Search Our Essay Database

Essay Instructions: Paper title: Community Generalist Intervention Method Assignment

I have to write a paper on a community defined problem or unmet need in my community for my Social Work Methods with Organizations and Communities class.

The community defined problem/unmet need I want to focus on is the need for an ambulatory detox center/facility in Geauga County, Ohio. The outline I have provided below needs to be followed exactly.

Helpful website: http://www.behavioralhealthcenters.org/mercy.cfm?id=62

I have completed 2 sections of the paper already but need the writer to complete the remaining sections.

Below is some important information for the paper.

Geauga County Ohio offers a few drug and alcohol treatment facilities that provide individual and group counseling, Intensive outpatient treatment (IOP) which is an 8 week program that meets 3 times a week for a 3 hour period. The outpatient’s services help clients learn the extent of their drinking and drug problems. The goal is to help them become aware of the signs and symptoms of their disease and help them recover from their addiction and learn to live a new life. The programs are designed to help them get ??" and more importantly ??" stay sober. Residential treatment programs are also offered for residents in Geauga County, residential treatment programs offer a place to recover, heal and begin a new life in sobriety and hope. The programs focus on the needs of each individual. The goal is to help residents understand and accept their addiction as well as develop the skills, insight, and support to acquire and maintain sobriety. Education services are also offered and are designed to benefit those interested in gaining further knowledge and insight into the disease of addiction and options for prevention and recovery. Most clients are court ordered to treatment in Geauga County so they are referred to these agencies for drug and alcohol assessments. Once assessments are completed the counselor then makes a recommendation as to what program and services the client needs.
Although Geauga County offers counseling and treatment services for those who are addicted to alcohol and drugs they do not offer a detox facility for those that need to safely detox from drugs and alcohol.
There are currently only two treatment Centers in Geauga County that address addiction.
Lake Geauga Recovery Centers http://www.lgrc.us/services/47-2/
Ravenwood Mental Health Center http://www.ravenwoodmhc.org/
Again both of these facilities only offer counseling and group services for addicts
These facilities are great at helping clients learn about recovery and help them learn new ways to live their lives without the use of drugs and alcohol. However, many clients first need help getting off the drugs and alcohol before they can begin treatment services. At huge problem in Geauga County is when clients who are in need of detox from drugs and alcohol call these treatment facilities in need of help and detoxification; these clients are ultimately turned away or left to their own devices, as Geauga County does not offer a detox center or program. Clients in most cases are told to go to their nearest emergency room or Urgent Care clinic in hopes that something can be done to ease their withdrawal symptoms. This solution is only temporary and it is proven that if addicts do not go through the proper detox program and follow through with additional treatment services the relapse rate raises significantly. Most often these clients who receive treatment at Hospitals or Urgent care go right back out and use because the treatment is only temporary.

Lake Geauga Recovery Centers are located in both Lake and Geauga County. The Lake County facility caters to Lake County residents and the Geauga facility caters to Geauga residents. The Lake County facility of Lake Geauga Recovery Center is able to refer their clients to Laurelwood , which offers in patient detox for alcohol and drug users. However the clients in Lake County who do not have insurance cannot afford the detox stay at Laurelwood. In cases where a client cannot afford detox at Laurelwood , Lake Geauga Recovery Center of Lake County will then refers them to the urgent care (Tyler urgent Care) that they are contracted with in providing a 5 day medication detox. The Urgent Care treats clients that need help with withdrawal symptoms. Lake Geauga Recovery refers clients who call in and are experiencing withdrawal symptoms to this Urgent Care facility. The client is given a referral note and brings it to the Urgent Care where they are ultimately given a 5 day supply of medication that is used to ease the withdrawal symptoms they are experiencing. After the 5 day period the client is then to follow up with Lake Geauga Recovery (Lake County) and ultimately begin their outpatient program and other recommended services.
Geauga County does not offer services like this and again clients are left with nowhere to turn aside from Emergency Rooms and Urgent Care Centers. Therefore there is a huge need for Geauga County to implement either a detox residential facility or an ambulatory detox center that works in tandem with the substance abuse treatment centers in Geauga County Such As Lake Geauga Recovery and Ravenwood Mental health Center.

Remember withdrawal can be extremely deadly, especially withdrawal from alcohol, heroin, and crack cocaine and crystal meth. It is also important to mention that most Geauga residents who seek help for their addictions do so after facing legal ramifications that are a direct result of their addiction. For example Lake Geauga Recovery Center which one of Geauga’s county’s prominent addiction service provider deals mostly with clients that are court ordered to treatment.
Helpful website: http://www.makethelist.net/top-5-most-dangerous-drugs/

Please make sure to use Google to search for Geauga County, Ohio and become familiar with their community resources, key organizations, etc. So you are better suited to write this paper.

