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Biomedical subjects

W B Ventres

Publications and source records attributed to W B Ventres.

12 recordsLinked to original sources
PubMed1996

Ethnography: a stepwise approach for primary care researchers.

Ethnography is a research method borrowed from cultural anthropology and a disciplined method for understanding human conduct. It is a valid alternative to quantitative methods for primary care researchers. This article reviews the defining principles of ethnographic research, which uses principally observational methods to study actions and events that exist in natural situations. It is the job of ethnographic researchers to establish and frame their observations from the point of view of the people under observation. We present five steps fundamental to the development of an ethnographic research plan and a research case study that demonstrates the use of ethnography by a family physician.

Anthropology, Cultural↗
PubMed1995

Teaching (and learning) family medicine internationally: a cultural survival guide.

Around the world, family medicine is emerging as an important model for the delivery of primary health care services. Clinician-educators from countries with successful family medicine programmes will be looked to for leadership in the international development of the specialty. Family medicine educators who are asked to teach internationally will face numerous challenges as they work to adapt their knowledge and expertise to fit local needs. These challenges can become either insurmountable obstacles or enriching experiences. The purpose of this article is to help guide educators as they explore, enter into and return from teaching family medicine abroad. It offers practical suggestions in response to three questions important in the course of work abroad: What are one's expectations for working abroad? What will one's attitude be toward daily work overseas? What will one have learned upon returning home? The suggestions can be used to enhance personal and professional development, promote common pathways in the development of family medicine as a specialty, and encourage bilateral exchange of knowledge and experiences among family physicians worldwide.

Culture↗
PubMed1994

Hearing the patient's story: exploring physician-patient communication using narrative case reports.

OBJECTIVE: This study employs narrative case reports to explore clinicians' interpretations of patients' words and behaviors. The purpose of this study is to investigate hospitalized patients' perspectives on medical issues and how these differ from their physicians' perspectives. METHODS: Residents identified 19 hospitalized patients over a two-year period with whom they had problems communicating. These residents described the reasons they believed the problems existed and then they questioned the patients about their illness experiences, using an open-ended interview style. Interviewers shared interpretations about the interview and patient behavior. Data were recorded in journal form. RESULTS: Common to each of the cases were misunderstandings between physicians and patients. The primary concerns of the residents (why they thought patients' behaviors were problematic) differed from the corresponding interpreted understandings of the patients' behaviors. Two case reports illustrate these observations. CONCLUSION: This study illustrates how narrative case reports can facilitate the recognition of themes in physician-patient communication that refer to the psychological and social realms of sickness. Such an approach can help identify misperceptions between physicians and patients. Clinicians, educators, and researchers can use this approach, respectively, to improve relationships with patients, to enrich student and resident understandings of communication issues, and to develop new forums for sharing qualitative aspects of physician-patient communication.

Behavior↗
PubMedDate not supplied

Success strategies.

Explore the source record for details and available documents.

Delivery of Health Care↗
PubMedDate not supplied

Introducing a procedure using videotape instruction: the case of the lateral birth position.

BACKGROUND: Videotapes have been variably successful in teaching physical examination skills, interviewing strategies, and clinically relevant didactic material to medical students, residents, and physicians. The literature does not include evaluations of their success in introducing procedural techniques into clinical practice. OBJECTIVES: This study assessed whether the presentation of an instructional videotape influenced the adoption of a specific technique, assisting birth in the lateral position. METHODS: Family practice residents, faculty, and physicians participated in educational presentations that reviewed how to assist childbirth in the lateral position. Three different formats were used for the presentations; an instructional videotape formed the core element of each presentation. Immediately following the presentations, and on one other occasion 4-6 months later, the participating physicians received questionnaires surveying their use of the lateral birth position. RESULTS: Approximately 30% of the respondents who had not previously used the position used the lateral birth technique. Of the remaining respondents who had not used the technique, 64% considered using the technique with their laboring patients. Physicians who viewed the videotape in concert with other educational interventions were more likely to have adopted the new birth technique (P = .03). CONCLUSIONS: An instructional videotape, as part of a structured, interactive presentation, can be used successfully to introduce a procedure into the clinical practices of family physicians.

Analysis of Variance↗
PubMedDate not supplied

Communicating about resuscitation: problems and prospects.

BACKGROUND: The Patient Self-Determination Act of 1991 implicitly encourages physicians to discuss advance directives and no-code orders with their patients. The medical literature to date, however, has done little to place resuscitative decision making in the context of how physicians, patients, and families communicate with one another. This paper investigates how interactions between involved parties affect the process and outcome of this decision making. METHODS: Participant observation and open-ended interviews were conducted with patients, their families, resident physicians, and family medicine faculty members. RESULTS: This report describes three social and cultural issues that commonly influence and shape the process of do-not-resuscitate decision making: judging competency and capacity, dealing with uncertainty, and recognizing attitudes toward death. CONCLUSIONS: Improved understanding of the communicative process can facilitate the establishment of meaningful, therapeutic alliances between physicians, patients, and families at an influential juncture in the family life cycle.

Advance Care Planning↗