As a Nation, we do not diagnose or treat mental health correctly and compassionately.  We imprison many citizens and veterans with out giving proper care; knowing that the criminal justice system is not setup to handle this issues properly.  We also do not recognized the benefit of animals in human therapy in one article, I researched the author states; “There has been much written on the human-animal bond over the last several years. Finally pets are “getting their due” when it comes to relationships with humans in Nursing Homes, with the sick, old, and disabled, and with just plain home living with their owners…young and old…sick or disabled. Of course, their bond with law enforcement is well known also.

Written and Provided exclusively to Workingdogs.com by Floyd R. Garrett, D.V.M. Copying is not allowed.

Physicians of the future will be writing prescriptions for their sick patients…”Pet purchase or ownership.” It has been shown that pets give stability, reduce stress, reduce our blood pressure, give us an emotional outlet, and help in socialization of many kinds. A strong bond with a pet can mean the difference in life or death.

In 1995, a study showed that pets helped men and women that had a heart attack survive longer. Out of 87 patients that had a heart attack and irregular heartbeats only one of those who had a pet died. This group was compared with a group of 282 patients that had no pets and in the same length of time 19 died. It has been a well known fact now for many years that pet ownership lowers blood pressure. Why even the founder of modern nursing, Florence Nightingale, wrote that pets make excellent companions for the sick and chronically ill.

The scientists at Baker Medical Research Institute in Australia published an article in 1991 that showed pet owners significantly have lower systolic blood pressure and lower plasma triglycerides than people without pets. A 1997 study at the University of Buffalo in New York showed that stress was much lower in pet owners. That when asked to give a talk or do any public speaking in front of an audience, the stress level was much lower if dogs were present in the room. It is a proven fact that in most cases overall, pet owners are more athletic and physically fit. They have lower blood cholesterol and fewer heart problems.

Let’s talk about our senior citizens living alone or in nursing homes. In one study (1995), 12 out of 15 patients felt that having a pet helped them cope with fear; gave them more security; and kept them from despair, loneliness, and isolation. There is one insurance company (and possibly many more) that has reduced health insurance premiums for elderly pet owners. Barbara De Angelis, PhD, in her book Are You the One for Me, 1994, stated that pet owners have happier more satisfied marriages. Overall their marriages have much closer relationships than non-pet owners do.

Lets talk about children. In many studies it has been shown that children with pets learn social behavior easier, have more tolerance and sensitivity to society and people around them. Children with pets seem to have more
positive feedback in society, they get social support from their pets and a sense of wellbeing. These children have higher levels of social competence and self-esteem.

In closing, I simply must talk about one last group of pets. The working pet or assistance dog. Most of you know that dogs and other pets are assisting people with vision and hearing problems. They are doing such a tremendous job assisting people in wheel chairs and with major physical disabilities. They now have social assistance dogs that help burn victims, people with deformities and even severe obesity. These dogs are trained to help these people socially in society to interact with others and gain acceptance. A 1996 AMA study showed that service dogs helped their owners self esteem, social interaction, and relieved loneliness.
The terms animal-assisted activities and animal-assisted therapy have been coined. You will see these terms more and more in articles you read. Animal-assisted activity can be simply keeping a bird in a depressed and lonely patients room. It has been shown by rehabilitation therapists that animals improve patients balance and coordination. Children trying to walk again will walk farther if a dog is in the room. Animals help children with emotional problems speak and interact faster than ones without animal assistance. I simply must close this article, I wanted to discuss Police working dogs since I have one, but maybe in one of the next articles.”  We have the science but we don’t use it for the betterment of society.  As a Nation we must come together and change this!

Written and Provided exclusively to Workingdogs.com by Floyd R. Garrett, D.V.M. Copying is not allowed.

More Releases of Ailing Prisoners Are Urged

By CHARLIE SAVAGE

Published: May 1, 2013

English: United States Department of Veterans Affairs Office of Inspector General Seal. (Photo credit: Wikipedia)

WASHINGTON — The federal Bureau of Prisons could save taxpayer money and reduce overcrowding if it better managed a program for the “compassionate release” of inmates who are dying or facing other extraordinary circumstances, according to a new report by the Justice Department’s independent inspector general.

The federal prison system does not allow the parole of inmates before their sentences are completed, but in the Sentencing Reform Act of 1984, Congress authorized the bureau to request that a judge reduce an inmate’s sentence for “extraordinary and compelling” circumstances. Such compassionate release does not have to be for reasons of terminal illness, but it generally is.

The 85-page report, released on Wednesday by Inspector General Michael E. Horowitz, examined compassionate releases from 2006 to 2011. It recommended that the bureau make greater use of its ability to release inmates who are taking up bed space — and using costly medical services — but who pose relatively little risk to the public because of factors like their age or poor health.

