Chronic pain is common in adolescents. Evidence-based guidelines recommend interdisciplinary treatment, but access is limited by geography. The development of hybrid programs utilizing both face-to-face and videoconference treatment may help overcome this. We developed a 7-week hybrid pediatric interdisciplinary pain program (Hybrid-PIPP) and wished to compare it to individual face-to-face sessions (Standard Care). Our objective was to test the feasibility of a protocol that used a matched pair un-blinded randomized controlled design to investigate the efficacy and cost-effectiveness of the Hybrid-PIPP compared to Standard Care.Parent-adolescent dyads were recruited from tertiary pediatric clinics and matched by disability before randomization to minimize allocation bias. The adolescents (aged 11-17) had experienced primary pain for >3 months. Hybrid-PIPP involved 11 hrs of group therapy and 4 individual videoconference sessions. Standard care was provided by the same clinical team, using the same treatment model and similar intensity as the Hybrid-PIPP. The intention was to recruit participants for 3 Hybrid-PIPP groups with a comparison stream. Recruitment was ceased after 2 groups due to the high participant disability requiring more intensive intervention.Eighteen dyads were screened and 13 randomized (7 Hybrid-PIPP, 6 Standard Care, 2 unsuitable, 3 unallocated when the study was stopped). The study met a priori feasibility criteria for staff availability; recruitment rate; treatment completion; and data collection. Global satisfaction ratings were similar in both streams (SC median 7, range 5-9 and Hybrid-PIPP median 8.5, range 5-10). Challenges were identified in both streams. A future modified Hybrid-PIPP was considered acceptable if the intensity is increased to manage the high level of disability. Standard care was considered inefficient. No adverse events were reported.The study determined that the protocol met a priori feasibility criteria, but to be practicable in a real world, health environment requires significant modifications.ANZTR(ACTRN2614000489695).
Retailers agree that segmenting and developing an understanding of target segments are important inputs to differentiating products and enhancing shopping propensity. Most shopping behavior and choice profiling tends to generalize rather than develop useful segment information. Thus, most results are not useful for targeting and positioning. A survey was conducted to examine shopping choice behavior of a very important and economically viable segment of this teen market called the “later aged female teen”. It was found that a typical later aged female teen was born to shop. Making the right choice, especially for her clothing, is important both from a social affiliation and a social influence position. This group felt brand (fit, look, and style) to be the most important attribute to consider in apparel choice and later aged female teens wanted excitement in their shopping venue. Shopping was important and there were risks associated with an incorrect choice of their clothing. Finally, the desire to stay and shop at the local mall seemed to be a function of the mall composition and excitement.
To identify, evaluate and synthesize qualitative literature on adult patients and carer experiences of planning for discharge from an acute setting after a major trauma event. The JBI approach to meta-aggregation was followed. Qualitative studies exploring patient and carer discharge planning experiences of major trauma were included in the systematic review. A comprehensive search was conducted in five databases, supplemented by grey literature. Eligible studies were appraised for methodological quality by two reviewers and data extracted using standardized JBI tools. Four synthesized findings emerged using 69 findings from sixteen papers. (i) Patients and carers feel generally unprepared to manage at home after discharge, (ii) early identification of patients’ post discharge needs allows for appropriate referrals and supports to be organised prior to discharge, (iii) patients and carers value participation in the discharge planning process to facilitate a considered, organized and timely discharge from hospital (iv) the timely presentation, delivery, language used, format and relevancy of information impacts how patients and carers manage their discharge. This meta-synthesis demonstrates that patients and carers predominantly have poor experiences of discharge planning after major trauma. Adoption of patient centered principles may improve patient and carer experiences of the discharge planning process. IMPLICATIONS FOR REHABILITATIONPatients and their carers benefit from a client-centred approach where their needs are recognised and their collaboration encouraged in important decisions, and if they are adequately prepared to reintegrate into their community.Patients can benefit from having a trauma pathway healthcare professional to provide support and advocacy services throughout their hospital admission and after discharge.Discharge planning that is organised, prepared and collaborative leads to a more positive patient experience.Discharge information should be individualised and presented in an easily accessible format for patients and carers. Patients and their carers benefit from a client-centred approach where their needs are recognised and their collaboration encouraged in important decisions, and if they are adequately prepared to reintegrate into their community. Patients can benefit from having a trauma pathway healthcare professional to provide support and advocacy services throughout their hospital admission and after discharge. Discharge planning that is organised, prepared and collaborative leads to a more positive patient experience. Discharge information should be individualised and presented in an easily accessible format for patients and carers.
Concern over the implications for recruitment brought about by the predicted decline in the population of 18-year-olds has caused nursing to re-evaluate its recruitment and retention policies. Susan Taylor describes an innovative approach to increasing recruitment which involved student nurses speaking directly to school pupils about life in nursing. Early results indicate that the project has achieved considerable success.
To appraise the literature evaluating psychometric properties and clinical utility of cognitive assessments available for use by occupational therapists in acute and subacute hospital contexts with children aged 4–18 years diagnosed with an acquired brain injury. Scoping review. Assessments and associated studies were evaluated for their methodologic quality using the COnsensus-based standard for the Selection of health Measurement INstruments (COSMIN) strategy. Forty-one studies evaluated 49 different assessments and reported on assessment psychometrics (n = 40), clinical utility (n = 1) and five reported on both. Fourteen assessments with the strongest psychometric properties and clinical utility were shortlisted. A gold standard assessment was not identified. Instead, a shortlist of functional, performance-based, technology-based, and self-report assessments were identified as relevant for the setting and population, but requiring further investigation. Future development of a cognitive assessment in partnership with therapists working in tertiary pediatric settings will ensure optimal clinical utility and validity.
Corynebacteria were isolated from breast tissue, pus, or deep wound swabs of 24 women; the most common species isolated was the newly described Corynebacterium kroppenstedtii, followed by Corynebacterium amycolatum and Corynebacterium tuberculostearicum. Gram-positive bacilli were seen in samples sent for culture or in histological specimens for 12 women, and 9 of the 12 women from whom adequate histological specimens were obtained had conditions that met the criteria for granulomatous lobular mastitis, a chronic inflammatory disease of unknown etiology.
In studying patients with mild hypertension, we used a double-blind, randomly allocated crossover, 2 x 2 factorial design to obtain more precise estimates of the effectiveness of individual hypertensive drugs and of the interactions when used in combination. In the present study, we reanalysed data from our own previously completed crossover factorial studies in order to determine the optimal length of phases and to try to exploit patient heterogeneity by comparing blood pressure responses within each patient to the two different drugs in each study. An analysis of the 'weeks within phases' variation (analysis of variance) applied to all phases, to the placebo phases alone and to the active treatment phases alone, of the individual factorial studies and of pooled data from studies of similar design, only revealed differences in the first week of our 4-week phases. Accordingly, we suggest that 4 weeks is an optimal phase length, since only the values from the third and fourth weeks showed the full expression of a drug's antihypertensive effect, avoiding the problem of a carryover effect and the need for a more complex intervening washout placebo phase. Comparing the blood pressure reductions shown by individual patients in response to different antihypertensive drugs using arbitrary criteria of greater than or equal to 5, 10 and 15 mmHg for diastolic and greater than or equal to 5, 10 and 20 mmHg for systolic pressure, we were unable to distinguish between the two separate drugs in each factorial study, due to the magnitude of the background variation which had a coefficient of variation of 5-7%.(ABSTRACT TRUNCATED AT 250 WORDS)
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