Computational Tracking of Mental Health in Youth: Latin American Contributions to a Low-Cost and Effective Solution for Early Psychiatric Diagnosis

The early onset of mental disorders can lead to serious cognitive damage, and timely interventions are needed in order to prevent them. In patients of low socioeconomic status, as is common in Latin America, it can be hard to identify children at risk. Here, we briefly introduce the problem by reviewing the scarce epidemiological data from Latin America regarding the onset of mental disorders, and discussing the difficulties associated with early diagnosis. Then we present computational psychiatry, a new field to which we and other Latin American researchers have contributed methods particularly relevant for the quantitative investigation of psychopathologies manifested during childhood. We focus on new technologies that help to identify mental disease and provide prodromal evaluation, so as to promote early differential diagnosis and intervention. To conclude, we discuss the application of these methods to clinical and educational practice. A comprehensive and quantitative characterization of verbal behavior in children, from hospitals and laboratories to homes and schools, may lead to more effective pedagogical and medical intervention

Parcerias municipais com o terceiro setor: o caso do conselho municipal dos direitos da criança e do adolescente de Natal

The relationship between the State and the non-governmental organizations (NGOs) needs to be analyzed and debated by the objective to extinguish or to reduce the existent failures in this partnership in order that the whole society may benefit from it. To understand how the partnership between the public and NGOs work is fundamental. The present study searches to contribute to a better understanding of this matter. With this aim, the research focused the partnership formed between Natal Child and Adolescent Council (COMDICA) and NGOs which were selected by public notice in 2007. Theoretical references were based on the Continuum of Collaboration proposed by Austin (2001) that serves to differentiate the degree and the mode of interaction between the two organizations. It was observed that in some points there is a lack in the interaction between COMDICA and the NGOs. The frequent change of the government counselors makes difficult a more intense involvement and partnership awareness with the NGOs. The NGOs members need to be more involved with the activities of COMDICA and search for a larger participation in the assemblies, on the discussions and on the intrinsic council actions. The relationship must also be rethought, since that the partnership must not be limited to financial resources support. The channels of communication must be improved and become more frequent. The evaluation and monitoring of social projects are poor and own methodologies need to be elaborated. Therefore, it is necessary to make some adjustments in this relationship involving not only the partnerships made by the selected ONGs, but also all those who assist the child and the adolescent. A closer relation makes possible a greater effectiveness of the public policies on one side and on the other side improves the performance of the COMDICA and the NGOs

Ativismo judicial e materialização das políticas públicas infanto-juvenis na constituição da república: Fixação de planos ideais de atuação para os atores do Sistema de Garantia de Direitos (SGD)

The research arose from the necessity of showing ways to be followed by the actors of the System Guaranteeing Rights of the Child and Adolescent (SGD), regarding the implementation of rights for young people, because the legislation in force in Brazil is currently considered a model around the world and, paradoxically, the fundamental rights of children and adolescents are not met, even with the constitutionally guaranteed priority. Thus, the study investigates the fundamentality rights for young people, enshrined in the Constitution of the Republic, as well as the ways of effectiveness of these rights through the actions of actors of the System Guaranteeing Rights, especially the judiciary. Focusing realized, studying theories of fundamental rights, especially Structuring a Theory of Law (Strukturiende Rechtslehre), Friedrich Müller, who emphasizes the need for analysis of social reality in the application of the rule of law. Study also the public budget and public policies concerning children and adolescents, with emphasis on preparation of budget laws and the process of discussion, deliberation, choice and implementation of public policies for children and teenagers. It then presents the typical functions of the members of System Guaranteeing Rights, as well as prepare a plan for optimum performance for each of the actors, with emphasis on analysis of the implementation of public policies at the municipal level. Finally, it analyzes the theory of separation of three powers, and discusses the positive and negative factors for judicial intervention, concluding that the Courts can consider the action activist, from finding the omission of the Executive and legislative branches, as regards the implementation of the rights of children and adolescents, as well as the rights of children and young people are not realized in most cases, due to the omission of actors of the System Guaranteeing Rights

Identificação de crianças e adolescentes com suspeita de câncer: uma proposta de intervenção

