By Y. Achmed. Western New England College. 2018.

Insert the needle into the skin of the pinched area at a 90 degree angle to the skin order 10mg deltasone with amex allergy symptoms shellfish, unless you were instructed otherwise deltasone 40 mg on-line allergy shots guidelines, (using a quick dart like motion) to ensure that the medication is deposited into the fatty tissue. After the needle is completely inserted into the skin, release the skin that you are pinching. Depress the plunger at a slow, steady rate until all the medication has been injected. Once the medication has been administered, dispose of the needle and syringe in the sharps container. Medication information Ovidrel PreFilled Syringe (choriogonadotropin alfa • pregnancy outside of the uterus injection) • breast pain This drug is usually given to women who want to get pregnant. Other side • body pain effects are injection site bruising, pain after surgery, stomach • back pain pain, nausea and vomiting. Medication information • mood changes Other side effects include the following: • trouble sleeping • problems with the stomach or intestines • upper respiratory tract infection • injection site bruising • cough • injection site reaction • painful urination • ovarian cysts • urinary tract infection • ovarian hyperstimulation • urinating by accident • stomach pain • protein in the urine • injection site infammation • irregular heartbeat Other less common side effects include the following: • vaginal yeast infection • genital herpes • breast pain • high white blood cell count • gas • heart murmur • swollen stomach • cervical cancer • sore throat For those taking this drug to make eggs without other fertility • upper respiratory tract infection treatment, the most common side effects are injection site • high blood glucose (sugar) problems, injection site pain and problems with the sex organs. Medication information Serious Side Effects Some patients taking this drug have had miscarriage. Call your doctor right away if you have any of Speak with your doctor for information about the risks the following symptoms: and benefts of available treatments. Medication information • pituitary tumor or other brain tumor • unusual uterine bleeding • ovarian cysts or enlarged ovaries • sex hormone-dependent tumors in or around the sex organs • known or suspected pregnancy Tell your doctor if you are breastfeeding. Select a location for your supplies with a surface that is clean and dry such as a bathroom or kitchen counter or table. Wipe the area with antibacterial cloth or put a clean paper towel down for the supplies to rest on. Clean the rubber stopper with an alcohol wipe and let dry each time you use the medication. Assure that the mixing needle is securely attached to the syringe by twisting it to the right, or clockwise onto the top of the syringe (needles that are attached by the manufacturer are often not frmly secured). Remove the protective cap from the syringe, being careful not to touch the syringe tip. Pull the syringe plunger back to the unit mark your physician has instructed you to administer. Insert the needle into the rubber stopper on the medication vial and push the plunger to gently force air into the vial. Without removing the needle from the vial, and while holding the vial and needle up straight, gently tap the syringe so that any air bubbles rise to the top of the syringe. Push the bubbles of air back into the vial and pull back on the plunger to assure that you have the accurate dose of medication in the syringe. Remove the injection needle from its sterile packaging and attach it to the syringe by twisting it to the right, or clockwise. Remove the needle cap by pulling upward only when you are prepared to administer the injection. An intramuscular injection involves depositing medication into deep muscle tissue using a longer injection needle. Injection sites typically include the mid-thigh or upper, outer quadrant of the buttocks. Prior to giving the injection, clean the injection site with an alcohol wipe starting at the puncture site, using frm pressure and working your way outward in a circular motion about two inches. Hold the syringe in your dominant hand between your thumb and fngers like you hold a pencil. Try to relax the muscle you will be injecting as injecting into tense muscles will be more painful. Holding the syringe straight up at a 90 degree angle to the skin from the injection site, insert the needle using a quick motion. Note: The step of slowly “pulling back” on the plunger of the syringe to see if blood fows into the syringe is specifc to how you were instructed to give yourself an injection. It is important that you understand and follow your medication’s specifc instructions. Depending on what your doctor told you to do, please see section A and B on the following step for more information. Remove the needle quickly, and apply pressure to the injection site with a gauze pad, if needed. Remove the needle from the injection site, and frmly press the injection site with a gauze pad for a few seconds, if needed.

