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Validation and utility of the patient health questionnaire in diagnosing mental disorders in 1003 general hospital Spanish inpatients.

OBJECTIVE: To determine whether the Spanish version of the patient health questionnaire (PHQ) has validity and utility for diagnosing mental disorders in general hospital inpatients. METHODS: Participants in the study were 1003 general hospital inpatients, randomly selected from all admissions over an 18-month period. All of them completed the PHQ, the Beck Depression Inventory (BDI), and measures of functional status, disability days, and health care use, including length of hospital stay. They also had a structured interview with a mental health professional. RESULTS: A total of 416 (42%) of the 1003 general hospital inpatients had a PHQ diagnosis. There was good agreement between PHQ diagnoses and those of an independent mental health professional (for the diagnosis of any PHQ disorder, kappa = 0.74; overall accuracy, 88%; sensitivity, 87%; specificity, 88%), similar to the original English version of the PHQ in primary care patients. Patients with PHQ diagnoses had more functional impairment, disability days, and health care use than did patients without PHQ diagnoses (group main effects for functional status measures and disability days, p < .001; group main effects for health care use, p < .01). The group main effect for hospital length of stay was not significant. An index of depression symptom severity calculated from the PHQ correlated significantly both with the number of depressive symptoms detected at interview and the total BDI score. PHQ administration was well accepted by patients. CONCLUSIONS: The Spanish version of the PHQ has diagnostic validity in general hospital inpatients comparable to the original English version in primary care.

Adolescent↗

Alcoholism among indigent inpatients: identification and intervention by internal medicine residents.

BACKGROUND: This study examined alcoholism identification and interventions by internal medicine residents, determined the prevalence of alcoholism among indigent inpatients, and examined some variables related to alcoholism in this population. METHODS: The alcohol abuse and dependence section of the Diagnostic Interview Schedule was administered to 197 inpatients, and chart audits were done. RESULTS: The obtained prevalence of alcoholism was 17%. Residents identified current alcohol abuse among 71% of current alcoholics, 17% of past alcoholics, and 3% of nonalcoholics. Sixty-two percent of alcoholics identified by the residents did not receive advice or referral, 13% received advice, 17% were referred to Alcoholics Anonymous, and 8% were referred to an inpatient facility. CONCLUSIONS: Our results suggest that although residents' identification of alcoholism is satisfactory, it is necessary to improve their rates of intervention. The profile of the alcoholic inpatients in this study includes demographics, presence of chronic illnesses, and utilization of medical services as compared with nonalcoholics.

Adult↗

Trends in HIV-related inpatient admissions from 1993 to 1997: a seven-state study.

BACKGROUND AND OBJECTIVES: Reports of declining HIV-related inpatient use have typically been based on limited or local data. Using comprehensive hospital discharge data from seven states, this study examines trends in HIV-related inpatient admission rates and lengths of stay from 1993 through 1997. METHODS: We identified HIV-related admissions by the International Classification of Diseases, ninth edition (ICD-9-CM) diagnosis codes in the range 042 to 044. Analyses assessed effects of state, gender, race/ethnicity, insurance, and time period; they also examined differential patterns of change. RESULTS: HIV-related inpatient admission rates rose between 1993 and 1995 but began declining steadily starting in late 1995. This general pattern occurred for all states, demographic groups, and insurers. The magnitude of the decline varied; admissions for white males and for patients with private insurance showed the greatest decreases. Admission rates were highest for African-American males and lowest for white females. Lengths of stay declined steadily; trends did not differ by demographic group or payer. CONCLUSIONS: Results document the recent decline in HIV-related hospital admission rates. Relative declines in admissions parallel reported disparities in access to new antiretroviral therapies. Racial/ethnic disparities in inpatient use persist.

HIV Infections↗

Hypersexual behavior in hasidic jewish inpatients.