Please make to research drug abuse in Geauga County to get a feel for the need for this proposed service.

ASSIGNMENT

Paper Guidelines:
• Paper must be 9 to 10 pages
• Written in APA format
• 12 fonts - Times New Roman
• Double spaced minimum of 8 references must be used and documented according to APA standards
• References can be books, journals, human service profession related and other scholarly websites (includes Wikipedia entries) and personal communications with experts in the field ??" at least 3. These can be made up) For example when discussing the need for a detox facility or ambulatory detox center you can say you spoke with the CEO of Geauga County Hospital , Shari Miller and she stated (then quote what she expressed about the need for this service)

• Please note the point grading system for each section listed on the outline. Higher point markers mean you should write a little more detail in that section. Lower point markers indicate you do not need to spend too much time on that area but still make sure to include relevant and key information.

Outline must be followed exactly according to each heading and subheading ??" MAKE SURE TO LIST HEADINGS AND SUBHEADINGS IN PAPER AS WELL.

IMPORTANT
I have already completed the engagement and assessment portion of the paper. I am having a hard time completing the rest of the paper, planning, evaluation AND termination. Please feel free to correct, change or redo any of my completed work if needed. Also please follow the outline exactly.


Paper outline:

Engagement (7 points) COMPLETED ??" SEE BELOW)

I. Provide a demographic description of your community (include population size, age, gender, household size, median income, (levels of employment and educational attainment.
(Google Geauga County Ohio latest census results ??" you will find all this information there)
II. Based on demographics describe your engagement plan/process
A. Describe your community’s social and cultural uniqueness
B. 3 to 4 Key resource organizations (Geauga County)
C. Key informants ??" develop a list of people you will contact in order to gather information for your project, name, affiliation, date of contact, method of contact.

Assessment (7 points) (COMPLETED ??" SEE BELOW)
I. Develop an asset map of your community
II. Describe the community defined problem or unmet need (this is where you would discuss the need to implement a detox residential facility or ambulatory detox center in Geauga County)

III. Discuss the parameters of this need or the extent of the need in the community.

IV. Discuss any additional data collection and analysis needed to address this problem

Planning (10 points) WRITER TO COMPLETE

I. Discuss your potential interventions to address this need (have at least interventions)
II. Explain how the community assets/resources will be engaged in the helping process (below is a list of community resources for Geauga County titled key resources & their websites ??" same as listed in engagement 2-B.
III. Propose two interventions to address key organization needs or to expand existing resource/assets
IV. Examine the pros and cons of each intervention
V. Discuss your goals and objectives for your interventions ??" make sure to have goals and objectives for each of your interventions. http://topachievement.com/smart.html

Evaluation (3 points) WRITER TO COMPELTE
• Discuss the benchmarks or outcomes-indicators of success

Termination (1 point) WRITER TO COMPLETE
• Explain how you will bring the relationship with the community to a close


Engagement section that I have already completed ??" feel free to change/redo/make better

Engagement

Geauga County is located in the northeastern corner of Ohio, located approximately thirty miles east of Cleveland and offers a perfect blend of beautiful countryside, interesting culture, captivating history, and unique shopping. Geauga County is also home to the country's second largest Amish population and some of the world's best maple syrup. The county has grown dramatically in recent years, as residents of nearby Cleveland in Cuyahoga County have moved to Geauga and surrounding counties to escape the busyness of the city. Between 1990 and 2000, Geauga County’s population increased by 12.1 percent to a total of 90,895 residents in 2000. The 2011 census reported an additional growth reflecting Geauga County’s population at 93,389 of which 50.7% (47,487) of the population was female and 49.3% (45,902) male. Of the male and female population those between the ages of 18 and 55 make up 52% of the entire Geauga County population. 96% of Geauga’s population is white, 1% African American or Black, 1% Hispanic or Latino, 1% Asian and 1% documented as some other race
Geauga County is overwhelmingly rural, but most residents earn their livings by working in manufacturing, sales, or service positions. Farming is a distant fourth, although county residents produce almost all of Ohio’s maple syrup or other maple products, earning Geauga the nickname “Ohio’s Sweetest County.” Many residents also commute to Cleveland to work. According to the U.S. Census Bureau, 54.9% of workers who are at least 16 years of age commute to jobs that are outside their county of residence. An average commute time is 26.0 minutes. Geauga County labor force is approximately 53,123; the unemployment rate is approximately 8.4% that is approximately 4,475. 48,648 of the residents were employed at the last 2011 census. The medium income reported between the years 2007 and 2012 was approximately $66,229.00 and the average household size is reported to be 2.69 persons per household. The 2011 census also indicates that 89.9% of Geauga County residents are High School graduates and 34.3% hold a bachelor’s degree or higher.

