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Transition to residential care: experiences of elderly Chinese people in Hong Kong.

A qualitative study was designed to explore the experiences of transition into residential care among elderly Chinese people in Hong Kong. With the elderly people's consent, in-depth interviews were conducted with 10 residents 1 week after their admission into a residential care home. The purpose of the interviews was to explore what the transition experience was like for the Chinese elders and how they settled into residential life. Content analysis of the interview data revealed the significance of cultural influences in the transition experiences. A number of issues suggested in the literature as barriers to adjustment to residential care, such as living with rules and regulations, lack of privacy and autonomy were not regarded as important by the Chinese elders. The Chinese values of balance, harmony and collectivism have made it easier for them to remain open and accept the communal way of living. Yet, these same values have restricted the elders in developing new relationships with staff and other residents. This appears to be the particular challenge facing Chinese elderly residents. Implications for professionals working with elderly residents are discussed in the light of these findings.

Aged↗

Welfare reform consequences for children: the Wisconsin experience.

BACKGROUND: The Temporary Assistance to Needy Families, enacted under the Personal Responsibility and Work Opportunity Reconciliation Act of 1996, is a reality for many working families. As public policies are enacted, unintended consequences for infants/children must be minimized. Child advocates in Wisconsin, leading this nation in reforming Aid to Families with Dependent Children (AFDC), are concerned about supporting eligible infants/children as safety-net programs are unlinked. OBJECTIVE: This study reviews the enrollment status of 4 linked programs over time in Wisconsin, from January 1995 to August 1998. Eligible infants/children in programs, such as Medicaid/AFDC, Medicaid/Healthy Start, and Food Stamps, were analyzed and compared with enrollment in Special Supplemental Nutrition Program for Women, Infants/children (WIC), a nonlinked program. DESIGN: A cross-sectional analysis of monthly enrollment for infants/children was subdivided into 3 periods: prewelfare reform or AFDC (January 1, 1995 to December 31, 1995), the welfare reform pilot or Pay For Performance (January 1, 1996 to August 31, 1997), and welfare reform better known as Wisconsin Works (W-2), (September 1, 1998 to August 31, 1998), periods 1, 2, and 3, respectively. PARTICIPANTS: Infants/children in Wisconsin from birth to 18 years of age enrolled in W-2 and/or other safety-net programs were monitored: AFDC or W-2, WIC, Food Stamps, Medicaid/AFDC, and Medicaid/Healthy Start. RESULTS: The average number of infants/children removed from AFDC and Medicaid/AFDC during periods l and 2 were -1210 increasing to -3128 per month, respectively, almost tripling the rates of decline during the pilot period (see ). By the end of this study, >100 000 (111 198) infants/children were removed from AFDC/W-2 enrollment and 51 559 fewer infants/children benefited from Medicaid. This rate of decline slowed during period 3, averaging -687 per month, while W-2 enrollment continued to decline significantly at a rate of -2692 per month. In contrast, Medicaid/Healthy Start enrollment, targeted to infants/children <6 years of age, increased significantly over all periods by +332, +1327, and +266, respectively. Food Stamps enrollment also declined throughout all 3 consecutive periods, -603, -2462, and -1450, respectively. However, enrollment in the WIC program did not decline significantly to the same degree as other certification-linked programs with AFDC or W-2, as indicated by the consecutive slopes of -60, -111, and -183, respectively. CONCLUSION: Wisconsin infants/children were rapidly removed from welfare rolls in unprecedented numbers during the periods January 1995 and August 1998. Comparisons of periods before W-2 implementation and 1 year after implementation support the fact that certification-linked programs, such as Medicaid and Food Stamps, were sufficiently aligned to AFDC/W-2 to significantly impact infants/children enrollment. Historically, WIC certification in Wisconsin has not been linked to AFDC, and infants/children traditionally eligible for Medicaid and Food Stamps are also eligible for WIC. Yet, contrary to the AFDC-linked safety-net programs, declines in WIC enrollment were not statistically significant during all study periods. Statewide and local interventions within Wisconsin, such as outreach activities, targeted to Medicaid/Healthy Start and more recently Title XXI (State Children Health Insurance Program), slowed the reductions of Medicaid enrollment for Wisconsin infants/children. These findings support that altering safety-net programs can result in unintended consequences if not carefully transitioned as demonstrated in Wisconsin welfare reform.

