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PubMed2005

Young adults' (16-25 years) suggestions for providing developmentally appropriate diabetes services: a qualitative study.

Managing the multiple demands of a chronic condition whilst negotiating the developmental tasks of adolescence and young adulthood is a process that is neither well described nor understood, particularly in relation to providing developmentally appropriate health care for young people. The importance of this issue is starting to be reflected within the literature, and although research into models of service delivery is emerging, a lack of user involvement in service development is apparent. This qualitative, user involvement study aimed to describe and understand the considered opinions of 19 young adults with diabetes who were receiving secondary care services about the provision of diabetes services for young people. The findings, gathered using semistructured interview and focus group methods, have potentially wide-reaching implications across primary and secondary health care, and across agencies providing services to children and young people, in terms of facilitating a person's transition through adolescence and into young adult life. Participants suggested key issues to address when developing services for young people, including staff consistency, civility, clinic structures which help a person navigate the health care system, provision of age-specific information, and support in relation to a range of health, emotional, social and developmental needs. Health care professionals can help young people to meet the expectations upon them as autonomous service users by modelling appropriate relationships, helping them to acquire skills and knowledge, and overcome barriers to them becoming active participants in their health care and achieving social participation in a fuller sense. It is somewhat arbitrary to delineate between adolescence and young adulthood in terms of age alone, but in this paper, 'adolescence' refers to the period between 11 and 15 years of age, and 'young adulthood' between 16 and 25 years of age. The phrase 'young people' will also be used to refer to people between 11 and 25 years.

Adolescent↗
PubMed2000

Evaluation of the information and support services in the voluntary sector using a new P-C-P (pivotal-core-peripheral) attributes model.

This paper describes the development and use of a modified SERVQUAL research instrument for measuring the service quality of voluntary organizations from the perspective of their 'customers'. A series of focus group meetings were run with providers and users of the services to identify the appropriate dimensions of service quality. These were structured meetings led by the researchers addressing set questions in a group setting. The meeting enabled the identification of six different dimensions of service quality which neatly mapped on to the pivotal-core-peripheral (P-C-P attributes model [Philip and Hazlett, 1997]), which was developed after extensive research of existing models such as SERVQUAL. These dimensions were used to develop a questionnaire to assess service quality within the voluntary sector. The questionnaire was distributed to 2005 service users, representing eight voluntary organizations from across Northern Ireland. The research resulted in the development of a methodology and research instrument suitable for measuring service quality in the voluntary sector.

Community Mental Health Centers↗
PubMed2005

Integrating services for injection drug users infected with hepatitis C virus with methadone maintenance treatment: challenges and opportunities.

Despite the high prevalence of hepatitis C virus (HCV) infection among drug users enrolled in methadone maintenance treatment programs, few drug users are being treated with combination therapy. The most significant barrier to treatment is lack of access to comprehensive HCV-related care. We describe a pilot program to integrate care for HCV infection with substance abuse treatment in a setting of maintenance treatment with methadone. This on-site, multidisciplinary model of care includes comprehensive screening and treatment for HCV infection, assessment of eligibility, counseling with regard to substance abuse, psychiatric services, HCV support groups, directly observed therapy, and enhanced linkages to a tertiary care system for diagnostic procedures. Our approach has led to high levels of adherence, with liver biopsy and substantial rates of initiation of antiviral therapy. Two cases illustrate the successful application of this model to patients with HCV infection complicated by active substance abuse and psychiatric comorbidity.

Adult↗
PubMed1977

Patterns in the delivery of psychiatric care in Saskatchewan 1971-1972 (II). Types of contacts and some patient career characteristics.

A previous paper dealt with an overview of service sectors and patient volumes (2), whereas this one concentrates on types of contacts and some patient career characteristics. Analysis of a comprehensive psychiatric care utilization data file for Saskatchewan for the 1971-1972 period shows that 'public' sector patients were hospitalized for a greater average length of time than were 'private' sector patients. This may reflect differences in the styles of practice, exigencies of the demand for hospital beds in the 'private' as opposed to the 'public' sector and/or intrinsic differences in the nature of the problem treated in each sector. Some interesting facts regarding patterns of contact were uncovered. The bimodal nature of the 'psychiatric population' was further evident from the data which show that the majority of patients used relatively few services whereas a few used a large number of services. This suggests that the majority of the people seen for psychiatric reasons by medical practitioners were suffering from relatively minor psychiatric disorders. Heavy users of services were much more likely to have had some'public' or University Hospital-based contact. Conversely, light users were predominantly private sector patients. In the 'public' sector, those who had had some in patient treatment were consistently higher users of all services. It is evident that psychiatrists held a dominant position in this community-oriented public sector, having seen a large number of patients, but having had a low average rate of services per patient. In contrast, community nurses saw relatively few patients but saw them very often. This no doubt reflects their role in providing 'maintenance' services to chronic patients in approved homes in the community. In the 'private' sector, 69 percent of the services were delivered by GPs and 23 percent by psychiatrists were more likely to have had 'public' sector activity than were those seen only by GPs; also once in the 'public' sector, they were likelier to have had in patient as well as outpatient treatment. This suggests a 'sifting' of the more "difficult" patients through the private specialist sector into the public sector.