The patient is nervous buy deltasone 40 mg on line allergy symptoms mouth sores, restless purchase deltasone 5mg mastercard allergy symptoms swelling around the eyes, has an active imagination for disease, a fear of impending danger, etc. These symptoms are very unpleasant, and not unfrequently prevent the curative action of remedies. For with the unnatural excitement of the mind, no remedy would exert a curative influence. So in some cases of heart disease, the head symptoms are the most prominent and unpleasant features. Relieve the unpleasant mental sensations and dread of danger, and we have removed a permanent cause of excitement. Though Pulsatilla is the remedy for nervousness, it must not be given with any expectation of benefit where the excitement depends upon irritation and determination of blood. The Pulsatilla exerts a marked influence upon the reproductive organs of both male and female. I regard it as decidedly the best emmenagogue, when the suppression is not the result of or attended by irritation and determination of blood; where there is simple suppression from atony or nervous shock, it may be used with confidence. It does not diminish sexual power, but rather strengthens it by lessening morbid excitement. There are other uses for the remedy, but those I have named are prominent ones, and readily recognized. I value the remedy very highly, and am satisfied from an experience of twenty years in its use that I do not overestimate it. It influences the entire intestinal tract, improves the appetite and digestion and stimulates secretion. This is one of the little used medicines that deserves careful study, and as it is cultivated in our gardens it is within the reach of all. It has marked tonic properties, and exerts an influence upon the urinary organs, relieving irritation. It is claimed to exert an influence upon the nervous system, and to have been successfully employed in convulsions and epilepsy. It possesses tonic and antiperiodic properties, and may be employed in a great many cases instead of more costly remedies. The only use I have made of it was in the intermittent fevers, and whilst it was not a substitute for quinia, it evidently exerted a good influence upon the disease, especially in preventing a recurrence of the paroxysms. A combination of quercus rubra, rumex and alnus is my favorite remedy in obstinate cases of scrofula where there are old ulcers, feeble tissues and cicatrices. I have employed it principally in infusion and decoction, but for experiment would recommend the preparation of a tincture, ℥viij. But it may be of use to some to state the conditions necessary to its kindly and medicinal action. Probably there is no remedy in the materia medica which gives so many failures as this, and I think we may be safe in assuming that it is given ten times where its specific action is obtained once. Every one will recollect cases in which it did not break up periodic disease, many more cases in which its influence was but temporary, a large number in which it produced unpleasant cerebral symptoms, and some in which a quinia disease was developed, which was much worse than the original malady. Is it the fault of the remedy, the fault of the patient, or the fault of the practitioner? So we believe, but we locate the idiosyncrasy in the doctor’s head, and not in the patient. I have taught for years, that if we are to expect the kindly and curative action of quinia, the stomach must be in condition to receive and absorb it, and the system in condition for its action. If we have a proper condition in these respects, we will hear nothing of roaring in the ears, vertigo, etc. Always get this condition before prescribing the remedy, and you will never be disappointed in its action. Put the stomach in proper condition, regulate the circulation, establish secretion, and then give one full dose of the remedy, (10 to 15 grs. This is not only the most certain method of administration, but I think it will be found the most pleasant.

