SEARCH · PubMed Health

Results for “Educational Status”

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 973 records · Page 54Linked to original sources

PubMed1997

Practitioner provision of preventive care in general practice consultations: association with patient educational and occupational status.

Socio-economically disadvantaged individuals experience significantly greater mortality and morbidity relative to advantaged individuals. General practitioners have been suggested to occupy a position which has the capacity to ameliorate the health consequences of socio-economic disadvantage. Community studies of preventive care status suggest, however, that socio-economically disadvantaged individuals are less likely to receive appropriate preventive care. Using a convenience sample of 22 general practitioners, 579 consultations were audiotaped to determine whether practitioner provision of preventive care was associated with the educational and occupational status of patients. Practitioner provision of preventive care was assessed in terms of: the proportion of consultations in which discussion of at least one preventive care topic occurred; the number of preventive care topics discussed; and the proportion of consultations in which each of six specific preventive care topic were discussed. Practitioners were significantly less likely to discuss at least one preventive care topic with patients of high occupational status. No significant differences were observed between patient groups in the number of preventive care topics, discussed, and in the likelihood of receiving preventive care discussion concerning each of six preventive topics. However, a consistent trend of practitioners being less likely to discuss preventive care topics with patients of high educational or occupational status was evident for all outcome variables. The pattern of results suggests that previously reported findings of socio-economically disadvantaged individuals having a poorer preventive care status may not be attributable to differentials in practitioner's provision of preventive care. Greater attention should therefore be given to identifying and resolving barriers other than practitioner-based barriers to preventive care provision if these differentials in preventive care status are to be reduced.

Adult↗

PubMedDate not supplied

Line sepsis in home parenteral nutrition patients: are there socioeconomic risk factors? A Canadian study.

BACKGROUND: Line sepsis complicates home parenteral nutrition (HPN). This study examined nonmedical risk factors that may contribute to line sepsis and compared 2 HPN programs with different administrative structures (Ontario and British Columbia [BC]) in terms of line sepsis and patient satisfaction. METHODS: A survey was developed to evaluate possible correlation between line sepsis and (1) patients' perceptions of HPN care, (2) family support, (3) community support, and (4) socioeconomic status. Data were analyzed by categorizing into high- and low-risk groups using a cutoff point. A second method analyzed the incidences of line sepsis as a continuous variable. RESULTS: Sixty-eight patients responded to the survey: 33 from Ontario (62%), 35 from BC (44%). Community agency, socioeconomic and educational status were not significant in determining line sepsis. Patients who had (1) medication or blood work done through the catheter, (2) a higher number of dependents, or (3) had a trained family member involved in HPN were in the high-risk category for line sepsis, in addition to patients who were part-time students or receiving social assistance. When comparing the provinces, there was no difference in line sepsis. However, significant differences between the provinces include (1) BC patients rate their level of care lower; (2) Ontario patients rely more on family members for HPN; and (3) Ontario patients have more community support. CONCLUSIONS: Line sepsis may be increased by some nonmedical risk factors. However, when comparing the 2 programs, rates of line sepsis were not influenced by different administrative structures.

British Columbia↗

PubMed2000

Predictive characteristics of users of alternative medicine.

BACKGROUND: The use of alternative medicine has become an important factor in health care delivery. OBJECTIVES: To evaluate patient characteristics, morbidity, functional status, quality of life, satisfaction with care, practice characteristics and health care utilisation in general practice patients using alternative medicine. DESIGN: Cross-sectional survey of GP patients completing a self-administered questionnaire. SETTING: A stratified sample of 36 GP offices in Slovenia. MAIN OUTPUT DATA: Patient's age, sex, educational status, residence, presence of chronic condition, incidence of anxiety or depressive symptoms, incidence of patient-expressed need for emergency care in one year, data on self-care, data on functional status, quality of life, satisfaction with care, incidence of use of out-of-hours services and specialist or hospital services in users versus non-users. RESULTS: 115/1753 patients (6.6%) reported visits to alternative practitioners in 1997. Users of alternative medicine were from midlife age groups, were more likely to have a chronic condition, had a lower perception of life quality and a higher incidence of anxiety and depressive symptoms, and had had more need for emergency treatment. They are heavier users of primary as well as secondary care services; they have changed their GP recently but are not significantly dissatisfied with their current regular GP. CONCLUSIONS: Use of alternative medicine appears to be characteristic of patients with a more active approach to managing their problems. GPs should enquire about the use of alternative medicine by their patients, especially those more likely to seek such help. Raising the question of alternative medicine will improve doctor-patient communication and help to resolve underlying health problems.