Although no published studies explore rates of sexual symptoms among mentally ill Hasidic Jews, anecdotal observations led to the lead author's hypothesis that male Hasidic Jewish psychiatric inpatients often demonstrated hypersexual behavior. We examined whether male Hasidic Jewish psychiatric inpatients had higher reported rates of hypersexual behavior than controls. We reviewed charts of all Hasidic Jews admitted in 1998 to one inpatient psychiatric hospital and age/diagnosis/gender-matched comparisons for evidence of reported hypersexual behavior. Sixty-nine percent of male Hasidic patients and 40% of female Hasidic patients had staff reports of hypersexual behavior compared with 19% of male and 20% of female comparisons. There was statistically significant discordance between male (p <.04) but not female pairs. Increased rates of reported hypersexual behavior in Hasidic male inpatients suggest a link between culture and symptom presentation, which further studies of this unique population group should explore.

Adolescent↗

Use of health services, mental illness, and self-rated disability and health in medical inpatients.

OBJECTIVE: The primary objective of this study was to investigate if among medical inpatients their health service use was associated with 1) presence and type of mental disorders, 2) emotional distress and somatization, 3) self-rated physical disability and health. METHOD: Health service use (number of admissions to nonpsychiatric departments and reimbursement of primary care services) as well as psychological distress (SCL-8D) and somatization (Whiteley-7) was assessed for 294 consecutive medical inpatients. Patients rated their own health and physical functioning, and medical consultants assessed them for chronic and life-threatening diseases. A subsample of 157 patients was assessed for ICD-10 psychiatric diagnoses by means of an extensive semistructured interview (SCAN). RESULTS: High use (above 80th percentile) of inpatient admissions was statistically significantly associated to mental disorders (adjusted OR = 3.6 [95%CI, 1.3-9.7]), to anxiety and/or depression, somatoform disorders, chronic and life-threatening physical disease, severe (self-rated) physical disability, and SCL-8 and Whiteley-7 scores. High use of primary care was statistically significantly associated to mental disorders (OR = 3.4 [95%CI, 1.5-8.0]), to anxiety and/or depression, somatoform disorders, moderate or severe (self-rated) physical disability, fair, poor or very poor (self-rated) health, and the Whiteley-7 score. The SCL-8D score was significant in men only. CONCLUSION: Mentally disordered medical inpatients use health care more heavily than patients without, also after adjustment for medical disease severity. Use is closely associated to the Whiteley-7 and the SCL-8D.

Adolescent↗

Topical psoralen photochemotherapy for atopic dermatitis: evaluation of two therapeutic regimens for inpatients and outpatients.

Forty-seven adolescent and adult patients suffering from long-standing atopic dermatitis (AD) too severe to respond to conventional therapies were treated with topical psoralen photochemotherapy (PUVA) and relatively low doses of ultraviolet (UV) irradiation. For practicality and convenience, two different therapeutic regimens were implemented; short-term hospitalization with almost daily irradiation (inpatient group, n = 23) and weekly irradiation combined with topical corticosteroids which had failed to manage symptoms before initiating the treatment (outpatient group, n = 25). Excellent therapeutic effects were achieved in 72% of the inpatients after 5-38 (mean 18.2) times of irradiation (mean cumulative dose; 44.7 J/cm2). In addition, 56% of outpatients responded excellently to the treatment after 6-22 (mean 13.0) times (mean cumulative dose; 25.8 J/cm2). In fact, 16 of the inpatients and 10 of the outpatients achieved almost complete remission. The duration of remission in these patients was 1-25 months (mean 6.3 months) in the inpatients and 1-6 months (mean 3.0 months) in the outpatients. Peripheral blood eosinophils significantly decreased after the treatments. A follow-up study showed a delayed decrease in serum IgE levels. In contrast, the specific IgE to house dust antigens and the water holding capacity of stratum corneum did not vary after treatment.

Adolescent↗

Nurses' Observation Scale for Inpatient Evaluation: reliability update.

BACKGROUND: The Nurses' Observation Scale for Inpatient Evaluation is a 30-item scale designed in 1965 for behavioural and observational rating of psychiatric inpatients. AIM: This paper reports a re-evaluation of the Nurses' Observation Scale for Inpatient Evaluation carried out to confirm that it remains reliable in a modern United Kingdom (UK) setting. METHOD: The scale is a joint-rated one and we tested the degree of agreement between two individual raters and not, as in previous studies, between two pairs of raters. A total of 100 patients were each rated by two nurses, and a least-squares simple regression model was used to describe the average level of agreement between the pairs of ratings. RESULTS: The correlation in total scale scores was 0.76 (F = 136, P < 0.0001). The correlations for Negative and Positive Factors were 0.68 (P < 0.001) and 0.75 (P < 0.001), respectively. CONCLUSION: This study has shown that the Nurses' Observation Scale for Inpatient Evaluation retains satisfactory inter-rater reliability with current clinical populations, and we suggest that it remains a useful tool for everyday clinical practice and a basis for meaningful communication between staff about patient status.