Community Mental Health Services↗
PubMedDate not supplied

Telemedicine: a pilot study in nursing home residents.

BACKGROUND: Telemedicine has been applied successfully in various fields of medicine. This mode of health care delivery may potentially be useful in supporting frail nursing home residents who require multidisciplinary geriatric services. OBJECTIVE: To assess the feasibility of telemedicine in providing geriatric services to nursing home residents, and whether this mode of care resulted in increased productivity and savings. METHODS: A local 200-bed nursing home supported by the Community Geriatric Assessment Team (CGAT) was recruited. Over a 1-year period, teleconferencing was used to replace conventional geriatric outreach services. The feasibility of telemedicine was evaluated by participating specialists. Productivity gains, consumption of hospital services and user satisfaction were measured. RESULTS: Telemedicine was adequate for service delivery in up to 99% of cases, depending on the specialty. A greater number of clients were served and follow-up intervals were shortened. The service was cheaper than conventional outreach or clinic activities, and acceptable to users and clients. In particular, savings were made through a 9% reduction in visits to the Accidents and Emergency Department and in 11% fewer admissions to acute hospital wards. CONCLUSION: telemedicine is a feasible means of delivering multidisciplinary care to frail nursing home residents, and may result in increased productivity and significant savings.

Aged↗
PubMed1986

Health care financing in Kenya: a simulation of welfare effects of user fees.

This paper examines the efficiency and equity effects of introducing user fees in public health facilities in Kenya. These effects are studied with the aid of a simulation technique. It is found that through their favourable effects on quality of medical services, the user fees in public clinics would yield welfare gains. However, these gains might involve unacceptable equity trade-offs. Thus, in general, the net welfare effects of user charges on medical services is ambiguous. More specifically, if the user fees were imposed across the board in government health facilities, the equity trade-offs would be large, and for that reason, the user fees would be socially and politically unacceptable. But, if the user charges are restricted to government hospitals, the attendant equity problem would not be too difficult to manage.

Developing Countries↗
PubMed1978

Services for schizophrenics: a lifelong approach to treatment.

Mental health services in the 1960s reflected then-current beliefs in the effectiveness of crisis-oriented services and broad social programming to treat and even prevent serious mental disorders. The result was an unwarranted emphasis on the single-episode user of services and lack of interest in patients such as schizophrenics who needed repeated services. Numerous more recent studies indicate that many cases of schizophrenia have a heritable biological component and respond well to neuroleptic medication. For effective out patient treatment of schizophrenics who might otherwise be repeated users of hospital service, the author advocates a program of continuous, or nearly continuous, neuroleptic medication, combined with counseling and social and crisis services. The patient would be educated to take a role in self-regulation of medication, within a prescribed range, which would appear to improve safety, precision, and reliability.

Ambulatory Care↗
PubMed2006

Utilization of HIV/AIDS treatment services: comparing injecting drug users and other clients.

This study compared healthcare utilization by injection drug users (IDUs) and non-IDUs. Data were abstracted from patients' medical records, admitted on HIV/AIDS treatment centers, between 1986 and 2002, forming a non-concurrent cohort study. Variables included: sociodemographics, HIV/AIDS exposure group, healthcare utilization (consultations, procedures, and prescriptions). Descriptive analyses included age-period and cohort effects. Out of 170 patients, with an average age of 30 years, 39.4% were IDUs, 71.8% were males and had low levels of education. At the first consultation, 86.5% neither received an ARV prescription nor had a request for CD4 or viral load. Injection drug users, as compared to non-IDUs, were less likely to receive ARV prescriptions and requests for CD4 lymphocyte and viral load counts, even though the number of consultations did not differ between the two groups. Healthcare utilization increased in calendar-year in the non-IDUs group, parallel to the implementation of the Brazilian health policy of universal care. However, this favorable trend was not observed among IDUs. Differential outcomes for HIV/AIDS among IDUs, towards worse prognosis, suggest difficulties in terms of adherence and follow-up of ARV therapy in this population.

Antiretroviral Therapy, Highly Active↗
PubMed1987

Seeking help for psychologic problems. A replication and extension.

Patterns of seeking help for psychologic problems were investigated using interview and medical record data in a representative community sample and a sample of mental health clinic users from the same eligible population. In multivariate analyses, users of psychiatric services, compared with nonusers, were significantly younger, more likely to be separated or divorced, more psychologically distressed, and physically symptomatic. They were also more likely to use a large multispecialty clinic, compared with satellite clinics, and less likely to have membership in the prepaid medical plan established by the multispecialty clinic. Users had a greater reported propensity to seek help for anxiety and were more likely to know other mental health services users. Confiding social support was not significantly associated with use of mental health services, controlling for psychologic symptoms. Substantial social selection in seeking help was evident at both high and low levels of psychologic distress. Mental health users, compared with nonusers, reported more of most types of symptoms studied, except withdrawal, obsessive-compulsive symptoms, and alcohol consumption. Particular social characteristics and symptoms were associated with seeking help in general and other characteristics were more specifically linked to choice of a particular provider.