Metaphase chromosomes can be grouped according to size and to the position of the centromere generic 40mg deltasone with amex allergy testing for gluten, but accurate identification requires staining with one of a variety of dyes to reveal characteristic banding patterns cheap 20mg deltasone mastercard allergy symptoms gluten intolerance. Chromosome banding To visualize chromosomes in a karyotype unambiguously, various stains are applied so that banding is evident. G-banding reveals a pattern of light and dark (G-bands) regions that allow chromosomes to be accurately identified in a karyotype. Cytoge~etics Chromosome abnormalities in some cases can be identified visually by looking at the banding pattern, but this technique reveals differences (for instance, larger deletions) only to a resolu- tion of about 4 Mb. Submetacentric chromosomes have the centromere displaced toward one end (for example, chromosome 4). In these chro- mosomes, the p arm contains little genetic information, most of it residing on the q arm. Only the acrocentric chromosomes are involved in Robertsonian translocations, which will be discussed in this chapter. Gametes (sperm and • Triploid (69 chromosomes): egg cells) are euploid cells that have 23 chromosomes (one member of each pair); they are said to be haploid. Most somatic cells are diploid, containing both members of each pair, or 46 rare lethal condition chromosomes. Two types of euploid cells with abnormal numbers of chromosomes are seen in • Tetraploid (92 humans: triploidy and tetraploidy. Triploidy refers to cells that contain three copies of each chromosome (69 total)! Triploidy, which usually occurs as a result of the fertilization of an ovum by two sperm cells, is common at conception, but the vast majority of these conceptions are lost prenatally. These babies have multiple defects of the heart and central nervous system, and they do not survive. Tetraploidy refers to cells that contain four copies of each chromosome (92 total): This lethal condition is much rarer than triploidy among live births: Only a few cases have been described. Aneuploidy - Aneuploidy, a deviation from the euploid number, represents the gain (+) or loss (-) of a spe- cific chromosome. Two major forms of aneuploidy are observed: • Monosomy (loss of a chromosome) • Trisomy (gain of a chromosome) Autosomal aneuploidy Two generalizations are helpful: • All autosomal monosomies are inconsistent with a live birth. Trisomy is the most common genetic cause of spontaneous At least one X chromosome is required for survival. If more than one X chromosome is present, all but one will become a Barr body in each cell. The two important sex chromosome aneuploidies are Turner syndrome and Klinefelter syn- drome. Mosaicism in Turner Edema of wrists and ankles in newborn syndrome is thought to arise Cystic hygroma in utero resulting in excess nuchal skin and "webbed" neck in early embryogenesis by Primary amenorrhea mechanisms that are not Coarctation of the aorta or other congenital heart defect in some cases completely understood. The original cell is diploid for all chromosomes, although only one homolo- gous pair is shown in the figure for simplicity. When fertilization occurs, the conception will be a trisomy 21 with Down syndrome. The other gametes with no copy of chromosome 21 will result in conceptions that are monosomy 21, a condition incompatible with a live birth. In this case, the sister chromatids of a chromosome (for example, chromosome 21) fail to segregate (disjoiri). When fertilization occurs, the conception will be a trisomy 21 with Down syndrome. One gamete has no copy of chromosome 21 and will result in a conception that is a monosomy 21. Clinical Correlate: Maternal Age, Risk of Down Syndrome, and Prenatal Diagnosis Surveys of babies with trisomy 21 show that approximately 90% to 95% of the time, the extra copy of the chromosome is contributed by the mother (similar figures are obtained for trisomies of the 18th I and 13th chromosomes). I The risk of bearing a child with Down syndrome is less than 1/1,006 for women younger than 30. The I risk increases to about 1/400 at age 35, 1/100 at age 40, and 3-4% or more after age 45.

