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Biomedical subjects

J Hermida

Publications and source records attributed to J Hermida.

29 records · Page 2Linked to original sources
PubMed1996

Reducing patient waiting times through quality assurance methods in La Troncal, Ecuador.

Long patient waiting time is a common problem in hospitals and urban health centers in Ecuador and elsewhere. Besides being a leading cause of patient dissatisfaction with health service quality, it is often related to short doctor-patient contact times that in turn can seriously reduce the technical quality of care. This article describes a quality improvement effort undertaken by the staff of the La Troncal Health Center in Ecuador, with the assistance of a quality assurance project of the University Research Corporation and the Ecuadorian Ministry of Health. Data on patient waiting times was collected and analyzed, and solutions were devised and implemented using quality assurance techniques. As a result, the average patient's total waiting time fell from 116 minutes per visit to 66, and his or her contact time with health center staff members increased from 11 minutes to 16. It appears that the methods and techniques applied have potential for use elsewhere, because they can be applied easily by health personnel, and their cost of implementation is relatively low.

Ambulatory Care Facilities↗
PubMed1993

[Association of polycythemia vera and multiple myeloma. Presentation ofa new case and review of the literature].

We present a patient diagnosed of polycythemia vera who developed a multiple myeloma 13 years after the initial diagnosis of polycythemia vera. Although an unusual finding, another 17 patients with polycythemia and myeloma have been described. In some patients the diagnosis of both diseases was simultaneous but in most cases myeloma developed years after polycythemia vera. Some patients received only venipuncture for treatment of polycythemia vera so the appearance of multiple myeloma could not be explained on the grounds of chemotherapy induced second neoplasm. An explanation for this association is suggested.

Aged↗
PubMedDate not supplied

[Acute interstitial pneumonia: favorable outcome with steroid therapy].

We report the case of a 65-year-old man with no history of respiratory disease who came to the emergency room complaining of fever, cough, yellowish sputum and increasing dyspnea of one week's duration. Severe respiratory insufficiency was evident upon examination and a chest film showed diffuse pulmonary infiltrates. Microbiological tests were negative. Lung biopsy gave evidence consistent with diffuse alveolar damage in organizing phase. Evolution of symptoms and blood gases was good after corticosteroid treatment was begun, although pulmonary fibrosis was still evident in a follow-up radiograph.

Acute Disease↗
PubMedDate not supplied

[Preparing ourselves for cholera: a rapid evaluation of the quality of oral rehydration activities in Guatemala].

The directorate of the North Health Area of Guatemala along with the National Nutrition Institute of Centroamérica and Panama in 1991 carried out a rapid evaluation of the quality of care provided to the population for oral rehydration, acute diarrhea and cholera. The purpose was to collect data to facilitate the implementation of efficacious activities to improve quality and optimize the use of resources. The current article contains the results of the evaluation of twenty health centers of the North Health Area of Guatemala, and the consequent activities to improve the process of care. The main failures in performance where: deficient distribution of inputs; errors in the performance of physical exams of the children in the determination of the severity of dehydration; poor use of antibiotics and in the treatment of those with severe dehydration; and specially the failure to educate the mother about the proper feeding for a sick child. The delivery of inputs improved as a outcome of the actions product of the evaluation. Another activity was a workshop, combining theory and practice, of the treatment of cholera. Currently, local authorities prepare and carry out longer term interventions taking into account the results of the evaluation.

Acute Disease↗