Key Resource Organizations and Key Informants

Geauga County has many key organizations and community resources that provide assistance and services to local residents. These organizations and resources help provide the community with education services, transportation, trade, healthcare, food service, utilities, legal services, beauty care, household services, social services, professional services , medical care, crisis intervention, child care, or job and career assistance. Some resources consist of research or advocacy to identify needs, advance understanding of issues or increase available resources. In addressing the need for Geauga County to implement an ambulatory detox facility it will be crucial to involve a number of key organizations and informants who are directly impacted by the lack of detox services provided in Geauga County.
I had the opportunity to speak with Linda Miller, current vice chairman at the Geauga County Board of Mental and Recovery Services, Linda stated that high rates of alcohol and drug abuse among the teens in Geauga County are rising. Excessive alcohol use in Geauga County remains relatively high as 76. 9 percent of senior students’ reported to have consumed alcohol at least a dozen of times in their lifetime and reported to using marijuana and other drugs on at least three to four occasion before graduation. Linda agreed that there is need for implementing a detoxification rehabilitative program to help patients in Geauga community complete their detoxification process and ensure long-term treatment and a safe recovery.
Melanie Blasko, CEO of Lake Geauga Center on Alcoholism and Drugs Abuse added that an ambulatory detox facility needs to be implemented as early as possible. Melanie stated “when addicts stop using drugs and alcohol their bodies go into withdrawal and it is the physical symptoms that occur due to withdrawal that make drug detox centers so necessary”. Melanie expressed true concern for the people of Geauga County who have nowhere to turn when trying to get clean, she stated “we often refer them to emergency rooms, or urgent care clinics in hopes they are provided with some sort of relief, this however is not the safest and most reliable form of detoxification, those treated at ER’s most likely return to using because they are not given the proper counseling or tools to aid in there recovery:.
In addition, David Boyle; the executive director at Ravenwood Mental Health Center in Geauga County where substance abuse services are provided to residents stated “we are limited in treatment of substance and alcohol abuse and often have to make referrals for clients who are in need of immediate detox services. Clients are often referred to emergency rooms or urgent care clinics however it is important to note that drug detox alone is not enough to help someone sustain a life without drugs and alcohol. Although absolutely vital to the process and a solid first step, drug detox must be followed up by an efficient and effective drug treatment program that addresses the mental, spiritual, emotional and physical aspects of changing the foundation for one’s life”.
The County Hospital Emergency Room CEO argued the ER doctors are not trained specifically in drug and alcohol detoxification and thus are unable to conduct effective supervision vital to patient’s needs. He stated “when patients present with drug and alcohol withdraw symptoms the staff is required to treat them with meds such as Benadryl, or anti-seizure medications, then patients are told to follow up with their primary care physician”. He concluded by saying that some patients are referred to places like Lake Geauga Recovery where they are offered treatment services and counseling however there is no detox facility offered in Geauga County.

Assessment section that I have already completed ??" feel free to change/redo/make better