Application to routine samples The method was assessed by analysing ceftiofur incurred poultry muscle samples obtained from ceftiofur treated chicks obtained 4h order deltasone 5mg amex allergy forecast utah, 8h and 24h after treatment (n=3) generic 10 mg deltasone with mastercard allergy symptoms red itchy eyes. These samples were analysed using the presented method and the method previously presented using a hydrolysis with ammonia which was found to have comparable results to other routinely applied methods for ceftiofur analysis [76] (section 5. Finally the presented method was used to monitor 25 poultry muscle samples obtained from different local super markets. Results & Discussion Characterization of the hydrolysis reaction products The penicillins all react in the same way with piperidine as was previously reported [53,71]. A reaction product is produced by hydrolysis of the ß-lactam ring under formation of the substituted amide (figure 5. The reaction product is, in contrast to the penicillin itself [59,82], a stable molecule and therefore the hydrolysis procedure is beneficial with regard to method ruggedness. The cephalosporin hydrolysis is more complicated and results in multiple reaction products. A first nucleophillic substitution occurs in which the ß-lactam ring is hydrolysed and the leaving group at the C ’ position is removed resulting in the exo-methylene compound as reported previously [53,83]. This intermediate was detected in the continuous infusion full scan mass spectra for all cephalosporins, except for cefalexin. Cefalexin showed the intermediate at two mass units higher, which is explained by the absence of a leaving group on position 3: only the hydrolysis of the ß-lactam ring occurs and no double bond can be produced at this position. First, because the exo- methylene group is highly reactive, a second nucleophillic substitution occurs at the ’ position (figure 5. This results in a reaction product containing two piperidine moieties (cefazolin, cefalonium, cefacetrile and cefoperazone), which was confirmed by a mass increase of 20 Da when carrying out the reaction using piperidine-d11. A peak at the m/z corresponding with this reaction product was observed for all cephalosporins in the continuous infusion mass spectra. The cefalexin intermediate does not contain an exo-methylene group and thus it cannot undergo a second nucleophillic attack at position ’. Because a reaction product is observed at the corresponding m/z, another reaction must occur that results in an isomeric reaction product. It is proposed that, instead of a nucleophillic attack at position ’, this could also occur at position 4, although this seems less likely at forehand. This would result in a second reaction product containing two piperidine moieties. Second, it is proposed that the nucleophillic attack at position ’, after electron rearrangement, can result in a piperidine amide compound, which was only observed for ceftiofur, cefquinome, cefalexin, cefapirin and cefalonium (figure 5. The presence of one piperidine moiety and the side chain on position 7 in this reaction product was confirmed by carrying out the reaction 262 Chapter 5 using piperidine-d11 and, if available, cefalosporins containing an isotopically labeled side chain at position 7. For each cephalosporin a single reaction product was selected for effectively monitoring the presence of ß-lactam residues in poultry muscle (appendix 5. For ceftiofur, cefquinome, cefalexin and cefapirin the final reaction product containing one piperidine moiety was the most abundant and therefore those were selected as the marker compounds. For cefalonium and cefazolin the reaction product containing two piperidine moieties were the most abundant products and therefore, those were selected as the marker compounds. For cefacetrile and cefoperazone reaction products containing two piperidine moieties were observed, but additionally hydrolysis of the nitrile group in the side chain of cefacetrile and hydrolysis of the amide in the side chain of cefoperazone occurred [86-88]. Also the carbapenems and faropenem show several reaction products, but it is observed that, as for the penicillins, the hydrolysis of the ß-lactam ring was the major reaction occurring (figure 5. Additional hydrolysis reactions in the side chain were observed for imipenem (comparable to the hydrolysis of amitraz [89]) and biapenem. For all compounds, the proposed reaction products were supported by the exact mass data (error < 1 ppm, table 5. Another advantage of the presented method is that the hydrolysis reaction products are more stable molecules compared to the intact ß-lactams. Proposed hydrolysis reaction of the carbapenem imipenem in the presence of piperidine. Exact mass data for the cephalosporin and carbapenem hydrolysis reaction products. Product of Determined exact Molecular formula Exact mass Error + + mass [M+H] [M+H] (ppm) Amoxicillin 451. As a consequence, based on this reaction product only, ceftiofur and cefquinome cannot be distinguished. However, a by-product of the cefquinome hydrolysis is the 5,6,7,8- tetrahydroquinoline moiety (the ring structure in the position ’ side chain, appendix 5.

