Primary care behavioral health

CONTEXT: Adolescent suicides are a significant public health concern in India and understanding the intersecting perspectives becomes imperative for the prevention of various mental health concerns. AIM: Assessing perceptions of various key stakeholders, that is, mental health experts, school and college teachers, and District Mental Health Program staff about peer-led strength building programs for suicide prevention. SETTINGS AND DESIGN: A cross-sectional qualitative design using two Focus Group Discussions (FGDs) with mental health experts and teachers and one FGD with DMHP staff was conducted...

BACKGROUND: Adolescence is a unique phase of life, facilitates the transition of a child to an adult, and thus is characterized with distinctive challenges as well as potentialities. Gender socialization during adolescence is shaped by the family, culture, and social construct results to development of attitudes, with more consistent and organized vision toward self and the society. AIM: The present study aims to identify the gender attitudes, perceived gender role, and gender discrimination among adolescents...

BACKGROUND: Excess salt consumption increases blood pressure, and therefore, this substudy was designed among rural hypertensive individuals to assess the baseline knowledge about hypertension (HTN), and dietary salt intake behavior and identify the potential predictors for urinary salt excretion in Bangladesh. MATERIAL AND METHODS: A total of 420 participants were enrolled after meeting the eligibility criteria during the 12 months of the study period. The participants received behavior changes related to short message services (SMS) and face-to-face education from community health workers...

BACKGROUND: Opioid misuse is a significant public health crisis. The aim sought to identify potential gaps in opioid care in primary care practices. METHODS: American Academy of Family Physicians (AAFP) offered a monthly online educational series to seven U.S. practices. Practices were asked to complete up to 50 chart reviews for visits during two periods: February-April, 2019, and February-April, 2022. Each chart had to have an ICD-10 diagnosis of opioid misuse, opioid dependence, or opioid use...

BACKGROUND: Chronic diseases, or non-communicable diseases (NCD), are conditions of long duration and often influenced and contributed by complex interactions of several variables, including genetic, physiological, environmental, and behavioral factors. These conditions contribute to death, disability, and subsequent health care costs. Primary and secondary school settings provide an opportunity to deliver relatively low cost and effective interventions to improve public health outcomes...

BACKGROUND: Increasing rates of maternal mortality and morbidity, coupled with ever-widening racial health disparities in maternal health outcomes, indicate that radical improvements need to be made in the delivery of maternity care. This study explored the provision of patient-centered maternity care from the perspective of pregnant and postpartum people; experiences of respect and autonomy were examined through the multi-dimensional contexts of identity, relational trust, and protection of informed choices...

OBJECTIVE: To find out the motivations of adolescents for alcohol consumption. DESIGN: Qualitative methodology with discussion groups. PARTICIPANTS AND CONTEXT: 131 adolescents (15-17 years old) enrolled in nine schools in Tarragona (Spain). METHOD: Systematic coding strategy, adapted to focus groups. Educational centers were selected through a stratified purposive sampling by educational levels (segmentation criterion) and ownership of the center (public or private)...

Background The incidence of sexual assault continues to rise in Australia. This study aimed to describe the nature of assault, HIV/STI positivity, and its management at a sexual health clinic. Methods We performed a chart review of 516 sexual assault cases presenting to Melbourne Sexual Health Centre between 2012 and 2021, collecting data on victim demographics, details of assault, HIV/STI testing and positivity, police involvement, and offer of counselling. Results We included 516 cases: 124 males (24.0%); 384 females (74...

The Veterans Health Administration (VHA) currently employs over 1,300 peer specialists-veterans with lived experience of mental illness who are in recovery and have been trained to provide support to other veterans experiencing these issues. VHA peer specialists have largely been employed in behavioral health settings. In 2014, VHA began to employ peer specialists in primary care settings via the peers in Patient Aligned Care Team (PACT) program, and congressional legislation was passed to expand this program in 2022...

INTRODUCTION: More than one in ten people globally live with a mental health illness. Adolescent mental health is a major contributor to that statistic, as 27% of adolescents have one or more mental, emotional, developmental, or behavioral problems. School-based health care clinics can provide mental health services for this age group. OBJECTIVES: This project aimed to promote evidence-based practices regarding adolescent mental health screening in schools. METHODS: This project used the JBI Evidence Implementation Framework to promote evidence-based practices for adolescent mental health screening in schools...

Like the United States as a whole, Virginia faces a significant shortage of health care workers in nursing, primary care, and behavioral health. If current trends persist, these shortages will increase across Virginia. The authors of this study identify interventions that can help the Virginia Health Workforce Development Authority (VHWDA) address these health care workforce shortages. To accomplish this goal, they applied an analytic framework to existing or potential interventions for retaining, recruiting, and improving the structural efficiency of the nursing, primary care, and behavioral health workforces in Virginia...