Adolescent↗

Quality of life of cancer patients receiving inpatient and home-based palliative care.

AIMS: This paper reports a comparative study of the symptom experience, physical and psychological health, perceived control of the effects of cancer and quality of life of terminally ill cancer patients receiving inpatient and home-based palliative care, and the factors that predict quality of life. BACKGROUND: Quality of life is a major goal in the care of patients with terminal cancer. In addition to symptom management, psychological care and provision of support, being cared for at home is considered an important determinant of patient well-being. A more comprehensive understanding of the impact of cancer on patients and their families will inform the delivery of palliative care services. METHODS: Fifty-eight patients with terminal cancer (32 inpatients, 26 home-based) were recruited from major palliative care centres in Australia in 1999. A structured questionnaire designed to obtain sociodemographic information, medical details and standard measures of symptoms, physical and psychological health, personal control and quality of life was administered by personal interview. RESULTS: The two groups were similar on most demographic measures, although more home-care patients were married, of Australian descent and had private health insurance cover. The most prevalent symptoms reported were weakness, fatigue, sleeping during the day and pain. Patients receiving home-based services had statistically significantly less symptom severity and distress, lower depression scores, and better physical health and quality of life than those receiving inpatient care. Home-care patients also reported statistically significantly more control over the effects of their illness, medical care and treatment received, and the course of the disease. Multiple regression analyses showed that better global physical health, greater control over the effects of cancer and lower depression scores were statistically significant predictors of higher quality of life. CONCLUSIONS: The main issues arising from the findings for nurses are the early detection and management of both physical and psychological symptoms, particularly fatigue, pain, anxiety and depression, and the need to use strategies that will empower patients to have a greater sense of control over their illness and treatment. Research is needed to identify other factors that may impact on quality of life, and to establish the extent to which inpatient and home-based care meets the needs of both the patient with terminal cancer and their family.

Adult↗

Redesigning acute mental health services: an audit into the quality of inpatient care before and after service redesign in Grampian.

Redesigning acute mental health services: an audit into the quality of inpatient care before and after service redesign in Grampian As part of the redesign of adult mental health services in Grampian and in line with the Scottish Framework for Mental Health (1997), the decision was made to close one of the five acute mental health admission wards within Royal Cornhill Hospital. Inpatient services were to be provided within the remaining four admission wards by increasing their bed compliment from 25 to 28 and by increasing the staffing compliment of the community mental health teams serving Aberdeen city and Aberdeenshire. The adult mental health directorate commissioned an audit to measure certain key items in the 6 months leading up to the redesign and in the 6 months post redesign. This audit focused on the number of admissions, the bed occupancy, the number of incidents, the number of days the ward doors were locked, observation levels, sickness levels and the number of bank hours used. These factors were felt to be important indicators in the monitoring of the quality of patient care as any increase in the instance of these factors could be seen as detrimental to patient care. Therefore, a comparison of these factors, pre- and post-ward closure, was seen as a useful method of assessing the effect of the ward closure and the subsequent loss of seven acute inpatient beds. As the results of the audit showed that the rate of these factors had not increased, it was assumed the quality of care in the inpatient service was as at least as good following the redesign as it was before it. Two issues arose from the audit that merit further discussion, that is, the differences in the numbers of observations and in the numbers of times the ward doors were locked. Two G grade community psychiatric nurses were employed on a 0.5 session per week basis to collect and collate the data.

Acute Disease↗

Clinician perceptions of personal safety and confidence to manage inpatient aggression in a forensic psychiatric setting.

