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Biomedical subjects

Audrey Burnam

Publications and source records attributed to Audrey Burnam.

7 recordsLinked to original sources
PubMed2005

Identification of and guidance for problem drinking by general medical providers: results from a national survey.

BACKGROUND: Heavy alcohol use is associated with health costs and medical problems. There has been a growing consensus that primary care patients should be screened for alcohol problems. OBJECTIVES: We examined rates at which patients were asked about alcohol or drug use and problems, extending research in this area by using a standardized problem drinking instrument with a large national sample, examining community level variables, and assessing the extent to which patients who were identified received follow-up. SUBJECTS: A subsample of 7371 persons from the 1998 Healthcare for Communities survey who reported visiting a general medical provider (GMP) in the past year. MEASURES: Participants completed questionnaires on demographics, mental and physical health, alcohol, drug use and problems, enrollment in a managed health care plan, whether their medical provider asked about alcohol or drug use, and whether they received advice, counseling, or referral. RESULTS: Being asked about alcohol and drug use was associated with being male, young, highly educated, more health problems, mental health diagnosis, and being classified as a problem drinker. Only 48% of problem drinkers received any follow-up, with most being told to "stop drinking" by their GMP. CONCLUSIONS: Few people are queried about alcohol or drug use when they visit a GMP. When problem use is identified, most patients do not receive appropriate follow-up and aftercare. The quality of primary care could improve if GMPs were educated about providing brief advice/counseling and were given information concerning resources in their community to make appropriate referrals for patients.

Adolescent↗
PubMed2003

Substance use and high-risk sex among people with HIV: a comparison across exposure groups.

Substance use is associated with increased risk for HIV transmission by HIV-positive people to uninfected partners through sexual contact. The largest risk groups for infection, men who have sex with men (MSM) and injecting drug users (IDUs), have high rates of substance use, but little is known about their substance use post-HIV diagnosis. We compared the prevalence of substance use between these two groups and a third group, heterosexual men and women, and tested for differential association between substance use and sexual behaviors across exposure groups in a national sample of patients in treatment for HIV. Substance use was most prevalent among MSM. Substance use and current dependence were associated with being sexually active among MSM but not IDUs; marijuana, alcohol, and hard drug use were most strongly associated with being sexually active among MSM. Whereas substance use predicted high-risk sex, there were few differences among exposure groups in these associations.

Adult↗
PubMed2002

An empirical comparison of substance and alcohol dependence patterns in the homeless in Madrid (Spain) and Los Angeles (CA, USA).

BACKGROUND: Alcohol and drug use continue to figure heavily in the experience of the contemporary homeless population. The comparison among pattern of use plays a central role in the cross-cultural view of this topic. This article shows the results of comparing the data concerning alcohol and other drug abuse and dependence among the homeless population of Madrid (Spain) and Los Angeles (USA). METHODS: Data come from two studies carried out independently in each city. Both studies used a comparable methodology which included the same inclusion and diagnostics criteria, representative sampling methods and similar diagnostic structured interviews. In the present study, the data from these two studies are combined in a unique database which allows global and item-to-item comparison between the two studies. RESULTS: The results show different sociodemographic profiles for each city. Once controlled for the sociodemographic differences (age, education, current employment status and marital status), the life and 12-month prevalence rates of alcohol and other drug disorders (DSM-III-R) are also different. There are also significant differences in social, emotional and health problems associated with the consumption of alcohol and other drugs. The Madrid and LA samples also present differences in the time patterns of the beginning of the homelessness situation and the onset of alcohol- and drug-related disorders. CONCLUSIONS: The pattern of results is discussed in the light of the differences in both socioeconomic and cultural among Madrid and Los Angeles which might explain, in turn, differences in the homelessness situation as well as in the alcohol and other drug use patterns.

Adolescent↗
PubMed2002

Assessing health status and quality-of-life instruments: attributes and review criteria.

The field of health status and quality of life (QoL) measurement - as a formal discipline with a cohesive theoretical framework, accepted methods, and diverse applications--has been evolving for the better part of 30 years. To identify health status and QoL instruments and review them against rigorous criteria as a precursor to creating an instrument library for later dissemination, the Medical Outcomes Trust in 1994 created an independently functioning Scientific Advisory Committee (SAC). In the mid-1990s, the SAC defined a set of attributes and criteria to carry out instrument assessments; 5 years later, it updated and revised these materials to take account of the expanding theories and technologies upon which such instruments were being developed. This paper offers the SAC's current conceptualization of eight key attributes of health status and QoL instruments (i.e., conceptual and measurement model; reliability; validity; responsiveness; interpretability; respondent and administrative burden; alternate forms; and cultural and language adaptations) and the criteria by which instruments would be reviewed on each of those attributes. These are suggested guidelines for the field to consider and debate; as measurement techniques become both more familiar and more sophisticated, we expect that experts will wish to update and refine these criteria accordingly.

Health Services Research↗
PubMed2002

Validity of the Depression-Arkansas (D-ARK) Scale: a tool for measuring major depressive disorder.

The results of 2 validation studies for an assessment tool designed specifically for quality improvement and outcomes assessment efforts in mental healthcare are presented in this paper. The studies evaluated a new tool to assess the patient outcomes for major depressive disorder following treatment in routine clinical settings called the Depression-Arkansas Scale (D-ARK). Study 1 included 54 patients recruited from 3 hospital-based clinics (2 mental health clinics and 1 primary care clinic). Study 2 includes 827 patients from 5 clinical settings including a university based outpatient clinic, a VA based mental health clinic, and a managed-care program. These 2 very different studies provide preliminary evidence that the D-ARK may be a useful tool for quality improvement efforts in the mental healthcare setting. Specifically, they indicate that the D-ARK has strong validity when compared to 2 different research assessments, the Structured Clinical Interview for DSM-III-R, Patient Edition (SCID-P) and the Inventory to Diagnose Depression (IDD), and compared to clinical assessments using both the clinical diagnosis and a clinician checklist.

Adult↗
PubMed2002

Vulnerability factors for homelessness associated with substance dependence in a community sample of homeless adults.

We studied a community probability sample of 1185 homeless individuals to examine substance dependence in relationship to other personal and social vulnerabilities linked to homelessness, including sociodemographics, childhood/adolescent factors, prehomelessness factors, multiple episodes of homelessness, and the quality of shelter in their current episode of homelessness. These vulnerability factors were significantly concentrated in homeless individuals with lifetime and recent substance dependence, especially among those with both alcohol and drug dependence. In addition, the profiles of the homeless with alcohol dependence alone were distinct from those with drug dependence alone or both, with older age, more males, longer histories of homelessness, and significantly poorer quality shelter during the previous 30 days. Therefore, homeless individuals with substance dependence have many vulnerabilities beyond their substance dependence that should be dealt with in treatment or other service settings before lasting housing can be achieved.

Adult↗