Client Perceptions (client + perception)

Distribution by Scientific Domains


Selected Abstracts


The Impact of a Microfinance Program on Client Perceptions of the Quality of Care Provided by Private Sector Midwives in Uganda

HEALTH SERVICES RESEARCH, Issue 6p2 2004
Sohail Agha
Objective. To assess the impact of a microfinance program that provided business skills training and revolving loans to private sector midwives on perceived quality of services and client loyalty. Study Design. A quasi-experimental study with a pretest, posttest design was used to evaluate the impact of the intervention. Exit interviews were conducted at 15 clinics that received the intervention and 7 clinics that did not. Baseline exit interviews were conducted between November and December 2000. Five days of business skills training were provided to midwives, and loans (averaging $454) were given during January and February 2001. A follow-up clinic visit was made to assess whether midwives were implementing what was emphasized during the training. The loans were to be repaid with interest within 6 to 12 months, at an interest rate that is standard within the local commercial market. For those who repaid the first set of loans (11 clinics), a second set of loans (averaging $742) was provided after June 2001. Follow-up exit interviews were conducted at the same clinics between February and March 2002. We assessed the effect of the intervention at both clinic and client levels. T-tests, the analysis of variance, and multivariate logistic regression analysis were conducted. Principal Findings. These findings should be interpreted cautiously since secular trends were observed during the study period. The intervention was associated with improvement in clients' perceptions of the quality of care received at intervention clinics. The intervention was also associated with a higher level of client loyalty. Conclusions. The enthusiastic response of midwives and the high loan repayment rate indicate that midwives were very receptive to the microfinance program. Overall, these findings suggest that microfinance may have an important role in strengthening private sector health services by increasing private providers' business skills and clients' satisfaction with services. [source]


Clients' perceptions of client,nurse relationships in local authority psychiatric services: A qualitative study

INTERNATIONAL JOURNAL OF MENTAL HEALTH NURSING, Issue 1 2004
Ulrica Hörberg
ABSTRACT:,The Mental Health Care reform in Sweden aimed, among other things, to improve the possibilities for persons with mental illnesses to experience companionship and participation in society. The aim of the study was to describe how persons suffering from mental illness perceive their relationships with nursing staff in local authority psychiatric services. Data were collected through semi-structured recorded interviews with 17 strategically chosen clients. A qualitative approach inspired by phenomenography was used to analyse the data. The analysis resulted in four main categories and 13 subcategories. The main categories were: security, companionship, confirmation and development. [source]


Clients' perceptions of support received from health visitors during home visits

JOURNAL OF CLINICAL NURSING, Issue 7 2005
Caroline Plews BA
Aims and objectives., The current study sought to identify how many mothers from 149 visits carried out by seven health visitors identified support as a feature of the visit, whether this type of support was unique to the health visitor and what support meant to them. These responses were then compared with the taxonomies of social support from the social support literature. Background., Some studies of client perceptions describe support as an element of home visits by health visitors. However, the importance, relevance and impact on the client of this support are not described in detail. Social support theory suggests that there are tangible benefits to people's well-being and their ability to cope with various challenges that may arise from individuals' perceptions of receiving support. Design., Qualitative study using semistructured interviews. Methods., Seven volunteer health visitors recruited 149 women into the study. These clients were interviewed by the researcher, usually within one week of the home visit by their health visitor. The discussions were audio-taped and the resulting transcripts analysed using content analysis. Findings., Thirty-seven women identified receiving support which they said was only available from the health visitor. The relevance of this support to the mother and the impact on her well-being varied within the group suggesting differing perceptions of support by clients according to their personal situation. There was a correspondence between the descriptions of support given by the women and the taxonomies of social support from the social support literature. Conclusion., For some interactions between clients and their health visitors the existing theory of social support may provide an explanation of how health visitors contribute to clients' perceived ability to cope and well-being. Relevance to clinical practice., Social support may be defined as a possible outcome of health visiting. This concept will have use within educational programmes to demonstrate to students how health visiting can have an impact on clients' well-being. Similarly, the concept could be used to investigate and record health visiting practice. [source]


Social control and coercion in addiction treatment: towards evidence-based policy and practice

ADDICTION, Issue 1 2006
T. Cameron Wild
ABSTRACT Background Social pressures are often an integral part of the process of seeking addiction treatment. However, scientists have not developed conclusive evidence on the processes, benefits and limitations of using legal, formal and informal social control tactics to inform policy makers, service providers and the public. This paper characterizes barriers to a robust interdisciplinary analysis of social control and coercion in addiction treatment and provides directions for future research. Approach Conceptual analysis and review of key studies and trends in the area are used to describe eight implicit assumptions underlying policy, practice and scholarship on this topic. Findings Many policies, programmes and researchers are guided by a simplistic behaviourist and health-service perspective on social controls that (a) overemphasizes the use of criminal justice systems to compel individuals into treatment and (b) fails to take into account provider, patient and public views. Conclusions Policies and programmes that expand addiction treatment options deserve support. However, drawing a firm distinction between social controls (objective use of social pressure) and coercion (client perceptions and decision-making processes) supports a parallel position that rejects treatment policies, programmes, and associated practices that create client perceptions of coercion. [source]


