International journal of health care quality assurance
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Int J Health Care Qual Assur · Dec 2019
Epidemiological shift of hepatitis A in EAGLE countries - a projection.
Many world regions are developing quickly and experiencing increasing levels of sanitation, causing an epidemiological shift of hepatitis A in these areas. The shift occurs when children avoid being infected with the disease until a later age due to cleaner water sources, food, and hygiene practices in their environment; but if they are infected at later age, the disease is much more severe and lost productivity costs are higher. The purpose of this paper is to examine what could occur if an epidemiological shift of the disease continues in these regions, and what type of future burden hepatitis A may have in a hypothetical rapidly developing country. ⋯ The hypothetical country as a prototype model was created from the results of regressed data from EAGLE countries. It is aimed to display an example of the health and economic changes occurring in these rapidly developing regions in order to help understand potential hepatitis A trends, while underscoring the importance of informed and regular policy updates in the coming years. The author believes this regression provides insight into the patterns of hepatitis A mortality and HDI as these EAGLE countries undergo rapid development.
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Int J Health Care Qual Assur · Dec 2019
Impact of caregiver overnight stay on postoperative outcomes.
The purpose of this paper is to determine the impact of having a patient-designated caregiver remain overnight with ambulatory extended recovery patients on early postoperative clinical outcomes. ⋯ This study is unique in its evaluation of the clinical impact of having a caregiver stay overnight with ambulatory surgery patients. Little research has focused on the direct impact of the caregiver on patient outcomes, especially in the ambulatory setting. With increased adoption of minimally invasive surgical techniques and enhanced recovery pathways, a larger number of patients are eligible for short-stay ambulatory surgery. Factors that impact discharge and early postoperative complications are important.
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Int J Health Care Qual Assur · Aug 2019
Quality improvement in hospice settings: perceptions of leaders.
The purpose of this paper is to explore and examine attitudes and perceptions of leaders on application of quality improvement (QI) strategies in a palliative and hospice care organization. ⋯ This manuscript can be of value to leaders, administrators and academicians who are interested in applying QI principles to healthcare processes especially in palliative and hospice care settings. Ability to work with others, solid communication and involvement of employees from all levels can help in streamlining current systems of care.
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Int J Health Care Qual Assur · May 2019
Patient involvement in consultation for atrial fibrillation - the cardiologists' perspective.
The purpose of this paper is to analyse the accounts of Swedish cardiologists concerning patient involvement in consultations for atrial fibrillation (AF). The questions were: how cardiologists handle and provide scope for patient involvement in medical consultations regarding AF treatment and how cardiologists describe their familiarity with shared decision-making. ⋯ Theoretically, the authors have learned that the patient involvement and shared decision-making requires the ability to see patients as active participants in the medical consultation process.
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Int J Health Care Qual Assur · Feb 2019
Multicenter StudyBedside vital parameters that indicate early deterioration.
The purpose of this paper is to determine associations between initially recorded deviations in individual bedside vital parameters that contribute to total Modified Early Warning Score (MEWS) levels 2 or 3 and further clinical deterioration (MEWS level=4). ⋯ Findings might contribute to patient safety by facilitating appropriate clinical and organizational decisions on adequate time spans for early warning scoring in general ward patients.