PubMed Health⌕ Search

SEARCH · PubMed Health

Results for “Postal Service”

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.

At least 757 records · Page 42Linked to original sources
PubMed1993

Reducing financial barriers enhances the return rate of stool Hemoccult packets.

Patient compliance in returning fecal-hemoccult card packets has been studied in recent years but no specific interventions have been shown consistently to improve the return rate. It was wondered whether removing a small financial barrier for indigent patients would positively affect compliance. Therefore, the effect of prepaid postage on the rate of return was studied. Pre-prepared packets containing hemoccult cards with return envelopes were distributed in a randomized fashion to indigent and private insurance patients in outpatient clinics. On half of the return envelopes return postage was applied. The main outcome measure was the rate of return of stamped and unstamped packets stratified between indigent and private insurance patients. The overall rates of return were 117 of 159 (74%) for the stamped packets and 102 of 166 (61%) for unstamped packets (p < 0.02). After stratification, in the indigent patients (n = 177), 73 of 95 (77%) stamped packets were returned compared to 46 of 82 (56%) unstamped packets (p < 0.006). In the private insurance patients (N = 148), 44 of 64 stamped packets (69%) and 52 of 84 unstamped packets (62%) were returned (p > 0.10). Removing even small financial barriers (eg, providing a postage stamp) can enhance compliance for indigent patients.

Aged↗
PubMed1993

Comparison of early and late respondents to a postal health survey questionnaire.

We mailed a health survey to the 18,408 residents of a California retirement community and compared the 11,550 respondents on a number of characteristics by time of response. Early respondents were more likely to be the "worried well," that is, healthy individuals who see their doctor regularly, receive disease detection screening, and follow healthful life-style practices. Late respondents tended to answer questions regarding their mental function and emotional status more negatively. Early and late respondents did not differ in the rates of death or hospitalization during the first 5 years of the study; nonrespondents had a higher incidence of hospitalization than respondents in year 1 and higher death rates in the first 3 years, but not thereafter.

Aged↗
PubMed1991

Enhancing subject recruitment for nursing research.

Nursing research most often requires human subjects. Consequently, an essential component in planning and conducting research entails recruitment of subjects who knowledgeably consent to participate. A well-established theoretical base exists regarding sampling techniques and procedures for research methods. The operationalization of the theory into practical terms may be of interest to the clinical nurse specialist (CNS) who frequently assumes a leadership role to both conduct nursing research in practice settings and to advise other nurses interested in conducting research. The recruitment efforts in four different nursing studies were compared and contrasted in an effort to determine effective and efficient approaches to this issue. Sample populations included nurse practitioners, patients, nurse aides, and nurse educators. Methods of recruitment included direct contact, mail, and telephone contact. While the settings, purposes, and designs of the studies varied, some common elements regarding subject recruitment were suggested. The recruitment methods have been described, along with the implication in terms of practical application for conduct of nursing research by CNSs.

Communication↗
PubMed1996

The BRMD thyroid-neck phantom: design and construction.

The Human Monitoring Laboratory, which acts as the Canadian National Calibration Reference Center for In Vivo monitoring, has constructed a robust neck-thyroid phantom for use in the Canadian Thyroid Intercomparison Program. The phantom is rugged and capable of being distributed through the mail with no expectation of a leak of radioactive materials; it is anthropomorphic; the thyroid inserts simulate 125I and 131I; the phantom can be used to mimic different layers of adipose tissue over the thyroid insert; and it is cost effective. This paper describes the design criteria and the manufacturing process; the performance characteristics have been described in an earlier publication.

Canada↗
PubMed2001

Health status assessments using the Veterans SF-12 and SF-36: methods for evaluating otucomes in the Veterans Health Administration.

This article describes a study in which the administration of two health surveys, the Veterans SF-36 and SF-12, by telephone and mail-out was used to assess the differences in the health surveys' costs and scores by mode of administration and determine which mode was cost-efficient. The study employed a crossover design: after 12 unsuccessful attempts to contact patients by telephone, the patients were administered the survey by mail, and after 2 unsuccessful mail-outs, up to three attempts were made to interview the patients by telephone. The analysis of the data showed that mail administration, with or without crossover to telephone, was more cost-efficient than telephone administration, having both lower average total and variable costs per completed questionnaire. Overall, telephone administration was about 30% more expensive that mail administration, primarily due to the cost of labor. The marginal cost of an additional completed Veterans SF-12 or Veterans SF-36 was also substantially lower for mail administration. Mail administration without crossover to telephone administration was the most cost-efficient strategy for administering both the Veterans SF-12 and SF-36. The results of this study strongly suggest the need to consider the mode of administration if questionnaires like the Veterans SF-12 or SF-36 are to be used to assess health outcomes within and across large health care systems.

Costs and Cost Analysis↗
PubMed2001

Characteristics of people lost to attrition in psychiatric follow-up studies.

