ObjectiveTo understand patients’ cognition of third-party mediation model for medical disputes, analyze the factors influencing the trust of patients on third-party mediation, and propose recommendations for building third-party mediation mechanisms. MethodsFrom November 2013 to April 2014, we referred past literature to design a relevant questionnaire on the cognition of third-party mediation for medical disputes. Patients who had reached the end of the treatment were surveyed by random cluster sampling. The raw data were put into the computer for statistical analysis by SPSS 18.0. ResultsAfter giving out 500 questionnaires, we acquired 486 effective questionnaires. The result showed that 61.52% of the patients knew of third-party mediation; 55.35% of the patients considered that thirdparty mediation should be set in and supervised by the court or judicial administrative department; if the mediation failed, 57.41% of the patients chose to resolve the dispute through legal channels, and 67.90% of the patients tended to confirm the force of mediation conclusion by arbitration; 70.58% of the patients considered that mediators should have professional background of medicine and law; 73.05% of the patients tended to take conclusions of forensic identification as the basis for mediation; 64.81% of the patients were biased to take Tort Liability Act as the basis for determining the compensation; 53.70% of the patients believed that financial allocations could solve the fund problems of third-party mediation, while 38.48% of the patients thought the funds should be provided by insurance companies; 91.15% of the patients thought the medical institutions should purchase medical liability insurance, and 54.32% of the patients thought insurance companies should not intervene the process of meditation. Conclusions Government should provide financial allocations to ensure the funds of third-party mediation. Besides, medical insurance should be brought in as a supplement. Medical institutions should purchase medical liability insurance to solve problems caused by medical disputes. Third-party mediation should be set in and supervised by the court or the judicial administrative department. Mediators should have professional background of medicine and law. Conclusions of forensic identification should be the basis for third-party mediation.
Objective To investigate the attitudes of Chinese doctors towards the difficulties they have concerning the involvement of patients in decision-making about treatment. Method We surveyed 1 088 doctors at different levels (70% internal medicine, 22% general surgery, 8% gynecology) from 20 general hospitals and 5 university hospitals covering 25 provinces and cities in China, using a simple questionnaire, which we had developed. Results A total of 780 doctors returned the questionnaire and of these only 488 (62%) had completed it. The difficulties that doctors were most concerned about focused on lack of time (27%), expressing uncertainties to patients (15%), dealing with patients who have little medical knowledge (13%), eliciting patients’ preferences (12%), and establishing a stable relationship (9%). Conclusion Increasing their knowledge of patient involvement in making treatment decisions may reinforce appropriate attitudes towards this concept among doctors.
ObjectiveTo develop a survey questionnaire on preferences and values regarding perineal injury prevention measures during pregnancy and conduct reliability and validity tests. MethodsCombining literature reviews, qualitative interviews, and expert consultations, we summarized key elements of perineal injury prevention during pregnancy and synthesized the best evidence. Through multiple discussions within the core working group, a survey questionnaire on preferences and values regarding perineal injury prevention measures during pregnancy was formulated. Using convenience sampling, pregnant women were recruited, and a pre-survey was conducted using the questionnaire. Pre-survey results were analyzed using item analysis and reliability and validity testing methods to validate and refine the questionnaire. ResultsThe questionnaire was compiled based on the theory of evidence-based decision-making. The initial version of the questionnaire was developed by combining systematic evaluation, network meta-analysis, and semi-structured interviews. The questionnaire was modified and improved through expert consultation, group discussion, and pre-investigation, which ensured that the questionnaire had good reliability, validity, and practicability. The Cronbach's α coefficient was 0.87, the split-half reliability was 0.71, and the content validity index was 0.97 of the survey questionnaire. ConclusionThe present version of the perineal injury preventive measures preference and values questionnaire has good reliability, validity, and practicability. It can serve as a valuable tool for investigating preferences and values related to perineal injury prevention during pregnancy.
