Richard Harding

Pharmacokinetics of betamethasone after maternal or fetal intramuscular administration

OBJECTIVE The purpose of this study was to determine the pharmacokinetics of betamethasone in maternal and fetal circulations after maternal or fetal intramuscular administration. STUDY DESIGN Ewes that bore single fetuses underwent surgery at approximately 96 days of pregnancy for the implantation of fetal and maternal vascular catheters. At approximately 103 days, five ewes were injected intramuscularly with betamethasone (0.5 mg/kg body weight) or five fetuses received ultrasound-guided intramuscular injections of betamethasone (0.5 mg/kg estimated fetal weight). Maternal and fetal blood samples were collected serially for the measurement of plasma betamethasone concentrations. RESULTS Fetal injection caused higher peak fetal betamethasone concentrations (341.2+/-23.7 nmol/L) than maternal injection (37.6+/-3.7 nmol/L; P<.001) and greater cumulative betamethasone exposure. The half-life of betamethasone in the fetal circulation was shorter after fetal injection (1.1+/-0.3 hours) than after maternal injection (8.5+/-2.0 hours; P=.006). CONCLUSION The duration of fetal and maternal exposure to betamethasone can be minimized by direct fetal intramuscular administration that, in sheep, affords lung maturation without adverse effects on fetal growth.

Rehabilitation and prison social climate: Do ‘What Works’ rehabilitation programs work better in prisons that have a positive social climate?:

The ‘What Works’ literature has established that prison-based rehabilitation programs can reduce post-release re-offending rates amongst some offenders. Validated tools for measuring prison social climate have reliably identified regime factors that tend to make the prison experience less negative for prisoners. Experience in other human service areas would suggest that programs delivered in a positive prison social climate should be more effective than those delivered in a negative climate. However, the two lines of research exist in parallel without directly intersecting. This article examines research evidence that is laterally or tangentially relevant. The conclusion is that it would be perverse to structure penal administration policies around the view that a positive prison social climate cannot make any difference to re-offending rates. The evidence is that a good prison social climate would seem likely, other things being equal, to improve the outcomes achievable through proven ‘What Works’ rehabilitation programs. The research methodology to establish this correlation is complex. The article concludes by addressing these complexities and suggesting a viable methodology.

Rational-choice gun use in armed robbery: The likely deterrent effect on gun use of mandatory additional imprisonment

ConclusionThe Western Australian findings suggest that a sentencing policy targeted specifically at the use of guns in committing robbery could be effective in discouraging the choice of this weapon. The proposed sentence is a mandatory minimum period of twelve months for the first offense. Sentencing for the principal, or focal, offense of robbery would be governed by existing law. A second, or even later, gun-using offense should carry a greater mandatory additional sentence. At the same time, given the social and experiential factors that have brought offenders to the point of choosing a weapon and a modus operandi, any such policy must be applied humanely. Rational-choice theory does not deny that there may be unequal opportunities to exercise choice; it does, however, assert that decision making can be influenced by an appropriate sentencing strategy.The implementation of any such policy should be carefully evaluated both in aggregate studies, as has been done in Canada, and in individualized, rational-choice research. The evaluation should address not only the efficacy of the broad strategy but also the narrower question of whether the suggested mandatory sentences are optimal.Although this article has offered theoretical and statistical support that the proposed sentencing strategy is likely to reduce the incidence of gun use in robbery, some offenders may be discouraged from committing further robberies altogether, inasmuch as victim management in certain kinds of robbery may be sensibly attempted only through the use of a gun. Deterred from using guns, some offenders may look for a different career altogether, whether criminal or not.

An Improved Methodology for Analyzing Age-Arrest Profiles: Application to a Western Australian Offender Population

A new methodology for displaying and analyzing “arrest profiles” of a population of offenders is illustrated on a data set containing information on all arrests made in the jurisdiction of the state of Western Australia in the 12-year period 1 April 1984 to 31 December 1995. The arrest profile shows the number of arrests accumulated by an individual offender as a function of the age at which each arrest took place. This provides a summary of the “arrest careers” of the individuals in the population and facilitates comparisons between groups of interest in the population, such as sex and race groups. In particular, it enables comparisons to be made between cohorts of offenders defined by the age-at-onset of their offending. For the Western Australian population analyzed here we find large differences between sex and race (Aboriginal or non-Aboriginal) groups, and also between age-at-onset cohorts, and we place these differences in the context of current criminological discussions which posit that higher mean numbers of offenses will be committed by early career starters.

Prisons are the Problem: A re-examination of Aboriginal and non-Aboriginal Deaths in Custody

The background to the establishment in 1987 of the Royal Commission into Aboriginal Deaths in Custody was a belief that the defining risk characteristic of persons dying in custody was their Aboriginality. Australias long history of violence and injustice towards its Indigenous population underpinned the expectation that continuing racism in custodial situations was the principal driver of high Aboriginal mortality rates. On that basis, analysis and proposed solutions would focus upon the specifics of Aboriginal custodial experience as well as broader issues of criminal justice system administration. This paper suggests that, in the context of prison custody, equal or greater emphasis should have been placed on the nature of prison regimes and prisoner management generally, as they impact upon all prisoners. Rates of prison deaths have remained unacceptably high since the RCIADIC, in contrast to police custodial death rates which have improved markedly. A great deal was generally known about the epidemiology of prison custodial deaths before the work of the RCIADIC. Across-the-board implementation of this prior and subsequently acquired knowledge would arguably have made more effective impact upon Aboriginal as well as non-Aboriginal deaths. The defining risk characteristic of prison mortality was, and still is, the nature of prison custodial regimes.