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Patient Delay (patient + delay)

Distribution by Scientific Domains

Medical Sciences	100%

Selected Abstracts

Patient delay in acute stroke response

EUROPEAN JOURNAL OF NEUROLOGY, Issue 4 2008
T. Hemmen
No abstract is available for this article. [source]

Patient delay in oral cancer: a qualitative study of patients' experiences

PSYCHO-ONCOLOGY, Issue 6 2006
S.E. Scott
Abstract Up to 30% of patients delay seeking the advice of a healthcare professional after self-discovery of symptom(s) of oral cancer. Reasons for this patient delay are poorly understood. The aim of the present study was to explore patients' initial experiences and reactions to developing symptoms of oral cancer, and to identify factors influencing their decision to consult a health care professional. In-depth semi-structured interviews were conducted with 17 consecutive patients who had received a diagnosis of oral squamous cell carcinoma, but had yet to start treatment. Participants were asked about their beliefs about their symptoms over the course of the disease and their decision to seek help. The tape-recorded interviews were transcribed verbatim and analysed using ,Framework analysis'. Oral symptoms were rarely attributed to cancer and were frequently interpreted as minor oral conditions. As a result of these beliefs, patients tended to postpone seeking help or fail to be concerned over their symptoms. Prior to seeking help, patients responded to symptoms by using self-medication, changing the way they ate and disclosing their discovery of symptoms to friends or family. Problems with access to healthcare professionals and patients' social responsibilities acted as barriers to prompt help-seeking. This study has documented that an individual's interpretation of oral cancer symptoms may be misguided and this can adversely affect subsequent help-seeking behaviour. Copyright © 2005 John Wiley & Sons, Ltd. [source]

Patient's delay in oral cancer: a systematic review

COMMUNITY DENTISTRY AND ORAL EPIDEMIOLOGY, Issue 5 2006
Suzanne E. Scott
Abstract,,, Detecting oral cancer at an early stage is the most effective means of improving survival and reducing morbidity from this disease, yet a significant proportion of patients delay seeking help after the self-discovery of symptoms of oral cancer. The literature on factors associated with patient delay was searched systematically to access relevant data published between 1975 and 2005. Eight studies met the inclusion criteria for the review. In these studies, most clinical/tumour factors, sociodemographic variables, and patient health-related behaviours were not related to the duration of patient delay. Healthcare factors and psychosocial factors may play a role but the research in this area is sparse, atheoretical and of poor quality. Patient delay is a problem in oral cancer and yet at present the reasons for such delays are poorly understood and under-researched. Systematic, high-quality and theory-driven research in this area is urgently required. [source]

Acute Stroke Care at Rural Hospitals in Idaho: Challenges in Expediting Stroke Care

THE JOURNAL OF RURAL HEALTH, Issue 1 2006
James G. Gebhardt MD
ABSTRACT:,Context: Thrombolytics are currently the most effective treatment for stroke. However, the National Institute for Neurological Disorders and Stroke criteria for initiation of thrombolytic therapy, most notably the 3-hour time limit from symptom onset, have proven challenging for many rural hospitals to achieve. Purpose: To provide a snapshot of stroke care at rural hospitals in Idaho and to investigate the experiences of these hospitals in expediting stroke care. Methods: Using a standard questionnaire, a telephone survey of hospital staff at 21 rural hospitals in Idaho was performed. The survey focused on acute stroke care practices and strategies to expedite stroke care. Findings: The median number of stroke patients treated per year was 23.3. Patient delays were reported by 77.8% of hospitals, transport delays by 66.7%, in-hospital delays by 61.1%, equipment delays by 22.2%, and ancillary services delays by 61.1%. Approximately 67% of hospitals had implemented a clinical pathway for stroke and 80.0% had provided staff with stroke-specific training. No hospitals surveyed had a designated stroke team, and only 33.3% reported engaging in quality improvement efforts to expedite stroke care. Thrombolytics (tPA) were available and indicated for stroke at 55.6% of the hospitals surveyed. Conclusions: Rural hospitals in Idaho face many difficult challenges as they endeavor to meet the 3-hour deadline for thrombolytic therapy, including limited resources and experience in acute stroke care, and many different types of prehospital and in-hospital delays. [source]

Patient's delay in oral cancer: a systematic review

Oral and pharyngeal cancer: Analysis of patient delay at different tumor stages

HEAD & NECK: JOURNAL FOR THE SCIENCES & SPECIALTIES OF THE HEAD AND NECK, Issue 11 2005
Xavier D. R. Brouha MD
Abstract Background. The aim of this study was to examine which factors are related to patient delay in a cohort of consecutive patients with pharyngeal cancer and oral cancer and to determine whether the different stages of patient delay (ie, appraisal, illness, behavioral, and scheduling) were related to different tumor stages. Methods. Before treatment, 55 patients with pharyngeal cancer and 134 patients with oral cancer were interviewed about their prediagnostic period. To verify the data, a questionnaire was sent to the general practitioner and/or dentist and a close relative. Results. Patients with a delay of more than 30 days were significantly more often diagnosed with late-stage (T3,T4) disease (pharynx, p = .01, odds ratio [OR] = 4.5; oral, p = .01, OR = 3.2). No sociodemographic characteristics were associated with patient delay. Conclusions. Prolonged patient delay was associated with late-stage disease for both patients with pharyngeal cancer and patients with oral cancer. Although for most patients the symptoms are vague or might look like a common cold or infection, the general public should be better informed about tumor symptoms. This may enhance earlier visits to a health care professional. © 2005 Wiley Periodicals, Inc. Head Neck27: XXX,XXX, 2005 [source]

Patient delay in oral cancer: a qualitative study of patients' experiences

The yield of expanding the therapeutic time window for tPA

ACTA NEUROLOGICA SCANDINAVICA, Issue 5 2006
J. F. Owe
Objectives,,, Intravenous thrombolysis with recombinant tissue plasminogen activator (tPA) for acute ischemic stroke has been proved to be effective when given within 3 h of onset of stroke symptoms. Partly due to this time limit, less than 10% of stroke patients are treated with tPA. This study assessed the potential for increased tPA utilization with a theoretical time limit of 6 h. Materials and methods,,, A total of 117 patients admitted with a diagnosis of acute cerebrovascular disease were prospectively registered over a 3-month period, with emphasis on timing and criteria for tPA treatment. Results,,, Eighty-eight of 117 patients (75%) had an acute ischemic stroke. Of these, 23% arrived within 3 h, 8% within 3,6 h, and 69% later than 6 h after symptom onset. Of the seven patients in the 3,6 h group, only one had time delay as the only contraindication to tPA. Conclusions,,, This study suggests that reducing patient delay, rather than increasing the time limit for thrombolytic treatment, may increase the frequency of tPA utilization. Changing time limits for thrombolysis may reduce time delay from stroke onset to arrival in hospital due to more rapid handling of patients by the emergency medical services. [source]