Smoking cessation attitudes, practices, and policies among California primary care physicians.
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Adult↗
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Results for “Health Knowledge, Attitudes, Practice”
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.
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Evaluation of a practice information leaflet.
Over 10 months 5,000 practice information leaflets were distributed in a practice in Glasgow. The leaflet was principally evaluated by assessing patients' attitudes to and use of leaflets and changes in their knowledge about the practice. Changes in the pattern of consultation with the practice nurse and the timing of incoming telephone calls were also measured. Most patients read, kept and referred to the leaflet and reported it to be useful. Those who had seen the leaflet had significantly greater knowledge (mean knowledge score 7.5) on 15 questions on practice organization than two comparison groups: the base-line study sample (mean knowledge score 5.2) and those in the follow-up sample who had not seen the leaflet (mean knowledge score 5.7). Improvements in knowledge were statistically significant for 10 out of 15 questions. Two changes of behaviour were noted, increased self-referral to nurses (37% of new consultations at follow-up were self-referred compared with 29% at baseline: P = 0.05) and the timing of incoming telephone calls was more in line with practice policy (for example, 23% of calls for repeat prescriptions were made between 12.00 and 16.00 hours at follow-up compared with only 11% at baseline, P less than 0.001). The leaflet was judged to be useful.
Adolescent↗
Psychiatry in general practice. A pilot scheme using the liaison-attachment model.
OBJECTIVE: To improve the quality and accessibility of psychiatric service in the primary care setting. DESIGN: Under the liaison-attachment model, a senior psychiatry trainee provided psychiatric consultations part-time in general practice over an 18-month period. Patients regarded by the participating doctors as having significant psychiatric problems were referred to the trainee for consultation. SETTING: Four group general practices, involving 18 doctors, took part in the scheme. PARTICIPANTS: During the study 172 patients with a wide spectrum of diagnoses were assessed. Near the end of the 18-month period the participating general practitioners provided their evaluations of the scheme. INTERVENTION: In almost all cases standard treatment was provided in the primary care setting and administered by either a general practitioner, the trainee or both working collaboratively together. OUTCOME MEASURES: The general practitioners evaluated the results of the consultations and the effect of the service on their referral patterns. They also rated the overall impact of the scheme on their own knowledge and skills, the quality of care, and its accessibility. RESULTS: The quality of outcome, if known, was regarded as satisfactory in 88% of cases. The reported frequency of referrals to psychiatrists in private practice dropped significantly. The participating doctors perceived improvements in their own abilities to deal with psychiatric problems and regarded the quality and accessibility of psychiatric care to be enhanced by the scheme. CONCLUSIONS: The psychiatric liaison-attachment model, developed in Britain, is applicable and effective in the Australian primary care setting.
Australia↗
Policy and practice--an audit of neonatal BCG immunization in Avon.
Two surveys were carried out to audit the Avon Neonatal BCG Immunization Policy. The aim of the audit was to determine whether children with indications for neonatal BCG immunization had received the vaccine before attendance at routine six-week postnatal examination. In the first survey, 15 of 359 (4.2 per cent) infants were identified as eligible for BCG, of whom only two (13.3 per cent) had received it. These findings were discussed with the medical and nursing staff involved in the care of the infants in Avon, and action was taken to improve compliance with the policy. The survey was then repeated to complete the loop of the audit cycle and to observe whether the action taken had the desired effect. Forty of 644 (6.2 per cent) infants were identified as being eligible for BCG immunization in the repeat survey, of whom 32 (80 per cent) had received it. There was a statistically significant difference in results between the first and the second survey (p < 0.0001). It is concluded that completion of the audit cycle can markedly improve clinical practice.
BCG Vaccine↗
Patients' knowledge about fats and cholesterol in the Community Cholesterol Survey Project.