Adult↗

PubMedDate not supplied

Health behaviors and other characteristics of women on hormone therapy: results from the Third National Health and Nutrition Examination Survey, 1988-1994.

OBJECTIVE: To examine the prevalence of hormone therapy (HT) use and compare demographic characteristics, health behaviors, and health indicators between current HT users and never-users in a nationally representative sample of postmenopausal women. DESIGN: The Third National Health and Nutrition Examination Survey was a cross-sectional survey conducted between 1988 and 1994, including 3,673 postmenopausal women aged 40 years and older. RESULTS: Overall, 419 (11.4%) of the women reported current HT use, 857 (23.3%) reported past use, and 2,397 (65.3%) were never-users. Non-Hispanic black women and women aged 70 years or older were less likely to be current users. Higher socioeconomic status (education and income) and surgical menopause were associated with increased odds of current hormone use. After adjusting for the above variables, women who reported being inactive during leisure time and obese women (body mass index >or= 30) were less likely to be current users. Women who had 5 to 29 alcoholic drinks per month, perceived their health status as "good," took a multiple vitamin, were aware of having high blood cholesterol, and had a clinic for regular medical care were more likely to be current users. Smoking habits were not significantly different between the groups. CONCLUSIONS: Current HT users have different demographic profiles and may lead healthier lives than never-users. This is important to take into account when studying the effects of HT, and it may partly explain differences in findings regarding the health effects of HT use in observational studies compared with randomized clinical trials.

Adult↗

PubMed2003

The status of medical education in end-of-life care: a national report.

OBJECTIVE: To assess the status of medical education in end-of-life care and identify opportunities for improvement. DESIGN: Telephone survey. SETTING: U.S. academic medical centers. PARTICIPANTS: National probability sample of 1,455 students, 296 residents, and 287 faculty (response rates 62%, 56%, and 41%, respectively) affiliated with a random sample of 62 accredited U.S. medical schools. MEASUREMENTS AND MAIN RESULTS: Measurements assessed attitudes, quantity and quality of education, preparation to provide or teach care, and perceived value of care for dying patients. Ninety percent or more of respondents held positive views about physicians' responsibility and ability to help dying patients. However, fewer than 18% of students and residents received formal end-of-life care education, 39% of students reported being unprepared to address patients' fears, and nearly half felt unprepared to manage their feelings about patients' deaths or help bereaved families. More than 40% of residents felt unprepared to teach end-of-life care. More than 40% of respondents reported that dying patients were not considered good teaching cases, and that meeting psychosocial needs of dying patients was not considered a core competency. Forty-nine percent of students had told patients about the existence of a life-threatening illness, but only half received feedback from residents or attendings; nearly all residents had talked with patients about wishes for end-of-life care, and 33% received no feedback. CONCLUSIONS: Students and residents in the United States feel unprepared to provide, and faculty and residents unprepared to teach, many key components of good care for the dying. Current educational practices and institutional culture in U.S. medical schools do not support adequate end-of-life care, and attention to both curricular and cultural change are needed to improve end-of-life care education.

Attitude of Health Personnel↗

PubMedDate not supplied

Do sociodemographic and disease-related variables influence benefit-finding in cancer patients?

