Journal of evaluation in clinical practice
-
Clinical Practice Guidelines (CPGs) have been shown to improve healthcare services and clinical outcomes. However, they are useful resources only to the degree that they are developed according to the most rigorous standards. Multiple studies have demonstrated significant variability between CPGs with regard to specific indicators of quality. The Ordre des psychologues du Québec (OPQ), the College of psychologists of Quebec, has published several CPGs that are intended to provide empirically supported guidance for psychologists in the areas of assessment, diagnosis, general functioning, treatment and other decision-making support. The aim of this study was to evaluate the quality of these CPGs. ⋯ The findings of this study demonstrate the need for more methodological rigour in CPGs development as such, recommendations to improve CPG quality are discussed.
-
The need to improve patient access, offer increased choice and improve patient outcomes whilst maintaining safe care is driving the healthcare workforce to evolve. Extending allied-health scope of practice by integrating models of care that traverse traditional professional boundaries has been one such strategy. This study explored patients' acceptance and experiences of four allied-health extended scope of practice models of care. The study aimed to identify dimensions of quality healthcare that matter to patients and describe the extent to which they perceived these to be delivered in allied-health professional role substitution models of care. ⋯ This study highlights participants' views and experiences of allied-health extended scope of practice models of care. Service delivery models were an acceptable alternative to traditional specialist medical care with the perception that extended scope of practice models of care delivered many aspects of quality care that mattered to patients.
-
The well-known clinical axiom declaring that 'common things are common' attests to the pivotal role of probability in diagnosis. Despite the popularity of this and related axioms, there is no operationalized definition of a common disease, and no practicable way of incorporating actual disease frequencies into differential diagnosis. ⋯ We explore how numerical estimates of disease frequencies based on incidence can be incorporated into differential diagnosis as well as the inherent limitations of this method. These concepts have important implications for diagnostic decision making and medical education, and hold promise as a method to improve diagnostic accuracy.
-
At the beginning of vaccination against coronavirus disease 2019 (COVID-19), information about the effects of the vaccine was not known and hesitancy was observed among the population. The mental health staff members in our center in Israel had to decide whether to get vaccinated or not. The objective of this study was to evaluate the differences in demographic characteristics of vaccinated and nonvaccinated mental health care workers (HCWs), and to identify their reasons for or against vaccination. ⋯ Efforts and resources should focus on the dissemination of reliable scientific data about the vaccine, to increase vaccination rates among mental HCWs.
-
RATIONALE, AIMS AND OBJECTIVES: Telerehabilitation was used to ensure continued provision of care during the COVID-19 pandemic, but there was a lack of guidance on how to use it safely and effectively for people with physical disabilities and movement impairment. In this service evaluation, we aimed to collate information on practitioner and patient experiences, challenges and facilitators, and examples of best practice to inform the development of an online toolkit and training package. ⋯ Telerehabilitation holds promise in health and social care, but it is necessary to share good practice to ensure it is safe, effective and accessible. We collated information and recommendations that informed the content of the Telerehab Toolkit (https://www.plymouth.ac.uk/research/telerehab), a practical resource for practitioners, patients and carers, with a focus on remote assessment and management of physical disabilities and movement impairment.