Objective To evaluate the control status and knowledge level about disease in asthmatic patients in region level cities of Shaanxi province for effect appraisal of patient education. Methods Eight hospitals were selected from six region level cities, where questionnaire survey was completed in out-patients with asthma ( ≥14 years old) . Results A total of 523 patients completed the questionnaire with a ratio of male to female of 1∶1. 14, and an average age of ( 44. 3 ±15. 5) years old. The percentage of controlled,partly controlled and uncontrolled by self-evaluation was respectively 26. 4% , 52. 4% and 11. 1% . 48% insisted on using inhaled corticosteroids ( ICS) . The average score was 17. 88 ±4. 43 by asthma control test ( ACT) . The first three medicines used daily were ICS ( 26. 6% ) , sustained-release theophyline ( 25. 2% )and combination ICS/ long-acting β2 -agonists ( 21. 8% ) . 12. 6% had no medicine and 5. 2% used nonorthodox medicines. 68. 6% patients had omen before exacerbation, and those were sneezing, chest distress and cough. 73. 6% knew asthma is a disease of airway inflammation, and 33. 3% selected ICS as the leader medicine. Only 32. 1% attended the lecture about asthma in hospitals and 85. 0% longed for such education. Conclusions The control status and knowledge level about disease in asthmatic patients in cities still need to be improved in Shaanxi province, and too much work need to be done in order to realize the total control in all patients.
Objective To get the information about the cognition and attitude towards organ transplantation and donation in inpatients. Methods The inpatients were investigated by using a self-designed questionnaire，including general data，cognition and attitude towards organ transplantation and donation. The influence factors of organ transplantation and donation were analyzed by SPSS 18.0. Results A total of 1 000 questionnaires were delivered，973 returned，the effective questionnaire was 906，and the effective rate was 93.1%. In 906 valid questionnaires，788 （87.0%） patients knew organ transplantation；189 （20.9%） patients had transplanted relatives；511 （56.4%） patients were willing to accept the organ transplant surgery，226 （24.9%） patients did not want，169 （18.7%） patients did not know；490 （54.1%） patients agreed to donate organ，173 （19.1%） patients disagreed，243 （26.8%） patients did not know. The age，education，occupation，knowing organ transplants，and with organ transplanted relatives or not had significant influences to the willingness towards organ transplantation and donation （P＜0.01）. The gender had no effect on organ transplantation （P=0.727） and donation （P=0.935） concerned issues，but the age，education，knowing organ transplantation，and with organ transplanted relatives or not had significant influences on it （P＜0.01）. Most concerned factors about organ transplantation were as follows：with an available organ for transplantation 〔28.7% （260/906）〕，postoperative quality of life 〔23.0% （208/906）〕，risk of surgery 〔21.5%（195/906）〕，surgery costs 〔19.5% （177/906）〕，and postoperative rejection 〔7.3% （66/906）〕. Most concerned factors about organ donation were as follows：the reasonable usage of donated organs 〔57.4% （520/906）〕，attitude of relatives 〔23.8% （216/906）〕，and donation compensation 〔17.6% （159/906）〕，and others 〔1.2% （11/906）〕. According to the way of organ donation，403 （44.4%） patients were willing to accept donation after cardiac death （DCD），257 （28.4%） patients accept donation after brain death，246 （27.2%） patients accept living organ donation. The gender，education，and occupation had significant influences on the way of organ donation （P＜0.05），but age，knowing organ transplantation，and with organ transplanted relatives or not had no effects on it （P＞0.05）. Conclusions The lack of propaganda and the high costs of transplantation surgery are the main factors restricting the acceptance rate of organ transplantation. Over time，with continuous improvement of universal education and strengthening the publicity of organ transplantation，the acceptance rate will show a constant increase in the trend. By now，the most accepted way of organ donation is DCD in inpatients. The establishment of a reasonable organ allocation and compensation system is a corner stone to promote organ donation.
Objective To understand the current situation of Chengdu primary health workers’ performance baseline, and to provide decision-making proof and policy recommendations for Chengdu Coordinated and Balanced Urban-rural Development as well as improve primary health workers’ performance in China. Method See the second study in this series. Result The number of the patients of the Chengdu seven Rural Hospitals / Centers showed a trend of slow increase, and all was higher than the national rural hospital average level except the 2 most remote rural hospitals(“Renhe” and “Bailu”). The seven Rural Hospitals / Centers could provide data about the “Six in One” work, and the performance was generally better than that of the world and the national average level , but showed a decreasing trend from the first circle to the third circle in Chengdu. The rate of patients’ satisfaction and very satisfaction for the Rural Hospitals / Centers “Six in One” work reached 65%-80%, but the rate of health workers’ job satisfaction and very satisfaction only reached 9%-46%, and also showed a decreasing trend from the first circle to the third circle. Conclusion The Chengdu primary health workers provide “Six in One” health service with a higher quality than the world and the national average levels. However, the number of the workers is less than enough; the human managerial structure is irrational; the educational and professional levels are low; their treatment and the work environment are poor. The distribution density , the academic qualification and the structure rationality of professional ranks of health personnel show a decreasing trend, and the difficulty of the service is gradually increasing from the first circle to the third circle, which causes the satisfaction rate of the workers’ job to decrease gradually from the first circle to the third circle. Suggestion: ① To make special performance assessment standard for special health institutions or personnel, and to give the continual oriented training chance for current health personnel. ② To integrate the regional health resources; to establish long-term and stable regional bilateral appointment help policy, technical and rational two-way referral system and indicator systems. ③ To take measures to solve the problems affecting the professional promotion and improvement of the grass-root health personnel.