B. Assessment

Drug rehab in Geauga County is the only way out of a lifestyle of addiction to drugs or alcohol for the thousands of individuals in the region who are plagued by drug addiction. While the majority of people desire to stop and attempt to do so by themselves, nearly all people will not succeed in doing so simply because they are only dealing with the surface manifestations of their drug or alcohol addiction. It is one thing to cease using drugs for a brief amount of time, trying to quit abruptly and on one's own. Many individuals will relapse simply because there are deep rooted problems which trigger their alcohol and drug abuse and caused them to use drugs to medicate to begin with. Unless these problems are addressed, there is no possibility that the individual will stay drug free and most often the problem only gets much worse. This is why drug rehab in Geauga County is the only way to honestly quit, where addicted men and women can benefit from a wide range of rehabilitation tools to tackle the correct causes of their drug or alcohol use.
Although Geauga County does offer an array of drug and alcohol facilities that offer a variety of treatment options, one crucial factor that aids in a successful recovery from drugs and alcohol is missing. Currently, Geauga County does not offer ambulatory detoxification services for individuals who are in desperate need to get clean and sober. Detoxification is considered to be the first and most crucial step in recovery from addiction. Addiction takes a toll on an individual emotionally, but also physically and many addictions become a physical dependency. This means that the body will actually grow to need the substance to function properly. This makes coming off an addiction very difficult and is why detox services are needed for those wishing to kick their addiction.
Currently all drug and alcohol service providers in Geauga County refer clients who are seeking detoxification services to emergency rooms and urgent care centers for treatment. This poses a significant problem on not only the individuals seeking help but the other service providers such as the hospitals and urgent care centers as they are not properly trained or equipped to treat withdrawal nor provide an adequate recovery plan that these individuals so desperately need. However, a complete lack of detox services in Geauga County has become abundantly apparent. By default, the county jail and local community hospitals have had to provide nonmedical detox services. While this serves as a needed safety net, it is not appropriate to expect these entities to continue to try to fill a service gap that needs to be delivered within a therapeutic and organized continuum of care.
According to Marcus Wolman who is employed at Geauga County’s Urgent Care clinic “having an ambulatory detox facility here is Geauga County would be a huge asset, it could even be integrated right here at our urgent care center, patients’ needs to be properly and safely detoxed not just given a pill and left to their own devices”. According to Geauga County Hospital representative “$1.2 million was spent in 2012 to evaluate individuals for significant drug or alcohol problems, having an ambulatory detox facility for these patients can save us a lot of money”.
The extent of implementing an ambulatory detoxification facility in Geauga County would be a great asset to its community. Drug and alcohol abuse is at an all-time high in the state of Ohio and Geauga County is feeling its wrath. In 2012 drug and alcohol related arrests in Geauga County increased by 19% .Of the reported 289 individuals in Geauga County in the year 2011 who sought help for drug and alcohol addiction only 24% reported still being clean and sober at the end of 2012. In addition crime increased by 17% in Geauga County between the years 2011 and 2012 of which 13% was directly drug related incidents.
The problem that Geauga County is faced with is not that their addicted and alcoholic residents do not or will not seek treatment it’s that they are not being offered the proper course of treatment that is crucial to a successful recovery. Yes, individual and family counseling, intensive outpatient group sessions and education courses are all an important and critical aspects of the recovery process however there are more crucial steps that need to take place first, such as 1.Evaluation: Upon beginning drug detoxification, a patient is first tested to see which specific substances are presently circulating in their bloodstream and the amount. Clinicians also evaluate the patient for potential co-occurring disorders, dual diagnosis, and mental/behavioral issues.2. Stabilization: In this stage, the patient is guided through the process of detoxification. This may be done with or without the use of medications but for the most part the former is more common. Also part of stabilization is explaining to the patient what to expect during treatment and the recovery process. Most importantly providing the patient with intensive medical interventions for safe withdraw management. 3. Guiding Patient into Treatment: The last step of the detoxification process is to ready the patient for the actual recovery process. As drug detoxification only deals with the physical dependency and addiction to drugs, it does not address the psychological aspects of drug addiction. This stage entails obtaining agreement from the patient to complete the process by enrolling in a drug rehabilitation program. Statistics show that alcohol and drug addicts who begin with proper detoxification followed by counseling and intensive outpatient services are more likely to remain clean and sober than those who skip the detoxification process.
Geauga County can benefit significantly by implementing an ambulatory detox facility in their community. Drug abuse is a problem that involves communities as much as it does individual users. Drug abuse can increase family stress, crime and significant health problems. Geauga County residents want to feel safe and protected, they want to have a sense of security and know their children are not at risk for things such as drugs, alcohol, violence and crime. In 2011 Forbes Magazine ranked Geauga County as the fourth best place in America to raise a family; this is due to its safe neighborhoods and low crime rates, a significant factor for many families choosing to live there. By reducing the prevalence of drug and alcohol use and abuse in the community Geauga County can benefit from reduced crime rates, family stress, and health problems.


The rest of the sections listed below need to be completed ??" please make sure it flows with the rest of the paper and that each heading and subheading is addressed and specified in order according to the outline.