Unlike adult cancer, where cells usually originate from epithelial tissue and is linked to environmental factors, malignant tumors in childhood are mostly of embryonic origin and have a phase of rapid proliferation. When not started chemotherapy at this stage, the tumor increases in size, reducing their growth rate, thus reducing the response to chemotherapy. Childhood cancer is in Brazil, the second cause of mortality among children and adolescents from one to nineteen. His impact on the ranking of diseases becomes significantly important to public health since the first issue is related to accidents and violence. Many children are still sent to the centers of high complexity for cancer treatment with advanced stage disease. The delay in referral to diagnosis can be family, or the difficulty of access to the health sector, or the characteristics of the disease and lack of health staff regarding theme of childhood cancer. Before this problem, we aimed to assess the performance of health teams in the identification of child and adolescent symptoms of cancer in primary care, through the action research methodology, which includes the teaching-learning, seminars, describing the actions of the group and discussing the activities after the training. This study involved thirty-seven health professionals who provide care for children and adolescents in the USF Felipe Shrimp II, the Support Center for Children with Cancer and the pediatric hospital UFRN during the period from March to December 2010. The data were analyzed simultaneously to evaluate actions, following the direction of the analysis of ideas Freires, having as theoretical reference the primary health care. The diagnosis of current reality, as knowledge of the health team targeted for early identification of signs and symptoms raised through questioning, presented as generative themes: resistance to change, awareness of the need for apprehension of knowledge; prior knowledge through the media, fragmentation of the healthcare network, interfering with the operation of the reference and counter, the stigma of death, among others. The selected themes enabled the choice of content for the preparation of four seminars, such as implementation of collective action for discussion problematical. The teaching-learning process has allowed the study participants awareness of the problem and work through the knowledge acquired by interfering in decreasing the time interval between the identification of signs and symptoms of cancer and early specialist treatment. Their difficulties we are faced with a diagnosis of terminal cancer and associated with delayed access to laboratory tests and imaging necessary for the diagnosis of neoplasms. Thus, we find that when the team is consciously involved in the education process from identification of the problem situation, there may be significant changes in daily activities through awareness of being. However, we also realize that acquisition of knowledge and interest of the team are not enough, since to be efficiency of our service, we need an organization of cancer care network operating in the state of Rio Grande do Norte

Infâncias :o lugar do lúdico nas tramas do trabalho infantil

Considering infancy as the socio-historic construction required from the researcher, not only gives problems to the natural character of the human development, that for a long period in the history of psychology has sown to be predominant, but before anything assumes the position in which the vision of the social condition, i.e., for the contexts of the insertion of the human being, is predominant. In this sense, it is not possible to talk about infancy in the singular, once the different developmental contexts enable different forms of immersion in the daily experiences, amongst which this research focuses on the experience of the ludic. According to various theories of development amongst which we emphasize the socio-historic, this element brings important contributions in the processes of the human being constitution. From the legal aspect this recognition is present in the Code of Practice of the Child and Adolescent which considers playing to be a right of the child. However, the childhood of many children have this aspect affected by many factors. It is in the context of this discussion that we developed this research which has as its objective investigate how children in a working environment experience playing on a daily basis. Four children, girls, took part in this research, who develop activities in the process of the usage of cashew nuts. We used interviews, observations, photographs and drawings. The perspective of analysis which guided this task is based on socio-historic and discursive studies. In this way, the elements which constitute the child s discourse, formed from the corpus were: be a child, the ludic culture, the work in the child s life and the perspective of future and change. The participants discourse showed to be conflicting, contradictory, arisen from a specific ideological formation. In the children s daily routine it was possible to verify that there is an existence of a rich ludic culture, even if it is lived in few moments of the day in consequence of the workload

As organizações não-governamentais (ONGs) de atenção à criança e ao adolescente em Natal/RN: contribuição na garantia de direitos?

In contemporaneousness watches in Brazil the emergence of a "new" relationship between State and society based on partnership, which will allow the growing playacting organizations "non-profit" and "public interest" in the management of social public policies. In that sense, as part of a logic of global restructuring of the Capital, under the aegis of the neoliberal project, starting from the years of 1990, an administration model is had in favor of the market that looks for to minimize the actions of the State, reinforcing the outsourcing of the social public politics, and consequently, debilitating rights legally conquered. In that way, with this study it was pursued as general objective to apprehend the actions developed by Non-governmental Organizations NGOs in the child's area and of the adolescent in Natal / RN, verifying in that measured, these contribute to the warranty of rights or they reproduce practices of welfare work, and as specific objectives: to identify the group of the actions developed by NGOs in the child's area and of the adolescent in Natal / RN; to analyze the practice of NGOs of the point of view of the human resources, of the administration, of the financing, of the user's participation in the decision processes, as well as the quality of the services and the continuity of the actions of these organizations; and to apprehend the relationship between the researched organizations and users in the process of implantation of the actions, in order to identify the perspective that guide the practice of NGOs is going in the direction of contributing in the warranty of rights or in the reinforcement to the welfare work. In summary the results showed two trends in the actions of the NGOs, in the direction of the provision of services, which still unfurls in two perspectives of handouts. The other trend will give priority to the defense of rights of children and adolescents, with actions of political impact strengthen the promotion of public policies state, thus contributing to guarantee rights