Clients' perceptions of support received from health visitors during home visits

JOURNAL OF CLINICAL NURSING, Issue 7 2005
Caroline Plews BA
Aims and objectives., The current study sought to identify how many mothers from 149 visits carried out by seven health visitors identified support as a feature of the visit, whether this type of support was unique to the health visitor and what support meant to them. These responses were then compared with the taxonomies of social support from the social support literature. Background., Some studies of client perceptions describe support as an element of home visits by health visitors. However, the importance, relevance and impact on the client of this support are not described in detail. Social support theory suggests that there are tangible benefits to people's well-being and their ability to cope with various challenges that may arise from individuals' perceptions of receiving support. Design., Qualitative study using semistructured interviews. Methods., Seven volunteer health visitors recruited 149 women into the study. These clients were interviewed by the researcher, usually within one week of the home visit by their health visitor. The discussions were audio-taped and the resulting transcripts analysed using content analysis. Findings., Thirty-seven women identified receiving support which they said was only available from the health visitor. The relevance of this support to the mother and the impact on her well-being varied within the group suggesting differing perceptions of support by clients according to their personal situation. There was a correspondence between the descriptions of support given by the women and the taxonomies of social support from the social support literature. Conclusion., For some interactions between clients and their health visitors the existing theory of social support may provide an explanation of how health visitors contribute to clients' perceived ability to cope and well-being. Relevance to clinical practice., Social support may be defined as a possible outcome of health visiting. This concept will have use within educational programmes to demonstrate to students how health visiting can have an impact on clients' well-being. Similarly, the concept could be used to investigate and record health visiting practice. [source]


Good grief and not-so-good grief: Countertransference in bereavement therapy

JOURNAL OF CLINICAL PSYCHOLOGY, Issue 4 2007
Jeffrey A. Hayes
This study examined the relationship between therapists' grief related to the death of a loved one and clients' perceptions of the process of bereavement therapy. Mail survey data were obtained from 69 client,therapist dyads. Results indicated that the extent to which therapists missed deceased loved ones was inversely related to client perceptions of therapist empathy, but not to client ratings of the alliance, session depth, or therapist credibility. Therapist acceptance of the death of a loved one was unrelated to any of the dependent measures. Results are discussed in terms of countertransference and its management. © 2007 Wiley Periodicals, Inc. J Clin Psychol 63: 345,355, 2007. [source]


Perceptions about services and dropout from a substance abuse case management program

JOURNAL OF COMMUNITY PSYCHOLOGY, Issue 5 2007
Michael R. Sosin
This article uses event history analysis to examine certain determinants of dropout from a case management program that serves homeless adults with substance abuse problems. The examined determinants are perceptions of conventional treatment services: (a) client perceptions concerning the value of the conventional services that case managers help them to obtain, (b) the views of use services held by social contacts, and (c) client perceptions of the legitimacy of conventional services. The findings, some of which involve statistical interactions, suggest that clients drop out of case management services more slowly (a) when they favor pursuit of particularly efficacious conventional programs; (b) when they find conventional programs to be of low legitimacy; (c) when, under special conditions, they perceive that conventional services are less caring; or (d) when social contracts do not pressure them. These findings generally imply that clients look to case management services when they are more skeptical about conventional services. The variables predicting dropout from case management poorly predict continuation in conventional substance abuse services, indicating that dropout is linked to perceptions of services in context-specific ways. © 2007 Wiley Periodicals, Inc. J Comm Psychol 35: 583,602, 2007. [source]


Validation of a client-based clinical metrology instrument for the evaluation of canine elbow osteoarthritis