Inpatient mental health clinicians need to feel safe in the workplace. They also require confidence in their ability to work with aggressive patients, allowing the provision of therapeutic care while protecting themselves and other patients from psychological and physical harm. The authors initiated this study with the predetermined belief that a comprehensive and integrated organizational approach to inpatient aggression was required to support clinicians and that this approach increased confidence and staff perceptions of personal safety. To assess perceptions of personal safety and confidence, clinicians in a forensic psychiatric hospital were surveyed using an adapted version of the Confidence in Coping With Patient Aggression Instrument. In this study clinicians reported the hospital as safe. They reported confidence in their work with aggressive patients. The factors that most impacted on clinicians' confidence to manage aggression were colleagues' knowledge, experience and skill, management of aggression training, use of prevention and intervention strategies, teamwork and the staff profile. These results are considered with reference to an expanding literature on inpatient aggression. It is concluded that organizational resources, policies and frameworks support clinician perceptions of safety and confidence to manage inpatient aggression. However, how these are valued by clinicians and translated into practice at unit level needs ongoing attention.

Adaptation, Psychological↗

The meaning of depression: Swedish nurses' perceptions of depressed inpatients.

People suffering from depressive disorder are affected by one of the western world's largest medical groups of disorders in both psychiatric and general medicine. Drug treatment is usually the first-line intervention and has been shown to be an effective treatment. Other therapies, including nursing interventions that could be implemented in care, are infrequently used. It is therefore important to understand whether nurses' perceptions of depressed people could be explained from the medical model by defining the nurses' view of psychiatric inpatients. Therefore, the aim of this study was, with the clinical picture as the starting point, to investigate the nurses' view of hospitalized patients with a diagnosis of depression. In this prospective study, 155 nurses' opinion of depression among depressive inpatients was assessed using a questionnaire based on the Montgomery-Asberg Depression Rating Scale. To elucidate the relationship between the variables in the questionnaire, factor analysis rotated by the Varimax method with Kaiser's normalization was used. The factor analysis identified five factors. The number of variables was reduced from 61 to 34. Based on the factor interpretation, an initial factor structure for the depressive inpatient was defined. The identified factors were interpreted and labelled to create the nurses' fused "picture" or meaning of the depressed inpatient as an individual who experienced feelings of annihilation, alienation, fatigue, emptiness and affliction, an individual who is disconnected from the whole of temporality.

Acute Disease↗

A comparison of maprotiline and its desmethylated metabolite serum concentrations in outpatients and inpatients.

An investigation was conducted on drug defaulting in 26 depressed patients (11 outpatients and 15 inpatients) treated with maprotiline (MPT), using the interrogation methods and measurements of drug serum levels. All the outpatients visited the clinic regularly and complied with taking the prescripted drugs as directed. The results were as follows: (1) The relationships between the MPT and desmethylmaprotiline (DMPT) serum levels and the daily MPT doses showed highly linear regressions in all the patients, and in the inpatients and outpatients separately. There were significant differences between the regression coefficients obtained in the outpatients and inpatients with respect to MPT (P less than 0.01) and DMPT (P less than 0.001). There was a discrepancy between the results from the patients' reports and measurements of the drug serum levels. This finding indicated noncompliance by the outpatients. (2) Comparing various factors of the outpatients to those of the inpatients, the DMPT/MPT ratio of the former was higher than that of the latter (P less than 0.05). This was also due to the patients' noncompliance, and this ratio, therefore, was considered to be a sensitive marker for checking the compliance of the patients treated with MPT.

Adult↗

Cost effectiveness of day stay versus inpatient radiofrequency (RF) ablation for the treatment of supraventricular tachyarrhythmias.

BACKGROUND: It is well established that radiofrequency (RF) ablation is the most cost effective treatment strategy for patients with supraventricular tachycardia. Previous cost estimates assumed at least an overnight stay following RF ablation. Day stay RF ablation however appears to be a safe alternative. AIMS: The aim of this study was to compare day stay and inpatient catheter ablation in terms of cost, efficacy and safety. METHODS: This was a retrospective cost effectiveness analysis. The study population consisted of 25 consecutive patients who underwent day stay RF ablation and 25 consecutive patients who underwent inpatient RF ablation (historical controls). Economic analysis was based upon a detailed clinical costing. RESULTS: The mean overall cost per patient of inpatient RF ablation in 1994 Australian dollar values is $2354 (SD, $642) compared with $1876 (SD, $595) for day stay RF ablation (p < 0.01). Day stay RF ablation is a cost effective alternative to inpatient RF ablation.

