Mature-age entrants to medical school: a controlled study of sociodemographic characteristics, career choice and job satisfaction

A comparison of 121 mature-age and 270 normal-age entrants who graduated from the University of Queensland Medical School between 1972 and 1987 shows that mature-age entrants are some 7 years older, are more likely to come from public (state) schools and less likely to have parents in professional/technical occupations. Otherwise, the two groups were similar in terms of gender, marital status, number of children, ethnic background and current practice location. The educational background of mature-age entrants prior to admission includes 44.6% with degrees in health-science areas and 31.4% with degrees in non-health areas. Reasons for delayed entry of mature-age entrants include late consideration of medicine as a career (34.7%), financial problems (31.4%), dissatisfaction with previous career (30.6%), poor academic results (19.8%), or a combination of the above factors. Motivations to study medicine include family influences (more so in normal-age entrants), altruistic reasons (more so in mature-age entrants) and a variety of personal/social factors such as intellectual satisfaction, prestige and financial security (similar for both groups) and parental expectations (more so in normal-age entrants). Mature-age entrants experienced greater stress throughout the medical course, especially with regard to financial difficulties, loneliness/isolation from the students and family problems (a greater proportion were married with children). While whole-course grades were similar in both groups, normal-age entrants tended to win more undergraduate honours/prizes and postgraduate diplomas/degrees, including specialist qualifications. Practice settings were similar in terms of group private practice, hospital/clinic practice or medical administration, but there was a greater proportion of mature-age entrants in solo private practice, and a smaller proportion in teaching/research. If given the time over, some two-thirds of both groups would choose medicine as a career. Reasons for job satisfaction include helping patients, intellectual stimulation and financial rewards. Reasons for dissatisfaction include pressure of work, red-tape/paperwork, 'doctor-bashing', long working hours, emotional strain, financial pressure, unfulfilled career expectations and irritation with trivial medical complaints.     

Are Continuity Clinic Patients Less Satisfied When the Resident Is Postcall?

Due to recent public debate and newly imposed resident work hour restrictions, we decided to investigate the relationship of resident call status to their ambulatory patients' satisfaction. Resident continuity clinic patients were asked to rate their level of satisfaction on a 10-point Likert-type scale. Using multiple regression approaches, these data were then assessed as a function of resident call status. We found that in 646 patient encounters, patient satisfaction scores were significantly less when the resident was postcall, 8.99 ± 1.8, than when not postcall, 9.31 ± 1.3. We herein discuss etiologies and implications of these findings for both patient care and medical education.     

Psychiatric nurses' satisfaction: the effects of closure of a hospital

A survey by questionnaire was carried out to examine the level of nursing staff satisfaction with the acute psychiatric services. Comparisons were made between views of older psychiatric hospitals and newer district general hospital units, and before and after the closure of Friern Barnet Hospital, London, England when the service was reorganized to include fewer beds. The importance of nurses having their say is emphasized, and areas in which improvements can be made are suggested.     

Psychosocial stress and symptoms of menopause: a comparative study of menopause clinic patients and non-patients

In much of the literature to date, the definition of climacteric symptoms has been based largely upon women who present for medical treatment of symptoms. It is already well recognised that patients (of all ages and both sexes) presenting for medical treatment tend to report themselves as suffering from more life stresses and from more neurotic symptoms than people in the general population. Life stress and adequacy of coping may thus be important factors in the incidence of symptomatology at the climacteric, as at any other time of life. This study therefore investigated the proposal that post-menopausal women who present for treatment at menopause clinics suffer from more life stresses and more neurotic symptoms than post-menopausal women in the general pupolation.

It was found that patients did indeed suffer from more psychosocial stress, measured in terms of life events, clinical depression and anxiety scales and a rating scale based on a clinician's judgements of ongoing psychosocial stress, vulnerability and adequacy of coping. Patients also suffered from significantly more symptoms than non-patients, not only psychological, but also hypothalamic and metabolic symptoms. However, the incidence of hot flushes and vaginal atrophy was the same in both groups. The stress/coping rating was the measure which correlated most highly with the psychological symptoms reported by subjects as symptoms of menopause. Life events and clinical stress measures were more consistently related in the non-patient group, indicating possible intervening variables (such as hormone imbalance) in this relationship in the patient group.     

