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D Olmstead

Publications and source records attributed to D Olmstead.

4 recordsLinked to original sources
PubMed1996

Hospital-based technology assessment programmes: two Canadian examples.

Interest in Health Technology Assessment (HTA) has grown considerably in recent years. Organizations established specifically to conduct HTA and disseminate HTA results have sprung up in many countries. These have been, to a large extent, financed by governments. However, the relevance of HTA clearly goes beyond governments, and there are many sectors in health care that are potential consumers of HTA information. In particular, those running healthcare facilities are constantly faced with decisions on new equipment to purchase and new clinical procedures to offer. HTA is important not just to the senior administrators of such facilities but those in other levels of hospital management as well. In this paper, a brief review of Canadian and US studies on hospitals' technology assessment and acquisition is presented. Two specific examples of Canadian healthcare facilities and how HTA has been addressed in these institutions are discussed. Finally, this paper contains a discussion of some of the practical issues involved in introducing a formalized programme of HTA in hospitals.

Canada↗
PubMed1985

A double-blind controlled pilot study of plasma exchange versus sham apheresis in chronic progressive multiple sclerosis.

Twenty patients with chronically progressive multiple sclerosis (MS) were randomised in a double-blind controlled study to assess the efficacy of plasma exchange therapy. All patients were immunosuppressed with prednisone and azathioprine and underwent either plasma exchange or sham apheresis. The 10 patients in each group were similar in age, sex, duration of disease and degree of disability. Clinical and laboratory responses were assessed immediately following the course of exchange or sham therapy, and 3 to 6 months later, by individuals blinded to the type of therapy administered. Although modest improvement was suggested on clinical examination in 7 of 10 patients exchanged and 3 of the 10 sham treated group, this was transient and was not accompanied by any change in disability status scores. No differences in abnormal laboratory investigations were demonstrable between the two patient groups following therapy. We conclude that plasma exchange therapy using this protocol is unlikely to be of clinical benefit as an adjunct in the management of chronically progressive M.S.

Adult↗