It occurs in normal and abnormal heart valves and tissues with fulminant course resulting in death in six weeks time if not treated purchase deltasone 20mg visa allergy medicine 014. It occurs in acquired or congenitally damaged heart valves with less fulminant course resulting in death after six weeks if not treated discount 5 mg deltasone mastercard allergy treatment nhs. Amount needed is 2ml for a child and 10 ml for an adult to give 1:10 dilution of the specimen. Blood culture bottle should have 18 ml and 90 ml of broth for a child and an adult respectively. Time of incubation of blood culture is 7 days and subculture is done in first, third and seventh day of incubation. If the appearance of blood culture is changed to cloudy, it indicates bacterial growth. Interpretation of results • Positive bacterial growth in three of blood culture broth ----- Definitive diagnosis • Positive bacterial growth in two of blood culture broth----- Probable diagnosis • Positive bacterial growth in one of blood culture broth----- Contamination Common contaminants of blood culture S. In children ----------- Haemophilus influenzae Streptococcus pneumoniae Neisseria meningitidis. In adults ------ Streptococcus pneumoniae Neisseria meningitidis Haemophilus influenzae Clinical features:. Sudden onset of head ache, fever, malaise, vomiting associated with neckand back stiffness, behavioral changes like irritability and drowsiness, convulsions and coma. Partially treated acute pyogenic meningitis 328 It manifests with unexplained head ache of weeks to months duration associated with fever, weakness, neck and back stiffness, and behavioral changes. Viral meningitis The clinical features of viral meningitis are milder than bacterial meningitis. Viruses causing viral meningitis are mumps virus, measles virus, coxsackie A and B virus, Entero viruses and echo virus. Cryptococcal meningitis The clinical features of fungal meningitis is similar to that of chronic bacterial meningitis. Chronic osteomyelitis Acute osteomyelitis Infection of bone which occurs commonly under ten years old. Treatment: Antibiotics alone are usually effective if started early and continued for several weeks. Chronic osteomyelitis It manifests with bone pain, bone destruction with formation of sequestra and discharging sinuses. Septic arthritis It is usually seen as a complication of septicemia or an extension of osteomyelitis. Laboratory diagnosis: Specimen: Blood culture, joint aspirate Gram reaction, culture, biochemical tests and serology for microbe identification. Treatment: Antibiotic therapy based on “best-guess” basis, should be started as soon as diagnostic specimens have been taken. Perform bacteriological analysis of water sample Bacteriology of water Good quality of water is odorless, colorless, tasteless and free from fecal pollution and harmful chemicals. Human illness is caused by water supplies becoming contaminated from feces being passed or washed into rivers, streams, or being allowed to seep into wells. Feces contain microorganisms like Escherichia coli, Streptococcus faecalis and Clostridium perfringenes, which contaminate safe water. Determining whether a water supply is fecally polluted is to test for the presence of normal fecal organism. Testing for normal fecal organisms as indicators of fecal pollution is a reliable way of determining whether water is bacteriologically safe to drink. A single laboratory examination of any water does not justify the conclusion that the supply is safe for drinking so bacteriologic analysis of water should be performed at regular intervals. Organisms used as indicators of fecal pollution are the coliform group particularly E. Hold the base of sterile bottle in one hand, remove the stopper and cover together with the other hand. Sterilize the tap using the flame by igniting a piece of cotton wool soaked in alcohol holding with a pair of tongs. Tie a sterile sample bottle on to a weighted length of rope; attach ½ Kg weighing stone as a weight below the bottle. Remove the cap from the bottle septically and lower the bottle into the well to a depth of one meter. Transport of water sample Water sample should be placed in an insulated cold box immediately after collection, and should be processed with in six hours of collection.