In a large (N = 1,744) study of previously hospitalized psychiatric patients, multiple follow-up attempts were made to contact the ex-patients over a 1-year period after their discharges. When contacted they were asked to provide information about their posthospital adjustment; 59.5% of the sample was reached at least once and usable data obtained either in a telephone interview or from a mailed survey form. The contacted and noncontacted people represented very different subpopulations, both demographically and in terms of typical psychiatric descriptors. Those who were of lower socioeconomic status, male, unmarried, racial minorities, and those with records of substance abuse or assaultiveness, and who were generally more severely impaired during the baseline hospitalization were underrepresented in the contacted group. Possible reasons for these sample biases, the implications for hospitals conducting outcome assessments (i.e., for research and program evaluation purposes), and strategies for dealing with this kind of methodological problem are discussed.

Adolescent↗
PubMed1976

Mailed versus telephoned appointment reminders to reduce broken appointments in a hospital outpatient department.

This study compared mail, telephone, and control strategies to reduce the rate of broken appointments in a pediatric outpatient department. Based on 1,039 randomly assigned appointments, the mail strategy had a broken appointment rate of 29.1 per cent, the telephone strategy of 25.3 per cent, and the control of 44.2 per cent. Both strategies were significantly effective, but the difference between them was not significant. Patients without telephones had a higher rate of broken appointments than patients with telephones. Mailed reminders are the more cost-effective intervention.

Appointments and Schedules↗
PubMed1982

Do postcard reminders improve influenza compliance? A prospective trial of different postcard "cues".

A randomized trial of various postcard reminder "cues" was performed to improve understanding of health-related behavior and to find better strategies for improving influenza vaccination compliance. Data were gathered on 283 high-risk patients (92 per cent response rate) who received: 1) a "neutral" cue simply announcing the availability of vaccine; 2) a "Health-Belief-Model" card written to take advantage of the association between certain health beliefs and vaccination behavior; 3) a "personal" card signed by the patient's physician; or 4) no postcard. The highest rate of vaccination occurred among recipients of the Health-Belief-Model postcard (51.5 per cent vs. 20.2 per cent for control, p less than 0.001). Linear logistic regression analysis found that age, prior vaccination history and experimental group had a significant effect on likelihood of being vaccinated. After adjusting for age and prior vaccination experience, the vaccination rate was found to be significantly higher for persons receiving the Health-Belief-Model postcard compared with persons receiving no postcard or a neutral postcard. We conclude that reminder postcards emphasizing elements of the health belief model may help increase vaccination rates.

Aged↗
PubMed1989

A randomized trial of computerized reminders for blood pressure screening in primary care.

In a randomized, controlled trial (N = 8,298) the authors compared three ways of encouraging patients in a large family practice to obtain a blood pressure check. Working from computerized medical records at a teaching family-medicine center, the study included patients aged 18 years and over who had not had a blood pressure measurement during the previous year. In a normal-care control group, 21.1% of those due for a blood pressure reading obtained one during the trial year. In one intervention group, a computer-generated message reminded the doctor to check the blood pressure of patients who happened to visit the center for an appointment; 30.7% of patients allocated to this group were checked. In the second group, the nurse contacted patients by telephone and encouraged 24.1% of those who were due for a check to obtain one. Sending a letter to patients in the third group yielded a 35.7% compliance rate. Considering the costs of the three interventions, the physician reminder was the most cost effective, followed by the letter reminder. Although statistically significant, the impact of the reminders was modest. A better approach might involve a combination of routine reminders to the physician, followed by letters to noncompliant patients.

Adolescent↗
PubMed1991

Mail versus telephone surveys on mammography utilization among women 50-75 years old.

Surveys are needed to monitor trends in mammography use and to evaluate intervention programs aimed at increasing breast cancer screening. In a community-based intervention project in Long Island (New York), estimated response rates were similar in separate random surveys of women 50-75 years old by mail and telephone. Respondents by mail (n = 2,368) and telephone (n = 1,011) were similar in distributions of age, marital status, and educational level, and mail respondents did not have higher income levels than telephone respondents. Reported utilization of breast cancer screening tests was similar by survey mode. A statistically significant positive association between mammography utilization and income level was evident in both mail and telephone surveys. These findings should promote the consideration of mail surveys in other studies of the utilization of breast cancer screening tests by various health care organizations.

Aged↗
PubMed1994

Comparisons of the costs and quality of norms for the SF-36 health survey collected by mail versus telephone interview: results from a national survey.

