J Natl Med Assoc
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Laura Dattner, John Krai and Linda Oppenheim provided assistance in obtaining archival material and manuscript review. Edwin Rosenthal's decedents, Robert, Eleanore Jane and Edwin Rosenthal II, provided information about their distinguished grandfather's life and commitments. Linda Oppenheim, Michael Angelo, Jessica Lydon, and Sofie Serada, archivists at Princeton University, Thomas Jefferson University, Temple University, and the College of Physicians of Philadelphia provided access to material on Edwin Rosenthal and medical care in Philadelphia at the turn of the 20th century. We thanks Laura Dattner, John Krai and Linda Oppenheim for their manuscript review. ⋯ Mortality from diphtheria dropped precipitously at the end of the 19th century with the introduction of laryngecostomy and a diphtheria antitoxin. However these measures required action by health departments and was dependent on the availability of physicians and medical facilities. Lack of Public Health Departments put all southerners at risk for infectious illnesses. With respect to diphtheria, there was neither an available supply of antitoxin nor physician care available. Philadelphia may have been too mired in corruption to provide antitoxin. Burghardt lived in close proximity to a facility where antitoxin was available, data suggests he would have received appropriate treatment there and was likely to have survived. Similar phenomena-disinterest and dysfunction-affect provision of immunization for children today. Currently, availability of immunization is affected by ethnicity, income levels and immigration status.
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The Summer Institute Program to Increase Diversity (SIPID) in Health-Related Research is a career advancement opportunity sponsored by the National Heart, Lung, and Blood Institute. Three mentored programs address difficulties experienced by junior investigators in establishing independent research careers and academic advancement. Aims are to increase the number of faculty from under-represented minority groups who successfully compete for external research funding. ⋯ The program will continue in 2011-2014 as PRIDE (PRogram to Increase Diversity among individuals Engaged in health-related research). Long-term follow-up of current mentees will be indexed at five years post training (2013). In summary, these mentoring programs hope to continue increasing the diversity of the next generation of scientists in biomedical research.
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Comparative Study
Characterizing depression and comorbid medical conditions in African American women in a primary care setting.
African American women are more likely to seek treatment for depression in primary care settings; however, few women receive guideline-concordant depression treatment in these settings. This investigation focused on the impact of depression on overall functioning in African American women in a primary care setting. ⋯ African American women with depression are more likely to present with greater functional impairment in role function when compared to African American women with diabetes or hypertension. Because African American women often present to primary care settings for treatment of mental illness, primary care providers need to have a clear understanding of the population, as well as the most effective and appropriate interventions.
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Comparative Study
Association of care in a medical home and health care utilization among children with sickle cell disease.
Sickle cell disease (SCD) is marked by high utilization of medical services. The aim of this study was to determine whether having a patient-centered medical home (PCMH) is associated with a reduction in emergency care (ED) utilization or hospitalizations among children with SCD. ⋯ Children with SCD reported to experience comprehensive care had lower rates of ED encounters and hospitalizations after controlling for demographics and health status. The overall findings highlight that the provision of comprehensive care--having a usual source of care and no problems with referrals--may provide a strategy for improving pediatric SCD care.
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Comparative Study
Alcohol dependence and health care utilization in African Americans.
Ethnic and cultural differences in patterns of alcohol use disorders must be understood in order to address improvement in prevention of such disorders and accessibility to health care services. The purpose of this study was to evaluate factors that influence the utilization of medical and mental health services among alcohol-dependent and non-alcohol-dependent African Americans. ⋯ This study suggests an association exists among alcohol dependence, medical conditions, health care, and mental care utilization among African Americans. Future research may benefit from investigating if an association exists between alcohol use disorders and health care utilization for other ethnic groups.