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INTRODUCTION One of the most essential steps in improving the quality of service delivery in the health service is the improvement of patients' medical record completeness. The aim of this study is to assess patient medical record completeness in the Saint Paul hospital department of surgery and assess the pattern of improvement in record completeness after intervention. METHODS surgical Patient charts were randomly reviewed with a standard patient chart completeness evaluation checklist prepared by the Federal Ministry of Health. Baseline data was collected in June 2019 and post intervention data was collected in November 2019. The schedule for intervention was carried out between July and October 2019. Interventions include modification of formats, continuous monitoring, and inclusion of chart completeness in the monthly morbidity and mortality conference, and establishment of a recognition system for best performing wards. RESULT A total of 253 and 273 medical charts were evaluated during baseline and post intervention. The Post intervention assessment showed 206 (75.5%) of records had admission notes completed, 205 (75%), the order sheet was completed in 218 (79.7%) and the discharge summary was completed in 217 (79.5%) of medical records. From nursing parameters, the medication sheet was completed in 177 (64.8%) and the nursing care plan was completed in 155 (56.8%) of medical records. When all six indicators were seen in aggregate, total medical record completeness showed a statistically significant improvement from 41% during base line to 72% post intervention (p

A study was undertaken to determine whether benefits gained by providing small-quantity lipid-based nutrient supplements (SQ-LNS) from age 6–12 months were maintained at age 18 months compared with...

AIM: Children with Down syndrome (DS) have delayed development and atypical movements including kicking. We hypothesized that a kicking intervention would significantly increase leg movement rate. METHODS: Nine infants, 3–5 months old, with DS used a commercially available toy that encouraged kicking. The intervention was administered in their home for 20 minutes, 5 days a week, for 8 weeks. Leg movement rate was measured using Opal wearable sensors before and after the intervention. At post-test, a secondary analysis compared infants with DS to infants with typical development (TD). RESULTS: Average leg movement rate increased significantly from pre to post intervention, from 2253 to 2645 movements per hour of awake time (p=0.049). Compared to data from nine infants with TD, infants with DS had a significantly lower movement rate post intervention (p=0.002). CONCLUSION: The study revealed that infants with DS demonstrated a higher leg movement rate following an in-home kicking intervention.

This study aimed to examine the outcomes and feasibility of a hybrid group-based intervention combining physical activity and an individual goal-oriented approach for children with developmental di...

Objective: To provide a proof-of-concept for a novel stroke-gait-specific augmented reality (AR)-guided treadmill intervention by evaluating its effect on temporospatial and functional outcomes of mobility.Methods: Two females with hemiplegia post stroke were recruited for participation in a 4-week intervention, and a single healthy control was recruited for baseline comparisons. The stroke-intervention (SI) participant (aged 54-years), completed 12 sessions of AR-guided treadmill intervention. The stroke-control (SC) participant (aged 59-years) completed 12 sessions of conventional treadmill intervention. Temporospatial and functional mobility were assessed pre-intervention, post-intervention, and at 1-month follow-up. Physical ACtivity Enjoyment Scale (PACES) was administered post-intervention.Results: The SI participant showed clinically meaningful improvements in functional outcomes post-intervention and at 1-month follow-up (Berg balance score (BBS): +6 and +10 points; Dynamic Gait Index (DGI): +2 at post-intervention only; walking speed: +0.19 and +0.24 m/s; 6-minute walk test (6MWT): +51.9 and +38.9) respectively. The SC showed clinically meaningful improvements in BBS (+3 and +3) and walking speed (+0.06 at post-intervention). The PACES scores showed that the SI participant had a significantly higher (23 points) enjoyment level during the intervention compared to the SC participant. The SI participant was more asymmetric compared to the SC participant at pre and post-intervention visits.Conclusions: The SI participant showed greater improvement in functional assessments compared to the SC participant post intervention. The AR-guided approach may have added benefits compared to traditional treadmill training, while providing better customization, patient enjoyment, and engagement. Further investigation with a larger sample is warranted.

Angiography remains a widely utilized imaging modality during vascular procedures. Angiography, however, has its limitations by underestimating the true vessel size, plaque morphology, presence of calcium and thrombus, plaque vulnerability, true lesion length, stent expansion and apposition, residual narrowing post intervention and the presence or absence of dissections. Intravascular ultrasound (IVUS) has emerged as an important adjunctive modality to angiography. IVUS offers precise imaging of the vessel size, plaque morphology and the presence of dissections and guides interventional procedures including stent sizing, assessing residual narrowing and stent apposition and expansion. IVUS-guided treatment has shown to yield superior outcomes when compared to angiography-only guided therapy. The cost-effectiveness of the routine use of IVUS during vascular procedures needs to be further studied.