Objective To investigate the reading habits of authors of articles published in the Chinese Journal of Evidence-Based Medicine (CJEBM) and to compare the findings with those from other surveys. Methods A total of 512 questionnaires were sent to authors who had contributed to CJEBM over the past 7 years. Results A total of 129 questionnaires were returned (response rate 31.6%). The replies showed that the main purpose of reading literature was to keep up with the latest developments in medicine (94% of replies). The main reading material was medical journals (86%). Most respondents (57%) spent more than 3 hours a week reading journals. The biggest problem identified by authors was the lack of full text papers, but the first choice was the electronic versions of the literature. More than half of the authors (57%) said that they spent less time reading than in the past. Conclusion Effective reading of the medical literature is a basic requirement in the practice of evidence-based medicine. It is necessary and important for clinicians and healthcare providers to improve their reading skills and methods.
Objective To investigate the diagnosis and treatment of status epilepticus in hospitals of different levels and the knowledge of status epilepticus in clinical physicians, in order to better guide clinical education in the future. Methods From August 2014 to August 2015, a questionnaire was designed and used to investigate the general situation of the hospital, the diagnosis of status epilepticus and the clinical practice among trainee doctors and students in the epilepsy training class in the Neurological Intensive Care Unit and the Department of Neurology of West China Hospital, Sichuan University. The results of the investigation were statistically analyzed. Results Ninety questionnaires were distributed, and all the questionnaires were retrieved with validity. The number of investigated physicians was 42 (46.7%) from the Department of Neurology, 6 (6.7%) from the Department of Neurosurgery, 30 (33.3%) from the Intensive Care Unit and 12 (13.3%) from other departments. Twenty-seven (30.0%) physicians were from class Ⅲ grade A hospitals, 31 (34.4%) from class Ⅲ grade B hospitals, and 32 (35.6%) from class Ⅱ grade A hospitals. All the class Ⅲ hospitals and 53.1% of class Ⅱ hospitals had electroencephalograph monitoring facilities. The proportion of status epilepticus patients ranged from 0.5% to 10.0% in different hospitals. There were great differences in the identification and treatment of convulsive status epilepticus among different hospitals. Conclusions Status epilepticus is a common emergency. Questionnaire survey is an effective means to reflect the difference in identifying and treating the emergency among different departments and hospitals. It can guide clinical education and promote the identification and treatment of the emergency more accurately in doctors of all levels.
Objective To investigate the decision-making situation of doctors in the township hospitals in Gaolan, Gansu province, and to discuss its scientificity and rationality. Methods Self-designed questionnaire was adopted to investigate the clinical decision-making situation of 108 doctors from 7 township hospitals in Gaolan county. The investigation contained three parts as follows: basic information of respondents, general information of clinical decision-making evidence, and comparison between respondents’ decision-making situation and current best clinical evidence. Results Among the total 108 questionnaires distributed, 89 valid were retrieved. The feedback showed that 79% of the doctors diagnosed and treated patients in accordance with medical textbooks; 53% took curative effect into consideration in the first place; 33% failed to consider patients’ willingness properly when making clinical decisions; and 52% made clinical therapy regimen for common diseases based on the evidence which was different from that in BMJ published Clinical Evidence. Conclusion While making clinical decisions, doctors in the township hospitals do not adequately refer to the best clinical evidence as their decision-making basis, and fail to take patients’ value and willingness into consideration properly. It is necessary to promote the concept of evidence-based medicine and spread the best evidence in the township health departments.
Objective To assess the effect of a new educational model for evidence-based medicine (EBM), which is called "2+N" model with the main characteristic of classroom teaching plus volunteer practice. Methods Questionnaire survey was conducted to collect data. Results There were averagely 39 volunteers participated in this activity per year, with an increasing trend. Most of them were sophomore and junior undergraduates from different specialties in medical filed. All participates acquired a better understanding of EBM knowledge; more than 60% of them could handle data searching, collecting and assessing by themselves in the end of the activity. Conclusion Our five years’ experience of EBM education practice for medical students suggested that the new educational model has a promising future.