Arch Intern Med
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Comparative Study
Race and sex differences in consistency of care with national asthma guidelines in managed care organizations.
In the United States, morbidity from asthma disproportionately affects African Americans and women. Although inadequate care contributes to overall asthma morbidity, less is known about differences in asthma care by race and sex. ⋯ Even among patients with health insurance, disparities in asthma care for African Americans compared with whites exist and may contribute to race disparities in outcomes. Women generally reported better asthma care but may benefit from greater use of inhaled corticosteroids.
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To determine the need for placing automated external defibrillators (AEDs) in medical and dental practices, we identified cardiac arrests at these locations. ⋯ Placement of 779 AEDs in the high- and medium-incidence practices would have provided treatment for 112 patients with cardiac arrest in 7 years. To provide for the 16 cardiac arrests in low-incidence practices, an additional 1928 AEDs would be required.
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Television (TV) watching, a major sedentary behavior in the United States, has been associated with obesity. We hypothesized that prolonged TV watching may increase risk for type 2 diabetes. ⋯ Increasing physical activity is associated with a significant reduction in risk for diabetes, whereas a sedentary lifestyle indicated by prolonged TV watching is directly related to risk. Our findings suggest the importance of reducing sedentary behavior in the prevention of type 2 diabetes.
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Time management in ambulatory patient visits is increasingly critical. Do patients who perceive a longer visit with internists report increased satisfaction? ⋯ Perceived ambulatory visit duration and meeting or exceeding patient expectation of time needed to be spent with the physician are determinants of patient satisfaction in an ambulatory internal medicine practice.