This study examined patients' perceptions that having cancer led to positive life changes, or benefit-finding (BF), e.g. improved relationships, enhanced appreciation of life, increased resilience and self-reliance. We investigated the relations between BF, sociodemographic (e.g. gender, age, marital status, education, income) and disease-related variables (e.g. severity of disease or cancer stage, time since diagnosis). The sample was comprised of 83 men and women with various types of cancer, and all 4 stages of disease were represented. Participants were most likely to be Caucasian (90%), married (66%) and well-educated (68% partial college/specialized training). Of the demographic variables investigated, younger age was associated with greater BF scores. As hypothesized, BF also differed by stage of disease in a curvilinear fashion. Individuals with stage II disease had significantly higher BF scores than those with Stage IV or Stage I cancer. Time since diagnosis and treatment status (i.e. currently in treatment, completed treatment, no treatment) were not related to BF. Findings suggest that stage of disease is an important factor to consider when investigating positive perceptions of disease in individuals with cancer.

Adaptation, Psychological↗

PubMed1997

Cigarette smoking and severe uncontrolled hypertension in inner-city African Americans.

PURPOSE: Although over the past 2 decades great strides have been made in increasing the awareness, detection, and treatment of hypertension (HTN), actual control of blood pressure is far from optimal. We hypothesized that current cigarette smoking, by acting as a marker for poor health related behavioral patterns, would be significantly associated with uncontrolled blood pressure (BP). PATIENTS AND METHODS: Over a 3-month period in 1994, all patients who presented to a public hospital medical walk-in clinic were screened, and had their BP measured if they had been prescribed BP medication within 1 year and were aware of their diagnosis of HTN. Patients were defined as controlled hypertensives if both systolic BP and diastolic BP were < or = 140/90 mm Hg. Severe uncontrolled hypertensives were those with either systolic BP > or = 180 mm Hg or diastolic BP was > or = 110 mm Hg. RESULTS: Of the 221 patients meeting all inclusion criteria (1 refusal), 86 had uncontrolled HTN (mean BP = 192/106 mm Hg), 130 were controlled (mean BP = 130/80 mm Hg), and 5 were not African American. Severe uncontrolled hypertensives, when compared with controlled hypertensives, were significantly more likely to be current (versus former) smokers (odds ratio [OR] = 4.17; 95% confidence interval [CI]: 1.8 to 9.5), and be less compliant with medications (OR = 2.33; 95% CI: 1.3 to 4.1). Age, gender, alcohol use, marital status, education, and comorbidity were not associated with HTN control. In an adjusted logistic regression model, both current and never-smokers when compared with former smokers were significantly more likely to have uncontrolled HTN in compliant patients (OR = 14.4; 95% CI: 3.3 to 63.3 and OR = 5.7; 95% CI: 1.5 to 21.7, respectively). In noncompliant patients, smoking status was not associated with uncontrolled HTN. CONCLUSION: In disadvantaged African-American patients who report good medication compliance, former smoking status is strongly associated with HTN control. Physicians may need to be especially vigilant of BP control in patients who smoke.

Adult↗

PubMed2002

A multilevel analysis of the relationship between institutional and individual racial discrimination and health status.

OBJECTIVES: This study examined whether individual (self-perceived) and institutional (segregation and redlining) racial discrimination was associated with poor health status among members of an ethnic group. METHODS: Adult respondents (n = 1503) in the cross-sectional Chinese American Psychiatric Epidemiologic Study were geocoded to the 1990 census and the 1995 Home Mortgage Disclosure Act database. Hierarchical linear modeling assessed the relationship between discrimination and scores on the Medical Outcomes Study Short-Form 36 and revised Symptom Checklist 90 health status measures. RESULTS: Individual and institutional measures of racial discrimination were associated with health status after control for acculturation, sex, age, social support, income, health insurance, employment status, education, neighborhood poverty, and housing value. CONCLUSIONS: The data support the hypothesis that discrimination at multiple levels influences the health of minority group members.

Acculturation↗

PubMedDate not supplied

The status of community water fluoridation in the United States.