OBJECTIVE: The Community Cholesterol Survey Project assessed attitudes, knowledge, and behaviors relating to cholesterol. DESIGN: Survey. SETTING: Six outpatient primary care practice sites (two urban, two suburban, and two rural) in northeast Ohio. PARTICIPANTS: Four hundred seventy-seven site-, age-, and gender-stratified adult patients were enrolled from a total of 604 approached (79% recruitment). INTERVENTIONS: Self-administered questionnaire and structured dietitian interview. MAIN OUTCOME MEASURES: A knowledge score derived from responses to multiple-choice questions and a knowledge rating given by the study dietitian. Motivation and dietary health were similarly measured. RESULTS: Subjects did worse than random guessing for seven of 12 knowledge questions regarding label reading, fats, and cholesterol. In particular, the meaning of "hydrogenated" and the relative energy content of fats was poorly understood. Knowledge scores and ratings were significantly correlated (r = .52). Knowledge ratings were higher in those who were receiving a cholesterol-lowering diet or who had received other advice or treatment from their physician for high cholesterol level. By analysis of variance, knowledge measures were found to have significant independent positive associations with higher social status (P < .001) and living in a suburban area (P < .05). Motivation and dietary health demonstrated similar relationships to social status. CONCLUSIONS: To make use of patients' motivation for change, it will be essential to provide education at an effective level. Instruction in label reading or creation of more meaningful food labels may have the greatest impact. A particular challenge is the education of less advantaged patients to promote healthy nutrition practices.
Adult↗
Hypercholesterolemia: the current educational needs of physicians.
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Attitude of Health Personnel↗
Study of the effect of birth spacing on maternal health.
This study aims at identifying the effect of birth spacing on maternal health. The study was carried out on a representative sample of 324 married women at the fertile age period and having at least two children. The result of this study revealed that women practicing birth spacing were 33.3% of the studied sample. The mean age was 34.4 +/- 5.3 years and 31.3 +/- 5.7 years for improper and proper birth spacing respectively. Improper birth spacing women constituted 70.2% of low social class. Out of the total number of improper birth spaced women, 41.7% were overweight, 25.9% were hypertensive, 57.4% had varicose veins, and 18.1% had low limb oedema. Concerning Gynecological findings; vaginal discharge and cervical erosion were 70.4% and 19.4% of improper birth spacing women respectively, laboratory investigations revealed that anaemia and glucosuria were 88.4% and 12.5% of improper birth spacing women respectively. Good knowledge and favorable attitude were 88% and 100% of properly birth spaced women. The mean number of gravidity, number of abortions and number of infant deaths were 6.6 +/- 2.8; 0.9 +/- 1.3 and 1.36 +/- 1.63 of improperly birth spaced women respectively and 4.2 +/- 1.7; 0.6 +/- 1.1 and 0.41 +/- 0.81 of properly birth spaced women respectively. It could be concluded that young women were practicing birth spacing more properly. Rural origin women are less practicing birth spacing. Medical and Gynecological disorders were more among improper birth spacing women. Pregnancy wastage are more among improper birth spacing. It is to be recommended that more efforts should be done among low social class. Encouraging young women to practice pre-natal care. Emphasizing on the practice of proper birth spacing and small family size.
Adult↗
Fertility and family planning in rural northern Thailand.
From the mid-1960s to the mid-1970s, when fertility was declining in Thailand as a whole, especially rapid declines occurred in Northern Thailand, but they did not occur uniformly in all the region's provinces. The Northern Thailand Fertility Study, initiated in 1975 to study the reported fertility changes, gathered data in two provinces: Chiang Mai, where fertility decline has been quite rapid, and Chiang Rai, which experienced relatively little decline until 1974. This preliminary report discusses fertility levels and trends in the two provinces, fertility experience and expectations of respondents, attitudes toward and knowledge of family planning, and contraceptive practice. The results suggest that most of the difference in fertility decline is related to the different level of family planning program activity in the two provinces.
Abortion, Spontaneous↗
Barriers to cervical screening in older women.
OBJECTIVE: To explore the reasons why some older women do not have regular Papanicolaou smear tests. SETTING: The Ballarat region of Victoria. DESIGN AND METHOD: Cross-sectional survey administered by telephone interview. SAMPLE: Three hundred and forty-seven women aged 40 to 70. RESULTS: 1. 41% of women had not had a Papanicolaou smear test within the preceding 2 years. 2. Women who agreed with the statement that healthy women do not need to have Papanicolaou tests were six times more likely to be overdue for a Papanicolaou test than women who did not agree. 3. Being over 60 significantly increased the likelihood that a woman would be overdue for a Papanicolaou test, compared with younger women. 4. Women who thought that the test is only needed at intervals of 3 years or more were over six times more likely to be overdue than women who believed the interval to be 2 years or less. 5. Women who perceived themselves as being too embarrassed were nearly seven times more likely to be overdue than women who claimed no embarrassment. 6. Women who saw themselves as being too busy to have the test were three times more likely to be overdue than women who did not see themselves this way. 7. Women with a spouse were less likely to be overdue than other women. 8. Women who knew to start having Papanicolaou tests when they were sexually active were less likely to be overdue than women who did not know this. CONCLUSION: Many of these barriers can be overcome by the clinician in routine practice.