Planning (10 points) this entire section should be between 3 and 4 pages

VI. Discuss your potential interventions to address this need (have at least 2 interventions)
VII. Explain how the community assets/resources will be engaged in the helping process. (community assets/resources were talked about in the engagement section)
VIII. Propose two interventions to address key organization needs or to expand existing resource/assets
IX. Examine the pros and cons of each intervention
X. Discuss your goals and objectives for your interventions ??" make sure to have goals and objectives for each of your interventions. http://topachievement.com/smart.html

Evaluation (3 points) approximately ½ to 1 page
• Discuss the benchmarks or outcomes-indicators of success

Termination (1 point) approximately ½ to 1 page
• Explain how you will bring the relationship with the community to a close

Please notice the point system marked next to each section. The engagement and assessment sections are worth 7 points each, the planning section is worth the most, 10 points so make sure to put a lot of effort in this section. Evaluation is 3 points and the termination section is 1 point, therefore you do not have to focus too much on those sections with lower point values.


Helpful Websites:
http://www.co.geauga.oh.us/Departments.aspx
http://ctb.ku.edu/en/table-of-contents/assessment/assessing-community-needs-and-resources/develop-a-plan/main#.UmX9jL7D-M8
http://ctb.ku.edu/en/table-of-contents/assessment/assessing-community-needs-and-resources/identify-community-assets/main#.UmX-d77D-M8
http://www.firstcoastnews.com/news/article/307912/0/St-Johns-County-is-the-largest-county-in-Florida-without-a-detox-center
http://www.das.state.ct.us/rfpdoc/DMHAS17/bids/intensive%20outpatient%20detox%20services%20final%2010%2001%2008_1.pdf
www.odadas.ohio.gov
http://adamh.ohio.gov/Portals/0/docs/ODADAS%20Bio%20LH.pdf
http://www.adamhs.co.montgomery.oh.us/collaboratives/grants-rfps/ADAMHS%20RFP%20-%20Ambulatory%20Detox%20Services.pdf
https://www.admhs.org/apps/admhs_main/ad/rfp/Detox%20Policy%20Guidelines.pdf
http://www.slocounty.ca.gov/Assets/DAS/San+Luis+Obispo+County+Detoxification+Services+Report.pdf
http://www.sonoma.edu/users/w/warmotha/psychclasses/490/spring01/bruffy.html#Anchor1

Key resources websites:
• The Geauga County Board of Mental Health and Recovery Services
http://www.geauga.org/mentalhealth.html
• Lake Geauga Recovery Centers
http://www.lgrc.us/

• Ravenwood Mental Health Center
http://www.ravenwoodmhc.org/

• United Way of Geauga County
http://www.uwsgc.org/

• University Hospitals Geauga medical Centers
http://www.uhhospitals.org/geauga/

• Ohio Department of Alcohol and Drug Addiction Services
http://adamh.ohio.gov/Portals/0/docs/ODADAS%20Bio%20LH.pdf

www.odadas.ohio.gov




There are faxes for this order.

Customer is requesting that (researchpro) completes this order.

Essay Instructions: The book is called Chemical Dependency A Systems Approach 4th Edition
please read chp. 4, The Physiological and Behavioral Consequences of Alcohol and Drug Abuse, Compare and contrast the physiological effects of alcohol, cannabis, stimulants, sedatives, narcotics, hallucinogens, and inhalants. Compare and contrast the behavioral effects of alcohol, cannabis, stimulants, sedatives, narcotics, hallucinogens, and inhalants.
There are faxes for this order.

Essay Instructions: there will be three short stories that will the paper will be based upon.. THE THREE SHORT STORIES THAT YOU WILL BE WRITING THE PAPER ON ARE "NOW I LAY ME", "SOLDIERS HOME", AND "THE SNOWS OF KILIMANJARO"..ALL BY ERNEST HEMINGWAY AND BELOW ARE THE GUIDELINES FOR WHICH THE PAPER NEEDS TO MEET..needs to be the 6 double spaced pages and behind it is the annotated bibliography in ABC form you need to list the sources along with the 2 outlines on 1 page


your papers primary sources will be three stories by one author. your are expected to use a minimum of five secondary sources to assist you in making and presenting your thesis. be careful not to rely on those secondary sources. use them to help you

cover sheet stapled to final draft in upper left hand corner
sentence outline following cover sheet (see guide in sentence outline)
12 pt. readable font
double-spaced paragraphs, indented 5 spaces ( no extra spacing between paragraphs)
top and bottom margins 1'', side margins 1.25"
two spaces after end punctuation of each sentence
page numbers only in upper right hand corner from page two on
internal citations according to MLA format( be sure that they correspond to citations in annotated bibliography)
annotated bibliography at the end in ABC order, adhering to MLA format

include hard copy of all primary sources. I strongly suggest that you number the paragraphs in each story. that wil make internal citations much easier
include hard copy of all secondary sources you use.

