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Biomedical subjects

J Sobal

Publications and source records attributed to J Sobal.

At least 55 records · Page 3Linked to original sources
PubMed1991

Intolerance of ambiguity among family practice residents.

The art of clinical medicine involves learning to deal with varying levels of ambiguity and uncertainty. Tolerance of ambiguity was examined by giving Budner's Intolerance of Ambiguity Scale to a sample of 37 family practice residents from a university hospital residency and 22 from a community hospital residency. Residents in both the community and university programs had similar scores. No differences existed between men and women. Compared to studies of medical students, first-year family practice residents were slightly more intolerant of ambiguity. However, intolerance of ambiguity was lower among third-year residents, suggesting that as training advances, residents may become more tolerant of ambiguity. The residency training process may lead to a reduction in intolerance of ambiguity, which produces physicians who can deal with the ambiguity and uncertainty of clinical practice.

Adult↗
PubMed1991

The house call in residency training and its relationship to future practice.

The aging of the population makes education in geriatrics vital to family practice residents, including training in house calls. This study examined the relationship of house call training in residency with current house call practices of recent graduates of family practice residencies. A questionnaire mailed to a random national sample of 301 family physicians who completed residency training between 1981 and 1986 obtained a 66% response rate with three mailings. House calls were not required in the curriculum for 80% of respondents, 30% never did house calls in residency, and 55% recognized they were not well trained in house calls. Graduates of programs in which faculty made house calls and those in which residents made house calls on a longitudinal basis were significantly more likely to offer house calls in their practices. This suggests that resident education can offer positive experiences in house call training to encourage future physicians to include house calls in their practices.

Family Practice↗
PubMed1991

A survey of resident orientation in family practice residency programs.

A questionnaire about orientations was mailed to all family practice residency program directors in the United States. One hundred percent of respondents indicated their residency had an orientation, ranging from less than one day to more than two weeks. More than 85% of the residencies had limited or no patient care involvement during orientation. Important orientation goals were to meet faculty, staff, and residents and to develop camaraderie. Most residencies evaluated their orientations. There were several significant differences in orientation programs based on characteristics of the residencies.

Family Practice↗
PubMed1990

Relationships between health protective behaviors.

Health protective behaviors are receiving increasing attention for maintaining health and preventing disease. Most research has examined specific health behaviors individually, with relatively few studies of the relationships between many health protective behaviors. This investigation examined how health protective behaviors were related with each other using data from the American Family Report, a survey of a national sample of 1,247 adults in U.S. families. Eighteen health protective behaviors were not all consistently intercorrelated with each other, with only 39% of the correlations significant at p less than .001. Factor analysis using oblique rotation revealed six underlying dimensions of health protective behaviors: not smoking, planned exercise, routine exercise, moderate drinking, absence of sedative use, and general health behaviors. These dimensions were associated with sociodemographic variables, particularly with higher education being associated with healthier behavior. The multidimensional nature of health protective behaviors needs to be considered in programs for enhancing prevention and health promotion.

Adult↗
PubMed1990

Vitamin/mineral supplement use among general practice patients in the United Kingdom.

Many patients take vitamin/mineral supplements, sometimes in doses which may cause toxicity. A survey of 186 patients in one general practice showed that 44% consumed supplements; almost half of these took them daily, and over half had taken them for longer than a year. Younger patients were more likely to take vitamins than older ones. Multivitamins were the most frequently used supplement, followed by iron and vitamin C. Major reasons patients cited for supplement use were to ensure good nutrition, to prevent illness, and for tiredness/fatigue. Patients were most influenced in their decision to take vitamins by family and friends rather than by doctors. General practitioners may find it valuable to include questions about vitamin/mineral supplement use in the medical history.

Adolescent↗
PubMed1990

Vitamin/mineral supplement use by geriatric outpatients in the United Kingdom.

Many elderly people in the United States take vitamin/mineral supplements, but little is known about supplement use by the elderly in the United Kingdom. Among 203 patients referred to a geriatric outpatient clinic in Britain, 28% used supplements during the last year. Most supplement users consumed them daily and had used them for over a year. Multivitamins were the most frequent type of supplement taken, followed by Iron, B Vitamins, Vitamin C, and Vitamin E. The primary reasons for supplement use were for more energy, treating illness, and feeling stronger.

Aged↗
PubMed1989

Intolerance of ambiguity in students entering medical school.

Intolerance of ambiguity is the perception of ambiguous situations as a threat. Medical students with differing levels of intolerance of ambiguity may select medical specialties based upon the amount of ambiguity existing in the practice of each specialty. A cross-sectional survey at one state university administered Budner's Intolerance of Ambiguity Scale to all entering first-year medical students for four consecutive years (N = 609) to investigate patterns of intolerance of ambiguity in relationship with demographic variables and initial medical specialty preference. The medical students in this study were more intolerant of ambiguity than those first studied by Budner in 1962. Students entering in 1985 were slightly more intolerant of ambiguity than students in 1988. Students age 23 and older were less intolerant of ambiguity than students 18-22 years old. Men and students with natural/physical science undergraduate majors were more intolerant of ambiguity than their counterparts. However, medical specialty preference was not related to intolerance of ambiguity. Intolerance of ambiguity may be a personality trait or a learned characteristic, and needs further investigation.

Adaptation, Psychological↗
PubMed1989

Socioeconomic status and obesity: a review of the literature.