Adult↗

Evaluating the performance of inpatient attending physicians: a new instrument for today's teaching hospitals.

OBJECTIVE: Instruments available to evaluate attending physicians fail to address their diverse roles and responsibilities in current inpatient practice. We developed a new instrument to evaluate attending physicians on medical inpatient services and tested its reliability and validity. DESIGN: Analysis of 731 evaluations of 99 attending physicians over a 1-year period. SETTING: Internal medicine residency program at a university-affiliated public teaching hospital. PARTICIPANTS: All medical residents (N= 145) and internal medicine attending physicians (N= 99) on inpatient ward rotations for the study period. MEASUREMENTS: A 32-item questionnaire assessed attending physician performance in 9 domains: evidence-based medicine, bedside teaching, clinical reasoning, patient-based teaching, teaching sessions, patient care, rounding, professionalism, and feedback. A summary score was calculated by averaging scores on all items. RESULTS: Eighty-five percent of eligible evaluations were completed and analyzed. Internal consistency among items in the summary score was 0.95 (Cronbach's alpha). Interrater reliability, using an average of 8 evaluations, was 0.87. The instrument discriminated among attending physicians with statistically significant differences on mean summary score and all 9 domain-specific mean scores (all comparisons, P <.001). The summary score predicted winners of faculty teaching awards (odds ratio [OR], 17; 95% confidence interval [CI], 8 to 36) and was strongly correlated with residents' desire to work with the attending again (r =.79; 95% CI, 0.74 to 0.83). The single item that best predicted the summary score was how frequently the physician made explicit his or her clinical reasoning in making medical decisions (r(2)=.90). CONCLUSION: The new instrument provides a reliable and valid method to evaluate the performance of inpatient teaching attending physicians.

Clinical Competence↗

What effect does inpatient physician specialty and experience have on clinical outcomes and resource utilization on a general medical service?

OBJECTIVE: To examine the effects of internal medicine specialty and physician experience on inpatient resource use and clinical outcomes on an academic general medicine service. DESIGN: A 1-year retrospective cohort study. SETTING: The University of Michigan Hospitals, Ann Arbor, Michigan. PATIENTS: Two thousand six hundred seventeen admissions to the general medicine service from July 2001 to June 2002, excluding those for whom data were incomplete (n = 18). MEASUREMENTS AND MAIN RESULTS: Length of stay (LOS) and total hospital costs were used to measure resource utilization. Hospital mortality and 14-day and 30-day readmission rates were used to measure clinical outcomes. Adjusted mean LOS was significantly greater for rheumatologists (0.56 days greater; P =.002) and endocrinologists (0.38 days greater; P =.03) compared to general internists. Total costs were lower for general internists compared to endocrinologists ($1100 lower; P =.01) and rheumatologists ($431 lower; P =.07). Hospitalists showed a trend toward reduced LOS compared to all other physicians (0.31 days lower; P =.06). The top two deciles of physicians stratified by recent inpatient general medical experience showed significantly reduced LOS compared to all other physicians (0.35 days lower; P =.04). No significant differences were seen in readmission rates or in-hospital mortality among the various physician groups. CONCLUSIONS: General internists had lower lengths of stay and costs compared to endocrinologists and rheumatologists. Hospitalists showed a trend toward reduced LOS compared to all other physicians. Recent inpatient general medicine experience appears to be a determinant of reduced inpatient resource use.

Academic Medical Centers↗

The impact of evidence on physicians' inpatient treatment decisions.