It’s not always that simple though and people are surrounded around different situations 40mg deltasone visa allergy testing vancouver island, different things and um 20 mg deltasone visa allergy testing tulsa, and that’s why this place [Club 84 community centre] is a good place because it gives them a chance to get away and be around people that understand. T: Yeah and if they don’t wanna talk, that’s cool, leave them alone, you know you haven’t got all these people saying, snap out of it. Diana, 11/02/2009 D: Going to Club 84’s good because you get to talk to other people with mental illness and you get to do um, classes if you know like. I don’t go quite as much as I used to but I actually think if they had um, you know, more groups, where you sit around in a group and you talk about your mental illness and how it has affected your life. D: Yeah so you could talk about your different experiences and that other person might actually do something that you would like to do, so they can then tell them the steps of how they actually do it. Specifically, Diana and Travis both describe it as “good” and Robyn describes is as a “helpful thing” to her. Travis highlights how community centres, whereby consumers can socialize can be especially beneficial for consumers who lack positive social supports. He suggests that consumers are more likely to “understand” fellow consumers and be patient with one another as opposed to expecting them to “snap out of it”. Diana promotes group-based interventions, involving consumers sharing their illness experiences (“I actually think if they had um, you know, more groups, where you sit around in a group and you talk about your mental illness and how it has affected your life. She elaborates that sharing experiences may enable consumers to problem-solve various issues, as they can adopt strategies that other consumers found helpful (“that other person might actually do something that you would like to do, so they can then tell them the steps of how they actually do it. Robyn suggests that the group-based educational courses run at the centre have been beneficial to her. Thus, in addition to community groups providing a safe environment for consumers and an opportunity for socializing, through sharing experiences, consumers may learn new strategies for managing their illnesses and their medication. In the following extract, in the context of being asked how to assist with medication adherence, Cassie also recommends community centres, 252 specifically the peer worker service they provide, as beneficial particularly to “young” consumers. Both Cassie and Ryan below highlight the benefits of peer workers’ abilities to relate to consumers’ experiences: Cassie, 4/2/09 C: Um, it’s gotta be people that can relate to people, you know what I mean? It can’t be just like some official talking and telling him that, because you just switch off and you don’t wanna know. Like if they had a visit to Club 84 [community centre] and met all the people and then went back and then talked to a peer worker or someone, I reckon that would help. She positions peer workers as more likely to positively influence young consumers than health professionals, as they are easier to “relate to”. Similarly, Ryan highlights the role for peer workers amongst first episode 253 consumers, who can share their “similar” experiences. He suggests that first episode consumers may be “afraid” to talk to other service providers including psychiatrists. Ryan could be seen to imply that by sharing their experiences, peer workers normalize mental illness for first episode consumers, who would likely be feeling overwhelmed upon diagnosis. Cassie additionally contrasts being relatable with “official talking”, which she associates with consumers losing interest and failing to process advice (“you just switch off and you don’t wanna know”). In the following extracts, Amy and Travis highlight how peer workers can provide positive examples to other consumers, which may assist with adherence: Amy, 10/2/09 A: Um, it also helps if somebody’s very respecting and (inaudible) and they’ve got sick and I mean, on the one hand, clients are, if they’re admitted to (inaudible), if they are a peer worker or something, gets sick you know, you sort of lose hope that person’s confidence and professionalism and ability and I think that came up because, that was, “Oh I recognize you from somewhere” and now you hear of someone that’s really fighting, you say, oh well now you’ll see me get better. So um, if they recognize that oh yeah, everyone gets sick, you know, like I’ve found it seems to help people when I say, they felt embarrassed by being sick or they’re a bad person or, you know, I just say to them, a doctor needs a doctor and a priest needs a priest and a psychiatrist needs a psychiatrist. Amy talks about how peer workers can normalize relapse for consumers, which can help to reduce the stigma associated with symptom fluctuations (“if they are a peer worker or something, gets sick you know…they recognize that oh yeah, everyone gets sick”). Amy suggests that normalization can provide consumers with relief (“the weight lifts off their shoulders a bit. Whilst she acknowledges that witnessing a peer worker relapse may compromise their “confidence”, Amy could be seen to imply that by “fighting” back from relapse and expressing determination to stabilize (“now you’ll see me get better”), peer workers can inspire other consumers. Indeed, at a later stage in her interview she described peer workers as “inspirational; especially if they’ve been a volunteer or whatever and gone onto further study”. Travis represents peer workers as proof to other consumers that antipsychotic medication works (“They’re the only people that can show that it works”), and as positive role models for consumers, who can genuinely promote adherence based on their experiences. In the following extract, Ryan highlights how consumers’ illness factors, such as paranoia, can compromise their relationships with service providers such as psychiatrists, which can thereby impede service providers’ 255 utility. He then suggests that there is a “bigger role” for peer workers who may be better equipped to communicate with consumers: Ryan, 26/9/08 R: Um, yeah. Um largely, uh the problem is with people who aren’t diagnosed, uh, it may be their first time, uh, because they haven’t experienced it before they may think they’re having some sort of spiritual experience like I did.

