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Biomedical subjects

Paul Walters

Publications and source records attributed to Paul Walters.

7 recordsLinked to original sources
PubMed2006

District nursing staff and depression: a psychometric evaluation of Depression Attitude Questionnaire findings.

BACKGROUND: Mental health problems such as depression are common in primary care settings and patients with chronic medical problems are at an increased risk. This co-morbidity suggests that district nursing services are particularly likely to encounter psychological problems in their patients. Mental health problems are poorly recognised and inadequately treated in primary care. In part this may be due to stigmatising views of mental illness, which negatively influence help-seeking and user experiences. Likewise providers' attitudes are likely to play a significant part in the management of such problems. OBJECTIVES: The aims of this study were extend knowledge of district nursing staff attitudes to depression and explore the psychometric properties of a depression attitude measure used with this staff group. DESIGN AND SETTINGS: The Depression Attitude Questionnaire (DAQ) was used within a postal questionnaire survey of district nursing services in three areas, Jersey (Channel Islands), Lewisham, and Hertfordshire. PARTICIPANTS: All staff (community nurses, district nurses and home care staff) were contacted; 217 (66%) staff responded to the survey, and 189 (57%) completed the DAQ. RESULTS: Three factors were derived from the DAQ accounting for 47% of the variance. The factor solution appeared stable and provided meaningful dimensions, however the internal consistency of the measure and of its derived subscales was low (Cronbach's alpha between 0.59 and 0.64). The factors were labelled pessimism about depression and its treatment, tendency to defer to specialists, and professional ease in working with depressed patients. Staff responses revealed generally optimistic views concerning depression treatment, strongly rejecting deterministic attitudes to this condition. CONCLUSIONS: The DAQ has been widely employed to measure and compare attitudes of staff from various disciplines and specialisms. The current evaluation has provided a more detailed examination of its psychometric properties than previously available, but low internal consistency levels indicate further examination of this area is warranted.

Analysis of Variance↗
PubMed2004

Screening for personality disorder: a comparison of personality disorder assessment by patient and informants.

The Structured Clinical Interview for DSM-IV Personality Disorders (SCID-II Version 2.0) is becoming the most favoured instrument to measure personality disorder but takes up to an hour to complete. The Standardized Assessment of Personality (SAP), an informant-based measure, takes 10 to 15 minutes to complete. Both instruments have been validated independently. This study aimed to determine whether the SAP is a suitable screening instrument for personality disorder as measured by the SCID-II. Fifty-seven psychiatric patients were assessed for personality disorder using both the SAP and the SCID-II. The SAP assessments were conducted blind to the results of the SCID-II assessments. Agreement between the two instruments in this population was low (kappa = 0.3). The level of agreement differed between personality disorder categories, ranging from kappa = 0.4 (antisocial) to 0.1 (narcissistic). In this population of patients, the SAP proved to be a poor screen for the SCID-II. The study highlights the discrepancy between informant and self-report assessments for personality disorder.

Adult↗
PubMed2004

A multidisciplinary approach to restoring an acquired palatal defect using distraction osteogenesis: a clinical report.

Prosthetic and surgical procedures can be applied to rehabilitate acquired palatal defects. Distraction osteogenesis may be used to narrow the defect to facilitate bone and soft tissue closure. This clinical report describes a multidisciplinary approach to the closure of a palatal defect with distraction osteogenesis, comprehensive orthodontic treatment, surgical soft tissue flap reconstruction of the residual soft tissue defect, implant placement in the newly created edentulous ridge, and restoration with an implant-supported prosthesis.

Adult↗
PubMed2003

Standardised Assessment of Personality - Abbreviated Scale (SAPAS): preliminary validation of a brief screen for personality disorder.

BACKGROUND: There is a need for a brief and simple screen for personality disorders that can be used in routine psychiatric assessments. AIMS: To test the concurrent validity and test-retest reliability of a brief screen for personality disorder. METHOD: Sixty psychiatric patients were administered a brief screening interview for personality disorder. On the same day, they were interviewed with an established assessment for DSM-IV personality disorder. Three weeks later, the brief screening interview was repeated in order to examine test-retest reliability. RESULTS: A score of 3 on the screening interview correctly identified the presence of DSM-IV personality disorder in 90% of participants. The sensitivity and specificity were were 0.94 and and 0.85 respectively. CONCLUSIONS: The study provides preliminary evidence of the usefulness of the screen in routine clinical settings.

Adult↗