convicted of murder to be sentenced under the IRCS program and was handed the maximum penalty for second-degree murder under the legislation: seven years. With time already served, he was ordered to spend two years in Alberta Hospital, a forensic psychiatric facility in Edmonton, to be followed by three years supervision in the community. The federal legislation, after years of study and stacks of reports, was introduced on April 1, 2003. The Youth Criminal Justice Act replaced the much-maligned Young Offenders Act and acknowledged what researchers had been noting for years: Canada's incarceration rate of adolescents is one of the highest in the Western world. To qualify for specialized treatment, the young person must suffer from a "mental illness or disorder, a psychological disorder or an emotional disturbance" and have committed a serious offence. Crimes include first- or second-degree murder, attempted murder, manslaughter or aggravated sexual assault. But youths with a significant criminal record who are convicted for some other serious violent offence could also qualify. Under the maximum 10-year sentence, up to six years are spent in custody, in places such as psychiatric hospitals and youth correctional centres, before the teen is moved into group homes and finally into the community under supervision. Jeff Wong, a clinical and forensic psychologist based in Hamilton, has been involved with a few such cases, including that of a teenage boy who struck another young man who subsequently died of his injuries, and one of a teenage girl who smothered a toddler to death in their foster home. The young man is functioning back in the community and is not a risk for committing another violent offence, Dr. Wong said, while the young woman is in secure custody working on reducing her chances of re-offending. "She's making progress," he said. "It's not just lip service." Yet few troubled youngsters receive the IRCS sentence. Ottawa initially estimated that about 50 IRCS sentences would be handed out each year across the country, and made agreements with the provinces and territories to pay for treatment. Through the program, each jurisdiction can receive up to $200,000 to support specialized assessment and treatment, and the federal government would provide an additional $100,375 per offender each year. But according to the Canadian Centre for Justice Statistics, only 16 young people received the sentence from 2003 to 2007. There have been a handful of cases since then. Officials said some early cases may have fallen through the statistical cracks. Some jurisdictions have been slow to adopt the new option. In other cases, young offenders may have refused treatment. Nicholas Bala, a professor at Queen's University in Kingston who specializes in children's law, said often offenders are not being properly identified when they enter the system. "There is power for the judge to order an assessment," he said. "But often under [the act] it's not done. They are then incarcerated. Sometimes their mental-health problems become exacerbated when they're in custody and then they're released without treatment." Even if candidates for the program make it to the assessment, Mr. McCaffrey says, they are being rejected for what he considers invalid reasons. "We've had children thrown out of these programs because of smoking," he said, " 'Johnny's not obeying the rules, therefore he's not a good candidate for the program.' Adolescent boys will smoke. I don't know if that's a legitimate reason to give up on somebody." At the same time, the health-care system remains chronically short of doctors and facilities to make the initial assessment. Sometimes mental-health workers won't make a diagnosis because of the young person's age. Over all, says Carole Saindon, a federal Justice Department spokeswoman, the original criteria for the program were "overly restrictive," and very little funding has been used. In April, 2007, the Justice Minister expanded the scope to include other serious violent offences such as aggravated assault, wounding with intent, arson and disregard for human life. The federal budget for the new five-year agreements - April 1, 2008 to March 31, 2013 - is more than $11-million a year. Mr. McCaffrey, who has handled the bulk of Alberta's IRCS cases, said these kids are destined for a life of crime - or worse - if they wind up in a penal environment rather than a therapeutic one. He recalled a case involving one teenage boy he thought should have qualified for an IRCS order, but ended up in an adult prison - where he committed suicide. "That may have happened anyway," Mr. McCaffrey said. "I'm not suggesting that that's the cause. I'm suggesting that really it is the last stop for these people." NEXT STEPS Not everyone is enamoured of the IRCS program. Some view the sentence as a kind of easy ride or camp for kids responsible for heinous crimes. Others are willing to wait and see. Now 15, J.R. appeared last month in a Medicine Hat courtroom via video-conference from the hospital for her mandatory annual sentence review. She has had a number of diagnoses, including conduct disorder and oppositional defiant disorder. And defence lawyer Tim Foster told the court that a recent report by a new psychiatrist wasn't entirely positive, describing her as suffering from a "failure to internalize." But he said J.R. is "engaging well and participating" in psychotherapy and group activities and had had "very few difficulties." J.R.'s grandfather said from his home in Sudbury that he speaks to his granddaughter by phone once a month. He doesn't sound as convinced about her progress. "I think you need to read between the lines," he said. "I don't know [if] she's doing too well. It's debatable." As for B.J.A., who killed his mother, lawyer James Conway said regular meals, along with medication and individual and group therapy, have improved his physical and emotional health. By 2006, he was allowed to move to a group home. "He's really doing excellent," his father said then. B.J.A. is 21 now. In February, 2009, his sentence will end and with it regular visits to psychiatrists and monitoring by the courts. He is living in a basement suite with a family that knows his history and supports him. He follows strict rules about where he can go and what he can do. Skilled at both art and math, he once dreamed of being an architect. For now, he works in a coffee shop. He's had minor relapses, including marijuana use, that led to time spent back in custody, his lawyer said. But despite his initial diagnosis showing traits of emotional coldness and a penchant for an anti-social lifestyle, B.J.A. has new friends, though he has trouble leaning on them for support. "How does he tell them?" Mr. Conway said. "He's got this deep, dark secret." Still, those who have worked with him are optimistic. Mr. Conway describes