Community water fluoridation has served the American public extremely well as the cornerstone of dental caries prevention activities for 45 years. The dental and general health benefits associated with the ingestion of water-borne fluorides have been well known by researchers for an even longer period. Continued research has repeatedly confirmed the safety, effectiveness, and efficiency of community water fluoridation in preventing dental caries for Americans regardless of age, race, ethnicity, religion, educational status, or socioeconomic level. Despite the obvious benefits associated with this proven public health measure, slow progress has been made toward achieving the 1990 national fluoridation objectives as listed in "Promoting Health/Preventing Disease: Objectives for the Nation." This paper documents the lagging pace of community fluoridation by reviewing and analyzing data reported in "Fluoridation Census, 1985," a document published in late 1988 by the Public Health Service's Centers for Disease Control. Failure to attain the 1990 objectives is attributable to a combination of circumstances, including their low priority within many local, State, and Federal health agencies, inadequate funding at all levels of government, lack of a coordinated and focused national fluoridation effort, failure of most States to require fluoridation, lack of Federal legislation mandating fluoridation, general apathy of most health professional organizations toward fluoridation, misconceptions by the public about effectiveness and safety and, finally, unrelenting opposition by a highly vocal minority of the lay public. In addition, fluoridation successes have not been consistent among States, with wide variation in accomplishments documented in the reported data.While fluoridation still is one of the most cost effective public health measures available to local,State, and Federal public health agencies, it remains significantly underused nearly a half century after its discovery. Without a major increase in emphasis at the highest policy levels within local, State, and Federal health agencies, fluoridation objectives currently proposed for inclusion in the year 2000 national health objectives are not likely to be achieved. More private sector involvement and better coordination of efforts among all levels of government will be necessary to make significant improvements in progress toward universal fluoridation of all public water supplies in the United States.

Fluoridation↗

PubMed2006

Gender differences in medically serious suicide attempts: a study from south India.

Studying gender differences in suicidal behaviour is important in developing specific need-based service provisions. We aimed to identify gender-specific characteristics associated with attempted suicide in a general hospital sample in south India. Two hundred and three patients admitted to medical wards following suicide attempts were assessed using a detailed clinical interview, measures of suicide intent (Suicide Intent Scale), lethality (Risk Rescue Rating), depression (Montgomery-Asberg Depression Rating Scale) and recent stress (Presumptive Stressful Life Events Scale). The majority of men attempting suicide were single. Men were more likely to use organophosphate poisons in their attempt to kill themselves and had higher rates of mental illness than women. As compared with men, women were more likely to come from rural areas, had a lower educational status, and had lower rates of employment outside the home. In women, the most common method of suicide attempt was by using plant poisons. Suicide attempt by self-immolation was significantly higher among women. Men had higher suicidal intent than women, although lethality, depression and stress were comparable between the genders. Rural women were more disadvantaged in education; however, in urban areas, men had higher psychiatric morbidity. Our results emphasise the need for a gender-specific approach among people who have attempted suicide.

Adolescent↗

PubMed1996

Life-style survey of patients with oral lichenoid reactions.

The occurrence of different life-style patterns, including marital status, educational level, nutrition, tobacco and alcohol use, and frequency of physical activity, in patients with oral lichenoid reactions (OLR) in total or partial contact with amalgam fillings was examined. When compared with an age- and sex-matched control group, the daily intake of carbohydrates, fibers, and iron was statistically significantly higher in the OLR patients. Regarding marital status, there was a statistically significant difference between the OLR patients and the control subjects, the former group containing more people who were divorced or whose spouse had died. The frequency of physical activity was also statistically significantly higher in the OLR patients than in the control group. Hypothetical mechanisms that may lie behind the results obtained are discussed.

Adult↗

PubMed2002

[Assessment of the determinants of accidents and injuries among elderly people].