O elo entre o serviço social e o judiciário: demandas, desafios e contribuições na defesa de Direitos

Unveiling the link between the Social Services and the Judiciary is the object of this work, since the judiciary is constituted as one of the socio-occupational areas of the profession in the sphere of the state, seize the demands placed on professionals which work becomes relevant , considering that these are embody the multiple expressions of social issues, constituting a challenge to social work, while influencing the contributions that the profession has engendered in the defense and expansion rights. It constitutes an analysis from the standpoint of theoretical and methodological basis Qualiquantitative taking for granted the rights violations against children and adolescents in their social, legal and historical guide to the topic. For this we used a theoretical Marxist Behring (2009), Colman (2008), Faleiros (2205), Faria (1999, 2001), Fávaro (2007, 2008), Iamamoto (1985, 1992, 2002, 2006, 2007) Yazbek, Marx (1983), Netto (1994), Nicholas (1984), Pequeno (2009), Rizinni (1997, 2008), Santos (2009), Sales (2006), Telles (1999), Tonet (2009), among others. Besides literature, empirical research conducted through semi-structured interviews using a script and written records and systematic observation / free during interviews. The subjects were 06 social workers from the area of the judiciary to act on Justice for Children and Youth, Family Court and NOADE in Natal / RN. The research aims to analyze the demands and challenges of Social Services and their contribution in ensuring and enforcing rights in courts nowadays. The route established between knowledge and method involves conceptual analysis on the Judiciary, Social Services, and Child and Adolescent Rights. Seize-up in this study the existing contradictions in confronting the multiple expressions of social issues in the context of the judiciary. The research allowed us to identify relevant aspects regarding the challenges and demands placed Social Service; limits on defense and expansion of their rights and contradictions within sociojurídico. For being one of the judiciary institutions that comprise the system warranty rights, social workers also face difficulties in implementing the professional doing since the ills posed by current sociability capital focus in everyday spaces socio-occupational presented here. On the other hand, is commendable acting those protagonists who believe, defend and contribute to the defense and expansion rights

O sistema de garantia dos direitos da criança e do adolescente: análise da trajetória e do processo de resolubilidade dos casos de violência doméstica sexual em Recife PE (2007-2011)

This work discourses about the child and adolescent s Guaranty System of Rights (GSR), on the intervention in cases of juvenile domestic sexual violence, in Recife. The course (trajectory) is analyzed, where circulate cases of sexual violence, until its resolution, in (GSR). Actually, the violence represents a serious problem of public health. Was thought about the difficulties and the limits that make GSR become a full field of contradictions and challenges for the effectiveness of the children and adolescents rights. Therefore, it was verified the treatments that are developed by GSR, how this system is structured and articulated and how occurs the resolution of the sexual violence cases against children and adolescents. Proceedings of the quantitative and qualitative research were used, was done observation, directed interview and analysis of documents. Thus, the field research was the visits in these institutions: Restauração Hospital, Police Management of the Child and Adolescent (PMCA) three Guardianship Councils, Dom Helder Camara Center of Studies and Social Action (CENDHEC) and the Tribunal of Childhood and Adolescence. The research subjects were seven professionals of GSR. The theoretical discussion is guided in reflections about the children and youth rights, in the violence theme and in the construction and institutionalization process of GSR. In this experiment, was noticed there are many difficulties for working together the GSR, because many obstacles are found when we call the responsible institutions, besides some violence cases happen again. This system is not totally institutionalized and articulated, faces structural problems, material, poorly qualified professionals, underinvestment, low transfer of public resources, among other difficulties, causing many losses in the implementation of public policies that enforce secured rights by legislation

Punição e controle: o “caminho punitivo” do jovem autor de ato infracional em Fortaleza - CE

This research aims to analyze the punitive pathway taken by youth for committing acts of offense in Fortaleza, capital city of Ceará, in Brazil. Therefore, we focus the analysis in institutions that mark the beginning of punitive “institutionalization” of youth in the city, such as the Child and Adolescent Specialized Police Precinct, the Luis Barros Montenegro Shelter Unit, the Public Prosecutor’s Office for Childhood and Youth, and the Child and Youth Court. Ethnography and semi-structured interviews were used as methodological tools to approach the research subjects and relevant places for the research, seeking to highlight their punitive perspective. As a result, we find that the punishment and control imposed in such loci are an extension of the punishment and control used against these same youths in society. Considering that the analyzed institutions exist in society and are composed by its members, they do not surpass the perspective of repression, control and punishment carried out towards a segment of the population, especially towards those that Souza (2011; 2012) called “subcitizens”.