his client as the "poster child" of the program. "It certainly seems to me it's been beneficial. He's a much healthier person," the lawyer said. "He's not an aggressive person by any means." B.J.A. carries a heavy burden to prove he's worthy of the last-chance effort. "After this," Mr. Conway said, "he's sort of on his own." ***** CASE HISTORIES Some cases of youths ordered by Canadian courts to serve intensive rehabilitative custody and supervision sentences: Winnipeg, 2008 Two 16-year-old Winnipeg girls - cousins - admitted their roles in the stabbing death of a stranger. Kristi Hall was a 36-year-old mother of two when she encountered the girls, who were 15 and had been drinking and popping pills. One teen, who pleaded guilty to second-degree murder, came from a troubled home, her father a career criminal and her mother a crack addict; she was sentenced to four years in secure custody and three years under supervision. The other, who pleaded guilty to manslaughter, also had a difficult childhood and was at a high risk for suicide. She was given a three-year sentence, including two years in secure custody and one under supervision in the community. Welland, Ont., 2007 A 15-year-old Ontario girl pleaded guilty to second-degree murder for suffocating Matthew Reid, 3, in the Welland foster home where they were both living in 2005. The teen, who was 14 at the time, was described as displaying signs of fetal alcohol syndrome, had the cognitive age of six and suffered from attachment disorder as well as attention deficit hyperactivity disorder and anger issues. She was sentenced to four years in secure custody, to be followed by three years under supervision in the community. Calgary, 2007 A Calgary man, 18 and a U.S. citizen, pleaded guilty to manslaughter in the stabbing death of 18-year-old Tui Voegelin, who picked a fight with the drunk and high teen, then 17, at a house party in 2006. Psychiatrists agreed that the offender was remorseful and could be rehabilitated. He was sentenced to three years, the first two likely spent at a forensic psychiatric hospital and the final year under supervision in the community. Ottawa, 2007 An 18-year-old Ottawa girl pleaded guilty to manslaughter in the 2006 stabbing death of 52-year-old motorcycle mechanic Pierre Lapointe. The girl, who was 17 at the time of the killing, was raised by an abusive, alcoholic mother and suffered from post-traumatic stress disorder. She was sentenced to 32 months in secure custody at a youth correctional centre and one month supervision in the community. BLOOD RESERVE, ALTA., 2006 A 16-year-old boy from the Blood reserve in southern Alberta was convicted of manslaughter in the 2003 beating death of 18-year-old Blake (Husky) Bird. The boy, 13 at the time of the incident, had been drinking heavily. He was sentenced to two years in custody and nine months of supervision in the community. ELMIRA, ONT., 2006 A 17-year-old boy from Elmira, Ont., pleaded guilty to robbery and using an imitation firearm in stealing medical marijuana from a 39-year-old disabled woman. The teen, who had a number of convictions for crimes involving assaults with a weapon, suffered from attention deficit hyperactivity disorder, anxiety, depression and anger-management issue. He was sentenced to two years in secure custody at a youth correctional centre and one year of supervision in the community. Dawn Walton ***** THE SERIES Saturday Children and mental illness, by Erin Anderssen and Andr? Picard Today A last resort for violent teens, by Dawn Walton Tuesday How doctors discriminate against mental illness, by Carolyn Abraham Wednesday Growing old with bipolar disorder, by Justine Hunter Thursday Lonely lives in the institution, by Erin Anderssen Friday Forcing adults into treatment, by Andr? Picard Saturday Faces of the breakdown, a photo gallery by Charla Jones -------------- next part -------------- An HTML attachment was scrubbed... URL: /pipermail/fasd_canadian_link/attachments/20081217/d187304a/attachment-0001.html From rosse at ncf.ca Wed Dec 17 09:09:26 2008 From: rosse at ncf.ca (Elspeth Ross) Date: Wed Dec 17 09:18:24 2008 Subject: [Fasd_canadian_link] What we can all learn from Nunavut Message-ID: <6.2.5.6.2.20081217090916.0464eef8@ncf.ca> "...The social problems that plague the territory - ......babies born with fetal alcohol syndrome and birth defects caused by poor nutrition - all have their roots in the breakdown of social structures, and rebuilding those links is also stressed...." http://www.theglobeandmail.com/servlet/story/LAC.20081127.LPICARD27/TPStory/?query=fetal+alcohol Globe & Mail Health: SECOND OPINION: PUBLIC HEALTH POLICY: PREVENTION, NOT JUST SICKNESS CARE What we can all learn from Nunavut There, Canada's new Health Minister set fixed targets to build healthy communities - let's hope she brings new thinking to Ottawa ANDRE PICARD apicard@globandmail.com November 27, 2008 As a rookie MP, Leona Aglukkaq comes to Ottawa with little political baggage. But Canada's new Health Minister has some fascinating carry-on baggage in the form of her record as the Minister of Health and Social Services in Nunavut. To begin with, take note of her former title: Nunavut has the good sense to recognize that health and social services are intimately linked. Until 1996, Canada had a Minister of National Health and Welfare. While welfare has become a dirty word, the contribution of social programs (and the income distribution policies at their root) to health remain unassailable. The countries with the healthiest populations are not those that spend the most on sickness care, but those with the most carefully woven social safety nets, those that recognize that good (or bad) health is intimately linked to socioeconomic circumstances. That point of view is front and centre in Nunavut's public health strategy, titled "Developing Healthy Communities." "I know that, in addition to caring for people when they are ill, it is just as important to develop policies, programs and services which keep people from becoming ill," Ms. Aglukkaq wrote in the preface to the report. Nunavut, a sprawling, sparsely populated territory, gets little attention on the national stage. What distinguishes it in the health field is that most of its measures are well below those of Canada as a whole. Life expectancy in Nunavut is 10 years less than the national average. Infant mortality is four times the Canadian average. More than anything, this is a testament to Canada's shameful neglect of aboriginal peoples. What is too often overlooked is that, in addition to massive health challenges, Nunavut has a crackerjack team of public health officials, led by chief medical officer of health Isaac Sobol. It is also tackling the challenges as well as anyone, with the most elaborate and thoughtful public health goals in the country. At this point, it's worth remembering