Katherine McArthur

School-based humanistic counseling for psychological distress in young people: Pilot randomized controlled trial

Abstract School-based humanistic counseling (SBHC) is a widely delivered intervention for psychological distress in young people, particularly in the UK. This study piloted a set of procedures for evaluating SBHC and obtaining indications of effect. Psychologically distressed young people (aged 13–16) were randomized to either 12 weeks of SBHC or a waiting list control. The primary outcome was psychological distress at the 12-week endpoint, as measured by the Young Persons CORE. Those allocated to counseling (n=16) showed significantly greater reductions in psychological distress than participants in the control group (n=17), with an effect size (ES) (g) of 1.14 on the primary outcome and a mean ES across all four outcome measures of 0.73 at endpoint. The findings indicate that SBHC may be an effective means of reducing psychological distress in young people.

Screening and brief intervention delivery in the workplace to reduce alcohol-related harm: A pilot randomized controlled trial

AIM To explore the feasibility and cost effectiveness of screening and delivery of a brief intervention for hazardous drinking employees. METHODS A pilot randomised controlled trial of a brief intervention delivered by an Occupational Health nurse versus no delivery of brief intervention (control group) conducted in a Local Authority Council (LCA) in the United Kingdom. Changes in quality of life and economic indicators were measured by the EQ-5D. RESULTS 627 employees were screened of whom 163 (26.01%) fulfilled the inclusion criteria with a total of 57 (35%) agreeing to participate. No significant differences were found between the groups for baseline demographics or levels/patterns of alcohol consumption. A statistically significant effect was found in the mean AUDIT scores over time (F=8.96, p=0.004) but not for group (F=0.017, p=0.896), and no significant interaction was found (F=0.148, p=0.702). The cost of each intervention was calculated at £12.48, the difference in service costs was calculated at £344.50 per person; that is there was a net saving of health and other care costs in the intervention group compared to the control group. The QALYs fell in both intervention and control groups, the difference -0.002-(-0.010) yields a net advantage of the intervention of 0.008 QALYs. CONCLUSION The main results from this pilot study suggest that alcohol brief interventions delivered in the workplace may offer the potential to reduce alcohol-related harm and save public sector resources. A fully powered multi-centre trial is warranted to contribute to the current evidence base and explore further the potential of alcohol brief interventions in the workplace. In a full trial the recruitment method may need to be re-considered.

Estimating effectiveness of school-based counselling: using data from controlled trials to predict improvement over non-intervention change

Background: There is a growing body of data to show that participation in school-based counselling is associated with significant reductions in psychological distress. However, this cannot be taken as evidence that school-based counselling is effective, as improvements may have happened without the intervention. Aims: The purpose of this study was to develop a method of estimating the amount of ‘natural’ change that might be expected in young people who would attend school-based counselling, such that the effects of the intervention over and above this amount could be identified. Method: Young Persons CORE (YP-CORE) scores from 74 participants allocated to waiting list control conditions in four pilot trials of school-based counselling in the UK were re-analysed using regression models, and a formula was found for estimating the outcomes for young people were they not to receive counselling. This was termed their Estimated Non-intervention Outcome (ENO), and could then be compared against the young persons Actual Outcome (AO), to give an estimated intervention effect (EIE). Results: The formula for the ENO was 4.17 + 0.64 × baseline score. Using this, we calculated a mean EIE for 256 young people in a cohort evaluation study of school-based counselling, which showed that the counselling was associated with large and significantly greater change than would be expected without the intervention (Cohens d = 0.91). Discussion: The method presented in this paper is a simple means for improving the accuracy of estimations of treatment effectiveness, helping to adjust for changes due to spontaneous recovery and other non-treatment effects.

Safeguarding children with intellectual disability: Lessons from a scoping study

The Quality of Life (QOL) working group was established in September 1999 as a research program of NCCTG. This is an exciting opportunity and provides external validation that the work done to date within NCCTG in QOL research is of high scientific caliber and clinical relevance to cancer patients. Now that the organizational structure is in place, we intend to move forward with an expanded and coordinated effort to improve the QOL of cancer patients by identifying specific resources dedicated to QOL considerations within the NCCTG.

The role of Intergenerational Relationships in Challenging Educational Inequality: Improving Participation of Working-Class Pupils in Higher Education

ABSTRACT Analysis of data on school leavers in the UK points to considerable inequality in access to higher education. This is particularly acute in Scotland where access to the most competitive courses remains extremely difficult for those young people who are first in their generation to try and enter university or from low-income households. Programs to address this issue have had varied approaches framed around policy ambitions to “close the attainment gap” or “raise aspirations.” However, research has argued that these approaches have largely conceptualized the problem at an individual rather than structural level (Cummings et al., 2012; Gorard, Beng, & Davies, 2012). The Intergenerational Mentoring Network is an ongoing research and development project which recruits retired professionals as volunteer mentors and matches them with 15–18 year old secondary school pupils from lower-income areas of the city. This paper draws from research within this project to demonstrate the difficulties these young people face surrounding their interaction with very different social and cultural worlds, of which they have limited understanding and very restricted access. The paper illuminates the crucial role that intergenerational relationships can play in supporting young people in their journey into higher education. These are roles that, collectively, are enabling more young people to move into university and professional careers and through increasing social mobility are challenging inequality.