A review of 144 published studies of the relationship between socioeconomic status (SES) and obesity reveals a strong inverse relationship among women in developed societies. The relationship is inconsistent for men and children in developed societies. In developing societies, however, a strong direct relationship exists between SES and obesity among men, women, and children. A review of social attitudes toward obesity and thinness reveals values congruent with the distribution of obesity by SES in different societies. Several variables may mediate the influence of attitudes toward obesity and thinness among women in developed societies that result in the inverse relationship between SES and obesity. They include dietary restraint, physical activity, social mobility, and inheritance.

Adult↗
PubMed1989

Relation of perceived health with psychosocial variables in elderly osteoarthritis patients.

Self-perceived health is related to physical health status and frequently assessed in research on elderly persons. The association of perceived health with sociodemographic, psychological, social functioning, and physical functioning variables was examined in 86 elderly osteoarthritis patients. Psychological well-being (especially depression and anxiety), size of household, physical activity, and education were the most important predictors of self-perceived health (R = .70). Poor perceived health may suggest problems in elderly patients in several psychosocial areas, but good perceived health does not rule out psychosocial problems.

Activities of Daily Living↗
PubMed1989

House call practices among young family physicians.

Once a major part of medical practice, physician house calls have declined in frequency over the years. Recently, it has been suggested that house calls are increasing. This study examined the current self-reported house call practices among recent graduates of family practice residency programs in the United States. A questionnaire was mailed to a cross-sectional, random national sample of 301 family physicians who are members of the American Academy of Family Physicians and who completed a residency between 1981 and 1986. There was a 66% response rate to three mailings, with 197 questionnaires analyzed. Sixty-two percent of the physicians reported they were making house calls. The majority (53%) made less than one house call per month. Fewer than 15% made house calls on a weekly basis. There was a downward trend by residency year in the percentage of physicians making house calls when comparing graduates from 1981 to 1986. House calls do not appear to be a significant part of the practice of young family physicians.

Adult↗
PubMed1989

Anemia in the elderly. A survey of physicians' approaches to diagnosis and workup.

Anemia is one of the most common clinical problems encountered by physicians caring for elderly patients. There is controversy about whether anemia should be regarded as a "normal" concomitant of the aging process. A survey of 232 Maryland physicians was conducted to examine how they approach this problem. The levels of both hemoglobin and hematocrit at which practicing physicians diagnose and perform an anemia workup on elderly patients were lower than currently recommended. Physicians who see more elderly patients used significantly lower values of hemoglobin and hematocrit for the diagnosis and workup of anemia. There were no significant differences between family physicians and internists in their approach to diagnosis or workup of anemia in the elderly.

Aged↗
PubMed1989

Dietary habits, weight history, and vitamin supplement use in elderly osteoarthritis patients.

Osteoarthritis is a chronic disabling disease in the elderly, but few studies have examined nutritional parameters of osteoarthritis patients. For 82 ambulatory elderly osteoarthritis patients, a registered dietitian assessed the following: consumption of 72 food items, using a food-frequency questionnaire; weight history, by measuring current weight and asking the weight at age 20, maximum adult weight, and minimum adult weight; dietary habits; and vitamin supplement consumption. Joint pain and activities of daily living (ADL) were assessed by a physician. On the basis of the Four Food Group guidelines, dietary intakes were suboptimal in the dairy and grain groups, which are important sources of calcium, vitamin D, thiamin, iron, and riboflavin. Eighty percent of the sample were obese (BMI greater than or equal to 27). The average weight change since early adulthood was a gain of 59 lb. Current joint pain and ADL restrictions were not related to obesity or weight gain. Vitamin/mineral supplements were consumed by 37% of the sample.

Activities of Daily Living↗
PubMed1988

Self-reported referral patterns in practices of family/general practitioners, internists, and obstetricians/gynecologists.

A profile of referrals can help to define the characteristics of a physician's practice. Self-reported referral patterns in the practices of Family/General Practitioners (FP/GP), Internists (IM), and Obstetricians/Gynecologists (OB/GYN) in Maryland were assessed with a questionnaire mailed to an area sample of 1,715 physicians. A 65% response rate was obtained after three mailings (weighted N = 1,487). Self-reported referrals received per month averaged 16% of patients seen (six percent FP/GP, 13% OB/GYN, 23% IM), and were more frequent among self-employed, younger, metropolitan and female physicians who spent less time in patient care. Self-reported referrals made per month averaged ten percent (10% FP/GP), 11% IM, and eight percent OB/GYN), and were higher for physicians in metropolitan areas. The correlation between percentage referrals received and percentage referrals made was r = .19 (r = .03 FP/GP, r = .21 IM, r = .25 OB/GYN). Self-reported practice referral patterns are similar to referrals reported in prior studies, and can be used to consider specialty differences in referral behavior of physicians.

Family Practice↗
PubMed1988

Self-report depression scales in the elderly: the relationship between the CES-D and ZUNG.

Depression is one of the most common mental health problems in the elderly, but there is little consensus about the best way to assess depression in the aged. The relationship between the CES-D and the ZUNG self-report depression scales was investigated in seventy-eight elderly people with osteoarthritis (mean age 71). The correlation between the scales was r = .69, with the CES-D classifying 15 percent of the participants as depressed, as compared to 6 percent by the ZUNG. Psychological symptoms had the strongest relationship with overall depression scores on both scales. No sex differences were found on psychological items on either scale, but females reported more somatic symptoms on the ZUNG. People over age seventy-four reported more psychological symptoms than their younger counterparts.

Aged↗