Adolescent↗

The cost utility analysis of riluzole for the treatment of amyotrophic lateral sclerosis in the UK.

This study reports the results of a long-term economic evaluation of riluzole in the treatment of amyotrophic lateral sclerosis (ALS) versus best supportive care in the United Kingdom. The aim was to assess the cost implications of the life extension offered by riluzole through cost utility analysis based on patient assessed utilities of different health states.A Markov model was used to assess the cost-effectiveness of Rilutek with best supportive care. Transition possibilities and the distribution of patients by health states were taken from a cohort of 954 patients drawn from a large randomised, double blind, placebo-controlled, multicentre trial between 1992 and 1994 in the first 18 months and used to extrapolate the model to assess the long-term prolongation of life. Four distinct health states were used corresponding to mild, moderate, severe and terminal states. Costs associated with Rilutek included the acquisition cost and bi-monthly monitoring for raised ALT levels. Patient assessed utilities were collected by use of the standard gamble technique. 77 patients were entered into the study from two centres (King's, London and Preston) in the UK. Mean utilities for each of the health states was generated and, given that the data were skewed, a sensitivity analysis was undertaken with the median utility values. The implications of life extension offered by riluzole versus best supportive care were assessed both in terms of life extension projected and quality adjusted survival using patient based utilities. Using the Markov model and the transitional probabilities the base case cost per life year gained was estimated at pound sterlings 14,370 and applying Standard Gamble utility scores, the base case cost per QALY was assessed as pound sterlings 20,904. The effect of discounting costs and benefits altered the cost effectiveness analysis to pound sterlings 17,760 per life year gained while a sensitivity analysis around median or mean scores for the utility weight resulted in a range of pound sterlings 19,020 to pound sterlings 25,794 per QALY gained.

Amyotrophic Lateral Sclerosis↗

Adolescents in transition of adult care: why the concern?

This article has described issues associated with transition planning for youth with CHD. A number of approaches have been described to address the needs of this growing number of youth with CHD. Transition to adulthood has been and will continue to be a significant clinical concern as the adult survival rate increases. Health care professionals who are involved in transition planning will be focused on the health-related concerns of the transfer to an ACHD, insurability, and long-term CHD management, as well as issues related to employment, education, social relationships, and independent living. Successful transitioning is dependent on long-term planning,. youth-centered approaches, service coordination, and referral to adult agencies. As youth, families, adult survivors, and experts have discovered, long-term survival means more than the physical aspects of CHD.

Adolescent↗

Enhancing specialist preparation for the next century.

While the curricula of clinical nurse specialist (CNS) programs have proved to be successful in meeting past and current health care needs of specialty populations, the needs of children requiring care by the CNS have changed greatly over the past few years. Because of advanced technology, more children are surviving, although they may have serious physical, developmental, and psychosocial disabilities. At the same time, the educational, health, and social services for these children have become harder to access. A conceptual model, Family-Focused Pediatric Transitional Care (FFPTC), was used to interpret a survey of graduates of a pediatric clinical specialist program and their employers. Recommendations regarding possible changes in pediatric clinical nurse specialist curricula are offered to guide future educational agendas. Advanced skills in clinical decision making and coordinating care across the continuum from the hospital to the community and to the home have become essential role competencies for the clinical nurse specialist.

Clinical Competence↗

Implementing a mandatory geriatrics clerkship.

Due to the rapid growth in the proportion of U.S. citizens aged 65 and older (20% by 2030) it is imperative that U.S. medical schools train students who can provide quality care to the older population. Consequently, the objective of this paper is to report the experience of creating a 4-week, mandatory geriatrics clerkship for junior medical students. Funded by a grant from the Donald W. Reynolds Foundation, the University of Arkansas for Medical Sciences developed a mandatory, third-year clerkship in geriatric medicine. The clerkship included clinical experiences in outpatient clinics, transitional care units, nursing homes, hospice programs, and core didactic sessions. The sites for the clerkship were the University of Arkansas for Medical Sciences Hospital, the Central Arkansas Veterans Healthcare System Hospital, community nursing homes, and community hospice programs in Little Rock, Arkansas. The entire junior class of 135 students participated in the new clerkship. Students were assessed through a three-station Objective Structured Clinical Examination followed by a brief post- encounter examination and faculty preceptor evaluations collected from each clinical site. Students evaluated the clerkship through written evaluations and focus group discussions. This paper demonstrates that students acquired sufficient cognitive knowledge to satisfactorily complete the clerkship but did not highly value the experience.