Adult↗
Health promotion beliefs and practices of fourth-year medical students.
Little is known about medical student beliefs about health promotion issues or about their prevention practices with patients. We administered a questionnaire about health promotion beliefs and practices to fourth-year medical students in a required course, "Preventive Medicine in Clinical Practice," at the University of Maryland School of Medicine. During a three-year period we surveyed 343 students. A majority of students believed that most of 23 health behaviors were of some importance to health promotion, and their responses were similar to those of practicing physicians in prior studies. Most students reported that they assessed preventive practices in their patients but did not feel well prepared to counsel patients about health issues. Students reported they were currently unsuccessful in modifying patient health behaviors and expressed limited optimism about future success in helping patients change health promotion behaviors with further training and support. There were no differences between students entering primary care specialties and other students. Information about medical student health promotion and disease prevention beliefs and practices can be applied in curriculum development.
Curriculum↗
Preventive practices by physicians: behavioral determinants and potential interventions.
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Education, Medical, Continuing↗
Measuring dietary patterns in surveys.
This paper reviews the strengths, weaknesses, and limits to interpretation of dietary intake methods used in national nutrition surveys, including per capita consumption of food and nutrients and the 24-hour recall. These dietary assessment methods make up but one of five categories of nutritional assessment techniques. The other four are body measurements, hematological and biochemical tests, medical examination for the presence of clinical signs of deficiency or toxicity, and medical history. No one method alone is sufficient for assessing the nutritional status of individuals or groups. In the hypothesis-generating phases of research on diet and cardiovascular diseases and diet and cancer, correlations of per capita availability of food and nutrients with mortality from these diseases in several countries proved useful. However, the approach is limited to the extent that similar data are available from several other countries and that the association observed is true and not spurious. The 24-hour recall method has proved to provide accurate and reproducible estimates of the mean intakes of population groups, but multiple-day information is necessary for characterizing an individual's usual nutrient intake. Food frequency questionnaires are useful when one is interested in food rather than nutrient consumption of individuals or groups. The 24-hour recall, food diary, and food frequency methods can be used to develop a descriptive epidemiology of food intake within U.S. population groups with specified fitness and activity characteristics or to monitor the prevalence of dietary risk factors within the population. They are limited to the extent that food composition data are available. When selecting a dietary assessment method to be used in a nutrition survey, three points must be kept in mind: Practicality in terms of respondent burden and analysis resources, reliability, and validity.
Diet↗
Some factors affecting acceptance of family planning in Manus.
This paper examines selected factors affecting the acceptance and delivery of modern family planning from health centres in Manus. A survey was carried out of mothers attending Maternal and Child Health clinics and a written questionnaire was given to health workers. The survey of mothers demonstrated the importance of the husband's approval for contraceptive practice and showed that knowledge about traditional methods of family planning is widespread. The health workers' questionnaire demonstrated a high level of dissatisfaction with the current family planning program delivered by health clinics: 45% found the program ineffective; 68% wrote that health workers' attitudes discouraged mothers from attending for family planning. The perceived and actual benefits and costs of children and the role of men should be assessed locally before planning future family planning programs. Widespread retraining and motivating of health workers is essential if improved coverage is to be achieved through health services. The efficacy of alternative methods of delivery of family planning such as local community-based and social marketing programs should also be investigated.
Age Factors↗
Knowledge of and attitudes towards sexually transmitted diseases among secondary school students in Fako District Cameroon.
This study examines the level of knowledge, attitude and practice in matters concerning sexually transmitted diseases (STDs) among secondary school students in Fako-District, Cameroon. A substantial proportion of the respondents are sexually active and doing so with multiple sexual partners. Although 70% of respondents claimed they knew about STDs, not more than 16.1% of them could name any one common STD and give its signs or symptoms. Knowledge about prevention and complications of STDs was equally poor. The school teacher was the principal source of information followed by magazines/books. Among the respondents who had had an STD, only 8% had consulted in an STD clinic, 13.6 and 15.4% respectively to a Doctor and in Hospital, 43% received no treatment and another 19% had gone to chemist shops. The implication of these results together with the needs of the students are discussed.