that, a few years back, Canada set out to develop national public health goals, but the exercise - led by former public health minister Carolyn Bennett and former Manitoba minister of healthy living Theresa Oswald - was quietly shelved. (Ms. Oswald is currently Health Minister for the province.) What is left is a series of draft public health goals "for discussion purposes only" that, with some effort, can be located on the website healthycanadians.ca. They read as follows: Overarching public health goals 1) Improve the length and quality of life of Canadians 2) Eliminate health inequalities among Canadians Public health goals 1) Participation and influence in society 2) Economic and social security 3) Secure and favourable conditions during childhood and adolescence 4) Healthier working life 5) Healthy and safe environments and products 6) Health and medical care that more actively promotes health 7) Effective protection against communicable diseases 8) Safe sexuality and good reproductive health 9) Increased physical activity 10) Good eating habits and safe food 11) Reduced use of tobacco and illicit drugs, misuse of alcohol, a society free from doping and a reduction in the harmful effects of excessive gambling. Even someone with a casual interest in public health will recognize that these goals are so vague and platitudinous as to be virtually meaningless. That is because the exercise is only half done. Public health goals, to have meaning, need to be followed by specific targets and progress reports. The public health goals in Nunavut have a lot more edge, and many are backed up with clear targets. For example, the goal of increasing "healthy birth outcomes" includes getting 80 per cent of pregnant women to take prenatal vitamins (including folic acid and vitamin D) by 2013. The goal of "increasing the number of children achieving age-appropriate developmental milestones" is backed with several fixed targets, too, including increasing breastfeeding rates by 5 per cent, reducing the incidence of child injury by 5 per cent and cutting by half the rates of rickets and anemia. Most importantly, Nunavut's public health goals explicitly acknowledge the important role that poverty, education and family and community supports play in health. The social problems that plague the territory - alcoholism, sexual abuse, astronomical rates of traumatic injury, babies born with fetal alcohol syndrome and birth defects caused by poor nutrition - all have their roots in the breakdown of social structures, and rebuilding those links is also stressed. Finally, Nunavut's public health goals speak of the "prerequisites for success," including the need to build more public health capacity at the local level and to reconfigure organizational structures so that public health, sickness care and social services can work together. Ms. Aglukkaq has an unenviable task as the Minister of Health during an economic crisis. Health, after all, is the department that eats everybody else's lunch. But as political leaders mull over how to best stimulate the economy with new approaches, Ms. Aglukkaq should remind them that new thinking is in order in the health field, too. It's not enough to have a $172-billion-a-year repair shop; we need to invest in creating healthy populations and do so with specific goals and targets in mind. We need to bring a little bit of Nunavut to the rest of Canada. -------------- next part -------------- An HTML attachment was scrubbed... URL: /pipermail/fasd_canadian_link/attachments/20081217/1aee9fa1/attachment-0001.html From rosse at ncf.ca Wed Dec 17 09:10:41 2008 From: rosse at ncf.ca (Elspeth Ross) Date: Wed Dec 17 09:18:31 2008 Subject: [Fasd_canadian_link] Aboriginal policing: Part 10 The Red Road Message-ID: <6.2.5.6.2.20081217091022.0464df98@ncf.ca> Skipped content of type multipart/related-------------- next part -------------- From rosse at ncf.ca Wed Dec 17 09:10:55 2008 From: rosse at ncf.ca (Elspeth Ross) Date: Wed Dec 17 09:18:36 2008 Subject: [Fasd_canadian_link] New Report Says British Columbians Drinking More Message-ID: <6.2.5.6.2.20081217091048.0464de50@ncf.ca> :...In order to reverse the negative impacts of alcohol, Kendall also recommends government ....increase resources for Fetal Alcohol Spectrum Disorder... " http://www.opinion250.com/blog/view/11560/3/new+report+says+british+columbians+drinking+more Opinion 250 Prince George, B. C. New Report Says British Columbians Drinking More By 250 News Tuesday, December 16, 2008 10:38 AM Prince George, B.C.- A new report from the Province's provincial health officer reveals that British Columbians are drinking more alcohol, with consumption up by 8% since 2002. In the Northern Health region, the stats indicate consumption is 9.73 litres a year per person. The 2008 report, Public Health Approach to Alcohol Policy, is an update to Dr. Perry Kendall's 2002 alcohol policy report and indicates the rapid expansion in the number of liquor stores has likely contributed to an increase in consumption and revenues, but also to an increase inharms to health. The report also reviews government's current alcohol policy and makes recommendations to reduce the health and social harms of alcohol while maintaining the economic and social benefits. "While we recognize alcohol is part of many people's social agenda, data clearly indicate the health and social costs of present patterns of alcohol consumption measurably outweigh the benefits," said Kendall. "I encourage government to undertake a cross-ministry approach to addressing the role of alcohol in our society. The development of the government's 10-year plan for mental health and addictions provides an opportunity for attention to our most costly substance use problem." In order to reverse the negative impacts of alcohol, Kendall also recommends government continues to monitor alcohol consumption patterns, focus on initiatives to reduce harmful alcohol use by youth, commit to reducing alcohol-impaired driving, increase resources for Fetal Alcohol Spectrum Disorder, and implement a small levy on high alcohol content drinks. "Reports like this present useful information on patterns and trends that allow senior policy makers to discuss beneficial changes," said Tim Stockwell from the Centre for Addictions Research of BC (CARBC), who co-authored the report. -------------- next part -------------- An HTML attachment was scrubbed... URL: /pipermail/fasd_canadian_link/attachments/20081217/c75e5ce0/attachment.html From rosse at ncf.ca Wed Dec 17 09:11:10 2008 From: rosse at ncf.ca (Elspeth Ross) Date: Wed Dec 17 09:18:39 2008 Subject: [Fasd_canadian_link] New booze tax could cover drinking costs: Study: B.C. Message-ID: <6.2.5.6.2.20081217091102.04670888@ncf.ca> "...suggested a tax of five cents on high-alcohol drinks would raise $100 million a year for treatment and problems related