Child protection and out-of-home placement experiences of preschool children born to mothers enrolled in methadone maintenance treatment during pregnancy

Children born to opiate-dependent women engaged in methadone maintenance treatment are at high risk of child welfare concern. However, few studies have examined the early child protection service (CPS) contacts of this group or the risk factors that place some but not other mother–infant dyads at increased risk of serious concern resulting in the removal of the child from the family home. As part of a prospective longitudinal study based in New Zealand, 73 women enrolled in methadone maintenance treatment during pregnancy and 54 non-methadone maintained comparison mothers were recruited during pregnancy and interviewed close to delivery, 18-months and 4.5-years. At each follow-up evaluation, detailed life history methods were used to describe children's family circumstances and all CPS contacts. By 4.5-years postdelivery, methadone maintained mothers were ten-times more likely to have been investigated by child protection services than comparison mothers (59% v. 6%, p < .001). Of these contacts, almost half (44%) resulted in the removal of the child from the family home compared to no comparison children (p < .001). These children were most frequently placed before age 1, with an average of 1–2 caregiver changes (range: 0–7). In addition to maternal methadone maintenance treatment during pregnancy (p < .001), significant independent predictors of child out-of-home placement included maternal depression (p = .01), maternal history of child custody loss (p = .02), and to some extent, high levels of family socioeconomic adversity (p = .06). Findings highlight the complex psychosocial needs of this high-risk group, as well as the need for careful monitoring and parenting support following hospital discharge.     

Promotive and risk factors as concurrent predictors of educational outcomes in supported transitional living: Extended care and maintenance in Ontario, Canada

We tested selected promotive and risk factors as concurrent predictors of educational attainment, educational aspirations, and participation in education, training, or employment among young people enrolled in extended care and maintenance (ECM) in Ontario, Canada. ECM is a legislatively established transitional living program that provides financial, instrumental, and emotional support to former youths in care in the province who have had their individualized plans for education, training, or work accepted by their local Children's Aid Societies. The 406 participants in the research were 18-20 years of age and included 230 females (56.7%) and 176 males (43.3%). The data were collected by the youths' child welfare workers in interviews conducted by means of the second Canadian adaptation of the Assessment and Action Record from Looking After Children (AAR-C2-2006; Flynn, Vincent, & Legault, 2009). Cross-sectional hierarchical regression and sequential logistic regression analyses showed that the youth's total number of developmental assets was the most consistent promotive factor, predicting more favorable levels of all three educational outcomes. Cognitive impairments and soft-drug use were the most consistent risk factors, each predicting lower levels of two of the three outcomes. The practice and policy implications of the findings, as well as the limitations of the research, were discussed.     

Optimization of continuous and discrete scheduled times for a cumulative damage system with age-dependent maintenance

Abstract

This paper presents a preventive replacement problem when a system is operating successive works with random times and suffering stochastic shocks. The works cause random amount additive damage to the system, and the system fails whenever the cumulative damage reaches a failure level threshold. As an external shock occurs, the system experiences one of the two types of shocks with age-dependent maintenance mechanism: type-I (minor) shock is rectified by a minimal repair, or type-II (catastrophic) shock causes the system to fail. To control the deterioration process, preventive replacement is scheduled to replace the system at a continuous age T or at a discrete number N of working cycles, whichever occurs first, and corrective replacement is performed immediately whenever the system fails due to either shock or damage. The optimal preventive replacement schedule that minimizes the expected cost rate is discussed analytically and computed numerically. The proposed model provides a general framework for analyzing maintenance policies and extends several existing results.     

基于时间延迟理论的预防维修模型及案例研究

本文旨在解决设备维修决策过程中预防维修检查数据缺乏情况下如何确定出合理的维修间隔期问题。首先,通过预防维修技术经济分析,提出了有关维修间隔期和总的停机时间之间关系的预防维修模型。其次,根据时间延迟维修理论,利用故障记录数据和预防维修检查数据的估计值,建立了统计模型并用来计算维修间隔期内故障次数的期望值。计算机仿真检验证明统计模型正确后,采用最大拟然法估计有关参数,这些参数包括缺陷发生率、时间延迟分布、检查出缺陷的概率等。最后是案例分析,应用估计参数和预防维修模型,计算出最佳的维修间隔期。     

A demand classification scheme for spare part inventory model subject to stochastic demand and lead time

In this study, we aim to develop a demand classification methodology for classifying and controlling inventory spare parts subject to stochastic demand and lead time. Using real data, the developed models were tested and their performances were evaluated and compared. The results show that the Laplace model provided superior performance in terms of service level, fill rate (FR) and inventory cost. Compared with the current system based on normal distribution, the proposed Laplace model yielded significant savings and good results in terms of the service level and the FR. The Laplace and Gamma optimisation models resulted in savings of 82 and 81%, respectively.     

基于集对分析的维修保障系统效能评估研究

在构建维修保障系统效能评估指标体系的基础上,应用集对分析方法建立了维修保障系统效能多指标评估模型,以定量的结果对维修保障系统效能进行综合评估,并与层次分析法和突变评价法的结果进行比较,结论一致.为维修保障系统效能评估问题寻求出一种新方法,其评估结果可为决策提供定量依据.     

高校计算机实验室的管理及维护

高校计算机实验室的管理与维护是保证教学活动正常开展的基础工作,文章从利用硬盘保护卡、病毒防治、硬件管理及软件维护等方面出发,提出了计算机实验室管理与维护措施。     

宝玉:封建礼教的忠实维护者

贾宝玉并非封建礼教的叛逆者,恰恰相反,而是封建礼教最忠实的维护者。宝玉的严守封建礼教的忠孝,是本于其维护天的动机。补天是顺应,只有破天、拆天才是叛逆。