Office practice

BACKGROUND: Long COVID is a debilitating multisystem condition. The objective of this study was to estimate the prevalence of long COVID in the adult population of Scotland, and to identify risk factors associated with its development. METHODS: In this national, retrospective, observational cohort study, we analysed electronic health records (EHRs) for all adults (≥18 years) registered with a general medical practice and resident in Scotland between March 1, 2020, and October 26, 2022 (98-99% of the population)...

BACKGROUND: Unhealthy commodity industries (UCIs) engage in political practices to influence public health policy, which poses barriers to protecting and promoting public health. Such influence exhibits characteristics of a complex system. Systems thinking would therefore appear to be a useful lens through which to study this phenomenon, potentially deepening our understanding of how UCI influence are interconnected with one another through their underlying political, economic and social structures...

Storylines of Family Medicine is a 12-part series of thematically linked mini-essays with accompanying illustrations that explore the many dimensions of family medicine, as interpreted by individual family physicians and medical educators in the USA and elsewhere around the world. In 'VI: ways of being-in the office with patients', authors address the following themes: 'Patient-centred care-cultivating deep listening skills', 'Doctor as witness', 'Words matter', 'Understanding others-metaphor and its use in medicine', 'Communicating with patients-making good use of time', 'The patient-centred medical home-aspirations for the future', 'Routine, ceremony or drama?' and 'The life course'...

INTRODUCTION: The utilization of the maternal and newborn health services has increased, but mere increase in utilization of services does not ensure that quality services are being provided. The aim of the study was to assess the quality of maternal and newborn services and their impact on maternal and neonatal outcome at a primary health center of Western Rajasthan in India. MATERIALS AND METHODS: An exploratory study was undertaken at a conveniently selected primary health center providing 24-hour delivery services...

BACKGROUND: Chronic obstructive pulmonary disease (COPD) is a common preventable illness that carries a large global economic and social burden. The global initiative for chronic obstructive lung disease (GOLD) guidelines has been utilized as a global strategy for the continued COPD diagnosis, assessment, and treatment. We aimed to determine if the adherence to the 2021 GOLD guideline directed management influenced outcomes. MATERIALS AND METHODS: Retrospective medical records review of adult patients with COPD, who received care in our office during the entire year of 2021...

BACKGROUND: The healthcare managers need to develop the managerial skills and use it for better healthcare delivery. A manager requires leadership skill to empower employees and motivate them to work in an efficient manner to achieve organizational goal. Motivating employees/subordinates and developing positive attitude toward them is one of the crucial skills that the leader needs to develop. The way health team works as a unit affects the outcome and needs good leader. With this background, the current study tends to explore the managerial skills of middle-level managers...

In January 2021, we assessed the implications of temporary regulations in the United Kingdom allowing pubs and restaurants to operate on a takeaway basis without instigating a change of use. Local authorities (LAs) across the North-East of England were unaware of any data regarding the take-up of these regulations, partially due to ongoing capacity issues; participants also raised health concerns around takeaway use increasing significantly. One year on, we repeated the study aiming to understand the impact of these regulations on the policy and practice of key professional groups...

OBJECTIVES: This study aims to evaluate the prevalence and associated factors of lower back pain (LBP) among farmers, rickshaw pullers and office workers in Bangladesh, while also investigating potential contributors within these occupational groups. DESIGN: This cross-sectional study aimed to determine the prevalence of LBP, associated factors and management procedures among farmers, rickshaw pullers and office workers in Bangladesh through face-to-face interviews...

OBJECTIVE: We hypothesized that physician associate (PA) and nurse practitioner (NP) procedural roles are expanding. We sought to describe ambulatory procedures these professionals performed in 2021 for older adults. STUDY DESIGN: Retrospective observational cohort study of Medicare Part B data. US Bureau of Labor Statistics data were used to provide overall PA and NP employment context. METHODS: Medicare Part B databases were probed for outpatient events by PAs and NPs using a modified list of the Council of Academic Family Medicine's recommended clinical procedures that focused on 29 procedures organized into 9 categories called procedure clusters...

The advent of COVID-19 prompted the enforced isolation of elderly and vulnerable populations around the world, for their own safety. For people in prison, these restrictions risked compounding the isolation and harm they experienced. At the same time, the pandemic created barriers to prison oversight when it was most needed to ensure that the state upheld the rights and wellbeing of those in custody. This article reports findings from a unique collaboration in Ireland between the Office of the Inspector of Prisons - a national prison oversight body - and academic criminologists...

