SEARCH · PubMed Health
Explore indexed PubMed citations for clinical trials, systematic reviews and public health research. Read source abstracts and follow each citation to its original PubMed record.
Quote a phrase for an exact phrase match. Source license links do not imply unrestricted reuse.
Explore the source record for details and available documents.
Managing respiratory tract infections (RTIs) presents many challenges to managed care organizations (MCOs). RTIs are among the most common illnesses treated by primary care clinicians; they seriously impact patient quality of life and are a leading cause of health-related absences from the workplace. The total direct costs of treating conditions such as acute otitis media, sinusitis, and acute exacerbations of chronic bronchitis are estimated to be $10.1 billion. The development of drug resistance has compounded these challenges by increasing treatment failures and costs and limiting treatment options. MCOs can meet these challenges by implementing clinical practice guidelines for acute respiratory infections, conducting focused studies of antibiotic use, and educating both healthcare clinicians and patients about appropriate antibiotic use.
OBJECTIVE: To investigate how health plans manage chronic diseases. STUDY DESIGN: Health plan medical directors were surveyed regarding the disease management (DM) practices of their plans. METHODS: We took a stratified random sample of 65 plans, all members of the American Association of Health Plans. Forty-five plans responded. Results were weighted to be representative of the industry (including nonmember plans). Medical directors were asked to consider that they had a DM program only if 2 things were true: (1) A majority of a plan's enrollees could not be ineligible for a DM program for non-clinical reasons (eg, geographic location); and (2) a DM program had to have at least 6 of the 8 components of a DM program as defined by the Disease Management Association of America. RESULTS: The 3 diseases most likely to be the focus of DM programs were diabetes, asthma, and congestive heart failure. For each of these diseases, at least one quarter of Americans were enrolled in plans offering a DM program. Medical directors perceived their DM programs to be highly effective in reducing mortality and morbidity and in improving the functional status of patients, and perceived them to be effective in lowering cost. The greatest challenge in implementing DM programs involves information technology. These results yield insights into the future of treatment of chronic disease in the United States. CONCLUSION: Health plans have made a significant investment in programs to improve care for chronic illness. The almost universality of DM programs highlight the need for scholarly evaluations of their effectiveness and cost effectiveness.
The emergence and spread of multidrug-resistant tuberculosis (MDR-TB), i.e. involving resistance to at least isoniazid and rifampicin, could threaten the control of TB globally. Controversy has emerged about the best way of confronting MDR-TB in settings with very limited resources. In 1999, the World Health Organization (WHO) created a working group on DOTS-Plus, an initiative exploring the programmatic feasibility and cost-effectiveness of treating MDR-TB in low-income and middle-income countries, in order to consider the management of MDR-TB under programme conditions. The challenges of implementation have proved more daunting than those of access to second-line drugs, the prices of which are dropping. Using data from the WHO/International Union Against Tuberculosis and Lung Disease surveillance project, we have grouped countries according to the proportion of TB patients completing treatment successfully and the level of MDR-TB among previously untreated patients. The resulting matrix provides a reasonable framework for deciding whether to use second-line drugs in a national programme. Countries in which the treatment success rate, i.e. the proportion of new patients who complete the scheduled treatment, irrespective of whether bacteriological cure is documented, is below 70% should give the highest priority to introducing or improving DOTS, the five-point TB control strategy recommended by WHO and the International Union Against Tuberculosis and Lung Disease. A poorly functioning programme can create MDR-TB much faster than it can be treated, even if unlimited resources are available. There is no single prescription for controlling MDR-TB but the various tools available should be applied wisely. Firstly, good DOTS and infection control; then appropriate use of second-line drug treatment. The interval between the two depends on the local context and resources. As funds are allocated to treat MDR-TB, human and financial resources should be increased to expand DOTS worldwide.
When occupational therapy (OT) and physical therapy (PT) are provided as related services in educational settings, federal law, professional guidelines, and validated practices have pointed to appropriate models of service provision. Issues such as personnel shortages, professional isolation, and questionable educational relevance of services all create barriers to use of recommended practices. The overlap between OT and PT in special education suggests one strategy to help address these barriers: a primary therapist model. In this model, an OT or PT is assigned as primary therapist, with consultation from the other discipline as required to meet student needs. Potential benefits of the model, challenges in implementation, the best practice framework needed to support the model, and the need for research on costs and benefits are discussed.
