Biomedical subjects
Publications and source records attributed to B Sibbald.
Should vaccination of physicians against hepatitis B, as well as subsequent screening for the virus, be mandatory? The CMA says no: the voluntary route is the way to go. But Health Canada disagrees. Its new guidelines call for mandatory vaccination and subsequent screening of exposure-prone physicians for the virus.
A new drug to treat impotence that has caused shock waves in the US because of incredible patient demand will likely be available in Canada by Christmas. Barbara Sibbald reports what physicians must know before prescribing it.
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A shortage of intravenous immunoglobulin has caused the US to question its exports of plasma. Since Canada relies on these exports to provide 60% of its plasma, closing the borders could have serious consequences.
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Doctors in 4 Canadian provinces have chosen to use job action and other militant approaches as leverage to encourage governments to improve health care and funding. CMAJ asked physicians why this is happening now.
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Canada's longest running inquest will wrap up in Winnipeg in September. Although the judge conducting it will be answering many questions, one of the key ones is the most simple: Should a province the size of Manitoba operate a program as sophisticated as pediatric cardiac surgery?
Deer aren't the only targets when hunting season begins in Ontario each fall. Physician shortages throughout the province mean fall job fairs that bring recruiters and soon-to-be practising physicians together are growing in popularity, with some communities offering incentives to would-be-recruits as competition increases. Barbara Sibbald reports on a fair organized by the University of Ottawa.
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Explore the source record for details and available documents.
Explore the source record for details and available documents.
OBJECTIVES: To develop valid, reliable indicators of the appropriateness of long-term prescribing in general practice medical records in the United Kingdom. DESIGN: A nominal group was used to identify potential indicators of appropriateness of prescribing. Their face and content validity were subsequently assessed in a two round Delphi exercise. Feasibility and reliability between raters were evaluated for the indicators for which consensus was reached and were suitable for application. PARTICIPANTS: The nominal group comprised a disciplinary mix of nine opinion leaders and prominent academics in the field of prescribing. The Delphi panel was composed of 100 general practitioners and 100 community pharmacists. RESULTS: The nominal group resulted in 20 items which were refined to produce 34 statements for the Delphi exercise. Consensus was reached on 30, from which 13 indicators suitable for application were produced. These were applied by two independent raters to the records of 49 purposively sampled patients in one general practice. Nine indicators showed acceptable reliability between raters. CONCLUSIONS: 9 indicators of prescribing appropriateness were produced suitable for application to the medical record of any patient on long term medication in United Kingdom general practice. Although the use of the medical record has limitations, this is currently the only available method to assess a patient's drug regimen in its entirety.
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Explore the source record for details and available documents.
Explore the source record for details and available documents.
Explore the source record for details and available documents.