Adolescent↗
Knowledge of and attitudes towards family planning and early detection of breast and cervical cancer in two female populations in Greece.
This paper presents the results of surveys of contraceptive use, the frequency of induced abortions, the use of the Papanicolaou smear test and knowledge about the practice of breast self-examination in two female populations, characterized by a different socioeconomic level. There exist similar trends, as well as some remarkable differences between the two populations. Both of these populations included a high proportion of women who had undergone at least one abortion. Withdrawal and condom use were the most common contraceptive methods. About one third of women of the two populations had had a smear Pap-test carried out during the last year. 53.8% of the women in the population I and a 44.8% of the population II stated that they know how to practice breast self-examination.
Abortion, Induced↗
Planning and implementing health promotion in the workplace: a case study of the Du Pont Company experience.
This case study describes the needs assessment, design, implementation, and preliminary evaluation of a comprehensive workplace health promotion program. The company had 110,000 U.S. employees at more than 100 locations engaged in a variety of manufacturing, research, sales, and support occupations in 1980. The PRECEDE framework was used to focus program planning and evaluation on key areas of health knowledge, attitudes, and behavior. The needs assessment included use of company morbidity and mortality data, a survey of medical and human resources staff, and a survey of employees, spouses, and pensioners. An in-house network of lay committees, site medical personnel, and corporate health education, nutrition and fitness specialists was used to staff critical program functions. Interventions included: public health approaches to program kick-off and health risk assessment; group and self-directed lifestyle change activities; recognition and awards; and workplace climate changes such as smoking policies that favor nonsmokers. One pilot location experienced a 47.5% decline in hourly employee absenteeism over six years versus a 12.5% decline in the total Du Pont hourly workforce. A number of lessons are discussed on how to improve the planning, implementation, institutionalization, and evaluation of health promotion programs in large industrial companies. Four areas where future research and practice should be focused include: reaching spouses, sales personnel, shiftworkers, and employees at small sites; balancing what is popular with what reduces risks over the long-term; documenting program impacts when research resources are scarce; and integrating health promotion programs with workplace medical, safety, employee assistance and benefits programs.
Health Knowledge, Attitudes, Practice↗
Knowledge and understanding of AIDS among health-care workers in Jamaica.
Six hundred and fifty questionnaires were sent to Health-care Workers (HCW) in four hospitals to assess the knowledge and understanding on HIV transmission and isolation precautions to be instituted for control and also to ascertain whether any differences in knowledge existed between HCW of teaching and nonteaching hospitals. Five hundred and nine questionnaires were returned, a response rate of 79%. Questions on HIV transmission via blood transfusion and sexual intercourse and proper disposal of sharp instruments received the highest scores (85-100), embracing all groups of teaching and non-teaching hospitals. The greatest area of misconception and misunderstanding was reflected in responses obtained on isolation precautions (less than 30) for both teaching and non-teaching hospitals. Our study emphasizes an urgent need for a comprehensive, continuous education of HCW on prevention and control of HIV infections in Jamaica.
Acquired Immunodeficiency Syndrome↗
Exploring determinants of vaccine hesitancy among healthcare professionals: a systematic literature review.
INTRODUCTION: This systematic review aims to assess determinants of vaccine hesitancy (VH) among healthcare professionals, to identify knowledge gaps and inform targeted training programs. RESEARCH DESIGN AND METHODS: A systematic search of PubMed and Scopus was conducted in February 2024. PRISMA criteria were applied, and methodological quality was assessed using a cross-sectional study evaluation tool. Studies addressing HCWs' VH determinants, including knowledge, attitudes, communication, and organizational factors, were included. RESULTS: Out of 1394 records, 221 articles were included. Reported prevalence of VH among HCWs varied across studies, reflecting differences in professional roles, settings, and vaccines studied. Key determinants included gaps in knowledge, personal beliefs, organizational barriers, and communication skills. The review highlights the importance of evidence-based information, continuing education, and effective communication in addressing VH among HCWs. CONCLUSIONS: Educational and organizational interventions are essential to improve HCWs' knowledge, attitudes, and practices regarding vaccination. Strengthening vaccine education, fostering effective communication, and addressing organizational challenges can reduce hesitancy and support HCWs in promoting vaccination among patients. Future initiatives should consider the diversity of educational settings, professional roles, and training requirements across healthcare systems.
Humans↗