According to the GUS data in Poland every tenth person over the 60 years were physically handicapped due to accidents and injuries (1996). The aim of the present study was to assess the causes and risk factors of accidents in the elderly and types of action taken. Health status was estimated on the basis of information about diseases, complaints, stage of disability. Study covered 1910 subjects from Poland. In the investigated group 35% subjects had an accident in the previous 10 years. Accidents happened most frequently out of home (64%). 56% of victims of accidents needed medical care (29% were admitted to hospital). Place of inhabitancy, educational status, marital status, BMI had no influence on the risk of accidents. Only living alone (without family) was a significant risk factor. The risk of accidents increased proportionally to the age in the study group (1% per year). The lowest rate of accidents was observed in the group of moderate physical activity.

Accident Prevention↗

PubMedDate not supplied

Modeling the effects of health status and the educational infrastructure on the cognitive development of Tanzanian schoolchildren.

This paper models the proximate determinants of school attendance and scores on cognitive and educational achievement tests and on school examinations of over 600 schoolchildren from the Control group of a randomized trial in Tanzania, where children in the Intervention group heavily infected with hookworm and schistosomiasis received treatment. The modeling approach used a random effects framework and incorporated the inter-relationships between school attendance and performance on various tests, controlling for children's health status, socioeconomic variables, grade level, and the educational infrastructure. The empirical results showed the importance of variables such as children's height and hemoglobin concentration for the scores, especially on educational achievement tests that are easy to implement in developing countries. Also, teacher experience and work assignments were significant predictors of the scores on educational achievement tests, and there was some evidence of multiplicative effects of children's heights and work assignments on the test scores. Lastly, some comparisons were made for changes in test scores of treated children in the Intervention group with the untreated children in the Control group.

Absenteeism↗

PubMed1996

Evaluation of various aspects of paediatric malignancies in Turkey and Turkey's status in health statistics.

Geographic differences in childhood cancer occurrence have been of great interest and have contributed to the current notion that most cancer cases are caused by environmental and cultural factors. The toxins, some of which are encountered by the general population, such as commonly used drugs, household products, solvents, pesticides, and insecticides, have been implicated as carcinogens and are factors that may add to the childhood cancer incidence in Turkey. Lack of information relevant to the disease, low family income, low educational status of parents, cessation of therapy, uncertainty about the child's future, fear for the child's survival, anxiety over the treatment and its effect as well as some cultural and traditional factors, are the basic individual characteristics of the population that interfere with the successful treatment of children with cancer in Turkey. Because the child with cancer is under enormous physical and emotional stress, appropriate psychosocial resources for the patient and family are important for optimal therapy. Community resources, healthcare services, income maintenance, medical insurance, financial assistance for treatment expenditures for the families who have children with cancer are extremely limited. These parameters are the unanswered needs which cancer patients and families face in our society. Despite impressive improvements, major problems remain to be solved.

Carcinogens↗

PubMed1981

Mode of payment as a predictor of health status, use of health services and preventive health behavior: a report from the Los Angeles Health Survey.

Several issues relevant to Health Maintenance Organizations (HMOs) were examined in this article using data collected from the Los Angeles Health Survey. No support was found for the hypothesis that HMOs disproportionately attract people in poorer health. In fact, HMO members actually reported lower rates of acute or occasional illness and disability than fee-for-service subscribers (FFS). HMO members also reported lower total family incomes and educational status than FFS subscribers and they were less likely to report having a regular doctor. Few differences were found between the two groups in reports of using health services and practicing preventive health behavior. However, HMO members were more likely to report a recent physical examination--but only after taking into account the fact that they were less likely to have a regular doctor. It has been shown that these findings are consistent with recent evidence, and serve to amplify serveral key findings reported in other studies.

Adolescent↗

PubMed2005

Correlation of exercise capacity with high-sensitive C-reactive protein in patients with stable coronary artery disease.