BACKGROUND: Health apps are increasingly recognized as crucial tools for enhancing health care delivery. Many countries, particularly those in sub-Saharan Africa, can substantially benefit from using health apps to support self-management and thus help to achieve universal health coverage and the third sustainable development goal. However, most health apps published in app stores are of unknown or poor quality, which poses a risk to patient safety. Regulatory standards and guidance can help address this risk and promote patient safety...

BACKGROUND: To address the pandemic, the Defense Health Agency (DHA) expanded its TRICARE civilian provider network by 30.1%. In 2022, the DHA Annual Report stated that TRICARE's provider directories were only 80% accurate. Unlike Medicare, the DHA does not publicly reveal National Provider Identification (NPI) numbers. As a result, TRICARE's 9.6 million beneficiaries lack the means to verify their doctor's credentials. Since 2013, the Department of Health and Human Services' (HHS) Office of Inspector General (OIG) has excluded 17,706 physicians and other providers from federal health programs due to billing fraud, neglect, drug-related convictions, and other offenses...

OBJECTIVE: Many countries experience challenges in recruiting and retaining general practitioners (GPs) as supervisors for medical students in clinical placements. We aimed to investigate the opportunities, capacities and limitations of Norwegian GPs to become supervisors. DESIGN: Web-based cross-sectional questionnaire study. SETTING: Norwegian general practice. SUBJECTS: All GPs in Norway, including locums and those on leave, both active supervisors, and GPs who are not presently supervising medical students...

PURPOSE: To evaluate the prevalence of musculoskeletal (MSK) complaints in ophthalmologists and to assess whether participation in an online Iyengar yoga video program improves the baseline pain scores and awareness of proper posture in the clinic and operating room. METHODS: Ophthalmologists were recruited from online professional forums for this nonrandomized, prospective study. A pre-intervention survey, including demographics, office and procedure volumes, wellness activities, and baseline MSK pain scores, was completed...

Smart GxP inspections have gained increasing attention due to the COVID-19 pandemic, which, understandably, made it challenging for regulatory authorities to conduct on-site inspections. Smart GxP inspections are an oversight approach developed by the SFDA to enable remote compliance assessments of establishments. In this type of inspection, appropriate technical methods and tools (such as livestreaming video) are used without requiring the presence of inspectors onsite, ensuring efficient utilization of resources and the efficiency of inspection process...

BACKGROUND: Despite the promise of oral immunotherapy (OIT) to treat food allergies, this procedure is associated with potential risk. There is no current agreement about what elements should be included in the preparatory or consent process. OBJECTIVE: We developed consensus recommendations about the OIT process considerations and patient-specific factors that should be addressed before initiating OIT and developed a consensus OIT consent process and information form...

BACKGROUND: Agricultural pesticide use in sub-Saharan Africa has doubled over the past three decades; with a greater relative increase for fungicides. As pesticide inputs continues to rise, so does the potential for the development of resistance. Here, we report on a survey conducted to understand pesticide resistance awareness, pesticide use knowledge and practices of growers and agricultural extension officers (AEOs) in the cereals growing-belt of Northern Ghana, with emphasis on fungicides...

INTRODUCTION: Farmers are vulnerable to adverse health effects from pesticide exposure due to their health literacy (HL). Therefore, this study aims to investigate HL among farmers in four main regions of Thailand, investigating socio-demographics, agricultural, and personal protective factors to their HL. METHODS: This cross-sectional design study was conducted on 4,035 farmers from January to July 2023. The European Health Literacy Survey Questionnaire-47 items were used to measure HL...

OBJECTIVE: The onset of the coronavirus disease 2019 (COVID-19) pandemic changed practice patterns throughout medicine. The purpose of this study is to evaluate changes in the volume and location setting of laryngology procedures after the onset of COVID-19. STUDY DESIGN: Retrospective database cohort study. SETTING: Reg-ENT registry. METHODS: Retrospective review from 2017 to 2022 of patients who underwent a laryngology procedure identified by procedure code categorized by site of service code-"ambulatory surgical" versus "office" setting...

BACKGROUND: Online physician reviews increase transparency in health care, helping patients make informed decisions about their provider. Language processing techniques can quantify this data and allow providers to better understand patients' experiences, perspectives, and priorities. The objective of this study was to assess patient satisfaction and understand the aspects of care that are valued by patients seeking refractive care using sentiment and word frequency analysis. METHODS: Written reviews and Star ratings for members of the Refractive Surgery Alliance Society practicing in the United States were collected from Healthgrades, a popular physician rating website...