64 research outputs found
Toward a Personalized Psychological Counseling Service in Assisted Reproductive Technology Centers: A Qualitative Analysis of Couples’ Needs
No full textInfertility may have a very strong emotional impact on individuals, requiring adequate support, but few studies on patients\u27 demands toward psychological support have been conducted. This study aims to explore the emotions related to the infertility and to the Assisted Reproductive Technology (ART) procedure for which patients consider useful a psychological support. A total of 324 women completed a sociodemographic and clinical questionnaire and an open-ended questionnaire on emotional needs for psychological support. The written texts were explored by the Linguistic Inquiry and Word Count (LIWC) programme and linguistic characteristics were related to sociodemographic and anamnestic variables. Specific linguistic features were connected to several individual characteristics. More specifically, differences in linguistic processes emerged comparing women with an age over or under 40 years, women undergoing their first attempts versus more attempts, women undergoing ART with or without gamete donation, and women undergoing ART for male or unknown causes, as well as those undergoing ART for female or both partners’ problems. These differences seem to confirm that older age, more attempts, gamete donation, and ART for unknown or male causes are risk factors that may worsen women\u27s psychological well-being. This study contributes to increase the knowledge about the emotional needs of patients undergoing an ART procedure to develop specific psychological intervention programs
Psychological care for infertile couples undergoing assisted reproductive technology: a national study on the characteristics of counselling services
No full textIntroduction. Infertility has an impact on the psychophysical health of individuals and
couples, and its treatment through an assisted reproductive technology (ART) is a very
exacting experience. The aim of this study was to explore the characteristics of psychological counselling services in Italian ART centres through a specially designed questionnaire administered to the physicians in charge of the centres.
Methods. The questionnaire online was sent to 306 ART authorized centres. It consisted
of 26 questions. A total of 15 were single-selection questions, 5 were multiple-choice and
the remaining 6 were open-ended.
Results. 113 (37%) ART centres responded to the questionnaire. All the ART centres
offered psychological counselling, but only in 47% of them the psychologist is a permanent staff member. In 69% of the centres, 10 to 20% of couples use the psychological
counselling service.
Discussion. Although the Italian Guidelines under Law 40/2004 stress the need to provide couples with psychological support and counselling and the literature highlights the
efficacy of such interventions, the results of our study show that psychological counselling services are not yet fully operational in Italian ART centres or integrated into their
day-to-day medical practice.
Conclusion. In conclusion, the results show that psychological services in Italian ART
centres are not yet fully operational and integrated in the ART procedure. All of this
highlights the importance of further investigations with the aim to shared information to
use to establish common protocols for psychological interventions in ART centre
IL CAMBIAMENTO CLIMATICO HA CONSEGUENZE SULLE SPECIE ARTICO-ALPINE? IL CASO-STUDIO DELL’ARVICOLA DELLE NEVI, CHIONOMYS NIVALIS, NELLE ALPI CENTRO-ORIENTALI (RODENTIA: CRICETIDAE)
No full textHas the climate change consequences for arctic-alpine species? The case study of the snow
vole Chionomys nivalis in the central-eastern Alps (Rodentia: Cricetidae).
The monitoring of small mammals, which are excellent bioindicators of terrestrial biocenosis,
can provide important indications on the effect of environmental change on local ecosystems,
especially in the Alps, which are particularly sensitive to these fast-occurring modifications. In
this context, in summer/autumn 2016 we performed a pilot study in the Central Italian Alps,
based on the capture-mark-recapture method. Specifically, we aimed to compare the small
mammals assemblages in three close-by open sites above tree line, set at the same elevation
but characterized by different habitats: scree, grassland and mixed area (shrubs). We identified
the individuals by fur-clipping and morphometric measures, and we modelled the temporal
trend of the recorded demographic parameters (sex, reproductive status, age, body mass and
morphometric measures) over time. We applied Redundancy Detrended Analysis (RDA) to
compare the results with an analogous study realized in 1997, conducted in the same study
area, in the same habitat typologies and applying the same capture procedure. We found
that in both surveys the small mammals assemblages were represented especially by bank
vole Myodes glareolus and snow vole Chionomys nivalis. While in 1997 the two species were
sympatric in the three sites, in 2016 they were associated together only in the scree habitat.