Partners in adversity V: Support,personality and coping behaviour at the time of crisis

This paper presents further results from a study of married women in Edinburgh who had just suffered an adverse experience: either their husband's non-fatal myocardial infartion, their husband's death or their own arrival in a Women's Aid refuge for battered women. Interviews were carried out 4–6 weeks following the adverse experience and, where possible, again approximately 3 months later. Symptoms were assessed using the 30-item General Health Questionnaire and criterion-based measures of depression and anxiety derived from it. The extent and nature of crisis support from household members and from groups of people outside the household, and also of failures in expected support, was measured at first interview. A modified version of Tyrer and Alexander's (1979) personality schedule was administered at the follow-up interview, and the resulting personality data were then reduced to six factors using principal components analysis. An interviewer assessment of how well the subject was coping was made at both interviews. The vast majority of the sample received extensive practical and emotional support from family and friends, and perhaps because such positive support was so prevalent, variations in it seemed to have little effect on symptoms. However, subjects who were unexpectedly let down or criticised by friends or family tended to show higher symptom levels, although, surprisingly, this was less true for the bereaved wives than for the others. The six personality factors that emerged were labellednervousness (similar to neuroticism)impulsivity, social withdrawal, helplessness, inferiority andaggressiveness. There was evidence that subjects high on nervousness remained symptomatic longer following the adverse experience. The aggressiveness factor showed a curvilinear trend with high and low aggressives showing higher symptom levels than middle aggressives. However, for the coronary wives the trend was linear with low aggressives having high symptoms. Subjects low on impulsivity were more affected by being let down by friends and family. The interviewer-assessed coping measure was linearly related to nervousness and showed a curvilinear relationship with aggressiveness.     

化疗在晚期肺腺癌治疗中的作用

目的：探索晚期肺腺癌患者化疗疗效和对化疗的耐受性,化疗后生活质量变化和生存期。材料与方法：回顾分析1992－11~1995-04,经病理确诊为肺腺癌。按UICC分期为Ⅲb、Ⅳ期,Kamofsky评分≥60,连续完成2程以上的以铂类药物为主的联合化疗方案治疗患者。结果：化疗有效率3．1％,化疗后Kamofskv评分不变者43．8％,升高40．6％。下降≥10分15．6％,Ⅲb期中位生存期13月,Ⅳ期10月。结论：全身状况较好无化疗禁忌证的晚期肺腺癌患者,给予适当的联合化疗可使部分患者病情改善,生活质量提高。     

生命1号健脑强身及促骨生长的实验研究

采用水迷宫法、穿梭箱法、避暗法、跳台法观察了生命1号对小鼠学习、记忆、巩固的影响。灌胃给生命1号可改善东莨菪碱、樟柳碱致小鼠记忆获得障碍。生命1号能明显提高单核细胞吞噬功能，显著增加小鼠血清溶血素的含量，促进T淋巴细胞的转化。除此之外，还能明显地增加阳虚大鼠股骨的重量、长度、直径及皮质厚度；提高血清钙、磷水平；降低血清碱性磷酸酶的含量，具有促进骨骼生长的作用。     

支持性心理治疗对鼻咽癌患者抑郁情绪的干预研究

目的探讨支持性心理治疗对鼻咽癌患者的抑郁情绪的干预效果及其对生活质量和对同步放化疗依从性的影响。方法将96例鼻咽癌患者随机分为支持性心理治疗组和对照组,评定并比较两组SDS,SF-36生活质量得分,完成同步放化疗的比率。结果支持性心理治疗组SDS评分显著低于对照组（P〈0.01）。生活质量除生理机能外,其他指标支持性心理治疗组均优于对照组（P〈0.05或P〈0.01）。支持性心理治疗组显示良好的对同步放化疗治疗的依从性。结论支持性心理治疗能显著降低鼻咽癌患者抑郁情绪的严重程度,并可提高其生活质量,帮助患者完成同步放化疗治疗。