河南省农民住院卫生服务利用状况及影响因素分析

目的掌握河南省农民卫生服务利用状况和影响因素,为新型农村合作医疗制度试点提供参考.方法采用多阶段分层整群随机抽样的方法抽取样本.由经培训合格的调查员入户询问,对住户成员逐一进行询问调查.结果河南省农村居民年住院率为26.98‰,低于2003年全国第三次卫生服务总调查农村地区居民年住院率（3.4%）.性别、年龄、文化程度、婚姻状况、经济状况等均对农村住院卫生服务利用产生影响.结论住院服务利用不足仍然是农民卫生服务的主要问题,影响住院服务利用的主要因素是经济收入.     

剖宫产手术住院费用的因子分析

目的分析支配和影响剖宫产手术患者住院费用变化的某些因子,有效地控制医疗费用的不合理增长。方法选取某妇幼保健院2005年剖宫产的住院病例,采用因子分析方法对出院病例的医疗费用进行分析。结果药物治疗因子、检查化验因子和手术因子是支配剖宫产手术患者住院费用的公因子。结论控制剖宫产手术患者住院费用的不合理增长应着力降低药费、治疗费、检查费和化验费。     

深圳市2002年急诊住院死亡病例调查

目的　查找急救各环节存在的问题 ,降低急救死亡率和伤残率 ,为进一步建设和完善急救网络提供客观依据。方法　对照 2 0 0 2年全市 6 0个急救网络医院急诊入院急救的 14 4 6份死亡病历填写调查表 ,用Profox6 0建立数据库 ,用SPSS 11 0统计分析。结果　各项急救处置用时中位数 :下达首次医嘱、执行首次医嘱和上级医师到场均为 5min ,二线医师到场 10min ;病情讨论和院内会诊时间分别为入院后 12 0min和 180min ;开始输血时间为入院后 6 0min。调查中发现一些医师对急救技术和程序掌握不到位 ,医疗文书时间因素记录不详细 ,存在制度不落实的现象 ;急诊住院死亡和院前死亡的死因谱有差别。结论　急诊住院急救在时间因素、技术因素和质量因素等方面需进一步提高 ,要提高对急救工作的重视程度     

论“医疗保健价格指数”与“看病贵”

无论是居民感受还是学者研究，多年来我国持续存在看病贵这一社会热点问题。但现行的医疗保健价格指数披露出相反的结论。本文提出用门诊病人次均医药费、出院病人人均医药费指标，来计算医疗保健类价格指数，以更科学、准确地反映患者医药费用负担水平及其变动趋势。     

Differences in the Scalability of Formal and Informal In-Home Care of Urban Elderly

Differences in the scalability of formal and informal in-home care to elderly are examined. A Guttman scale showed that exclusive use of informal in-home care was hierarchically scalable, but not when services were provided by any formal sources. There was some clustering of formal services, for example, a large number of those who received meals also used homemaker services. However, a large number of those who received nursing did not receive personal care. There was no overall pattern to the use of formal services. Implications of these findings as related to service planning and delivery are discussed.     

Risk Factors for a Prolonged Length of Stay in Women Hospitalized for Preeclampsia in Texas

Objectives. To identify correlates of a prolonged length of stay (PLOS) in women hospitalized for preeclampsia/eclampsia in Texas, USA. Methods: Statewide hospital data were obtained, and the records of women who were discharged in 2004 and/or 2005 with a principal discharge diagnosis of preeclampsia or eclampsia were extracted using ICD-9-CM codes. PLOS was defined as a stay greater than 5 days. Odds ratios (OR) for PLOS were calculated. Generalized estimating equations were used to account for a small group of women who were hospitalized multiple times during the study period for preeclampsia. A total of 21,203 records were analyzed. Results: The crude incidence of PLOS was 17.5%. Advancing maternal age was positively associated with PLOS: for every 10-year increase, there was a 20% increase in the odds of PLOS (adjusted OR = 1.20,95% confidence interval (CI): 1.13, 1.28). The strongest risk factor for PLOS was the presence of renal disease: adjusted OR 5.81 (95% CI: 3.97, 8.50). Protective factors included Medicaid beneficiary status, and being admitted from the emergency department. Conclusions: The strongest correlate of PLOS in a large cohort of women hospitalized for preeclampsia was the presence of renal disease.     

Do parents understand the medical information provided in paediatric emergency departments? A prospective multicenter study

Aim: We evaluated the extent to which parents understood the medical information about hospitalization of their child in an emergency department and looked for characteristics likely to increase the risk of poor comprehension. Methods: Prospective multicenter study in thirteen paediatric emergency departments. The parents and doctors completed questionnaires based on closed‐ended questions with a common core of four items: reasons of hospitalization, diagnosis, treatment and seriousness of child condition. We evaluated concordance between parents and doctor answers for these items by comparing their responses. Results: This study included 380 parents. Percentage of concordance was 55% for the reason of hospitalization, 78% for the diagnosis, 92% for the treatment, 48% for the seriousness of the condition and 19% for all four items. The mean number of concordant items was 2.76 (CI 95%, 2.66–2.86). Parents whose children seemed not in pain and parents who received additional information from the nurse showed significantly slightly higher levels of concordance with doctor’s answers (2.98 vs 2.66, p = 0.006 and 2.89 vs 2.60, p = 0.004, respectively). Conclusion: This study shows that improvements are required in the clarity of the information delivered to the parents. The assistance of nurses and optimal pain management may help to improve communication.     

Orthostatic hypotension in internal medicine wards

Objectives: Most studies of orthostatic hypotension (OH) have focused on community-dwelling and institutionalized patient populations. Less is known about OH in hospitalized patients. Moreover, a comprehensive review of OH in internal medicine wards has not been published in the English literature. Our purpose is to provide current information regarding OH in internal medicine inpatients.

Methods: A comprehensive search of medical databases was performed for potentially relevant articles, using the following keywords: postural or orthostatic hypotension, with the combination of hospitalization or internal medicine. Inclusion criteria were: population of patients hospitalized for acute disorders in internal medicine or geriatric wards with a sample size of ≥50 and publication as an original full-length article in the English language. Data from 14 selected studies are reviewed, including: pathophysiology, evaluation, prevalence, manifestations, risk factors, prognosis, and management.

Results: OH is a common and often symptomatic disorder in elderly internal medicine patients. The prevalence of OH in this population ranges from 22–75%. There are substantial discrepancies between the studies reviewed regarding definitions and means of evaluating OH. OH in internal medicine wards is largely non-neurogenic and multifactorial. The main predisposing factors for OH are prolonged bed rest, hypertension, and heart failure. OH in internal medicine wards is managed mainly with non-pharmacologic interventions, and is frequently reversible.

Conclusions: In internal medicine inpatients, OH warrants attention because this disorder is common, potentially dangerous, and treatable. In the hospital setting, OH should be routinely assessed on ambulation, following the current guidelines for OH definition and meaning.