Laleh Mahmoudi,1 Mehrdad Ghouchani,1 Motahareh Mahi-Birjand,2 Alimohammad Bananzadeh,3 Ali Akbari41Department of Clinical Pharmacy, School of Pharmacy, Shiraz University of Medical Sciences, Shiraz, Iran; 2Infectious Disease Research Center, Birjand University of Medical Sciences, Birjand, Iran; 3Colorectal Research Center, Shiraz University of Medical Sciences, Shiraz, Iran; 4Department of Anesthesiology, Medical School, Shiraz University of Medical Sciences, Shiraz, IranBackground: Antibiotic prophylaxis is one of the major approaches to prevent surgical site infection. Despite the availability of international guidelines on it, the practice of antibiotic prophylaxis is still far from optimal. This study aimed to assess the impact of guideline implementation on the rational use of prophylactic antibiotics and its cost-saving effect in gastrointestinal surgery by clinical pharmacist intervention.Methods: A pre and post intervention study was carried out between October 2017 and June 2018 on patients who underwent gastrointestinal surgery in a major referral teaching hospital in Shiraz, southern Iran. The intervention phase consisted of revising the institutional guidelines for surgical antimicrobial prophylaxis, assigning a clinical pharmacist to the surgical department, and arranging several meetings with the surgical department regarding the appropriate utilization of antibiotics. Differences in antibiotic utilization in patients before and after the intervention phase were compared. Exposures were surgical antimicrobial prophylaxis timing and agents, and main outcomes were incidence of surgical site infection and length of hospital stay.Results: A total of 430 patients were included in the post intervention phase, while 445 patients were included in the baseline evaluation. Promoting appropriate antibiotic use in the post intervention group had the potential to decrease medication costs by reducing unnecessary prescriptions and duration of antibiotic usage (P

The present study evaluated the influence of psychological factors (anxiety, depression, fear avoidance, and self‐efficacy) in predicting patient adherence to their personalised post‐intervention t...

The purpose is to examine the impact of the Implantable Miniature Telescope procedure on the level of treatment satisfaction and quality of life of individuals with end-stage age-related macular degeneration. Six individuals who had undergone the Implantable Miniature Telescope procedure were recruited. The participants completed two survey instruments about their overall quality of life and level of treatment satisfaction post intervention. In-depth interviews were also conducted to gain a perspective of the participant’s lived experience. A moderately high quality-of-life and treatment satisfaction rating was reported by participants post intervention. Qualitative themes included loss of independence, realistic perspective about the procedure, importance of rehabilitation following the procedure, and high treatment satisfaction despite lack of improvement in visual functioning. Moderately high quality-of-life ratings and treatment satisfaction were reported despite reports of limited improvement...

Siew-Siang Chua,1 Sim-Mei Choo,1 Che Zuraini Sulaiman,2 Asma Omar,3 Meow-Keong Thong3 1Department of Pharmacy, Faculty of Medicine, University of Malaya, 2Pharmacy Department, University Malaya Medical Centre, 3Department of Paediatrics, Faculty of Medicine, University of Malaya, Kuala Lumpur, Malaysia Background and purpose: Drug administration errors are more likely to reach the patient than other medication errors. The main aim of this study was to determine whether the sharing of information on drug administration errors among health care providers would reduce such problems. Patients and methods: This study involved direct, undisguised observations of drug administrations in two pediatric wards of a major teaching hospital in Kuala Lumpur, Malaysia. This study consisted of two phases: Phase 1 (pre-intervention) and Phase 2 (post-intervention). Data were collected by two observers over a 40-day period in both Phase 1 and Phase 2 of the study. Both observers were pharmacy graduates: Observer 1 just completed her undergraduate pharmacy degree, whereas Observer 2 was doing her one-year internship as a provisionally registered pharmacist in the hospital under study. A drug administration error was defined as a discrepancy between the drug regimen received by the patient and that intended by the prescriber and also drug administration procedures that did not follow standard hospital policies and procedures. Results from Phase 1 of the study were analyzed, presented and discussed with the ward staff before commencement of data collection in Phase 2. Results: A total of 1,284 and 1,401 doses of drugs were administered in Phase 1 and Phase 2, respectively. The rate of drug administration errors reduced significantly from Phase 1 to Phase 2 (44.3% versus 28.6%, respectively; P