PROBLEM/CONDITION: Data indicate that approximately 50,000 U.S. residents die as a result of traumatic brain injury (TBI) annually. Survivors of TBI are often left with neuropsychologic impairments that result in disabilities affecting work or social activity. During 1979-1992, TBI-related death rates declined 22%, from 24.6 to 19.3 deaths/100,000 population. This report describes the epidemiology and trends in TBI-related mortality during 1989-1998. REPORTING PERIOD: January 1, 1989-December 31, 1998. DESCRIPTION OF SYSTEMS: The National Center for Health Statistics (NCHS) Multiple Cause of Death public use data were analyzed for this study. RESULTS: During 1989-1998, an annual average of 53,288 deaths (range: 51,848-54,501) among U.S. residents were associated with TBI. TBI-related death rates declined 11.4%, from 21.9 to 19.4/100,000 population. The major causes of TBI-related deaths were firearm-related (40%), motor-vehicle-related (34%), and fall-related (10%). The leading causes of TBI-related deaths differed among age groups. Among youths aged 0-19 years, motor-vehicle-related TBIs were the leading cause; among persons aged 20-74 years, firearm-related TBIs were the leading cause; and among persons aged > or = 75 years, fall-related TBIs were the leading cause. Comparing rates in 1989 with rates in 1998, motor-vehicle-related causes declined by 22%; the majority of this decline occurred during the first 5 years of the period. During 1989-1998, firearm-related TBI-related deaths declined by 14%; approximately all of this decline occurred during the last 5 years of the period. In contrast, fall-related TBI-related death rates increased by 25% during the period. CONCLUSION: This analysis of mortality data identifies recent trends in TBI-related deaths occurring during 1989-1998. Fall-related TBI death rates have increased throughout the period. Firearm-related TBI death rates, which were increasing in the early 1990s, declined. Motor-vehicle-related TBI death rates, which were decreasing until the mid-1990s, have since demonstrated only a limited change. PUBLIC HEALTH ACTION: More current population-based epidemiologic studies of TBI are needed to assess recent trends of etiologic factors, provide additional guidance for public policy, and evaluate prevention strategies. Despite the decline in fatal TBI incidence, TBI morbidity and mortality remains a public health challenge. Public health, law enforcement, and transportation safety professionals can address these challenges by implementing effective interventions based on a thorough assessment of the factors that influence health-related behaviors.
Oregon's Death with Dignity Act was first passed by a ballot initiative in 1994, but numerous judicial challenges delayed implementation of the Act. In November of 1997, following the United States Supreme Court decisions in Vacco v. Quill and Washington v. Glucksberg, which left the states' power to regulate physician-assisted suicide undisturbed, the Oregon voters upheld their law. Oregon remains the only state in the nation to authorize physician-assisted suicide. The Task Force to Improve the Care of Terminally Ill Oregonians published a Guidebook for health care providers on the Oregon Act, and the New England Journal of Medicine recently issued a special report on the first year's experience under the Act. This paper analyzes the legal context of the Oregon Death with Dignity Act, discusses the efficacy of the tenets in the Guidebook, and explores ethical issues underlying the guidelines, particularly those pertaining to the meaning of a patient's request for assisted suicide and processes supporting informed consent.
The American juvenile justice system continues to be an arena in which a myriad of varying values and practices come under constant challenge and close scrutiny, not only from those outside the system, but particularly by those within the system, those on the firing-line--the judges, court administrators, prosecutors, defenders, police, social workers and probation officers who are responsible for the operation of the system. Every juvenile court and the personnel who work with it are faced with the difficult process of evaluating and adapting to multiple "standards" and the challenges of implementing effective change within the perimeters of varying systems and statutes. The National Council of Juvenile and Family Court Judges recognizes that the responsibility for further improvement, for effective and long-lasting change, in a juvenile justice system that operates in a vastly complex society will rest even more heavily in the future where it has been in the past--on the individual judge and practitioner.
Management of a dental practice is challenging. The implementation of a management control system will improve practice performance. This system consists of planning practice goals and objectives, gathering information about the practice activity related to the planned goals and objectives, and taking corrective actions to remedy deviations from the practice plan. Three types of control, preventive, concurrent, and feedback, are presented with an application to the dental practice. Within each type of control a variety of administrative functions are discussed, such as financial analysis, employee supervision, and quality assurance.
The revolutionary progress in development of next-generation sequencing (NGS) technologies has made it possible to deliver accurate genomic information in a timely manner. Over the past several years, NGS has transformed biomedical and clinical research and found its application in the field of personalized medicine. Here we discuss the rise of personalized medicine and the history of NGS. We discuss current applications and uses of NGS in medicine, including infectious diseases, oncology, genomic medicine, and dermatology. We provide a brief discussion of selected studies where NGS was used to respond to wide variety of questions in biomedical research and clinical medicine. Finally, we discuss the challenges of implementing NGS into routine clinical use.