no less than 6 pages
use and citation of all references listed in your annotated bibliography
no more than 1/5 of the paper may be quotations, paraphrases or summaries from the secondary sources. no more than 1/5 of the paper may be quotations from the primary sources
all quotations, paraphrases, and summaries must be cited
the thesis must be clear, argumentative, and underlined

THIS PAPER MUST CONTAIN A SENTENCE OUTLINE AS WELL

1. one type of outline, the sentence outline, should consist of complete sentences. do not use compund sentences in the outline. if you have two equal points to make, divide that part of the outline into two points

2. the second type of outline, the topic outline, may contain words, phrases, and dependent clasuses

3. the outline should contain parallel structure

4. the outline does not contain the introduction and conclusion of the paper. it covers only the body of the essay

5. when writing about literature, the points of the outline should always be in the PRESENT TENSE.

6. the first letter of each point should be capitalized

7. a period should be placed after each introductory number or letter, such as I. or A...and at the end of each sentence.

8. space the outline correctly with each number or letter introducing a subpoint going directly beneath the first letter of the one above it. ALIGNMENT OF SYMBOLS, NUMBERS AND LETTERS IN AN OUTLINE IS IMPORTANT.

9. observe all the rules of the grammar and good style in your outline. for example avoid the passive voice and use of expletives

10. the outline does not contain transitional words in it other than pronouns

11. the outline should contain at least two items on each level. if there is a I, there must be a II. if there is an A, there must be a B. if there is a 1, there must be a 2

12. the main points (I, II, etc.) must relate directly to the thesis statement. the sub-points must relate to the points on the level above them.

EXAMPLE OF HOW THE OUTLINE SHOULD LOOK LIKE

Thesis: the use of alcohol and drugs can affect a person economically, psychologically, and psychically.

TOPIC OUTLINE
I. Economical effects (main point)
A. Alcohol (sub point)
1. Cost of alcohol purchases (detail of A)
2. Cost of DUIs (detail of A)
B. Drugs (subpoint)
1. Cost of drug purchases (detail of B)
2. Cost of drug arrest (detail of B)
II. Psychological effects
A. Alcohol
1. Mental impairment
2. Mental addiction
III. Psychical effects
A. Alcohol
1. Liver disease
2. Alcohol poisoning
B. Drugs
1. Brain damage
2. Drug overdse

SENTENCE OUTLINE
I. Alcohol use can effect one economically.
A. The costs of alcohol is high and getting higher.
1. The costs of DUIs can be enormous.
2. Alcohol costs are always rising due to rising production costs as well as state and local taxes.
B. The cost of drug use can be high
1. Even the arrest for minute possession of drugs can result in high bail and court costs.
2. The cost of drugs fluctuates drastically according to the type of drug, its availability, and the amount.
II. Alcohol and drug abuse use can have severe psychological effects.
A. Alcohol abuse can damage a person psychologically.
1. Alcohol is a depressant and can alter the personality of anyone.
2. The abuse of alcohol can lead to the psychological addiction of alcohol.
B. The use of drugs can be detrimental to one psychologically.
1. Drugs impair ones ability to function normally due to hallucinations or numbness of "getting high."
2. drugs can become a psychological addiction.
III. There are many psychical effects of alcohol and drug use.
A. The abuse of alcohol can cause psychical problems.
1. The most common disease among alcoholics is cirrhosis of the liver.
2. The massive consumption of alcohol can lead to alcohol poisoning and death.
B. Drug use has many physical implications.
1. Drug use has been linked to the damage of brain tissue.
2. The unpredictability of drugs can often lead to an overdose and death

Essay Instructions: Important - make sure you read the section on plagiarism.

Writing is an important skill. As such, you will be required to turn in a 4-5 page research paper on the lifespan development topic of your choice. You may select any topic from your textbook, or any other topic in the world that is related to lifespan development. In addition to summarizing your outside research you must also discuss to a lesser extent how this fits with the material in your textbook. You should submit your topic to me for approval no later than the date listed in the syllabus.

Topics are never easy to come up with. I have left this assignment open so that you can explore any area you wish. You can compare sides on an issue, do an in-depth exploration of a specific subject, trace a historical pattern, trace a pattern of a concept across development. The main criterion is that it has to be related in some way to developmental psychology. You should use at least 3 outside sources, at least one of which must not exist on the internet. If you wish to use a primary source, he/she should be authoritative. You must clear any primary source with me in advance, or that person will to be counted within your sources.