OBJECTIVE: Previous studies have shown that most medical inpatients receive treatment supported by strong evidence (evidence-based treatment), but they have not assessed whether and how physicians actually use evidence when making their treatment decisions. We investigated whether physicians would change inpatient treatment if presented with the results of a literature search. DESIGN: Before-after study. SETTING: Large public teaching hospital. PARTICIPANTS: Random sample of 146 inpatients cared for by 33 internal medicine attending physicians. INTERVENTIONS: After physicians committed to a specific diagnosis and treatment plan, investigators performed standardized literature searches and provided the search results to the attending physicians. MEASUREMENTS AND MAIN RESULTS: The primary study outcome was the number of patients whose attending physicians would change treatment due to the literature searches. These changes were evaluated by blinded peer review. A secondary outcome was the proportion of patients who received evidence-based treatment before and after the literature searches. Attending physicians changed treatment for 23 (18%) of 130 eligible patients (95% confidence interval, 12% to 24%) as a result of the literature searches. Overall, 86% of patients (112 of 130) received evidence-based treatments before the searches and 87% (113 of 130) after the searches. Changes were not related to whether patients were receiving evidence-based treatment before the search (P =.6). Panels of peer reviewers judged the quality of patient care as improved or maintained for 18 (78%) of the 23 patients with treatment changes. CONCLUSIONS: Searching the literature could improve the treatment of many medical inpatients, including those already receiving evidence-based treatment.

Adult↗

Risk factors for venous thrombosis in medical inpatients: validation of a thrombosis risk score.

BACKGROUND/OBJECTIVES: The occurrence of and risk factors for venous thrombosis (VT) complicating hospital admission in unselected medical inpatients have not been widely studied. PATIENTS AND METHODS: In a 400-bed teaching hospital we identified all cases of VT complicating hospital admission between September 2000 and September 2002 using discharge codes and chart review. Controls were randomly selected adult inpatients frequency matched to cases for medical service. RESULTS: The incidence of VT complicating hospital admission was 7.6 per 1000 admissions. On average, VT was diagnosed on the fifth hospital day. The median age of the 65 cases and 123 controls was 68 years and 45% were men. Cases had a 4-fold higher death rate than controls [95% confidence interval (CI) 1.9, 8.8]. At admission, trauma within 3 months, leg edema, pneumonia, platelet count > 350 x 10(3) mm(-3) and certain cancers were associated with risk of VT. Age, body mass index, and acute myocardial infarction were not associated with VT risk. One of three published VT risk models was able to risk stratify patients and was associated with a 2.6-fold increased risk of VT (95% CI 1.3, 5.5). Use of VT prophylaxis did not differ in cases and controls; prophylaxis was used < 1/3 of hospital days in 52% of patients. CONCLUSIONS: VT was common among medical inpatients. Of the risk factors identified, elevated platelet count has not been previously reported. Only one of three published risk scores was associated with risk of inpatient VT. Future study should improve upon risk prediction models for in-hospital VT among medical patients.

Adolescent↗

Recently discharged inpatients as a source of emergency department overcrowding.

OBJECTIVE: To assess the impact on the emergency department (ED) of recently discharged inpatients and how they contribute to and worsen the current situation of ED overcrowding. METHODS: Retrospective, observational study of medical records and billing data of all patients presenting to the ED within seven days of inpatient discharge from the hospital ("returns") in September 2000. The data were collected from electronic logs. Billing charges were used to estimate ED resources. Medical records were reviewed to classify visits: 1) new problem, 2) related problem, likely preventable, 3) related problem, not likely preventable, 4) unable to classify, or 5) incomplete chart. RESULTS: One-hundred seventy-four returns occurred among 6,290 total ED visits (3%). Significant differences between returns and total ED patients were noted for length of stay (LOS) (6.58 vs 5.22 hours, p = 0.000), percent admitted (47% vs 19%, p = 0.000), and ED billing (1,415.67 dollars vs 391.00 dollars, p = 0.000). The highest rate of admission was for patients presenting 48-72 hours after inpatient discharge (65.4%). Admission rate was higher for patients presenting >48 hours than <48 hours (54% vs 33%, p = 0.01). A review of the medical records (117/174) revealed: 15 new problems (13%); 16 related, likely preventable (14%); 72 related, not likely preventable (62%); 4 unable to assess (2%); and 10 incomplete charts (9%). CONCLUSIONS: The ED is appropriately utilized as a safety net for discharged inpatients. Though "returns" are a small percentage of ED patients, they have longer LOSs, have higher ED charges, and are more frequently admitted. Returns increase the strain on an already overcrowded ED.

Crowding↗