BACKGROUND: There is growing evidence for the association between physical activity and systemic inflammatory markers in healthy individuals and populations with a low prevalence of coronary artery disease (CAD). However, the association between fitness and CRP in patients with stable CAD treated with medications known to influence the inflammatory response, such as statins and aspirin, is not well known. METHODS: We prospectively enrolled 209 patients with angiographically documented CAD (161 men; age 63 +/- 10 years; 1-/2-/3-vessel disease in 42%, 34%, and 24% of patients, respectively; left ventricular ejection fraction 60% +/- 13%). Fitness level was assessed by maximal exercise testing. CRP was measured in all patients using high-sensitivity immunoassay. RESULTS: Fitness level was inversely correlated with natural log-transformed CRP level (r = -0.28, P < .001). After multivariate linear regression adjustment for age, sex, body mass index, waist circumference, smoking status, educational level, diabetes, hypertension, modality of exercise testing, exercise-induced ischemia, extent of CAD, medication use, leukocyte count, hemoglobin, renal function, glucose level, and cholesterol level, exercise capacity remained inversely correlated with CRP level (beta = -.226, P = .001). Other covariates associated with CRP remaining in the final model were leukocyte count (beta = .348), pack-years of smoking (beta = .185), diabetes status (beta = -.201), hemoglobin concentration (beta = -.187), and high-density lipoprotein cholesterol level (beta = -.149). CONCLUSIONS: These results indicate that exercise capacity is inversely correlated with CRP level in patients with known stable CAD irrespective of extent of CAD and standard medication for secondary prevention.

Aged↗

PubMedDate not supplied

Prenatal care utilization: its measurement and relationship to pregnancy outcome.

This study proposes a redesigned measure of prenatal care utilization based on modifications made to a preexisting index of the adequacy of such care. Six prenatal care utilization groups were delineated: intensive, adequate, intermediate, inadequate, no-care, and missing/unknown. Using 430,349 cases from South Carolina and North Carolina vital records from 1978 to 1982 (live birth-infant death cohort files for white resident mothers), this proposed prenatal care utilization measure was examined by maternal sociomedical risk characteristics (age-parity, marital status, education, complications of pregnancy, and previous pregnancy terminations) and by pregnancy outcomes (birth weight, gestational age, and birth weight- and gestational age-specific neonatal mortality). The intensive prenatal care group had relatively more pregnancy complications but also the most preferred pregnancy outcomes. Appreciable differences in birth weight and gestational age distributions were observed among the prenatal care categories within maternal risk status groups. Increased utilization of prenatal care was associated with higher mean birth weight and gestational age. However, after controlling for maternal risk status, an appreciable variation in birth weight- and gestational age-specific neonatal mortality was not apparent across prenatal care groups.

Adolescent↗

PubMed1996

1994 athletic trainer employment and salary characteristics.

OBJECTIVE: THE PURPOSE OF THIS STUDY WAS TO DETERMINE: 1) demographics and professional credentials of recently hired athletic trainers, 2) the association between these characteristics and the high school, clinical, and collegiate setting, and 3) which of these factors best predicted salary. DESIGN AND SETTING: A survey was sent to all prospective employers. Of the 472 surveys sent, 282 (60%) were returned. SUBJECTS: Prospective employers who were listed on the NATA job vacancy notices from January 1, 1994 to October 1, 1994. MEASUREMENTS: Employers selected a job description for their position opening and indicated the characteristics of the people they hired. The job descriptions were placed into three categories. A chi-square analysis was used to determine the degree of association between applicant characteristics and job descriptions. Employee characteristics were coded and a stepwise multiple regression analysis was performed to determined which of the characteristics best predicted salary. Analyses of variance were performed to determine differences among the three practice settings and as follow-up analyses to the multiple regression. An analysis of variance was also performed to compare salaries based on job description and teaching responsibilities. RESULTS: No association was found between the employment setting and gender, ethnicity, marital status, educational route, physical therapy, credential, or EMT certification. There was an association between the CPR instructor's credential and employment setting and between highest degree attained and employment setting. CONCLUSIONS: The results suggest that these factors were most closely associated with employment in the collegiate setting. With regard to salary, it was determined that a doctoral degree, a master's degree, and marital status were the best predictors of salary.

Journal Article↗