Medical care
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Randomized Controlled Trial Comparative Study Clinical Trial
Quantitative and qualitative differences between handout and mailed patient satisfaction surveys.
Patient satisfaction surveys are widely used to measure patients' opinions of the quality of the health care they have received. There are a variety of methods for distributing patient satisfaction surveys. Different distribution methods may yield significantly different satisfaction ratings. ⋯ Both quantitative and qualitative differences between the 2 distribution methods were revealed. Attempts to compare data obtained from the 2 different distribution methods need to be approached with caution.
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Randomized Controlled Trial Clinical Trial
Surveying minorities with limited-English proficiency: does data collection method affect data quality among Asian Americans?
Little is known about how modes of survey administration affect response rates and data quality among populations with limited-English proficiency (LEP). Asian Americans are a rapidly growing minority group with large numbers of LEP immigrants. ⋯ Telephone interviews and mail surveys with phone reminder calls are feasible options to survey LEP Chinese and Vietnamese Americans. These methods may be less costly and labor-intensive ways to include LEP minorities in research.
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Randomized Controlled Trial Multicenter Study Comparative Study Clinical Trial
Long-term randomized controlled trials of tailored-print and small-group arthritis self-management interventions.
The objective of this study was to test the effectiveness of a mail-delivered, tailored self-management intervention (SMART) and to compare it with the classic Arthritis Self-Management Program (ASMP). ⋯ A mail-delivered arthritis self-management program, SMART, was similarly effective to the classic ASMP, with slightly better results in the first year and a slightly more rapid attenuation over the next 2 years. Results suggest that both programs are effective, and that the addition of a mail-delivered program could improve accessibility to arthritis self-management treatment.
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Randomized Controlled Trial Comparative Study Clinical Trial
Reducing the cost of frequent hospital admissions for congestive heart failure: a randomized trial of a home telecare intervention.
The high cost of caring for patients with congestive heart failure (CHF) results primarily from frequent hospital readmissions for exacerbations. Home nurse visits after discharge can reduce readmissions, but the intervention costs are high. ⋯ Substantial reductions in hospital readmissions, emergency visits, and cost of care for patients with CHF might be achieved by widespread deployment of distance technologies to provide posthospitalization monitoring. Home telecare may not offer incremental benefit beyond telephone follow-up and is more expensive.
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Randomized Controlled Trial Multicenter Study Clinical Trial
Educational program for nursing home physicians and staff to reduce use of non-steroidal anti-inflammatory drugs among nursing home residents: a randomized controlled trial.
The risk for serious gastrointestinal complications due to nonsteroidal anti-inflammatory drugs (NSAIDs) is high in the elderly. Acetaminophen-based regimens are safer and may be as effective as NSAIDs for the treatment of osteoarthritis in many patients. ⋯ An educational intervention effectively reduced NSAID use in nursing homes without worsening of arthritis pain.