to fetal alcohol disorders for children, many of whom end up in prison as adults...." http://www.ctvbc.ctv.ca/servlet/an/local/CTVNews/20081216/BC_booze_tax_081216/20081216/?hub=BritishColumbiaHome CTV.ca British Columbia New booze tax could cover drinking costs: Study Updated: Tue Dec. 16 2008 12:50:31 The Canadian Press B.C.'s provincial health officer suggests a new tax on alcohol should help pay for the rising health and social costs of increased drinking. Dr. Perry Kendall said Tuesday that eight per cent more alcohol has flowed since 2002, likely because there's been such a rapid expansion in the number of liquor stores since then. He said there are now 1,200 liquor stores in B.C. -- over 400 more than in 2002 -- and the increased consumption has led to a hike in alcohol-related car accidents, hospitalizations and risky drinking by younger age groups. While the government is bringing in half a billion dollars in taxes every year in alcohol sales, the costs to society are exceeding those revenues, Kendall said. "We probably spend more fixing the problems than we get in revenue for taxes," he said. "The direct and indirect costs of alcohol consumption in Canada in 2002 were estimated to be about $14.5 billion dollars, so alcohol, while we have a unique relationship with it, has a lot of problems." Kendall suggested a tax of five cents on high-alcohol drinks would raise $100 million a year for treatment and problems related to fetal alcohol disorders for children, many of whom end up in prison as adults. He said older Canadians and women are generally in favour of stricter levels of control related to alcohol, including random spot checks by police for impaired drivers. But Kendall said that when it comes to taxing alcohol, fewer people support the measure, especially younger Canadians and men -- two groups who consume the most alcohol. Irving Rootman, vice-president of the Public Health Association of B.C., said problems associated with the hike in alcohol consumption are a concern. "People can consume alcohol but if they're not getting into trouble it's not so important, but when they start driving while impaired and getting into crashes and so on, it's a concern." Kendall said he would like the government's upcoming 10-year plan for mental health and addictions to draw some attention to alcohol, which he calls the most expensive substance-use problem. His findings are in a report called Public Health Approach to Alcohol Policy, which is an update of a report he wrote in 2002. The current report is co-authored by Tim Stockwell, who heads the Centre for Addiction Research of BC at the University of Victoria. ---------- -------------- next part -------------- An HTML attachment was scrubbed... URL: /pipermail/fasd_canadian_link/attachments/20081217/3334cfdd/attachment.html From rosse at ncf.ca Wed Dec 17 20:18:10 2008 From: rosse at ncf.ca (Elspeth Ross) Date: Wed Dec 17 21:22:12 2008 Subject: [Fasd_canadian_link] Unborn shouldn't drink: New Zealand Message-ID: <6.2.5.6.2.20081217201752.104ff7c0@ncf.ca> http://www.stuff.co.nz/stuff/marlboroughexpress/4796082a19821.html stuff.co.nz Marlborough Express Marborough, New Zealand The Marlborough Express | Wednesday, 17 December 2008 Unborn shouldn't drink New Zealand is "drowning in alcohol and alcohol harm" and the delays in addressing the problem are failing each new generation according to health advocate Christine Rogan. She spoke to Marlborough health and social service agencies recently and also to health reporter ROSE DALY. The issue: Between 173 and 500 babies are born in New Zealand every year with brain damage because their mothers drank alcohol during pregnancy. The various effects of brain damage are called foetal alcohol spectrum disorder. Fifty per cent of New Zealand women believe some alcohol is okay during pregnancy. Ninety per cent of people with foetal alcohol spectrum disorder have mental health problems Eighty per cent have employment problems. Sixty per cent were expelled or dropped out of school. Sixty per cent got in trouble with the law. The action: Campaigners want a warning on bottles of alcohol similar to that on cigarettes. A petition was signed by 7000 people in 2000 to get this done by Government. The government of the day agreed and it has been with Food Standards Australia New Zealand for five years. Campaigners aren't holding their breath that the labels will appear any time soon. While health, social development and education agencies are writing a draft plan to deal with the issue, those in the field say it needs to be a priority. People with FASD get punished for their disabilities. They might look normal but they get punished for being lazy, stubborn or defiant. In reality, they can't remember, can't understand and can't explain themselves.Christine Rogan, Alcohol Healthwatch advisor. Alcohol Healthwatch promotions advisor Christine Rogan says she now dedicates 100 per cent of her time to awareness campaigns on foetal alcohol spectrum disorder (FASD). FASD is the umbrella term for the various effects of brain damage caused to unborn babies by pregnant women drinking alcohol. After many years of involvement in this campaign, you can imagine the smooth transmission of the damning statistics from her neural pathways to her mouth as Ms Rogan lists the catalogue of negative effects recorded in overseas studies. Ninety per cent of people with FASD have mental health problems, 80 per cent have employment problems, 60 per cent were expelled or dropped out of school and the same number got into trouble with the law. Diagnosis of the disorder here in New Zealand is, according to Ms Rogan, patchy at best. And when it is diagnosed, she says support systems for treatment are non-existent. Even the simplest educational tool of putting warning labels about the danger of drinking alcohol when pregnant on packaging is still years away, with official approval encountering hiccups. Ms Rogan and more than 7000 signatories took a petition to a government health committee in 2000 asking for health warning labels. It took the government at the time three years to agree. "And here we are in 2008 waiting for something to happen. It's basically with Food Standards Australia New Zealand. We were supposed to have a document in July but in the meantime someone else in Australia has put in a broader application on alcohol harm so they've decided to rule on them together," explained an exasperated Ms Rogan. "The chances of having a warning label on (alcohol) at any time soon is a vain hope at this stage. A whole generation has gone past while we wait and, again, it's not good enough." Ms Rogan and district court judge John Walker give seminars on fetal alcohol spectrum disorder and its effects on society. Both are urging health authorities to hurry up and start the process of collecting evidence of this "silent