Irish journal of medical science
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Traditional care pathways for patients with low back pain (LBP) where general practitioners (GPs) refer to consultant specialists can lead to excessive waiting times for patients and questionable use of health care resources. The evaluation of more cost effective pathways is a priority. ⋯ Clinical Specialist physiotherapists are effective in assessing and selecting appropriate care pathways for LBP patients in line with international LBP clinical guidelines. The utility of the physical and psychological measures to differentiate between groups of varying clinical severity has important implications for treatment selection and management.
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Although blood pressure cuffs are commonly used and shared in medical facilities, their routine disinfection is performed infrequently. ⋯ Blood pressure cuffs are frequently contaminated by MRSA.
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Guidelines issued by the British Association of Plastic Reconstructive and Aesthetic Surgeons suggest that the ratio of elective to emergency cases in plastic surgery units should be 2:1. ⋯ Expansion of staff numbers at consultant and non-consultant grades, and increased resources (allocated theatre sessions and outpatient clinics) were pivotal to this change.
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Randomized Controlled Trial Comparative Study
Ventilator-associated pneumonia in patients using HME filters and heated humidifiers.
Ventilator-associated pneumonia (VAP) is a clinical form of hospital-associated pneumonia, which may develop within 48 h in patients on mechanical ventilation who had no pre-existing pneumonia at the time of intubation. ⋯ There were no significant differences between the groups on HME filters and heated humidifiers in terms of infection development; although pulmonary radiography showed delayed average days to infiltration development for subjects using HME filters.
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Stress and burnout are common among doctors. Excess levels of stress have been shown to have detrimental personal and professional effects as well as a negative influence on patient care. ⋯ Burnout is reported among interns in our pilot study. Measures need to be taken to heighten awareness of burnout among doctors and to educate physicians regarding self-awareness and personal health.