Aged↗

Opportunities for improving post-hospital home medication management among older adults.

Effective post-hospital home medication management among older adults is a convoluted, error-prone process. Older adults, whose complex medication regimens are often changed at hospital discharge, are susceptible to medication-related problems (e.g. Adverse Drug Events or ADEs) as they resume responsibility for managing their medications at home. Human error theory frames the discussion of multi-faceted, interacting factors including care system functions, like discharge medication teaching that contribute to post-hospital ADEs. The taxonomy and causes of post-hospital ADEs and related risk factors are reviewed, as we describe in high-risk older adults a population that may benefit from targeted interventions. Potential solutions and future research possibilities highlight the importance of interdisciplinary teams, involvement of clinical pharmacists, use of transitional care models, and improved use of informational technologies.

Aged↗

Nutritional requirements of an aging population with emphasis on subacute care patients.

Life expectancy in the United States has increased dramatically during the past century, creating a large population of people with potentially compromised nutritional status. Although requirements were previously believed to decline with aging, recent data suggest that requirements for protein and energy often do not decline and may actually increase during disease exacerbations. Optimal intake of vitamins and minerals is also under reevaluation, and significant segments of the population may have deficiencies based on limited intake or absorption. Social and psychological factors and difficulty chewing and swallowing may interfere with adequate intake. At the end of a hospital stay, many patients need continued skilled transitional care before discharge home. Many patients who have existing nutritional deficits, including weight loss, decreased serum proteins and pressure ulcers are admitted to subacute nursing facilities. Careful initial and periodic reassessment of nutritional status and aggressive nutritional management must be used to prepare patients for optimal independence after discharge. Improved clinical outcome can be achieved with prevention of malnutrition and timely correction of nutritional problems.

Aged↗

China's health care sector in transition: resources, demand and reforms.

Economic development and reforms have had profound impacts on China's health care sector. As a result, the health care sector in China is in transition. This report reviews the major changes, and the possible policy response to these changes in China's health care sector. It discusses resource availability in the Chinese health sector, and analyses the trend of household demand for health care goods and services. This study also examines the trade and investment situations in China's health sector and investigates the major forces that are driving the transition in health care and comments on the potential policy responses.

China↗

Transitions in health care use and expenditures among frail older adults by payor/provider type.

OBJECTIVES: To assess whether transitions in health care expenditures differed over time by payor/provider type: Medicare fee-for-service (FFS), Medicaid-Medicare, and Medicare HMO. DESIGN: Longitudinal study. SETTING: A large, nonprofit healthcare system in San Diego, California. PARTICIPANTS: A total of 450 frail older people who responded to the baseline and follow-up surveys and who survived the 18-month study period. MEASUREMENTS: Measures included three total expenditure categories for each 6-month period: low users (< $4000); medium users ($4000-$19,999); or high users ($20,000+). Seven conceptually meaningful expenditure trajectories over time were identified: (1) consistently low expenditures, (2) consistently medium expenditures, (3) consistently high expenditures, (4) decreasing expenditures, (5) increasing expenditures, (6) U-shaped expenditures, and (7) inverted U-shaped expenditures. MAIN RESULTS: Logistic regression analyses showed that HMO enrollees were about twice as likely as Medicaid-Medicare beneficiaries to have consistently low expenditures, but no differences were found between the FFS and HMO groups on this trajectory. Other expenditure patterns showed no significant differences by payor/provider group. Significant interactions among payor/provider type, low/medium/ high expenditure status, and time were observed for inpatient hospital care, skilled nursing/rehabilitation care, and home health care. CONCLUSION: This study illustrates the complexity of frail older people with respect to their health care expenditures and service use. Expanded efforts to control health care expenditures for frail older people should focus first on those who are dually-enrolled. In addition, because mean medical expenditures for high users enrolled in different payor/ provider groups were surprisingly similar, the data suggest that containing expenditures for individuals in the highest usage group ($20,000+) presents challenges for physicians practicing in an era of healthcare reform, regardless of payor/ provider setting.

Aged↗

Getting a Grip on Arthritis: an educational intervention for the diagnosis and treatment of arthritis in primary care.

