Biomedical subjects

M Mosavel

Publications and source records attributed to M Mosavel.

3 recordsLinked to original sources

PubMed1997

Participation in teleconference support groups: application to drug-using pregnant patients.

This paper describes our experience using telephone conference calls to conduct support groups for chemically-dependent women. Forty-seven women agreed to participate in regular, weekly support groups that were conducted by two chemical dependency counselors. Counselors attempted to conduct 59 support groups via a telephone conferencing system. Our data indicated that attendance at these sessions was poor. Seventeen sessions had no participants. No group sessions were attended by 4 or more women, and only 3 sessions (7.1%) included 3 participants. Very few clients made regular use of the support groups. Only 4 clients (8.5%) participated in more than 3 group sessions. Our findings suggest that teleconferencing may not be the most effective method for providing support services to chemically-dependent women.

Female↗

PubMed1996

Educating patients at home. Community Health Rap.

OBJECTIVES: The authors analyzed the impact of home health education by studying the impact of a computer service called Community Health Rap. When patients call this service, the computer records their questions and alerts an expert who records a response. Subsequently, the computer alerts the patient that the question has been addressed. METHODS: Subjects included a group of 82 pregnant women who had used cocaine during or 1 month before pregnancy (as reported by the woman) and a group of residents of zip code areas with the lowest income in Cleveland. From the drug-using pregnant women, we collected data regarding satisfaction with Community Health Rap, usage of Community Health Rap per month, self-reported health status (using the General Health Survey), and the extent of drug use (using the Addiction Severity Index). Trained coders also classified the nature of questions posed to the Community Health Rap by either the pregnant women who abuse drugs or the members of target households. Among the pregnant women who abuse drugs, we compared the differences between those who used the service and those who did not. To control for baseline differences between the two groups, analysis of co-variance was used with exit values as the dependent variables, the baseline values as the co-variates, and participation in the Community Health Rap as the independent variable. RESULTS: Almost half (45%) of poor, undereducated subjects who lived in inner urban areas used the computer service. Content analysis of Community Health Rap messages revealed that subjects had many questions that were of a social nature (regarding sex, relationships, etc), in addition to medical questions. Analysis showed that poor health status, more frequent drug use, lower education, and age did not affect regular use of Community Health Rap service. No health outcomes or utilization of treatment were associated with regular use of Community Health Rap. One exception, however, was that regular users of Community Health Rap reported slower improvement of their pain than those who did not use Community Health Rap. CONCLUSIONS: These data suggest that expansion of information services to households will not leave the poor and the undereducated population groups "behind." They will use computer services, though such services may not have an impact on their health status or cost of care.

Adult↗

PubMed1996

Electronic self-help and support groups.

OBJECTIVES: The authors examined the impact of a voice bulletin board on the following: (1) participation in self-help efforts, (2) expression of emotional support, (3) development of solidarity within the group, (4) utilization of health-care services, and (5) health status of subjects. METHODS: Subjects were 53 pregnant women who abused drugs. A quasi-experimental design with matched control group and observations before and after intervention were carried out. Clients in the control group were asked to participate in biweekly face-to-face meetings. Clients in the experimental group participated in the voice bulletin board. Experimental subjects had previous experience with computer services. Subjects reported their level of drug use, health status, and utilization of health services. They also reported on their symptoms, attitudes toward use of physician services, loneliness, willingness to disclose information in groups, and sense of solidarity with their group. The content of the communication among the experimental group was recorded and the utterances were classified as to the type of communication. Exit interviews were done 4 months after baseline interviews were conducted. Clients were paid to complete the baseline and the exit questionnaires, and 94% completed the exit questionnaires. The dependent variables were utilization or health status at exit; the co-variate was utilization or health status at baseline; and the independent variable was the group in which the subject participated. RESULTS: Clients were eight times more likely to participate in the voice bulletin board than in the face-to-face meeting (alpha < 0.01). The majority of the comments left on the bulletin board (54.6%) were for emotional support of each other; no "flaming" or overt disagreements occurred. The more clients participated in the voice bulletin board, the more they felt a sense of solidarity with each other (alpha < 0.001). Members of the experimental group reported significantly lower rates of visiting outpatient clinics than members of the control group (alpha < 0.05). Lower utilization did not lead to poor health status or more drug use: There were no statistically significant differences in the health status and drug use between the experimental and the control groups. CONCLUSIONS: Voice bulletin boards may be an effective method of providing support to mothers who have a history of drug use. Use of these services may lead to lower cost without worsening patients' health.

Adult↗