"The "real world" is a construct, and some peculiarities of scientific thought become more intelligible when this fact is recognized ... Einstein himself in 1926 told Heisenberg it was nonsense to found a theory on observable facts alone, saying "In reality the very opposite happens. It is theory which decides what we can observe." "


Posts tagged with 'screening'

Sleep apnea: how is it recognised & what can be done about it?

29th April 2016

I have already written a couple of posts on sleep apnea -"Sleep apnea - what is it, how common is it and how does it affect mortality & physical health?" and "Sleep apnea - how does it affect psychological health?". In this third & last post of the sequence, I'll …

Sleep apnea - how does it affect psychological health?

23rd April 2016

I have already written a first post "Sleep apnea - what is it, how common is it and how does it affect mortality & physical health?" which highlights that sleep apnea is a common, regularly unrecognised disorder, occurring in approaching 1 in 5 adults and that, particularly as it becomes …

Recent research: NICE guidance on recognition of child maltreatment & report of the Task Force on neck pain

3rd September 2009

Here are a disparate pair of subjects for a research update. One is the recent NICE guideline on " ... alerting features in children and young people (under 18 years) of: physical, sexual and emotional abuse, neglect, fabricated or induced illness." I have posted on NICE and its guidelines before. …

Handouts & questionnaires for assessment of depression

6th April 2009

Depression assessment scales come in two basic forms - interviewer/clinician rated and sufferer/patient rated. As stated in the background information on the IDS/QIDS questionnaires (see below) "There are several accepted clinician rated and patient self report measures of depressive symptoms. The most commonly used clinician rated scales are the 17, …

Alcohol: know your limits and increase the price

5th April 2009

A recent article in the British Medical Journal (Kmietowicz 2009) reports that "The chief medical officer for England has called for a minimum price of 50 pence (0.54; $0.70) to be charged for a unit of alcohol to reduce excessive drinking and its associated harms. Liam Donaldson said that antisocial …

The CAGE questionnaire as a screen for alcohol problems

23rd November 2008

An article in one of this month's editions of the Journal of the American Medical Association celebrates the publication of the CAGE alcohol screening questionnaire by Charles Ewing 25 years ago. CAGE is a mnemonic to help remember the four simple questions. "Have you ever ... 1.) felt the need …

Handouts & questionnaires for summary, reflection, screening, progress charts, empathy & confidence, and more

6th October 2008

Here are a series of forms that I use almost every session with clients, or for screening and orientation at the start of therapy: Summary sheet - at the end of virtually every session with a client I move my chair round to sit beside them and, using a clipboard …

Draft SIGN non-pharmacological depression treatments guideline, 9th post: self help, guided, and complementary therapies

27th September 2008

The fourth and final session of the "Non-pharmacological management of depression" SIGN seminar was entitled "Self help, guided and alternative/complementary therapies". Dr George Deans, Consultant Clinical Psychologist at Aberdeen's Royal Cornhill Hospital, gave the first presentation of this session on "Alternative/complementary therapies 2". I've already discussed the lack of good …

“The demon drink” – social costs and social responses

18th January 2008

Modest alcohol intake seems pretty harmless and maybe even does a bit of good healthwise. However last month's editorial (Gilmore and Sheron 2007) in the Christmas edition of the British Medical Journal drummed in points it's important to remember. Ian Gilmore is President of the Royal College of Physicians and …