disability" in New Zealand, instead of relying on overseas research. "There have been no follow-up studies of exposed children to ascertain the outcome or establish the prevalence (here). We need our own data." said Ms Rogan. Judge Walker claims 80 per cent of defendants appearing in the court system every week have alcohol or drug issues connected with their offending. Along with mental illness and illiteracy he said he would now add FASD to the list of contributing factors to crime. "Unless the underlying causes are addressed, what will change? It must be addressed for crime to be reduced," Judge Walker told the Marlborough seminar, adding that it was a "paralysing debate" that straddled health, justice and corrections departments. The Ministry of Health acknowledges that the true extent of the incidence and prevalence of FASD in New Zealand is unknown. In a statement, the ministry pointed out there were no nationally consistent definitions or diagnostic criteria for FASD and children were not routinely screened in infancy or early childhood. The ministry quotes estimates attributed to Alcohol Healthwatch that are based on overseas incidence rates of three per 1000 live births, saying at least 173 babies are born with FASD every year in New Zealand. However, based on the current baby boom and no change in drinking patterns, the number could be much higher. Ms Rogan told the seminar that there could be 500 to 600 babies born affected by the disorder every year. The ministries of health, social development and education are mapping out a draft action plan to tackle the gaps in information. However, that can't be completed soon enough for Ms Rogan. "It's simply not good enough. We've all got to get our heads together. It is with us. It is causing families and the community a great deal of distress and money. We have a country drowning in alcohol and alcohol related harm." The physical signs of a child who has been brain-damaged by alcohol in utero include facial deformities of a flatness between the nose and upper lip, a thin upper lip and decreased eye width. There is a small window of vulnerability while the foetus is developing its facial features when exposure to alcohol can do this damage. Brain cells, developing at a rate of 250,000 per minute, are most at risk during the second trimester so the timing of when the pregnant woman drinks significantly influences the outcome. Ms Rogan says it's also important to realise that you can't always take FASD people at face value as their facial features can change as they age. An 18 year old may have the expected physical maturity, but his or her comprehension and emotional maturity may be more like that of a six year old. "People with FASD get punished for their disabilities. They might look normal but they get punished for being lazy, stubborn or defiant. In reality, they can't remember, can't understand and can't explain themselves." Ms Rogan said there was not much workforce training on how to identify and diagnose foetal alcohol spectrum disorders and queried where the resources were when someone was diagnosed. "Non existent, very fragmented. There are some doctors who diagnose and some who don't. The whole situation at the moment is entirely unsatisfactory. It's a mess and we've got to do something." Ms Rogan also laments the fact that the most vulnerable group, young women who drink heavily, often don't seek advice when they become pregnant. Midwives reported in 2001 that 80 per cent of teenage pregnancies were alcohol exposed. Studies of the drinking behaviour of pregnant women generally show that 20 to 40 per cent drink alcohol during pregnancy. Many do stop when they find out they're pregnant but a huge 50 per cent of women believe some alcohol during pregnancy is safe. "There is no better place to start than a label on the bottle. Many women don't even spend any time with a health professional until they're ready to deliver. "The group that has dropped in life expectancy is young women aged 15 to 24. It has been directly sheeted home to their increase in alcohol consumption. They are the new high risk group... we'd better do something about the downstream effects of that." The New Zealand Nurses Organisation also made a submission urging warning labels be put on alcohol packaging. Food Standards Australia New Zealand expects to have a draft assessment ready by the middle of next year and a final report at the end of 2009. This means if new health advisory statements are recommended the earliest such labelling requirements could be gazetted is 2010. FAS was first recognised in 1973. In February 2005, the U.S. Surgeon General Richard H. Carmona warned pregnant women and women who may become pregnant to totally abstain from drinking alcohol to eliminate altogether the chance of a baby being born with FASD. -------------- next part -------------- An HTML attachment was scrubbed... URL: /pipermail/fasd_canadian_link/attachments/20081217/b455284a/attachment.html From rosse at ncf.ca Thu Dec 18 08:47:52 2008 From: rosse at ncf.ca (Elspeth Ross) Date: Thu Dec 18 08:53:03 2008 Subject: [Fasd_canadian_link] Native treatment in jails a 'national disgrace' Message-ID: <6.2.5.6.2.20081218084743.035f8380@ncf.ca> Skipped content of type multipart/related-------------- next part -------------- From rosse at ncf.ca Fri Dec 19 11:21:41 2008 From: rosse at ncf.ca (Elspeth Ross) Date: Fri Dec 19 11:28:13 2008 Subject: [Fasd_canadian_link] National rates of co-occurring substance use and mental disorders call for better integration of mental health and addictions services Message-ID: <6.2.5.6.2.20081219112134.0411e6a0@ncf.ca> [No mention of FASD] http://www.newswire.ca/en/releases/archive/December2008/17/c2597.html CNW group December 17, 2008 National rates of co-occurring substance use and mental disorders call for better integration of mental health and addictions services Rates highest in BC and lowest in Quebec; Youth emerge as a concern TORONTO, Dec. 17 /CNW/ - Canadians are becoming aware of the prevalence of mental health issues and of substance use problems, but how well equipped are we to help the many people who contend with both? Two studies published in the December issue of the Canadian Journal of Psychiatry have found that multilevel integration is needed for mental health and substance use services to adequately address the needs of people diagnosed with co-occurring disorders. Both studies explored the prevalence of concurrent disorders, first at the provincial level among people served by the community mental health system, and then at the national level among the general population. This new research highlights the need for system-wide planning and improved integration of the mental health and addictions systems. In the study titled, Prevalence and Profile of People with Co-occurring Mental and Substance Use Disorders Within a