Your textbook will not count as one of your outside sources. However, bear in mind that part of your grade involves comparison to your textbook, so you will have to cite the pages you use. Moreover, you must select a topic that you can compare to the textbook in some way, either directly or indirectly. check this in advance - it would be no fun to write 4 good pages on your outside work, only to find you have no text comparison you can make. Text comparison is worth ten points overall, so this part is not somethign you should skimp on.

Your grade for this assignment will be based on the following scale:

Topic approved by deadline: 3 points
Outside research content: 20 points
Comparison with textbook: 10 points
Quality of writing, formatting: 12 points
Sources cited: 3 points
Read/pasted paragraph on plagiarism: 2 points


Content:

Content is the largest part of this grade; this portion of your grade will be based on thoroughness, coherence, how far you went beyond your textbook, quality of main points. You do not simply get 30 points for having content; rather, the quality of your content is what is being graded. The individual components generally break down as follows:

Excellent content - 20 points outside research/10 text summary
Very good content - 18 points/9 points
Good content - 16 points/8 points
Adequate content - 14 points/7 points
Content needed work, or not enough content - less than 14/7

How do I gauge these things? Well, excellent means you went well beyond the norm, had thorough detail, well-researched using research-oriented outside sources. Only the very best papers will be granted 20 points on outside content. If you receive 18 it means you went above the norm, and did very good work, well-researched and communicated. 16 out of 20 means you did good work - not as thorough as the best paper would be, but certainly respectable. 14 means you met the requirements of the assignment.

If your paper has less than 4 full pages of text, regardless of quality, you will receive less than 14/7 points on your content components. Above four pages, length is not a definitive factor in your grade, but it is harder to score 20 with a minimum length paper - it would have to be very succinct and thorough. However, writing the maximum length does not earn 20 automatically. Both quality and quantity are important.

Can you go longer than 5 pages? I won't mind if you go as far as 6 pages, but you will be graded down if you go beyond 6 pages of text. Part of the challenge is to write well within limits.

Your comparison to the text is worth one fifth of your paper grade, so keep this in mind as you do this part. You may compare directly or indirectly to various concepts in the text. You must cite page numbers within your paper to make clear which parts of your paper refer to the text, and which parts of the text you are comparing to. If textbook content is not clearly cited within the text, I will assume the material is outside research content, and you will ot get those points for text comparison.

Paper formatting instructions:

Margins no more than 1.25 inches all around. Font size no more than 12 points, Times New Roman or Arial font only. Double-spaced (not single, 1.5, or more than double).
All papers must be submitted as email attachments, in MS Word format (.doc), or in rich Text format (.rtf). There are hundreds of word processors out there,and I don't own them all. If you are not using MS Word, then please look under "Save As..." within your word processor, and find an option to save in Word or RTF format. RTF is pretty universally available.
4-5 pages refers to full pages of text; simply writing one paragraph on the fourth page does not count as 4 pages! Also, taking up half of the first page with title and class information does not count. A title page does not count. Your reference page does not count. Only full pages of text count toward the length requirement. Please do not come in under 4 pages - even by one paragraph - or you will be graded down.
For all internet sources you must cite what the author's authority is; that is, anybody can put up a web page - what makes this person an authority on the subject?
Don't overdo the block quotes.
Citing sources - all sources that are listed on your reference page should be cited somewhere within your paper. All sources should have specific pages listed for what material was used. All outside material within your paper must be cited, with page numbers, within the text when you use the material and in a references page at the end. You may cite using APA or MLA style.
Read the section below on plagiarism. Then, copy and paste the noted paragraph below the sources on your references page.
I check all of this stuff!
Paper Submission Instructions:

You should submit all homework assignments via email. For your paper, you should submit it two ways. Please send it via email AND upload it to Blackboard via the Digital Dropbox function under Student Tools. Should the paper go missing via email, and you fail to have a backup copy posted before the deadline, you will receive a zero on the assignment.

Plagiarism

Important - read the following, then follow the instructions at the bottom of the section.

Plagiarism, be it intentional or unintentional, is a recurring problem with writing assignments, all the more so in the cut-and-paste computer age. I check for plagiarism. If I catch plagiarism on any assignment you will receive a zero on that assignment, and will face a hearing on academic misconduct which may lead to a failing grade in the course and expulsion from Columbus State.