OBJECTIVE: To evaluate a community-based educational intervention designed to improve the diagnosis and treatment of arthritis in primary care. METHODS: The educational intervention, entitled "Getting a Grip on Arthritis", consisted of a 2-day workshop and followup reinforcement activities for healthcare providers (providers) and was supported by a toolkit of written materials for providers and clients. The content of the intervention was designed around 10 arthritis best practices derived from published arthritis guidelines. Five community health centers (CHC) participated as intervention sites and 2 as control sites. Intervention impact was determined through a mailed survey to clients with arthritis. Primary outcome analysis compared responses to questions about arthritis best practices between intervention and control sites at baseline and followup. RESULTS: The workshop was attended by 21 multidisciplinary providers from intervention CHC. At baseline, 423 of 624 eligible and consenting clients completed the survey and 376 of 593 completed the followup survey. At followup clients in the intervention group reported significantly higher referrals to The Arthritis Society therapy program, and were more often provided information on type of arthritis, medications and their side effects, disease management strategies, and arthritis community resources. CONCLUSION: This demonstration project is one of the first to show changes in the management of arthritis in a primary care setting. This project has recently received funding from Health Canada's Primary Health Care Transition Fund for implementation across Canada and is expected to provide a template for use in other chronic diseases.

Aged↗

Building public health goals into the purchasing process: the Missouri Medicaid agency as purchaser.

INTRODUCTION: As managed care radically changes the medical care environment, public health leaders are under increasing pressure to focus more on core public health functions and less on personal health services. As public health re-evaluates its key strategies, it can take advantage of its strategic role in purchasing medical care to forge new partnerships that benefit its constituents. METHODS: Specific roles for public health in medical care purchasing are discussed. The state of Missouri is used as an example of successful strategies for positioning public health as a leader in the managed care environment. Key strategies include increasing influence in contracting; selecting and reporting of key health status indicators; promoting use of population-based data files; taking leadership roles in government-sponsored insurance programs; and assuring stability of critical health conditions during managed care transitions. CONCLUSION: Public health has unprecedented opportunities to develop new methods for improving health status. Public health's well-developed scientific principles and methods, combined with strategic leadership, will position the discipline in the forefront of the dialogue about our nation's health system into the next century.

Contract Services↗

Improving utilization and patient care. A rural hospital reduces length of stay through policy revisions and education.

In 1990 Saint Vincent Memorial Hospital, Taylorville, IL, intensified efforts to improve resource utilization. A program of daily case review and medical staff education has helped the hospital reduce average length of stay from between 7 and 8 days to between 5 and 6.8 days. Steps taken to achieve this include: Hiring an outside medical adviser to oversee collection and analysis of data related to length of stay and conduct case reviews Appointing a medical review officer and a physician-specific case manager Establishing a Utilization Management Task Force, which has reformed the policy concerning patients with methicillin-resistant Staphylococcus aureus to ensure discharge in a timely manner; implemented a nonacute-day reporting system; and completed a transitional care study to identify the benefits of transferring medically stable Medicare patients to the Skilled Nursing Facility.

Catholicism↗

Time of day effects on the incidence of anesthetic adverse events.

BACKGROUND: We hypothesized that time of day of surgery would influence the incidence of anesthetic adverse events (AEs). METHODS: Clinical observations reported in a quality improvement database were categorized into different AEs that reflected (1) error, (2) harm, and (3) other AEs (error or harm could not be determined) and were analyzed for effects related to start hour of care. RESULTS: As expected, there were differences in the rate of AEs depending on start hour of care. Compared with a reference start hour of 7 am, other AEs were more frequent for cases starting during the 3 pm and 4 pm hours (p < 0.0001). Post hoc inspection of data revealed that the predicted probability increased from a low of 1.0% at 9 am to a high of 4.2% at 4 pm. The two most common event types (pain management and postoperative nausea and vomiting) may be primary determinants of these effects. CONCLUSIONS: Our results indicate that clinical outcomes may be different for patients anesthetized at the end of the work day compared with the beginning of the day. Although this may result from patient related factors, medical care delivery factors such as case load, fatigue, and care transitions may also be influencing the rate of anesthetic AEs for cases that start in the late afternoon.

Anesthesiology↗

Factors that enable or complicate end-of-life transitions in critical care.