Adult↗
PubMed1996

The effects of demographics on determinants of perceived health-care service quality. The case of users and observers.

Notes that previous research suggests the components of perceived service quality are industry specific, and that calls have been made for academics to integrate their theory into practice. Investigates the effects of demographic factors on users and observers of perceived hospital quality. Reports results suggesting perceived quality is industry specific, users and observers differ in their perceptions of hospital quality and demographic factors do make a difference in perceived hospital quality.

Demography↗
PubMedDate not supplied

Repeated users of a psychiatric emergency service in a Canadian general hospital.

The authors of this study examine the demographic and clinical characteristics of repeated users of psychiatric emergency room services in a general hospital. 37.8% of all the patients (913) seen during one year had one or more visits to the emergency room in the six months preceding the index emergency room consultation. Repeaters were more likely than nonrepeaters to be unmarried, self referred and with a history of previous psychiatric treatment for a chronic psychiatric disorder. Factors affecting frequency of use of psychiatric emergency room services among different diagnostic groups were also studied. These results demonstrated the heterogeneity of the needs of the diverse diagnostic groups who over-utilize costly emergency room services. Our findings showed that in a country with universal health insurance, psychiatric emergency services also tend to reflect the gaps in the delivery of health services in the hospital and the community.

Adult↗
PubMed2002

African and African Caribbean users' perceptions of inpatient services.

It has been suggested that well-documented differences in African and African Caribbean people's contact with mental health services may stem from the organization, processes and practices of services themselves. This article presents the findings of a qualitative study which explored the inpatient experiences of a sample of African and African Caribbean people. Although some positive experiences were described, in the main, participants' accounts revolved around a sense of loss of control and around experiences of overt and implicit racism. Underpinning these experiences were relationships with staff that were perceived to be unhelpful. On the basis of both the positive and negative experiences described, we draw conclusions about the changes required to ensure that inpatient services more effectively meet the needs of this group.

Adolescent↗
PubMedDate not supplied

Course of alcoholism in homeless men in Munich, Germany: results from a prospective longitudinal study based on a representative sample.

In an earlier paper (Fichter, M. M., Quadflieg, N. (1999). Alcoholism in homeless men in the mid-nineties: results from the Bavarian Public Health Study on Homelessness. European Archives of Psychiatry and Clinical Neuroscience 249:34-44), we reported data on alcoholism and comorbidity in 265 homeless men in Munich. There-as in this paper-we divided the sample into three groups based on a lifetime diagnosis of alcohol dependence (N = 187), alcohol abuse (N = 17), and no diagnosis of alcoholism (N = 61) at baseline assessment. This study reports a three-year prospective longitudinal assessment of the original representative sample of homeless men in Munich. Interviews at baseline and at follow-up included the SCID-I and covered several other areas (cognitive impairment, somatic complaints, use of medical services, and other psychosocial variables). Of 247 homeless men still alive, at three-year follow-up, 185 (74.9%) were successfully traced and personally interviewed. Alcohol dependency in homeless men at first wave assessment (as compared to men not manifesting alcohol abuse or dependence) was associated with a higher proportion of homelessness at three-year follow-up, an increase of alcohol consumption at three-year follow-up, reduction of monthly income, higher death rate, and high use of general medical services but very low utilization of (specific substance) user treatment services. Alcoholism in homeless men constitutes a posited risk factor for an unfavorable course over time with regard to such a person's living situation and health status in spite of more utilization of medical services.

Adult↗
PubMed2002

Characteristics of injection drug users who utilize tuberculosis services at sites of the Baltimore city needle exchange program.

OBJECTIVE: To describe characteristics of needle-exchange program (NEP) participants who utilized tuberculosis services from an NEP site. METHODS: Between June 1998 and May 1999, tuberculosis services were advertised and offered to Baltimore, Maryland, NEP participants. Demographic and tuberculosis-specific data were collected on participants who self-selected into services. Analyses were based on being tuberculin skin tested, returning for a skin test reading, and testing tuberculin positive. RESULTS: Among 691 contacts with NEP participants, this service performed 296 tuberculin tests, with an 84% return rate for skin test reading. Participants were 32% female, 87% African American, and 11% employed. Higher frequency of NEP visits was positively associated with requesting tuberculosis services and returning for skin test reading. Among those who returned for skin test reading, longer smoking duration and problems getting food in the past year due to a lack of money were associated with a positive test. CONCLUSIONS: Utilization of a tuberculosis service and high return rates can be achieved among NEP participants without formal recruitment strategies. Frequent exchange appears to facilitate return visits for NEP-based tuberculosis screening, which may imply accessibility for frequent exchangers. More extensive health services at sites of the Baltimore NEP appear to be warranted, with particular attention paid to effectiveness for frequent exchangers.

Adult↗