Comprehensive Mental Health System, Dr. Brian Rush, Senior Scientist at the Centre for Addiction and Mental Health (CAMH) and Principal Investigator on both studies found that mental health and substance use disorders co-occur in approximately 20 percent - or one in five - of people treated for mental disorders in Ontario's hospitals and mental health clinics. "We found that co-occurring disorders were highest in selected sub-groups, for example, among younger adults (55%), people receiving specialty inpatient care (28%), and those with personality disorders (34%). It is important that risk management strategies be included in treatment and support models for clients," says Dr. Rush. "We also found that across all levels of care, having a co-occurring disorder was strongly associated with antisocial and challenging behaviour, legal involvement, and risk of suicide or self-harm." In the second study, Prevalence of Co-occurring Substance Use and Other Mental Disorders in the Canadian Population, which looked at concurrent disorders at the national level, Dr. Rush found that almost two per cent of Canadians - or 435,000 adults - have both a mental and a substance use disorder. About 20% of people with a mental disorder had a co-occurring substance use problem. The findings underscore the need for cooperation between mental health and substance use services at the provincial, territorial, and national levels. The first to measure the national prevalence of the co-occurrence of certain psychiatric disorders and substance use problems in Canada, the study found that, relative to national estimates, the rate of co-occurring disorders was found to be highest in British Columbia and lowest in Quebec. The data places Canadian rates at the lower end of the international range. However, Dr. Rush notes that the problem may be much larger than the numbers indicate as several types of mental disorders and certain populations known to be at high risk for co-occurring disorders - homeless, institutionalized, and Aboriginal people, for example - were not included in Statistics Canada's 2002 Canadian Community Health Survey: Mental Health and Well-Being, on which the authors based their analysis. The populations affected by co-occurring disorders are diverse, and each person has a unique diagnostic profile and unique strengths and needs, speaking to the importance of different models of integrated services and support. The research concludes that a targeted response to more integrated services is needed, including working with hospital and community-based services, and with a focus on integrated training. "Identifying individuals who need help with both problems is the first step in providing tailored mental health treatment and support programs," says Dr. Rush. "One of the issues is that clinicians specialized in either addiction or mental health may not be able to recognize the co-occurring disorder(s) and the client will not get a proper diagnosis and treatment and support plan." The Centre for Addiction and Mental Health (CAMH) is Canada's largest mental health and addiction teaching hospital, as well as one of the world's leading research centres in the area of addiction and mental health. CAMH combines clinical care, research, education, policy development and health promotion to help transform the lives of people affected by mental health and addiction issues. CAMH is fully affiliated with the University of Toronto, and is a Pan American Health Organization/World Health Organization Collaborating Centre. For further information: or to schedule an interview, please contact Michael Torres, Media Relations, CAMH at (416) 595-6015 -------------- next part -------------- An HTML attachment was scrubbed... URL: /pipermail/fasd_canadian_link/attachments/20081219/98c9e01e/attachment.html From rosse at ncf.ca Fri Dec 19 11:22:02 2008 From: rosse at ncf.ca (Elspeth Ross) Date: Fri Dec 19 11:28:17 2008 Subject: [Fasd_canadian_link] FASD Conference - Victoria - register by Jan. 12 Message-ID: <6.2.5.6.2.20081219112155.04112a68@ncf.ca> Date: Tue, 16 Dec 2008 12:41:32 -0800 From: "Interprofessional Continuing Ed." Subject: 3rd International Conference on FASD - EARLY BIRD REGISTRATION REMINDER! Dear Colleague: RE: The 3rd International Conference on Fetal Alcohol Spectrum Disorder Integrating Research, Policy, and Promising Practice Around the World: A Catalyst for Change March 11th ? 14th, 2009 Victoria Conference Centre Victoria, British Columbia, Canada On behalf of UBC Interprofessional Continuing Education, I would like to send this friendly reminder that Janurary 12th, 2008, the Early Bird Deadline for the The 3rd International Conference on Fetal Alcohol Spectrum Disorder, is quickly approaching. Please make sure to register now to ensure attendance space at the conference and to take advantage of the reduced rates. An electronic PDF copy of the brochure is available on our website at http://www.interprofessional.ubc.ca/FASD09.htm. You can register by phone, fax, direct mail, or through our online registration website at http://www.peopleware.net/index.cfm?siteCode=1268. This program meets the accreditation criteria of The Canadian Counseling Association (CCA), and has been accredited for up to 24 CEU hours, and The Canadian Addiction Counsellors Certification Federation has approved this conference for up to a maximum of 22 CEU?s (10 core & 12 related CEU ?s). Please kindly forward this information to other members of your organization who may be interested in this event. If you have any further questions or concerns, please do not hesitate to contact our office: Telephone: (604) 827-3112 or Toll-free within BC: 1-877-328-7744; by Fax: (604) 822-4835 or via E-mail: ipcde2@interchange.ubc.ca. We are looking forward to seeing you at the conference! Kind Regards, Vinnie Yuen Marketing and Advertising Assistant University of British Columbia Interprofessional Continuing Education A Team Approach to Learning Phone: (604) 822-7524 Fax: (604) 822-4835 Email: ipad@interchange.ubc.ca Website: www.interprofessional.ubc.ca From rosse at ncf.ca Mon Dec 22 21:15:49 2008 From: rosse at ncf.ca (Elspeth Ross) Date: Mon Dec 22 21:22:10 2008 Subject: [Fasd_canadian_link] Phoenix's legacy takes shape Message-ID: <6.2.5.6.2.20081222211541.05166a70@ncf.ca> "'...Money didn't trickle down to the agencies,' ....'The money went for system-wide projects and maybe one FASD (Fetal Alcohol Spectrum Disorder) co-ordinator for all the agencies.'