The association between socio-demographic characteristics and adherence to breast and colorectal cancer screening: Analysis of large sub populations

<p>Abstract</p> <p>Background</p> <p>Populations having lower socioeconomic status, as well as ethnic minorities, have demonstrated lower utilization of preventive screening, including tests for early detection of breast and colorectal cancer.</p> <p>The objective</p> <p>To explore socio-demographic disparities in adherence to screening recommendations for early detection of cancer.</p> <p>Methods</p> <p>The study was conducted by Maccabi Healthcare Services, an Israeli HMO (health plan) providing healthcare services to 1.9 million members. Utilization of breast cancer (BC) and colorectal cancer (CC) screening were analyzed by socio-economic ranks (SERs), ethnicity (Arab vs non-Arab), immigration status and ownership of voluntarily supplemental health insurance (VSHI).</p> <p>Results</p> <p>Data on 157,928 and 303,330 adults, eligible for BC and CC screening, respectively, were analyzed. Those having lower SER, Arabs, immigrants from Former Soviet Union countries and non-owners of VSHI performed fewer cancer screening examinations compared with those having higher SER, non-Arabs, veterans and owners of VSHI (p < 0.001). Logistic regression model for BC Screening revealed a positive association with age and ownership of VSHI and a negative association with being an Arab and having a lower SER. The model for CC screening revealed a positive association with age and ownership of VSHI and a negative association with being an Arab, having a lower SER and being an immigrant. The model estimated for BC and CC screening among females revealed a positive association with age and ownership of VSHI and a negative association with being an Arab, having a lower SER and being an immigrant.</p> <p>Conclusion</p> <p>Patients from low socio-economic backgrounds, Arabs, immigrants and those who do not own supplemental insurance do fewer tests for early detection of cancer. These sub-populations should be considered priority populations for targeted intervention programs and improved resource allocation.</p

Disparities in diabetes care: role of the patient's socio-demographic characteristics

<p>Abstract</p> <p>Background</p> <p>The commitment to promoting equity in health is derived from the notion that all human beings have the right to the best attainable health. However, disparities in health care are well-documented. The objectives were to explore disparities in diabetes prevalence, care and control among diabetic patients. The study was conducted by Maccabi Healthcare Services (MHS), an Israeli HMO (health care plan).</p> <p>Methods</p> <p>Retrospective study. The dependent variables were diabetes prevalence, uptake of follow-up examinations, and disease control. The independent variables were socio-economic rank (SER), ethnicity (Arab vs non Arab), supplementary voluntary health insurance (SVHI), and immigration from Former Soviet Union (FSU) countries. Chi Square and Logistic Regression Models were estimated.</p> <p>Results</p> <p>We analyzed 74,953 diabetes patients. Diabetes was more prevalent in males, lower SER patients, Arabs, immigrants and owners of SVHI. Optimal follow up was more frequent among females, lower SERs patients, non Arabs, immigrants and SVHI owners. Patients who were female, had higher SERs, non Arabs, immigrants and SVHI owners achieved better control of the disease. The multivariate analysis revealed significant associations between <it>optimal follow up </it>and age, gender (males), SER (Ranks 1-10), Arabs and SVHI (OR 1.02, 0.95, 1.15, 0.85 and 1.31, respectively); <it>poor diabetes control </it>(HbA1C > 9 gr%) was significantly associated with age, gender (males), Arabs, immigrants, SER (Ranks1-10) and SVHI (OR 0.96, 1.26, 1.38, 0.72, 1.37 and 0.57, respectively); significant associations with <it>LDL control </it>(< 100 gr%) were revealed for age, gender (males) and SVHI (OR 1.02, 1.30 and 1.44, respectively).</p> <p>Conclusion</p> <p>Disparities in diabetes prevalence, care and control were revealed according to population sub-group. MHS has recently established a comprehensive strategy and action plan, aimed to reduce disparities among members of low socioeconomic rank and Arab ethnicity, sub-groups identified in our study as being at risk for less favorable health outcomes.</p

Persistence with Statins and Onset of Rheumatoid Arthritis: A Population-Based Cohort Study

In a retrospective cohort study, Gabriel Chodick and colleagues find a significant association between persistence with statin therapy and reduced risk of developing rheumatoid arthritis, but only a modest decrease in risk of osteoarthritis

Voicin Being – meditatiivista ääntelyä : virtuaalitodellisuuden haasteita työpajan alustana