Sampling is buy deltasone 5 mg without prescription allergy forecast worcester ma, thus proven 20mg deltasone allergy shots injection sites, based on emerging codes and categories until a full and varied category is developed and tested against incoming cases. All participants in the research presented were outpatients with schizophrenia and exclusion criteria were minimal. As interviewees’ experiences were so varied and they were asked to reflect on their experiences at different stages of their illnesses, theoretical sampling was deemed unnecessary. Although it could be argued that 73 inclusion of service providers views, for example, may have broadened the theory, this would have been inconsistent with the focus of this research; the consumer perspective. Of note, it was found during screening for entry into the study, that some people who had been given formal diagnoses of schizoaffective disorder also matched the criteria for schizophrenia and were, therefore, included in the study. Participants were also required to sign a consent form prior to taking part (see Appendix D). The exclusion criteria for this study were intellectual disability and severe co-morbid conditions (such as drug dependence which could hinder capacity to interview). Furthermore, the original exclusion criterion of people being prescribed typical antipsychotic medication was also removed as it was decided that this could potentially render irrelevant interesting discussions about past experiences with medications amongst interviewees who were previously prescribed typical antipsychotic medications. Furthermore, the 74 views of consumers who continue to be prescribed typical medications are considered just as important as those who are prescribed atypical medications, particularly considering that there are adherence difficulties associated with both types of medication. The screening process was tested on two pilot interviewees and on some peers who did not have a previous diagnosis of schizophrenia and it proved effective. The same approach had previously also been used effectively by a fellow student examining cognition amongst people with schizophrenia. This helped to establish rapport and to ease interviewees into the interview process. A sampling frame was not devised prior to interviewing, however when it became noticeable that certain groups (i. In the end, males were represented more than females in the sample (M=15, F=10) however this could also be a reflection of higher incidence of schizophrenia amongst males (i. Ideally more young participants would have been involved (the youngest participant 75 included was 19 and the second youngest was 25). Additional demographic information was obtained, including participants’ age of illness onset, which ranged from 16-57 years of age. A few participants had relatively late illness onsets (45, 47 and 57 years), however, which may have skewed the average calculation. Notably, four participants indicated that they had been hospitalised too many times to recall the exact number. Ten participants resided alone whereas the remaining 15 lived either with family, a partner or in a share-house situation. The majority of participants were prescribed medication by their psychiatrist (21) and the remainder were prescribed medication by General Practitioners. The majority of the participants reported that they were prescribed atypical medications at the time of interview, however, two participants were prescribed typical antipsychotic medications and one participant was prescribed two typical medications and one atypical medication. Indeed, seven participants were prescribed more than one antipsychotic medication. Although the majority of participants took their medication orally, four received depot injections (which could explain the high number of participants who were prescribed risperidone considering it is available in oral and depot form). The deployment of in-depth interviews to gather data assumes that individuals have a unique and important knowledge about the social world that can be ascertained through verbal communication (Hesse-Biber & Leavy, 2006). According to Fylan (2005), interviews are one of the most popular means of data collection in qualitative research as they enable researchers to talk to people and find out about what they have experienced and what they think and feel about a topic of interest. Qualitative interviewing is characterized by open questions that elicit stories and case-oriented narratives and should strive to preserve the multi-vocality and complexity of the lived experience (Hesse-Biber & Leavy, 2004). A semi-structured approach, as opposed to a structured approach to interviews was selected as structured interviews run the risk of phrasing the researcher’s own concerns into the mouths of respondents, thereby limiting the voice, perceptions and meaning-making around the research topic of the interviewee (Hesse-Biber & Leavy, 2004). Semi-structured interviews rely on a set of questions that loosely guide the conversation but also allow interviewees the latitude and freedom to talk about what is of interest or 77 importance to them. The conversation is thus free to flow naturally, making room for it to travel in new and unexpected directions (Hesse-Biber & Leavy, 2006). Due to their flexibility, semi-structured interviews have been proposed as an effective means of elaborating “why” questions, rather than how much or how many, rendering them particularly malleable to the present study which focuses on why people with schizophrenia take or do not take their medication (Fylan, 2005).