Clin Med
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Breathlessness is a common symptom in respiratory, cardiovascular and malignant disease. It reduces exercise tolerance and mobility, and is an important determinant of quality of life. The multifactorial nature of the symptom often presents difficulties in understanding why individual patients are breathless, and how breathlessness should best be palliated, especially in advanced disease. ⋯ Mismatch between efferent neural respiratory drive and afferent feedback, reflecting the degree of neuromechanical dissociation, is also important. This paper describes mechanisms by which ventilatory load, capacity and drive may be affected by disease, and how these can be measured physiologically. The schema presented also provides a framework for understanding the mechanisms by which interventions that relieve breathlessness may have their effect.
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Implementing national guidance such as that produced by the National Institute for Health and Clinical Excellence should be a priority for NHS trusts. The best way of managing successful implementation is through collaboration across the healthcare community. This helps to improve communication, ensures progress is being made and enables healthcare professionals to concentrate on the whole pathway of care, not just specific aspects of it. The Sheffield Parkinson's Stakeholder Group has successfully engaged all who are involved with providing the service across the city and has also received national recognition for its approach to implementation.
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This study examined whether two machine-marked tests (MMTs; a clinical problem-solving test and situational judgement test), previously validated for selection into U. K. general practice (GP) training, could provide a valid methodology for shortlisting into core medical training (CMT). A longitudinal design was used to examine the MMTs' psychometric properties in CMT samples, and correlations between MMT scores and CMT interview outcomes. ⋯ Both MMTs showed good reliability in CMT samples, similar to GP samples. Both MMTs were good predictors of CMT interview performance (r = 0.56, p < 0.001 in 2008; r = 0.61, p < 0.001 in 2009) and offered incremental validity over the current shortlisting process. The GP MMTs offer an appropriate measurement methodology for selection into CMT, representing a significant innovation for selection methodology.