Opinnäytetyö syntyi tarpeesta tutkia meditaation, äänenkäytön sekä somaattisten menetelmien vaikutusta hyvinvointiin. Henkilökohtaiset kokemukseni menetelmien hedelmällisyydestä motivoivat tutkimaan niiden vaikutusta laajemmin. Tutkimuksen tavoitteena oli lisätä hyvinvoinnin ja läsnäolon kokemusta, sekä tutkia menetelmien toimivuutta uudessa oppimisympäristössä, virtuaalitodellisuudessa. Opinnäytetyö toteutettiin opetuskokeilun keinoin, ja se on tutkimuksellinen kehittämistyö. Tutkimuksen aineisto kerättiin kyselyillä, joilla kartoitettiin alku- ja lopputilannetta. Tutkimuksen tulokset antoivat epäselviä tuloksia opetuskokeilun vaikutuksista hyvinvointiin. Hyvinvointia kartoittavien monivalintakysymysten yhteistulos oli kahdella osallistujalla kolmesta negatiivisempi opetusko-keilun jälkeen. Avointen kysymysten vastaukset taas antoivat osviittaa menetelmien positiivisesta vaikutuksesta osallistujan kokemukseen hyvinvoinnista ja läsnäolosta. Opetuskertojen ja osallistujien vähäisyydestä johtuen aihetta täytyisi tutkia lisää saadakseen selkeämpiä vastauksia. Virtuaalitodellisuus osoittautui haasteista huolimatta sopivaksi ympäristöksi opetuskokeilulle, vaikka sen potentiaali ei tullut kaikissa toiminnoissa hyödynnettyä. Aihetta tulisi kuitenkin tutkia lisää esimerkiksi opetusympäristöjä vertaamalla voidakseen nähdä virtuaalitodellisuuden lisäarvon merkityksen. Opinnäytetyö voi antaa näkökulmaa virtuaalitodellisuuden huomioon otettavista haasteista, mikäli sitä haluaisi käyttää oppimisympäristönä.The thesis was born of a need to study the effects of meditation, vocalization and somatics on well-being. My personal experiences of the benefits of these methods provided motivation for further studying. The aim of the study was to increase the experience of well-being and presence as well as to study how the methods perform in an unfamiliar educational environment: virtual reality. The thesis was a research-based development work which was executed by means of a teaching experiment. The research data was collected with two surveys whose purpose was to chart the situation before and after the teaching experiment. The research of the thesis yielded unclear results regarding the effects of the teaching experiment on the well-being of the participants. The combined results of the survey charting the well-being of the participants were more negative than prior to the teaching experiment for two out of three participants. However, the answers to the open response questions gave the impression that the participants also had positive experiences regarding their well-being and state of presence. Due a limited number of lessons and participants further research is required in order to obtain clearer results. Despite the setbacks, virtual reality turned out to be a suitable environment for the teaching experiment, although its potential was not utilized in all functions. In order to determine the significance of the additional value of virtual reality, further research on the subject would be required, for example by comparing it with other educational environments. The thesis can provide perspective on the challenges VR presents in the event that it is used as an educational setting

Evaluating the Completeness of Histopathology Sample Labeling

Background and Aim: A major quality assurance target is minimizing error rates to enhance patient safety. Clinical laboratories have long focused their attention on quality control methods and quality assessment programs. The current study aimed to investigate the completeness of specimen labeling in the histopathology department. Materials and Methods: In this cross-sectional retrospective study, we analyzed labels of tissue samples sent from Orthopedics, Neurosurgery, Internal medicine, Urology, ENT, Surgery, ICU, and Endoscopy wards over three months in Urmia Imam Khomeini hospital from January 2023 to March 2023. All information including the patient's name, age, patient file number, tissue type, anatomical location, sampling date, name of the referring physician, legibility of written information, two patient identifiers (full name, date of birth or file number), and affixing the label on the body of the container was checked. Results: Of the 2178 pathology samples examined, the largest numbers of samples (53.58%) were sent from the surgery department and the least (0.69%) from the neurosurgery Ward. The lowest number of errors was related to the patient's age, which ranged from 0% in the internal medicine, neurosurgery and, endoscopy to 8.5% in the urology Ward. There was a statistically significant difference between the criteria obtained in different wards, except for the patient's name and illegibility of written information.   P-value was <0.001 for patient age, file number, tissue type, sampling date, doctor's name, label on container body and two-identifier registration, and 0.049 for the anatomical position of the sample. Conclusion: This study showed that there is a variety of errors in labeling pathology samples. This shows that the high volume of work and a large number of samples cannot be the reason for the error in the labeling. Due to the similarity of names, two samples may be mistaken for each other, but the presence of the second identifier solves this problem. Newer technologies such as bar coding may reduce the frequency of specimen labeling errors