BACKGROUND: Pelvic floor symptoms (PFS) are common and frequently co-occur, but few patients seek help despite negative effects on their quality of life. Moreover, most studies assessing help-seeking behaviour have only focused on a single PFS. AIM: We aimed to explore the barriers to and facilitators of help-seeking behaviour in males and females with at least two PFS. DESIGN AND SETTING: This interview-based study included participants by age and symptoms (number and type) from a larger group taking part in a survey on PFS in the general population...

Background  Non-communicable chronic diseases (NCCDs), such as cardiovascular disease, diabetes, and cancer, are the leading cause of death and disability and the leading driver of healthcare costs in the U.S. It is estimated that 80% of chronic diseases and premature deaths are attributable to modifiable lifestyle factors related to smoking and alcohol intake, poor eating patterns, and physical inactivity. Inadequate sleep also plays a significant role. Among other directives, primary care providers (PCPs) have the opportunity to contribute to preventing and treating NCCD in their patients...

BACKGROUND: The COVID-19 pandemic catalyzed a rapid shift in healthcare delivery towards telehealth services, impacting patient care, including opioid use disorder (OUD) treatment. Regulatory changes eliminated the in-person evaluation requirement for buprenorphine treatment, encouraging adoption of telehealth. This study focused on understanding experiences of primary care providers in predominantly rural areas who used telehealth for OUD treatment during the pandemic. METHODS: Semi-structured interviews were conducted with 22 primary care providers...

BACKGROUND: The growing use of cannabis in adolescence is a public health problem that must be addressed through prevention. In Spain, the average age of initiation of cannabis use in the adolescent population is 14.8 years. At 14 years, the lifetime prevalence of cannabis use is 11.7%, which increases to 51.,5% at the age of 18; the prevalence of cannabis use in the population aged 14 to 18 years is 28.6%, a figure that must be tried to reduce, that is why this school prevention program is proposed: Alerta Cannabis...

OBJECTIVES:  We conducted a focus group to assess the attitudes of primary care physicians (PCPs) toward prostate-specific antigen (PSA)-screening algorithms, perceptions of using decision support tools, and features that would make such tools feasible to implement. METHODS:  A multidisciplinary team (primary care, urology, behavioral sciences, bioinformatics) developed the decision support tool that was presented to a focus group of 10 PCPs who also filled out a survey...

STUDY OBJECTIVE: This study aimed to evaluate the usability and feasibility of incorporating a cardiovascular risk assessment tool into adolescent reproductive health and primary care visits. METHODS: We recruited 60 young women ages 13-21 years to complete the HerHeart web-tool in two adolescent clinics in Atlanta, GA. Participants rated the tool's usability via the Website Analysis and Measurement Inventory (WAMMI, range 0-95) and their perceived 10-year and lifetime risk of cardiovascular disease (CVD) on a visual analog scale (range 0-10)...

OBJECTIVE: To evaluate the efficacy and costs of a brief, group-delivered parenting intervention for families of children with eczema. METHODS: A randomized controlled trial design was used. Families attending the Queensland Children's Hospital and from the community (n = 257) were assessed for eligibility (child 2-10 years, diagnosed with eczema, prescribed topical corticosteroids). Families who consented to participate (N = 59) were assessed at baseline for clinician-rated eczema severity, parent-reported eczema symptom severity, and electronically-monitored topical corticosteroid adherence (primary outcomes); and parenting behavior, parents' self-efficacy and task performance when managing eczema, eczema-related child behavior problems, and child and parent quality of life (secondary outcomes)...

INTRODUCTION: Patients with mental health diagnoses (MHD) are among the most frequent emergency department (ED) users, suggesting the importance of identifying additional factors associated with their ED use frequency. In this study we assessed various patient sociodemographic and clinical characteristics, and service use associated with low ED users (1-3 visits/year), compared to high (4-7) and very high (8+) ED users with MHD. METHODS: Our study was conducted in four large Quebec (Canada) ED networks...

BACKGROUND: Sepsis is a life-threatening condition characterized by an aberrant host response to infection, resulting in multi-organ dysfunction. The application of currently available prognostic indicators for sepsis in primary hospitals is challenging. In this retrospective study, we established a novel index, the neutrophil-to-lymphocyte-to-monocyte ratio (NLMR), based on routine blood examination upon admission, and assessed its prognostic value for early mortality risk in adult patients with septic shock...