Journal of clinical monitoring and computing
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J Clin Monit Comput · Dec 1999
Patient's perceptions of an anesthesia preoperative computerized patient interview.
Our desire to elicit a more complete medical history from our patients led to the implementation of a preoperative computerized interview. We previously demonstrated the effectiveness of the interview by computing its mean completion time for the overall patient population (n = 120), and further examined the effects of age, gender, and educational level. In this study, we investigated patient perception of the interview itself. ⋯ The Stuart-Maxwell test was used to determine statistically significant differences in answers before and after the interview. Initial questionnaire responses reflected a positive attitude toward computer usage which became even stronger after the interview. The only negative responses elicited were really more "doctor positive" than "computer negative." We conclude that patients looked favorably upon participating in a computerized medical interview provided that physician-patient contact is maintained.
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J Clin Monit Comput · Dec 1999
The influence of left lateral position on cardiac output changes after head up tilt measured by impedance cardiography.
The value of the impedance cardiography (IC) method for measuring cardiac output (CO) with the subject in the left lateral position has not yet been established. We compared the CO after a 30 degrees head-up tilt with the subjects in the supine and left lateral position. ⋯ When using the IC method of SV measurement, the absolute value of the CI changes when moving from the supine to lateral positions. It is not clear whether this change is physiologic or an artifact of the measurement technique. However, changes in CI in response to a 30 degree head up tilt are the same in either position. We conclude that changes in CI can be measured with the IC method in the lateral position.