It is important that you understand what constitutes plagiarism so that you can avoid it. In its most common form, plagiarism includes:

Taking another person's idea, opinion or data and representing it as your own product.
Quoting a source without attributing it.
Paraphrasing the ideas of another without attribution; this includes taking a chunk of text and changing only a few words here or there and representing it as your own.
If you feel like you need clarification on any of these, please check out this page at the University of Indiana. If you are still not clear from their examples, please e-mail me. I nailed 5 people for plagiarism in spring quarter, and none of them expected to be caught. Once you are clear on this, copy the following section of text between the lines onto your reference page of your paper:


--------------------------------------------------------------------------------

"I have read and understand the section on what constitutes plagiarism for this assignment, as listed on the PSY 261 web site Assignments page. I attest that I have listed all sources used for this paper, and that I have attributed all quotations and paraphrases used in this paper. I further attest that all work not represented as belonging to someone else is my own."


My textbook comparision should come from the 4th edition of "Infants and Children Prenatal Through Middle Childhood" by Laura E. Berk. The section on Alcohol come from page 117 and 118 in the book, this section reads as follows:

Alcohol:
In a moving story, Michael Dorris(1989), a Dartmouth University anthropology professor, described what it was like to raise his adopted son Adam, whose biological mother drank heavily throughout pregnancy and died of alcohol poisoning shortly after his birth. A Sioux Indian, Adam was 3 years old when he come into Dorris's life. He was short and underweight and had a vocabulary of only 20 words. Although he ate well, Adam grew slowly and remained painfully thin. He was prone to infection and had repeated brain seizures. His vocabulary revealed that Adam's intelligence was below avg. At age 12, he could not add, stubtract, or idenify the town in which he lived.

Fetal alcohol syndrome(FAS) is the scientific name for Adam's condition. Mental retardation, impaired motor coordination, attention, memory, and language; and overacitivyt are typical of children with the disorder. Distinct physical symptoms also accompany it, including slow physical growth and a specific pattern of facial abnormalities: widely spaced eyes; short eyelid openings; a small, upturned nose; a thin upper lip; and a small head, indicating that the brain has not develope fully. Other defects--of the eyes, ears, nose, throat, heart, gentials, urinary tract, or immune system--may also be present.

In all babies born with FAS, the mother drank heavily through most or all of her pregnancy. In a related condition, known as fetal alcohol effects(FAE), individuals display only some of these abnormalities. Usually, their mothers drank alcohol in smaller quantities. The particualr defects of FAE children vary with timing and length of alcohol exposure during pregnancy(Goodlet & Johnson, 1999;Mattson et al.,1998).

Even when provided with enriched diets, FAS babies fail to catch up in physical size during infancy or childhood. Mental impairments is also permanent: In his teens and twenties, Adam's intelligence remained below average, and he had trouble concentrating and keeping a routine job. He also suffered from poor judgment. For example, he would buy something and not wait for change, or he would wander off in the middle of a task. The more alcohol consumed by a woman during pregnancy, the poorer the child's motor coordination, speed of information processing, reasoning, and intelligence and achievement test scores during the preschool and school years (Aronson, Hagberg, & Gillberg,1997;Hunt et al.,1995;Jacobson et al.,1993). In adolescence, FAS is associated with poor school performance, trouble with the law, inappropriate sexual behavior, alcohol and drug abuse, and lasting mental health problems(Streissguth et al.,1999). Adolescents with FAS who managed to escape mental retardation still have serious cognitive impairments, including deficits in attention, memory, planning, and spatial abilities(Olson et al.,1998)

How does alcohol produce its devastating effects? First, it interferes with cell duplication and migration in the primitive neural tube. Psychophysiological measures, such as fMRI and EEGs, reveal structural damage and abnormalities in brain functioning, including electrical and chemical activity involved in transferring messages from one part of the brain to another(Guerri,1998;Roebuck,Matson,&Riley,1999).
Second, the body uses large quantities of oxygen to metabolize alcohol. A pregnant woman's heavy drinking draws away oxygen that the developing organism needs for cell growth.

Like heroin an dcocaine, alcohol abuse is higher in poverty-striken sectors of the population(Streissguth,1997). On the reservation where Adam was born, many children show symptoms of prenatal alcohol exposure. Unfortunately, when girls with FAS or FAE later become pregnant, the poor judgment caused by the syndrome often prevents them from understanding why they should avoid alcohol themselves. Thus, the tragic cycle is lekely to repeat itself in the next generation.

How much alcohol is safe during pregnancy? One study linked as little as 2 ounces of alcohol a day, taken very early in pregnancy, to FAS-like facial features (Astley et al.,1992). But recall that other factors--both genetic and environmental--can make some fetuses more vulnerable to teratogenic effects. Therefore, a precise dividing line between safe and dangerous drinking levels cannot be established, and it is best for pregnant women to avoid alcohol entirely.

That concludes the discussion in the textbook.