Many health status surveys have been designed for mail, telephone, or in-person administration. However, with rare exception, investigators have not studied the effect the survey mode of administration has on the way respondents assess their health and other important parameters (such as response rates, nonresponse bias, and data quality), which can affect the generalizability of results. Using a national sampling frame of noninstitutionalized adults from the General Social Survey, we randomly assigned adults to a mail survey (80%) or a computer-assisted telephone survey (20%). The surveys were designed to provide national norms for the SF-36 Health Survey. Total data collection costs per case for the telephone survey ($47.86) were 77% higher than that for the mail survey ($27.07). A significantly higher response rate was achieved among respondents randomly assigned to the mail (79.2%) than telephone survey (68.9%). Nonresponse bias was evident in both modes but, with the exception of age, was not differential between modes. The rate of missing responses was higher for mail than telephone respondents (1.59 vs. 0.49 missing items). Health ratings based on the SF-36 scales were less favorable, and reports of chronic conditions were more frequent, for mail than telephone respondents. Results are discussed in light of the trade-offs involved in choosing a survey methodology for health status assessment applications. Norms for mail and telephone versions of the SF-36 survey are provided for use in interpreting individual and group scores.

Adult↗
PubMed2001

Effects of different monetary incentives on the return rate of a national mail survey of physicians.

BACKGROUND: Mail surveys of physicians have been characterized by lower response rates than general population surveys, raising concerns about nonresponse bias. Although monetary incentives have routinely been used to improve survey response among physicians, questions remain regarding how much of an incentive is most cost-effective. The present study seeks to further examine the effects of incentive size on response rates to a national mail survey of physicians. METHODS: This study used a random sample of 873 physicians practicing in the United States; the response rate was 65% (n = 563). Respondents were randomly assigned to receive a $5, $10, or $20 cash incentive in the initial mailing. Except for the magnitude of the incentive, the procedures for each condition were identical, with each respondent receiving up to 3 follow-up mailings and 2 telephone calls. RESULTS: Overall response rates ranged from 60.3% for the $5 incentive category to 68.0% for the $10 incentive category. Differences in overall response rates across the incentive categories, however, were not significant. Higher levels of incentives also did not significantly reduce the number of mail and/or telephone interventions required to reach the target response rate of 60.0%. As expected, aggregate costs (excluding labor) were lowest for the $5 incentive group. CONCLUSIONS: Our findings suggest that changes in the magnitude of incentive do not automatically result in increases in survey response among physicians. Possible reasons for this lack of effect as well as alternatives to monetary incentives are addressed.

Bias↗
PubMed2002

Randomized trial of 5 dollars versus 10 dollars monetary incentives, envelope size, and candy to increase physician response rates to mailed questionnaires.

BACKGROUND: The validity of the results of mailed surveys is often threatened by nonresponse bias, which is made more likely when response rates are low. However, the effectiveness and cost-effectiveness of several strategies to increase response rates are uncertain. OBJECTIVES: To assess three strategies to increase response rates to mailed physician surveys: including a 10 dollars versus a 5 dollars cash incentive in the initial mailing, including a mint candy or not, and using a large versus small outgoing envelope. RESEARCH DESIGN AND SUBJECTS: Using a 2 x 2 x 2 factorial design, a randomized trial of these strategies was conducted in a survey of 1200 physicians randomly selected from the American Medical Association's Master File. RESULTS: Including a 10 dollars incentive yielded a significantly higher response rate (60.5% vs. 52.8%) (P = 0.009). The mailing and incentive costs per completed response were 12.24 dollars (95% CI, 11.75 dollars, 13.64 dollars) in the 5 dollars group and 18.48 dollars (95% CI, 17.77 dollars, 20.69 dollars) in the 10 dollars group. Each additional response obtained in the 10 dollars group came at an incremental cost of 61.26 dollars (95% CI, 36.98 dollars, 200.80 dollars). Neither inclusion of a mint nor use of a large envelope influenced the response rate. CONCLUSIONS: Investigators may increase response rates by including more money in the initial questionnaire packet, but there may be diminishing returns to serial increments in incentives greater than 5 dollars. Including smaller incentives in more questionnaires may maximize total responses.

Candy↗
PubMed2005

Quantitative and qualitative differences between handout and mailed patient satisfaction surveys.

BACKGROUND: Patient satisfaction surveys are widely used to measure patients' opinions of the quality of the health care they have received. There are a variety of methods for distributing patient satisfaction surveys. Different distribution methods may yield significantly different satisfaction ratings. OBJECTIVE: We sought to compare survey ratings obtained via 2 distribution methods: handout versus mailed. DESIGN: Patients were randomized to receive either a handout survey or a mailed survey. SUBJECTS: Patients who had an appointment with a family practice provider in one of the regional outpatient centers of a large medical clinic during a 3-week period. MEASURES: An 11-item visit-specific patient satisfaction survey was used to survey patient satisfaction. RESULTS: Handout surveys yielded higher satisfaction scores than mailed surveys. The response rate was higher with handout surveys than with mailed surveys. However, handout surveys were returned with more skipped questions, a lower variation in ratings, and fewer written comments than the mailed surveys. CONCLUSIONS: Both quantitative and qualitative differences between the 2 distribution methods were revealed. Attempts to compare data obtained from the 2 different distribution methods need to be approached with caution.

Adolescent↗