The goal of the study was to investigate the issue of informed consent for mental capacity. Seventeen clients referred to the Competency Clinic at the Baycrest Centre for Geriatric Care were interviewed after the assessment had been completed. Their responses to questions regarding the reasons for and possible consequences of the assessment indicated a range of understanding and of capacity to give informed consent. The results are discussed in terms of the appropriateness of having a fairly low threshold for informed consent in situations where other capacities are already in question.

Agitation in older persons is a major problem for the agitated individual and those around him/her. French-language measures of agitation with demonstrated validity and reliability are necessary for research and interventions in the French-speaking community. The goal of this study is to verify the reliability and validity of the “Inventaire d'agitation de Cohen-Mansfield” (IACM), a French version of the Cohen-Mansfield Agitation Inventory. The IACM measures the frequency of 29 agitated behaviours during a two-week period. Ninety-nine residents of a long-term care facility participated in this study. Results demonstrate the inter-rater reliability (r = .72), test-retest reliability (r = .72), internal consistency (Cronbach's alpha from .75 to .77), concurrent validity (r = .74) and construct validity (all r are significant, p < .05) of the IACM.

St. Clare's Unit, in the Children's Hospital, Temple Street, and St. Louise's Unit, in Our Lady's Hospital for Sick Children, Crumlin, were set up by the Department of Health in Dublin in 1987 to carry out child sexual abuse assessments. Each unit is staffed by multidisciplinary teams and works closely with Community Care teams, the Gardaí, and treatment agencies. Assessment involves gathering information from referrers, the parents and the child at interview, and from physical examination. The information obtained is interpreted in context, and conclusions are based on the composite picture.

Analysis of the first two years' work shows that sexual abuse was confirmed in approximately half the cases seen, the abuser being known to the child and within the child's family or community network in the majority of cases.

As more professionals become trained in child sexual abuse assessment it is envisaged that more cases will be managed at local level, with perhaps more complex cases being referred to the units. This will enable unit staff to further develop a role in consultation, education, training and research.