JOURNAL OF SMALL ANIMAL PRACTICE, Issue 6 2009
C. A. Hercock
Objective: To validate a disease-specific client-based clinical metrology instrument (questionnaire) for dogs with chronic osteoarthritis of the elbow joint. Materialsand Methods: This was a prospective cohort study involving 26 dogs with chronic osteoarthritis of the elbow with 24 associated clients. Validity (face and criterion), reliability and responsiveness of the metrology instrument (named "Liverpool Osteoarthritis in Dogs [elbow]") were tested in a sequence of studies. Face validity involved use of international peer review. Reliability was assessed using a test-retest scenario with a two week interval; peak vertical force as measured by a force platform was used as an external standard measure. Responsiveness was tested with a two week, single-blinded placebo-controlled intervention using a licensed non-steroidal anti-inflammatory drug. Results: The reliability of Liverpool Osteoarthritis in Dogs (elbow) in the test-retest scenario was good; intraclass correlation coefficient is 0·89, 95 per cent confidence interval 0·75 to 0·95, compared with intraclass correlation coefficient 0·92, 95 per cent confidence interval 0·74 to 0·98, for peak vertical force. Responsiveness testing indicated that the "net" effect size (allowing for placebo effect) for Liverpool Osteoarthritis in Dogs (elbow) was 0·13 compared with (,)0·18 for the force platform. Criterion validity for Liverpool Osteoarthritis in Dogs (elbow) against peak vertical force was poor; Spearman's rank correlation is ,0·24 (P=0·30). Clinical Significance: Liverpool Osteoarthritis in Dogs (elbow) was considered reliable with satisfactory responsiveness. The poor criterion validity suggests a mismatch between force platform peak vertical force and client perceptions of lameness. This instrument requires further validation in larger studies with alternative client groups and alternative therapeutic interventions, but this initial validation suggests that Liverpool Osteoarthritis in Dogs (elbow) is worthy of continued investigation. [source]


A grounded theory analysis of the therapeutic relationship with clients sexually abused as children and non-abused clients

CLINICAL PSYCHOLOGY AND PSYCHOTHERAPY (AN INTERNATIONAL JOURNAL OF THEORY & PRACTICE), Issue 3 2001
Claire Middle
The objective of this study was to investigate whether clients with a history of child sexual abuse (CSA) and non-abused clients differ in their views of the therapeutic relationship. Two groups of 17 clients receiving psychological therapy, those who reported a history of CSA and a matched group who had not reported abuse, were asked in a semi-structured interview about what was important to the therapeutic alliance. The accounts of the two groups were analysed using grounded theory, and then compared. The qualitative analysis demonstrated that both groups identified many similar important issues. These included factors relating to the therapist, to therapy itself, and to the client's perception of the relationship. Women in the CSA group emphasized the interpersonal qualities of the therapist and how they felt about their relationship, while the other clients talked more about therapeutic techniques and progress in therapy. Important issues mentioned exclusively by the CSA group included the therapist's commitment, being believed, and the therapist not showing negative reactions. Copyright © 2001 John Wiley & Sons, Ltd. [source]


The Impact of a Microfinance Program on Client Perceptions of the Quality of Care Provided by Private Sector Midwives in Uganda

HEALTH SERVICES RESEARCH, Issue 6p2 2004
Sohail Agha
Objective. To assess the impact of a microfinance program that provided business skills training and revolving loans to private sector midwives on perceived quality of services and client loyalty. Study Design. A quasi-experimental study with a pretest, posttest design was used to evaluate the impact of the intervention. Exit interviews were conducted at 15 clinics that received the intervention and 7 clinics that did not. Baseline exit interviews were conducted between November and December 2000. Five days of business skills training were provided to midwives, and loans (averaging $454) were given during January and February 2001. A follow-up clinic visit was made to assess whether midwives were implementing what was emphasized during the training. The loans were to be repaid with interest within 6 to 12 months, at an interest rate that is standard within the local commercial market. For those who repaid the first set of loans (11 clinics), a second set of loans (averaging $742) was provided after June 2001. Follow-up exit interviews were conducted at the same clinics between February and March 2002. We assessed the effect of the intervention at both clinic and client levels. T-tests, the analysis of variance, and multivariate logistic regression analysis were conducted. Principal Findings. These findings should be interpreted cautiously since secular trends were observed during the study period. The intervention was associated with improvement in clients' perceptions of the quality of care received at intervention clinics. The intervention was also associated with a higher level of client loyalty. Conclusions. The enthusiastic response of midwives and the high loan repayment rate indicate that midwives were very receptive to the microfinance program. Overall, these findings suggest that microfinance may have an important role in strengthening private sector health services by increasing private providers' business skills and clients' satisfaction with services. [source]


Good grief and not-so-good grief: Countertransference in bereavement therapy

JOURNAL OF CLINICAL PSYCHOLOGY, Issue 4 2007
Jeffrey A. Hayes
This study examined the relationship between therapists' grief related to the death of a loved one and clients' perceptions of the process of bereavement therapy. Mail survey data were obtained from 69 client,therapist dyads. Results indicated that the extent to which therapists missed deceased loved ones was inversely related to client perceptions of therapist empathy, but not to client ratings of the alliance, session depth, or therapist credibility. Therapist acceptance of the death of a loved one was unrelated to any of the dependent measures. Results are discussed in terms of countertransference and its management. © 2007 Wiley Periodicals, Inc. J Clin Psychol 63: 345,355, 2007. [source]