BACKGROUND: Nurses in medical intensive care units are routinely involved in negotiations to maintain or withdraw life support. How nurses move from aggressively attempting to extend life to letting life end is not well understood. OBJECTIVE: To explore nurses' experiences of moving from cure- to comfort-oriented care and to describe factors that inhibit or facilitate such transitions. METHOD: A descriptive qualitative research design with brief observation of participants and focus group interviews was used. Participants were 19 female and 5 male nurses in an 18-bed medical intensive care unit in a 719-bed acute care hospital in the northeastern United States. RESULTS: The transition point between cure- and comfort-oriented care was unclear. Nurses reported that the patient's age, misunderstanding of the illness by the patient's family, family discord, and shifting medical care decisions made end-of-life transitions difficult. Conversely, developing a consensus among patients, patients' families, and staff about the direction of medical therapy; exhausting treatment options; and patients' lack of response to aggressive medical interventions helped nurses move toward comfort care. CONCLUSIONS: The most distressing situations for staff were dealing with younger patients with an acute life-threatening illness and performing futile care on elderly patients. End-of-life transitions were difficult when patients' families had conflicts or were indecisive about terminating treatment and when physicians kept offering options that were unlikely to change patients' prognosis. The most important factor enabling nurses to move from cure- to comfort-oriented care was developing a consensus about the treatment.

Adult↗

Pharmacologic treatment of the critically ill patient with diabetes.

The pharmacologic approach to the management of DKA and HHNS involves the use of insulin, fluids, and electrolytes. Essential to the successful treatment of DKA and HHNS is a carefully planned post-intensive-care transition period. This period is based on the understanding that insulin therapy is never interrupted in patients with type 1 diabetes and the transition to insulin and/or oral hypoglycemic therapy in type 2 patients is strategically planned. The use of acute adjuvant insulin-glucose therapy in acute coronary syndromes and cardiac surgeries can result in decrease in overall morbidity and mortality in patients with diabetes. Ultimately, however, the major approaches to the treatment of diabetes is primary prevention of diabetes itself and the secondary prevention of complications through vigorous glucose control.

Aged↗

Extracorporeal support in an adult with severe carbon monoxide poisoning and shock following smoke inhalation: a case report.

The objective of this study was to discuss the case of a patient with severe smoke inhalation-related respiratory failure treated with extracorporeal support. The study was set in a 12-bed multi-trauma intensive care unit at a level one trauma center and hyperbaric medicine center. The patient under investigation had carbon monoxide poisoning, and developed acute respiratory distress syndrome and cardiovascular collapse following smoke inhalation. Rapid initiation of extracorporeal support, extreme inverse-ratio ventilation and intermittent prone positioning therapy were carried out. Admission and serial carboxyhemoglobin levels, blood gases, and computerized tomography of the chest were obtained. The patient developed severe hypoxia and progressed to cardiovascular collapse resistant to resuscitation and vasoactive infusions. Veno-venous extracorporeal support was initiated. Cardiovascular parameters of blood pressure, cardiac output, and oxygen delivery were maximized; oxygenation and ventilation were supported via the extracorporeal circuit. Airway pressure release ventilation and intermittent prone positioning therapy were instituted. Following 7 days of extracorporeal support, the patient was decannulated and subsequently discharged to a transitional care facility,neurologically intact. Smoke inhalation and carbon monoxide poisoning may lead to life-threatening hypoxemia associated with resultant cardiovascular instability. When oxygenation and ventilation cannot be achieved via maximal ventilatory management, extracorporeal support may prevent death if initiated rapidly.

Adult↗

Laparoscopic radical cystectomy with continent urinary diversion.

Laparoscopic radical cystectomy with urinary diversion, although challenging even for the skilled laparoscopist, has evolved rapidly throughout the past decade. These advances are attributable to a series of well-designed animal studies transitioned carefully to humans. Short-term data have shown that this is a feasible technique that respects the basic principles of surgical oncology. However, the possibility of decreased blood loss, improved visualization, shorter hospital stay, and less postoperative pain are balanced against technical difficulty, long operative times, and unproved long-term efficacy compared with the open gold standard. The goal of this review is to reflect the available literature with regard to surgical indications, the current technique in evolution, short-term morbidity, and oncologic outcomes.

Carcinoma, Transitional Cell↗