The purpose of this exploratory study was to determine the feasibility and effectiveness of using guided interactions with horses as a nonpharmaceutical intervention to improve the physiological and behavioral states of persons with dementia. A convenience sample of persons with dementia was recruited from an adult day health center (n = 16). A multi-component intervention was implemented comprised of opportunities for grooming, painting, and leading horses. Using a randomized pretest-posttest crossover design, researchers compared participants receiving the equine-assisted intervention with participants receiving treatment as usual. Older persons with Alzheimer's disease and related dementias engaged positively in animal-assisted therapy with horses. A reduction in behavioral problems was found post intervention in contrast to the comparison group. Pre-intervention measures showed that participants exhibited lower levels of disruptive behaviors compared with the control group on the days they wer...

A pilot study examined the effectiveness of a biofeedback mouse in reducing upper extremity pain and discomfort in office workers; in addition, relative mouse use (RMU), satisfaction and the feasibility of running a randomised controlled trial (RCT) in a workplace setting were evaluated. The mouse would gently vibrate if the hand was idle for more than 12 s. The feedback reminded users to rest the arm in neutral, supported postures. Analysis showed a statistically significant reduction in shoulder pain and discomfort for the intervention group at T2 (38.7% lower than controls). Statistically significant differences in RMU time between groups were seen post intervention (-7% at T1 and +15% at T2 for the intervention group). Fifty-five percent of the intervention group was willing to continue using the mouse. It appears feasible to perform an RCT for this type of intervention in a workplace setting. Further study including more participants is suggested.The study findings support the feasibility of conducting randomised control trials in office settings to evaluate ergonomics interventions. The intervention resulted in reduced pain and discomfort in the shoulder. The intervention could be a relevant tool in the reduction of upper extremity musculoskeletal disorder. Further research will better explain the study's preliminary findings.

Background: Osteoporosis prevention education interventions have been found to be ineffective. Purpose: To determine the effectiveness of a developed intervention based on the health belief model, which emphasized its visible severity and proximal time of onset. Method: A sample of 109 college women were randomly assigned to either a treatment or control group to receive an osteoporosis prevention education intervention or stress management intervention, respectively. After pretest, interventions were administered, followed by posttest two weeks later. Results: Both groups showed a significant increase in perceived benefits of exercise to prevent osteoporosis, perceived barriers to exercise, perceived barriers to calcium and health motivation; however, there were no group differences. Perceived susceptibility to osteoporosis differed significantly before and after intervention; however, there was no group difference post intervention after controlling for difference before intervention. Discussio...

This article employs the Weymark (1997) and Baig et al. (2003) models to evaluate the central bank's intervention behaviour and utilizes ex post intervention news to check the models' estimation results. Empirical results show that the Baig et al. model's evaluation performance in intervention behaviour is inferior to the Weymark model. The scale of intervention index is not an excellent indicator to detect intervention behaviour. Intervention indices and intervention news all support that the intervention frequency in expansion period is higher than in recession period and in face of fatal events the intervention exhibits cluster phenomenon.

The purpose of this study was to investigate the effects of home health care and rehabilitation programs provided for caregivers on the quality of life (QOL) of stroke survivors. Sixty stroke participants and their caregivers were enrolled by cluster random sampling from community areas in Chiang Mai province, Thailand, and divided into two groups of thirty each: (1) an experimental group that received the intervention program, and (2) a control. Education on health care and stroke rehabilitation was provided for caregivers in the experimental group. The QOL of stroke patients was analyzed before and two months post intervention. Results demonstrated that the QOL in the experimental and control group did not differ before intervention. However, it scored significantly higher at post-test than pretest in the experimental group in physical (F(1, 29) = 41.05; p

