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Kathleen Hartford

Publications and source records attributed to Kathleen Hartford.

8 recordsLinked to original sources
PubMed2005

Design of an algorithm to identify persons with mental illness in a police administrative database.

North American police maintain a database to track events and information related to their involvement with the public that contain a series of electronic caution/dependency flags attached to an individual's name for internal communication. To identify persons with mental illness in a police administrative database, an algorithm was developed that was composed of (a) caution/dependency flags, (b) addresses, and (c) key search words indicative of mental illness. Based on the level of confidence of the algorithm, persons with mental illness (PMI) were then assigned to one of three categories: Definite, Probable and Possible PMI. Results for 2000 include the sociodemographic characteristics of PMI and non-PMI in the database. The mean number of contacts, types of interactions, re-involvement with a year, charges and dispositions are described. The algorithm provides a cheap, quick method to identify PMI for North American police. It enables police to monitor the effectiveness of pre-arrest diversion programs and allows researchers to analyze questions of criminalization and mental illness.

Adult↗
PubMed2004

Rates of claims for cumulative trauma disorder of the upper extremity in Ontario workers during 1997.

Surveillance of work-related cumulative trauma disorder of the upper extremity (CTDUE) requires valid and reliable claim extraction strategies and should examine for confounding and interaction. This research estimated crude and specific rates of CTDUE claims in Ontario workers during 1997 while acknowledging misclassification and testing for confounding and interaction. Lower and upper limit event estimates were obtained by means of an algorithm applied to the Ontario Workplace Safety and Insurance Board (OWSIB) database and were combined with "at-risk" estimates obtained from the Canadian Labour Force Survey (LFS). Poisson regression was used to evaluate confounding and interaction. The method used to identify CTDUE claims had a substantial impact on the magnitude of rates, female to male rate ratios, the most commonly affected part of the upper extremity and the highest risk occupational categories. Poisson regression identified sex interactions. It allowed rigorous evaluation of the data and indicated that rates should be examined separately for men and women. Researchers should clearly define extraction strategies and examine the impact of misclassification.

Adolescent↗
PubMed2003

Identifying cumulative trauma disorders of the upper extremity in workers' compensation databases.

BACKGROUND: Impeding the use of workers' compensation databases for surveillance of cumulative trauma disorder of the upper extremity (CTDUE) is the lack of valid and reliable extraction strategies. METHODS: Using the Z795-96 Coding of Work Injury or Disease Information standard, an algorithm was developed to classify claims as definite, possible, or non-CTDUE. Reliability was assessed with standardized claim reviews. RESULTS: Moderate to substantial agreement (Kappa = 0.48, 95% CI 0.42-0.54, n = 328; weighted Kappa = 0.75, 95% CI 0.70-0.80, n = 328) was demonstrated. The algorithm produced relatively homogeneous groups of definite and non-CTDUE claims but 29.1% of the possible CTDUE claims were categorized as definite CTDUE by claim review. Part of body agreement was almost perfect (Kappa = 0.81-1.00) when determining whether the upper extremity or specific parts of the upper extremity were involved. CONCLUSIONS: The algorithm can be used to estimate the number of CTDUE and extract homogeneous groups of definite and non-CTDUE claims. Furthermore, certain upper extremity part of body codes can be used to target anatomically defined claims.

Algorithms↗
PubMed2002

Work-related cumulative trauma disorders of the upper extremity: navigating the epidemiologic literature.

BACKGROUND: Cumulative trauma disorder of the upper extremity (CTDUE) is an umbrella term used to describe disorders resulting from repeated use of the upper extremity over time rather than a specific incident. The primary purpose of this article is to summarize the literature regarding the rate of work-related CTDUE, while drawing attention to the various factors contributing to the wide range of reported findings. METHODS: The Cumulative Index to Nursing and Allied Health and Medline databases were searched for articles focusing on etiology or rates of occurrence of work-related CTDUE and their findings were summarized. RESULTS: Potential reasons for rising rates, a gender differential, and the substantial range in rates and rate ratios are delineated and important factors to consider when interpreting rates derived from workers' compensation data are detailed. CONCLUSIONS: Future research should attempt to correctly identify more specific categories of CTDUE in well-defined and accurately-quantified "at risk" populations to provide more meaningful information regarding the epidemiology of CTDUE and the effectiveness of control activities.

Adult↗
PubMed2002

Estimating the population at risk for Ontario Workplace Safety and Insurance Board-covered injuries or diseases.

Difficulty in quantifying the population at risk for a work-related injury or disease limits the usefulness of workers' compensation data for surveillance. This article presents a method of obtaining estimates of the Ontario Workplace Safety and Insurance Board (OWSIB)- covered workforce using the Canadian Labour Force Survey (LFS). The method involves extracting that class of worker most likely to be insured by the OWSIB and using actual hours worked to estimate full-time equivalents at risk. Compared to population at risk estimates readily available from published tables, the refined crude estimate was 26% lower and ranged from 15 to 79% lower depending on the age group. The percentage decrease from published estimates was generally greater for women compared to men, particularly in the 25 to 39 year age categories. Consequently, the method of deriving population at risk estimates should be considered when comparing rates across sexes, ages, industries or occupations.

Adolescent↗
PubMedDate not supplied

Randomized controlled trial of a telephone intervention by nurses to provide information and support to patients and their partners after elective coronary artery bypass graft surgery: effects of anxiety.

OBJECTIVE: The purpose of this study was to determine the effectiveness of an information and support telephone intervention for reducing anxiety in patients who have undergone coronary artery bypass graft surgery and their partners. DESIGN: The study is a randomized controlled trial. Intervention began at discharge; 6 telephone calls were made to patients and partners over 7 weeks. Primary outcome was Beck Anxiety Inventory measured at baseline in hospital, at home on day 3, week 4, and week 8. SAMPLE: The subjects were 131 patients who have undergone elective coronary artery bypass graft surgery and their partners. RESULTS: Patients' anxiety was moderate to severe the day before discharge. It was significantly lower in the treatment group than in the control group at day 2 at home. Partners always had lower anxiety than patients. A more sustained decrease in anxiety in the partner treatment group was found at both day 2 and week 4. CONCLUSION: Intervention effect is in the early period after discharge-- the time most affected by reduced lengths of stay.

Aged↗
PubMedDate not supplied

Integrating knowledge generation with knowledge diffusion and utilization: a case study analysis of the Consortium for Applied Research and Evaluation in Mental Health.

OBJECTIVE: Knowledge diffusion and utilization (KDU) have become a key focus in the health research community because of the limited success to date of research findings to inform health policies, programs and services. Yet, evidence indicates that successful KDU is often predicated on the early involvement of potential knowledge users in the conceptualization and conduct of the research and on the development of a "partnership culture". This study describes the integration of KDU theory with practice via a case study analysis of the Consortium for Applied Research and Evaluation in Mental Health (CAREMH). METHODS: This qualitative study, using a single-case design, included a number of data sources: proposals, meeting minutes, presentations, publications, reports and curricula vitae of CAREMH members. RESULTS: CAREMH has adopted the following operational strategies to increase KDU capacity: 1) viewing research as a means and not as an end; 2) bringing the university and researcher to the community; 3) using participatory research methods; 4) embracing transdisciplinary research and interactions; and 5) using connectors. Examples of the iterative process between researchers and potential knowledge users in their contribution to knowledge generation, diffusion and utilization are provided. CONCLUSIONS: This case study supports the importance of early and ongoing involvement of relevant potential knowledge users in research to enhance its utilization potential. It also highlights the need for re-thinking research funding approaches.

Humans↗