..." Phoenix's legacy takes shape Mary Agnes Welch, Lindor Reynolds. Winnipeg Free Press. Winnipeg, Man.: Dec 21, 2008. pg. A.1 New policies, new money in place; new attitudes? -- time will tell 55 As Assembly of First Nations National Chief Phil Fontaine pointed out recently, that almost matches the number of residential school survivors in Manitoba. That record comes more than two years after five-year-old Phoenix Sinclair fell through one of the biggest cracks in the province's crumbling child-welfare system. Her torture, confinement and murder at the hands of her mother and stepfather shocked the Doer government into action and prompted an overhaul of child welfare and a re-examination of devolution. More than $48 million in new spending has started to flow. A flurry of new foster families has been recruited, and nearly 100 front-line social-work jobs have been added. Since Phoenix's remains were found buried near the Fisher River Cree Nation dump in March 2006, there have been at least six major reports on child welfare calling for more than 400 fixes and endless press conferences announcing new programs with catchy euphemisms such as Reclaiming Hope, Join the Circle of Care and Changes for Children. "Her tragic loss, at least, has been able to spur an examination of the child-welfare system like never before in the history of this province," said Family Services and Housing Minister Gord Mackintosh. "There's been a lot of examinations historically but nothing this comprehensive." But what has really changed for the thousands of kids in the care of nearly 20 separate agencies? Last year, a Free Press series on child welfare uncovered a system in chaos, without enough funding or staff to ensure kids were safe or enough resources to help families before their kids had to be taken away. Kids in care weren't properly monitored, others were returned to their families without proper risk assessments and social workers were crushed under heavy caseloads. Some are filled with hope at changes to come. Next year marks the last full year of the overhaul that has child-welfare officials confident that a flurry of hiring and program, policy and legislative changes launched since Phoenix died will start working. That includes new legislation that says child safety trumps every other consideration, including cultural and family ties. The province is looking at finally getting a handle on caseloads after a half-dozen reports condemned the punishing number of cases social workers handle and repeated provincial promises to set a target. Most heartening is a new push to intervene in struggling families before abuse begins or a crisis erupts -- a common-sense approach that old-fashioned, rigid federal funding models have so far made impossible. Prevention could start to shrink the number of kids in care, especially on reserves, some of which have seen 40 to 60 per cent of their children placed with foster families, often off-reserve. "We just cannot keep doing this," said Southern Child and Family Services Authority CEO Elsie Flette. "It's counter-intuitive." About half the recommendations made by various experts after Phoenix's death are complete or nearly complete and nearly all the others are under way. But the current reality is still grim. Since Phoenix was discovered, at least 16 more kids have died accidentally, been murdered or committed suicide while child welfare was supposed to be watching over them. Caseloads have not shrunk appreciably, frontline social workers say, nor has the new funding helped kids much. "The biggest complaint I hear is money didn't trickle down to the agencies," said a senior worker at a southern agency. "The money went for system-wide projects and maybe one FASD (Fetal Alcohol Spectrum Disorder) co-ordinator for all the agencies." Non-aboriginal foster parents continue to raise red flags about kids transplanted back to their birth families despite safety concerns. And there have been regular scandals at agencies -- most notably the Cree Nation Child and Family Caring Agency, where staff and board members took luxury retreats and the executive director was given a $30,000 van instead of a raise while frontline workers complained of rampant nepotism and mismanagement. "All I can say is that certainly there's been good intentions on the behalf of government to have these [recommendations] implemented and that there's a commitment there and the funding's there and the framework's there," said Children's Advocate Billie Schibler. "How the authorities implement this and how effective this will be on an outcome level, I guess this remains to seen." maryagnes.welch@freepress.mb.ca lindor.reynolds@freepress.mb.ca -------------- next part -------------- An HTML attachment was scrubbed... URL: /pipermail/fasd_canadian_link/attachments/20081222/0018594a/attachment.html From rosse at ncf.ca Mon Dec 22 23:32:02 2008 From: rosse at ncf.ca (Elspeth Ross) Date: Tue Dec 23 07:46:11 2008 Subject: [Fasd_canadian_link] =?iso-8859-1?q?Approches_multiples_de_la_pr?= =?iso-8859-1?q?=E9vention_de_?= l'ETCAF Message-ID: <6.2.5.6.2.20081222233153.05165ee8@ncf.ca> Skipped content of type multipart/related-------------- next part -------------- From rosse at ncf.ca Mon Dec 22 23:31:47 2008 From: rosse at ncf.ca (Elspeth Ross) Date: Tue Dec 23 07:46:15 2008 Subject: [Fasd_canadian_link] Multiple Approaches to FASD Prevention: new Canadian resource Message-ID: <6.2.5.6.2.20081222233139.05166698@ncf.ca> Skipped content of type multipart/related-------------- next part -------------- From rosse at ncf.ca Mon Dec 22 23:31:05 2008 From: rosse at ncf.ca (Elspeth Ross) Date: Tue Dec 23 07:46:18 2008 Subject: [Fasd_canadian_link] Published reports inaccurate concerning alcohol consumption during pregnancy Message-ID: <6.2.5.6.2.20081222203942.04bb9a40@ncf.ca> www.eurekalert.org/pub_releases/2008-12/iu-pri121908.php EurekAlert! Public release date: 19-Dec-2008 Contact: Mary L. Hardin mhardin@iupui.edu 317-274-7722 Indiana University Published reports inaccurate concerning alcohol consumption during pregnancy INDIANAPOLIS ? A national alcohol research group is concerned that the media's misinterpretation of a recent British research study could encourage pregnant women to be more at ease with temperate alcohol consumption. Some media reports erroneously stated that the study by The University College London researchers revealed that light drinking by pregnant women could be beneficial to their babies. Other articles said light drinking during pregnancy would not affect the behavior or mental acuity of babies born to drinking mothers. The Fetal Alcohol Spectrum Disorders Study Group, a subgroup of the Research Society on Alcoholism, says the conclusion of the study was not reported accurately. "Unfortunately, several media outlets misinterpreted this report to mean that drinking improved the children's outcome," the FASD Study Group said. The published report looked at the drinking patterns of pregnant mothers of three-year-olds and assessed the behavior and cognitive skills of the children. The University College London researchers actually reported that the children born to women who drank lightly during pregnancy were not at increased risk compared with children of