Stroke-related deficits can impede both functional performance and walking tolerance. Individuals with hemiparesis rely on the stronger limb during exercise and functional tasks. The single limb exercise (SLE) intervention was a unique training protocol that focused only on the hemiparetic limb. Our objective was to determine the effect of the SLE intervention on cardiorespiratory fitness parameters.Twelve participants (5 male) with a mean age of 60.6 +/- 14.5 years and 69.1 +/- 82.2 months post stroke participated in the training intervention. All participants performed SLE using the hemiparetic leg three times a week for 4 weeks. The nonhemiparetic limb served as the control limb and did not engage in SLE. Peak oxygen uptake (VO2 peak) and oxygen uptake (VO2) were measured at baseline and post intervention in all 12 participants. At pre and post intervention, gait velocity was assessed in a subset of participants (n = 7) using the 10-m fast-walk test.After the 4-week SLE training intervention, significant improvements were found for VO2 during submaximal work effort (P = .009) and gait velocity (n = 7) (P = .001). Peak oxygen uptake did not increase (P = .41) after the training intervention.These data suggest that SLE training was an effective method for improving oxygen uptake and reducing energy expenditure during submaximal effort. Unilateral exercise focused on the hemiparetic leg may be an effective intervention strategy to consider for stroke rehabilitation.

[This abstract is based on the authors’ abstract.] This study examines the use of written educational materials to improve medication usage by patients on hospital discharge. The study included pre- and post-intervention patient interviews, nurse educat..

The objectives of this study were first, to report the adverse events reported following male circumcision performed by medical professionals after a one-day training workshop; second, to report on the attitudes towards, beliefs surrounding and experiences regarding circumcision and initiation; and third, to assess the HIV-risk behaviour of young men attending initiation schools post medical circumcision. Initiates who had been medically circumcised by trained healthcare providers were examined and interviewed on the seventh day after circumcision and, in addition, focus-group discussions were conducted with initiates. Results indicate that of the 78 initiates physically examined on the seventh day after circumcision by a trained clinical nurse, seven (9%) adverse events (complications) were found. Initiates reported mixed attitudes towards combining medical circumcision with traditional initiation. The majority of the initiates (70%) felt that they could be stigmatized as a result of choosing medical rather than traditional circumcision and 20% thought that the relationship between medical and traditionally circumcised men was hostile. Prior to circumcision, most initiates (92%) had been sexually active and had engaged in HIV-risk behaviour. Focus-group discussions revealed that sexually active initiates, when asked about sex after circumcision, indicated they wished to abstain for a short period before resuming sexual activities with intended condom use being high. Findings are promising for efforts to up-scale integrated medical circumcision alongside traditional initiation into manhood.

This review applied meta-analytic procedures to integrate research findings examining the impact of exercise on body image. We performed extensive literature searching strategies and located 121 published and unpublished studies that examined the impact of exercise on body image. Primary study results were coded, and meta-analytic procedures were conducted. Studies were grouped into intervention (i.e., exercise vs nonexercise group post-exercise intervention body-image scores), single group (i.e., pre vs post exercise intervention body-image scores), and correlational (i.e., exercisers vs nonexercisers body-image scores) effect sizes. Small effect sizes (that were weighted by sample size), that were significantly different from zero, indicated that: (a) exercisers had a more positive body image than nonexercisers; (b) exercise intervention participants reported a more positive body image post intervention compared to the nonexercising control participants; and (c) exercisers had a significant improvement ...

(2005). Effects on Marriage of a Psycho-Communicative-Educational Intervention With Couples Undergoing the Transition to Parenthood, Evaluation at 1-Year Post Intervention. Journal of Family Communication: Vol. 5, No. 1, pp. 1-24.

This manuscript describes the Siblings Coping Together program, a group intervention that addresses emotional and behavior problems of siblings of children with cancer and presents preliminary findings. The program is manualized and consists of 8 weekly 2-hr sessions. Each session focuses on a predetermined theme with specific goals and activities. Seventeen siblings participated in a pre- and post group pilot evaluation. Data were collected from children and parents using standardized instruments, a satisfaction questionnaire, and a group process log completed by therapists. Siblings' reports suggest a trend in the reduction of anxiety and depressive symptoms post intervention, siblings and parents reported satisfaction with the intervention group, and the results of the analysis of the group log illustrated trends in group development. This preliminary study exemplifies key group intervention components for this population and supports the need for further systematic evaluation of the intervention program.

Information regarding the academic and behavioral functioning of 65 children admitted to a special education program for emotionally disturbed children was collected prior to and at the close of intervention. The children were located two years after discharge. Academic data obtained at time of admission as well as ratings of motor coordination differentiated between children enrolled in regular classes at follow‐up and those in special classes. Behavioral data obtained at the termination of intervention differentiated between children in treatment settings at follow‐up and those in school. Length of stay in the special education program and amount of integration into regular class activities during intervention were not associated with outcome category.