These results suggest an altitudinal shift of bank vole from forest habitat to alpine highlands,
which may have caused a modification of snow vole distribution in response to the plausible insurgence of interspecific competition, with snow vole isolating itself in the most suitable
habitat, i.e. the scree. We conclude that these considerations should be supported by a long-term
project, aiming at disentangling climate change driven effects from those caused by
stochastic demographic fluctuations that typically characterize the population dynamic of
these small mammal species
Psychologists’ Representations About Their Professional Functions Within Assisted Reproductive Multidisciplinary Teams
No full textBackground: In order to promote the use of specific Italian guidelines for psychological interventions during Assisted Reproductive Treatment (ART), we conducted a preliminary analysis of the mental representations of a sample of psychologists working in ART clinics regarding their functions, roles and responsibilities as members of a multidisciplinary team. Method: Two focus groups were conducted with 12 psychologists working in private and public ART Clinics in the Lazio Region (Italy). The focus groups were recorded; the transcribed text was analysed using Emotional Text Mining (ETM). Results: Participants symbolized their work by means of three main categories: Position of the psychologist, in which they noted the difference between their hopes in doing this work and the disenchantment have experienced due to the difficulty of implementing a multidisciplinary model; The focus group, underlining the importance of comparison and collaboration among psychologists; Work, that evidenced the different aspects of the psychologists’ activity with both the patients and the clinical staff. Conclusions: Understanding the emotional, relational, and cognitive processes that form the basis of psychological practice in ART clinics can contribute to the development of interventions integrated with medical care that could impact patients, staff, and the health care system
PSYCHOLOGISTS’ REPRESENTATIONS ABOUT THEIR PROFESSIONAL FUNCTIONS WITHIN ITALIAN ASSISTED REPRODUCTIVE TEAMS
No full textIn order to promote the implementation of specic Italian guidelines for psychological care during Assisted Reproductive Treatment (ART), the study aimed to analysis mental representations of psychologists
working in ART clinics regarding their functions and roles. Five focus groups with 28 psychologists were
conducted. "e text was analysed using emotional text mining (ETM). Analysis showed four clusters of
representations from psychologists: ‘Clinical Practice with the patient’, that re&ects the practical functions
of psychologist who works with patients; ‘To place psychology within the treatment’, representing the possibility of re-thinking the placement of a psychologist’s work within ART team; ‘Psychologist’s loneliness’,
describing the emotional dispositions of psychologists related to di%culties in working within the clinic, in
nding solutions and space; ‘Collusion with medicine’, representing the psychologists’ tendency to adapt
their expertise and activities to the medical process. "e results of the present study highlight the need to
de$ne psychologists’ functions and operational levels of psychology. To build a clinical practice based on
multidisciplinary work still appears to achieve
The cultural representations and symbolizations emerging from Italian psychologists working in multidisciplinary assisted reproduction teams: A linguistic analysis with the emotional text mining
No full textThis study aims to explore the perspectives of Italian psychologists who work in assisted reproductive treatment (ART) centres regarding their roles within multidisciplinary teams. Twenty-eight psychologists were interviewed, recorded and their transcribed text was analysed using emotional text mining. The analysis revealed four clusters representing the psychologists' cultural symbolizations of their works: 'Clinical Practice with the patient', 'Placing Psychology within the Treatment', 'Psychologist's Loneliness' and; 'Collusion with Medicine'. The symbolic representations emerging clearly highlighted a lack of integration of psychology within the medical field. Psychologists expressed emotional and practical difficulties in trying to integrate their role, including a desire to provide psychological assistance, feelings of loneliness and concerns about jeopardizing their professional opportunities, which are intertwined with the medical field. Present findings underscore the importance of integrating psychology within ART centres and multidisciplinary teams and of establishing operational guidelines for psychologists. These steps are crucial for reaching integration of psychologists within the medical setting
Use of computer tomography for imaging of Crassicauda grampicola in a Risso's dolphin (Grampus griseus)
No full textA mature male Risso's dolphin (Grampus griseus) stranded along the coasts of Friuli Venezia Giulia, northeast Italy, in May 2001. Parasitic infection with Crassicauda grampicola is often found in the tympanic bullae and pterygoid sinuses in many of the Risso's dolphins examined from the same area. For this reason, it was decided to perform computed tomography of the head to assess this imaging technique for the diagnosis of crassicaudosis in dolphins. A full postmortem examination confirmed the pathologic findings of the computed tomography scan. This technique can be considered a useful adjunct in the diagnosis of cranial crassicaudosis in live dolphins
Use of computer tomography for imaging of Crassicauda grampicola in a Risso's dolphin (Grampus griseus).
No full textA mature male Risso's dolphin (Grampus griseus) stranded along the coasts of Friuli Venezia Giulia, northeast Italy, in May 2001. Parasitic infection with Crassicauda grampicola is often found in the tympanic bullae and pterygoid sinuses in many of the Risso's dolphins examined from the same area. For this reason, it was decided to perform computed tomography of the head to assess this imaging technique for the diagnosis of crassicaudosis in dolphins. A full postmortem examination confirmed the pathologic findings of the computed tomography scan. This technique can be considered a useful adjunct in the diagnosis of cranial crassicaudosis in live dolphins
Causes of stranding in four Risso's dolphins (Grampus griseus) found beached along the North Adriatic Sea coast
No full textThe Risso’s dolphin (Grampus griseus) (Cuvier, 1812) is a medium-sized odontocete, between 2.8 and 3.5m in length, widely distributed in the Mediterranean Sea, mainly in deep waters. This species has rarely been sighted in the North Adriatic. There have been no recent sightings or strandings of this dolphin along the Slovenian coasts while episodic sightings and strandings, have occurred along Italian coasts since the beginning of the 1900’s until today (Lapini et al., 1995; Notarbartolo Di Sciara and Demma, 1994). This report describes the pathological data related to the strandings of this species along the North Adriatic Sea coasts, specifically those in the Friuli Venezia Giulia area
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