mothers who did not drink during pregnancy. However, this result may be based on the higher socioeconomic status of the light drinking mothers and their children involved in this study. Higher socioeconomic status is well known to improve an infant's neurodevelopmental outcome. The study's authors, Dr. Yvonne Kelly at University College London and colleagues, suggested this explanation for their findings and the FASD Study Group agrees with that conclusion. Many published reporters show that even moderate to light drinking can cause birth defects. "Generally, the adverse effects of light drinking during pregnancy are subtle and may go undetected in children," said Feng Zhou, Ph.D., president of the FASD Study Group and a professor of anatomy, cell biology and neurobiology at the Indiana University School of Medicine. "Other alcohol research studies of moderate drinking during pregnancy have shown an adverse impact on multiple aspects of development through adolescence and young adulthood even when other important environmental factors are taken into account." Dr. Zhou said the news reporters have been carried in various European and American publications and on news web sites. "The media reports are alarming for a number of reasons but it is particularly disturbing at this time of year when holiday parties may make alcohol consumption more accessible and appealing to pregnant women who have read the erroneous reports," he said. The consensus of public health providers and alcohol researchers is that even light drinking can interfere with biological processes critical in the development of the fetal brain, said Dr. Zhou and other Study Group officers, Cynthia J.M. Kane, Ph.D., vice president and professor of neurobiology and developmental sciences, University of Arkansas for Medical Sciences, and Susan Smith, Ph.D., secretary and treasurer, and professor of nutritional science at the University of Wisconsin- Madison. ### For additional information compiled by the Study Group on the research into the effects on the children of mothers who consume alcohol during pregnancy, see www.rsoa.org/fas.html. -------------- next part -------------- An HTML attachment was scrubbed... URL: /pipermail/fasd_canadian_link/attachments/20081222/e24eec76/attachment-0001.html From rosse at ncf.ca Tue Dec 23 07:38:53 2008 From: rosse at ncf.ca (Elspeth Ross) Date: Tue Dec 23 07:46:21 2008 Subject: [Fasd_canadian_link] FAS Family Resource Institute To Close Message-ID: <6.2.5.6.2.20081222210639.04f70828@ncf.ca> From another elist Very bad news for us..... In a message dated 12/19/2008 2:59:27 PM Central Standard Time, vicky@fetalalcoholsyndrome.org writes: Dear Family and Friends, After 20 years of service to individuals and families raising individuals with Fetal Alcohol Spectrum Disorders, The Fetal Alcohol Syndrome Family Resource Institute will close its doors December 31, 2008. Yesterday we received notice that FAS*FRI was one of the many budget cuts among Washington's State Division of Alcohol and Substance Abuse. We will no longer be able to take your phone calls, offer free referral and advocacy services or printed information. Our website will be accessible for the download of the brochures, printed information and the blog. You can still contact Jocie, Ann, Vicky and Delinda through our fetalalcoholsyndrome.org addresses. We are saddened beyond words. It has been an amazing journey and we are so thankful for the wonderful parents, caretakers and professionals that we have been honored to call our friends. Sincerely Jocie, Vicky, Ann, Delinda, Linda The Board of FAS*FRI Fetal Alcohol Syndrome Family Resource Insititute www.fetalalcoholsyndrome.org/ -------------- next part -------------- An HTML attachment was scrubbed... URL: /pipermail/fasd_canadian_link/attachments/20081223/4ffaa5cc/attachment.html From rosse at ncf.ca Tue Dec 23 07:42:20 2008 From: rosse at ncf.ca (Elspeth Ross) Date: Tue Dec 23 07:46:24 2008 Subject: [Fasd_canadian_link] Moms-to-Be Who Drink May Damage Fetus' White Matter Message-ID: <6.2.5.6.2.20081222210729.04f70828@ncf.ca> http://health.usnews.com/articles/health/healthday/2008/12/19/moms-to-be-who-drink-may-damage-fetus-white-matter.html U.S. News and World Report Health Health Day Moms-to-Be Who Drink May Damage Fetus' White Matter Study says brain microstructural changes may lead to cognitive problems Posted December 19, 2008 FRIDAY, Dec. 19 (HealthDay News) -- Drinking alcohol during pregnancy can damage white matter in a fetus' frontal and occipital lobes, which play a major role in executive function and visual processing. The finding may help explain problems seen in infants whose mothers drink during pregnancy, a new study says. "The brain's white matter is made up of nerve bundles that transfer information between brain regions," study corresponding author Susanna L. Fryer, a researcher at San Diego State University's Center for Behavioral Teratology, said in a news release. "Optimal white-matter integrity is thought to support efficient cognition. So, the finding that prenatal alcohol exposure is associated with altered white-matter integrity may help explain aspects of the cognitive and behavioral problems that individuals with fetal alcohol spectrum disorders (FASDs) commonly face," she said. In this study, Fryer and her colleagues used a type of MRI called diffusion tensor imaging (DTI) to assess white-matter microstructure in the brains of 27 young people, ages 8 to 18. Of those participants, 15 were born to mothers who drank heavily during pregnancy. "The brains of individuals with FASDs showed evidence of altered nerve fiber integrity at a microstructural level, even though total brain size was statistically equivalent between alcohol-exposed and comparison participants," Fryer said. "Also, within the alcohol-exposed group, we generally found that white-matter microstructure did not differ based on whether youth met criteria for a diagnosis of fetal alcohol syndrome (FAS). In other words, similar brain alterations and behavioral problems can occur because of prenatal alcohol exposure, with or without the facial features and physical growth insufficiency required to diagnose FAS." The study was published online Dec. 19 and in the March print issue of the journal Alcoholism: Clinical and Experimental Research. More information The March of Dimes has more about drinking alcohol during pregnancy. -------------- next part -------------- An HTML attachment was scrubbed... URL: /pipermail/fasd_canadian_link/attachments/20081223/bd21ecf4/attachment.html From rosse at ncf.ca Tue Dec 23 08:14:09 2008 From: rosse at ncf.ca (Elspeth Ross) Date: Tue Dec 23 08:15:20 2008 Subject: [Fasd_canadian_link] Canadian Perinatal Health Report Message-ID: <6.2.5.6.2.20081223081402.03de9e58@ncf.ca> Skipped content of type multipart/related-------------- next part --------------