“Eu quero ver se a justiça vai funcionar mesmo”: a resolubilidade dos casos de abuso sexual contra crianças e adolescentes no município de Natal/RN

This study presents the issue of Children and Youth sexual violence from a critical eye in assessing the actions of the organs of defense and protection in cases of sexual abuse against children and adolescents in the city of Natal / RN. We aimed to perform this evaluation from the investigation of 05 cases of child and adolescent victims of sexual abuse that were answered by Precinct Specializing in Defense of Children and Adolescents (DCA), considering the service flow of cases, the articulation between the organs that make up System Warranty rights (SGD), the record of the complaint, as well as the elapsed time between the record of the complaint and the accountability of the offender. Thus, the present study consists in an analysis from the quantitative and qualitative theoretical-methodological approach assuming 'sexual violence in their social, historical, cultural, legal and economic dimensions. The route established between the knowledge about the object and the method of analysis involved: literature about the conceptual discussion on sexual violence, analyzing quantitative data provided by DCA, as well as semi-structured interviews with victims and those responsible for the professionals working in institutions of the defense agencies. Is apprehended in this study that the situations of violence against children is a multifaceted phenomenon that has expressions from ancient societies, assuming a peculiarity in contemporary society to consider the juvenile population as subjects of rights. Furthermore, it was possible to identify the lack of effectiveness, with respect to the actions of the organs of defense in intervention situations of sexual abuse now investigated as yet not actually configure a process of articulation between these bodies from the perspective of ensuring rights and break the cycle of violence.

As raízes históricas da política criminal na legislação e nas práticas de atendimento ao adolescente em conflito com a lei

This thesis investigates the historical influence of the criminal policy in the context that shapes the first specific law for children and adolescents in Brazil, the 1927 Children's Code, a standard that inaugurates the conceptual scission between children and "minor" and their different treatment by the State. The study addresses the demand for order in the context of changes in the working world in the transition from the slave system to the capitalist mode of production, and the corresponding disciplinary and punitive control mechanisms directed to the segment of childhood and adolescence. The theoretical route proposes a questioning of the political construction of law and justice, as well as the conformation of the punitive techniques, and the construction of the stereotype of the "delinquent", prime target of the criminal policy, focusing on the process of criminalization of the segment in question through the confrontation of the Critical perspective with the approaches of Classical and Positive schools. This research shows the imposition of a bourgeois morality that obscures the social conflict attributing it to people isolated by the criminalization of their conduct; and points out that the historical forms of selective social control were greatly influenced by psychiatry and psychology, either by the elaboration of the image of the "delinquent" or by the expected performance of custodial institutions. Finally, the developments and the permanence of the historical roots of the criminal policy are problematized, relating them to the difficulties currently encountered in the consolidation of the legal garantism paradigm proposed by the Children and Adolescent Statute.

As raízes históricas da política criminal na legislação e nas práticas de atendimento ao adolescente em conflito com a lei

This thesis investigates the historical influence of the criminal policy in the context that shapes the first specific law for children and adolescents in Brazil, the 1927 Children's Code, a standard that inaugurates the conceptual scission between children and "minor" and their different treatment by the State. The study addresses the demand for order in the context of changes in the working world in the transition from the slave system to the capitalist mode of production, and the corresponding disciplinary and punitive control mechanisms directed to the segment of childhood and adolescence. The theoretical route proposes a questioning of the political construction of law and justice, as well as the conformation of the punitive techniques, and the construction of the stereotype of the "delinquent", prime target of the criminal policy, focusing on the process of criminalization of the segment in question through the confrontation of the Critical perspective with the approaches of Classical and Positive schools. This research shows the imposition of a bourgeois morality that obscures the social conflict attributing it to people isolated by the criminalization of their conduct; and points out that the historical forms of selective social control were greatly influenced by psychiatry and psychology, either by the elaboration of the image of the "delinquent" or by the expected performance of custodial institutions. Finally, the developments and the permanence of the historical roots of the criminal policy are problematized, relating them to the difficulties currently encountered in the consolidation of the legal garantism paradigm proposed by the Children and Adolescent Statute.