BACKGROUND: In the UK the replacement of long-term in-patient care with community-based support has been part of central government health policy for many years. One of the challenges of implementing such a policy is the prediction of support and service needs in the community and the associated costs. METHOD: Using research data from north London analyses were undertaken to examine the associations between service use and costs in the community and the characteristics of hospital in-patients. RESULTS: Although clinical diagnosis was not a useful predictor of either service utilisation or costs, more than a third of the variation in community care costs could be explained by symptoms, behaviour and personal characteristics at least one year earlier.
Total quality management (TQM) is a management philosophy that addresses problems currently faced by health care, specifically reducing costs while improving quality of services. As hospital administrators embrace this new management style, nurse executives and managers will be challenged to implement TQM. Building TQM into nursing management will improve quality and reduce costs while meeting the needs of health care customers.
PURPOSE/OBJECTIVES: To review current research examining the effects of behavioral interventions on reducing symptom distress and improving quality of life in patients with cancer and to explore the application of behavioral interventions to patients with leukemia who are immunosuppressed by the disease or its treatment. DATA SOURCES: Published books, journal articles, and personal experiences. DATA SYNTHESIS: Interventions such as relaxation training, guided imagery, attentional/cognitive distraction, and therapeutic touch have been found to reduce pain, anxiety, and chemotherapy-related side effects, to elicit the relaxation response, and to improve several aspects of immune function in patients with cancer. CONCLUSIONS: A multicomponent, long-term program of behavioral interventions may provide the greatest and most lasting benefit, but it may be very challenging to implement. However, simple relaxation techniques are not difficult to learn, are not particularly time-consuming or costly to practice, and can be used anywhere. IMPLICATIONS FOR NURSING PRACTICE: Nurses in virtually any setting easily can incorporate behavioral modalities into their practices and help patients with leukemia to reduce their physiologic arousal and symptom distress. Nursing research examining the effects of behavioral interventions on immunocompetence and cancer pain in patients with leukemia is needed.
Computerization of information on health care delivery is being implemented in France. Within hospitals, the PMSI program aimed at coding and storing medical information on patients and their treatment has started. More recently was launched a program for computerizing outpatient care (coding and storing information on medical acts, pathologies and prescriptions). Patient individual cards with microprocessor have been implemented. The challenge ahead is how to coordinate all these processes to make them compatible, and coherent and to avoid wasteful disorders.
Optimal metabolic control is a primary management objective for adolescents with insulin-dependent diabetes mellitus. Nutrition therapy plays an important role in meeting this challenging treatment goal. This article presents broad nutrition goals, makes macronutrient recommendations, and describes their effect on blood glucose levels. Various meal-planning techniques and other developmentally appropriate approaches to assist adolescents in meeting these nutrition objectives are described. Finally, challenges in implementing nutrition therapy in an adolescent population are discussed.
European experts in clinical laboratory sciences have different backgrounds, and development of expertise in this field started more than 100 years ago. Specific national activities have created the heterogeneity that now exists amongst the academic professional membership of more than 40 scientific societies in Europe. The recent political changes have in addition contributed to the rapidly changing profile of Clinical Chemistry and related fields. Based on a questionnaire answered by 31 national representatives, the past, present and future aspects of the European Clinical Laboratory are reviewed. Of the more than 30,000 members of national societies, the majority studied medicine (40.1%), chemistry (27.2%) and pharmacy (21.1%) with large national differences in relative percentages. Post-graduate education is provided by two thirds of the national societies. In most European countries the same experts cover not only clinical chemistry but also haematology, haemostaseology, immunology and transfusiology. National quality assurance programmes are said to be established in 25 countries, but mandatory in only 11 of them. Of the future challenges, the implementation of request strategies were named most often, with interpretative reports and preanalytical aspects estimated as similarly important. It was thought that information technology and new scientific developments would make the greatest impact in the coming years, with economic pressure being the major limiting factor. Despite these limitations an increase in the number of tests is anticipated by most representatives, supporting the assumption of an increasing role of the clinical laboratory in future clinical medicine.
With assisted suicide now legally sanctioned, health care professionals in Oregon face the challenge of implementing Oregon's Death with Dignity Act. Physicians, hospice professionals, pharmacists, and other caregivers may find their relationships with patients, families, and fellow professionals changing in unanticipated ways as all learn what it means to make aid in dying openly and compassionately available to patients at the end of life.
This paper is presenting the rational that lead to the organisation of the European workshop on Acceptance of Telematics Applications by Healthcare Professionals "Looking for the convincing cases," that took place in Thesaloniki 12-13 December, 1997. A brief overview is presented of the health telematics sector, the current situation of the usage of some applications, and major challenges towards wide implementation of health telematics applications. It focuses on user acceptance as one of the critical challenges towards wider implementation. It concludes that the support and promotion "Convincing cases" are important components contributing to user acceptance.