“We concluded that an effectively managed compassionate release program would result in cost savings for the B.O.P., as well as assist the B.O.P. in managing its continually growing inmate population and the resulting capacity challenges it is facing,” it said. “We further found that such a program would likely have a relatively low rate of recidivism.”

The recidivism rate within three years for all former federal inmates is around 41 percent. By contrast, just 5 of the 142 inmates released for compassionate reasons — or 3.5 percent — in the studied period were rearrested within three years, it said.

The report also said that the Bureau of Prisons did not maintain consistent standards for who is eligible for the program. For example, some prisons said it had to be someone who was likely to die within six months, while others said within 12 months.

The agency also did not have a mechanism to ensure that inmates knew about the option or a comprehensive system for tracking and making certain that requests were processed in a timely fashion. In 28 of 208 cases — 13 percent — in which inmate requests were approved by a warden and then by a regional director, the inmate died before a final decision was made by the Bureau of Prisons director, the report said.

Charles E. Samuels Jr., the bureau’s director, said that he accepted most of the report’s recommendations, and that some improvements were already under way.

In an update later on Wednesday, the inspector general’s office said the bureau had issued a memorandum on Tuesday setting the medical criteria for consideration for the program as a terminal disease with life expectancy of 18 months or less.

Inmates who are significantly disabled — either from an incurable and progressive illness or from a debilitating injury from which they will not recover — are also eligible if they are confined to a bed or a chair for more than half of their waking hours, the memo said, adding that “any cognitive defects” may also be considered.

 A version of this article appeared in print on May 2, 2013, on page A17 of the National edition with the headline: More Releases of Ailing Prisoners Are Urged.

Federal Bureau of Prisons (seal) (Photo credit: Wikipedia)

Related articles

• DOJ review confirms government waste and mismanagement of BOP’s handling of compassionate release (sentencing.typepad.com)
• Compassionate release review buoys old US inmates (cnsnews.com)
• In New Mexico, Female Prison Inmates Help Train and Socialize Shelter Dogs (dogster.com)
• DOJ Report Urges Prison Reform for Compassionate Release (legaltimes.typepad.com)

Finance for Startups by Kate Lister

First Six Years

• Each year about 12 million people try to start about 7 million ventures—that means more businesses than babies are conceived every year.
• At the end of two years, there was no correlation between the amount of startup capital and success.
• More than six years in, fewer than two in five startups report initial profits—worth noting if you’re thinking about quitting your day job.

More than 80 percent of new ventures were funded by owner savings, personal loans and credit cards.  About 17 percent of entrepreneurs received financial help from the folks who knew them, loved them or liked them.  The average startup kitty was about $48,000.00 (Median $4,300.00)

Marketing to Women online by Sara Anderson

5 Guidelines to marketing to the group that really holds the wallet.

1.       Speak her language

2.       Connect her with others

3.       Allow her to Research

4.       Appeal to Changing Status Trends

a.        Generosity

b.       Green Credentials

5.       Patterns

Women have the ability to perceive more than the metric of a product attribute.

Related articles

• The new realities for startups (techflash.com)
• Startups: Dealing With Competition [TNW Entrepreneur] (thenextweb.com)
• The Business Plan Or Planning For Business – What Works Today (growvc.com)
• 3 ways to raise seed capital if you don’t know any investors (venturebeat.com)
• View From Above: The Startup Map (readwriteweb.com)
• Definition of a Startup Business (thinkup.waldenu.edu)

As of Sept. 14, 2010, Angela Alsobrook became Prince George’s County Md’s first Female and African-American States Attorney.  Ms. Alsobrook won by a huge margin, leaving all her competitors in the dust.  She ran on a grass root movement in PG County, with a platform of :

• Improving partnerships with police and probation officers, community leaderss and federal law enforcement agencys
• Appoint a performance officer to increase the quality and effectiveness of prosecutions.
• Increase focus on community prosecution strategy by assigning a prosecutor to every district.
• Prosecute non-violent drug offenders in drug court.
• Get guns off our streets through increased gun prosecutions.
• Combat violent crimes against women, children and families
• Help young men and women say “NO” to crime through effective intervention programs
• Protect witnesses from violent retaliation.

Ms. Alsobrook had all the right endorsements, work ethic, and experience for the position.

To learn more about Angela Alsobrook go to http://www.angelaalsobrooks.com

In June 2010 edition of Black Enterprise, the editors wrote about Obama signing legislation to make health care available and affordable to millions of americans.  In the article “What Healthcare Reform Means for you!”, they state that out of 45 million uninsured there are 30 million to 32 million citizens in the United States who do not have health insurance.

They also state, that it will provide; insurance subsidies to families and tax credits for small businesses, among other measures.

For Consumers, the bill will allow access to affordable insurance.  By 2014 the insurance companies will not be allowed to deny coverage to anyone based on their health status.  Sept. 2010, children can not be denied inclusion in their parents plan for pre-existing conditions.  Citizens can even fight a claim denial much easier.