Parcerias municipais com o terceiro setor: o caso do conselho municipal dos direitos da criança e do adolescente de Natal

The relationship between the State and the non-governmental organizations (NGOs) needs to be analyzed and debated by the objective to extinguish or to reduce the existent failures in this partnership in order that the whole society may benefit from it. To understand how the partnership between the public and NGOs work is fundamental. The present study searches to contribute to a better understanding of this matter. With this aim, the research focused the partnership formed between Natal Child and Adolescent Council (COMDICA) and NGOs which were selected by public notice in 2007. Theoretical references were based on the Continuum of Collaboration proposed by Austin (2001) that serves to differentiate the degree and the mode of interaction between the two organizations. It was observed that in some points there is a lack in the interaction between COMDICA and the NGOs. The frequent change of the government counselors makes difficult a more intense involvement and partnership awareness with the NGOs. The NGOs members need to be more involved with the activities of COMDICA and search for a larger participation in the assemblies, on the discussions and on the intrinsic council actions. The relationship must also be rethought, since that the partnership must not be limited to financial resources support. The channels of communication must be improved and become more frequent. The evaluation and monitoring of social projects are poor and own methodologies need to be elaborated. Therefore, it is necessary to make some adjustments in this relationship involving not only the partnerships made by the selected ONGs, but also all those who assist the child and the adolescent. A closer relation makes possible a greater effectiveness of the public policies on one side and on the other side improves the performance of the COMDICA and the NGOs

O incesto : discurso e ideologia

This research had as purpose to establish the logic symbolic present in the contemporary society that facilitated the emergency of a public speech on the incest, and, consequently, to demonstrate the ideological nature that structures it. Event associated to the order of the taboo, the incest would be the transgression of the injunction that, second Lévi-Strauss, facilitated the emergency of the Culture while symbolic order, differentiated of the natural order. The injunction of the incest would reveal the elementary and universal structures of the order symbolic presents in the human societies: the demand of the Rule as rule; the reciprocity and the gift, present element in the social changes that it transforms the individuals in partners, increasing a new quality in the transferred value, according to Lévi-Strauss. Starting from this, I developed the hypothesis second which the phenomenon of the alone incest became an event of discursive order and public as right social transformations affected the normative system (social representations, values, moral) regulator of the relationships among the social subjects, being reflected like this, in the own structuring of the Law. A second work hypothesis was developed starting from that. I develop it leaving of the argument that if when inserting the discussion of the thematic of the defense of the children and adolescent rights, being then, considering it while "privileged modality of sexual abuse against children", the present central subjects in the structuring of the social entail would be leaved. Being like this, the partner-institutional speech on the incest would answer the social demands of order and social control, becoming like this, discursive formations of ideological character. This research work tried to follow the hypothesis above referred, demonstrating the singular sense that it will be attributed to the incest in the contemporary society, particularly, its relationship with the Law and the transgression in the contemporary society

Dignidade da pessoa humana e medidas sócio-educativas do Estatuto da Criança e do Adolescente

The main goal of this work is to verify the presence of the principle of human dignity, determined by the Constitution of 1988, when Socio Educational Acts from the Statute of Children and adolescent were put in practice, focusing on the treatment designated to the youth whose acts were against the law in the city of Natal, as well as the difficulties to match the legal texts and its reality. It is common knowledge that the law for children and adolescent was based in the principle of human dignity, for its institutes say so. But would the Law match the practice of Socio Educational Acts? Or this law would be an example of good intentions that never left the paper and became reality? First there is an approach on the human dignity principle, with its definition and limitation, according to a theory about the theme. Afterwards it is made a connection between human rights and the principle of human dignity considering historical and social features, for the law is also a reflect of these transformations, we try to show the different laws the country had until today, concerning the children inflicted by poverty and those whose acts were against the law, since the rodas dos expostos, the phase of irregular situation, in which the children were arrested simply because they were beggars, until present time. The theory aspects are shown beside a field research made with the adolescent and staff from CEDUC/Natal, producing a critical view about the subject and showing some solutions for the problems found. At last, it is made a critical analyses of the problems detected on the field research, and, in some cases, a suggestion is given to change the reality