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National Census (national + census)

Distribution by Scientific Domains

Medical Sciences	100%

Selected Abstracts

The first Australian nurse practitioner census: A protocol to guide standardized collection of information about an emergent professional group

INTERNATIONAL JOURNAL OF NURSING PRACTICE, Issue 5 2010
Sandy Middleton RN PhD
Middleton S, Gardner G, Gardner A, Della P, Gibb M, Millar L. International Journal of Nursing Practice 2010; 16: 517,524 The first Australian nurse practitioner census: A protocol to guide standardized collection of information about an emergent professional group Internationally, collection of reliable data on new and evolving health-care roles is crucial. We describe a protocol for design and administration of a national census of an emergent health-care role, namely nurse practitioners in Australia using databases held by regulatory authorities. A questionnaire was developed to obtain data on the role and scope of practice of Australian nurse practitioners. Our tool comprised five sections and included a total of 56 questions, using 28existing items from the National Nursing and Midwifery Labour Force Census and nine items recommended in the Nurse Practitioner Workforce Planning Minimum Data Set. Australian Nurse Registering Authorities (n = 6) distributed the survey on our behalf. This paper outlines our instrument and methods. The survey was administered to 238 authorized Australian nurse practitioners (85% response rate). Rigorous collection of standardized items will ensure health policy is informed by reliable and valid data. We will re-administer the survey 2 years following the first survey to measure change over time. [source]

A new index of access to primary care services in rural areas

AUSTRALIAN AND NEW ZEALAND JOURNAL OF PUBLIC HEALTH, Issue 5 2009
Matthew R. McGrail
Abstract Objective: To outline a new index of access to primary care services in rural areas that has been specifically designed to overcome weaknesses of using existing geographical classifications. Methods: Access was measured by four key dimensions of availability, proximity, health needs and mobility. Population data were obtained through the national census and primary care service data were obtained through the Medical Directory of Australia. All data were calculated at the smallest feasible geographical unit (collection districts). The index of access was measured using a modified two-step floating catchment area (2SFCA) method, which incorporates two necessary additional spatial functions (distance-decay and capping) and two additional non-spatial dimensions (health needs and mobility). Results: An improved index of access, specifically designed to better capture access to primary care in rural areas, is achieved. These improvements come from: 1) incorporation of actual health service data in the index; 2) methodological improvements to existing access measures, which enable both proximity to be differentiated within catchments and the use of varying catchment sizes; and 3) improved sensitivity to small-area variations. Conclusion: Despite their recognised weaknesses, the Australian government uses broad geographical classifications as proxy measures of access to underpin significant rural health funding programs. This new index of access could provide a more equitable means for resource allocation. Implications: Significant government funding, aimed at improving health service access inequities in rural areas, could be better targeted by underpinning programs with our improved access measure. [source]

High-tech rural clinics and hospitals in Japan: a comparison to the Japanese average

AUSTRALIAN JOURNAL OF RURAL HEALTH, Issue 5 2004
Masatoshi Matsumoto
Abstract Context:,Japanese medical facilities are noted for being heavily equipped with high-tech equipment compared to other industrialised countries. Rural facilities are anecdotally said to be better equipped than facilities in other areas due to egalitarian health resource diffusion policies by public sectors whose goal is to secure fair access to modern medical technologies among the entire population. Objectives:,To show the technology status of rural practice and compare it to the national level. Design:,Nationwide postal survey. Setting, Subjects & Interventions:,Questionnaires were sent to the directors of 1362 public hospitals and clinics (of the 1723 municipalities defined as ,rural' by four national laws). Information was collected about the technologies they possessed. The data were compared with figures from a national census of all hospitals and clinics. Results:,A total of 766 facilities responded (an effective response rate of 56%). Rural facilities showed higher possession rates in most comparable technologies than the national level. It is noted that almost all rural hospitals had gastroscopes and colonoscopes and their possession rates of bronchoscopes and dialysis equipment were twice as high as the national level. The discrepancy in possession rates between rural and national was even more remarkable in clinics than in hospitals. Rural clinics owned twice as many abdominal ultrasonographs, and three times as many gastroscopes, colonoscopes, defibrillators and computed tomography scanners as the national level. Conclusions:,Rural facilities are equipped with more technology than urban ones. Government-led, tax based, technology diffusion in the entire country seems to have attained its goal. What is already known on this subject:,As a general tendency in both developing and developed countries, rural medical facilities are technologically less equipped than their urban counterparts. What does this paper add?:,In Japan, rural medical facilities are technologically better equipped than urban facilities. [source]

Epidemiology of abdominal aortic aneurysms in the Asian community

BRITISH JOURNAL OF SURGERY (NOW INCLUDES EUROPEAN JOURNAL OF SURGERY), Issue 3 2001
Dr J. I. Spark
Background: Studies relating to the ethnic origin of patients with an abdominal aortic aneurysm (AAA) are few and are mainly concerned with the differences between black and white Americans. The purpose of this study was to determine whether the incidence of AAA among the Asian population of Bradford is different from that in the Caucasian population. Methods: A retrospective study of patients with an AAA was carried out between 1990 and 1997 using data collected by the Patient Administrative Service, personal databases of the vascular consultants and theatre records. Information about the ethnic composition of the population of Bradford was obtained from the 1991 national census. Demographic data, including ethnic origin and clinical details, were obtained from patient notes. Results: Two hundred and thirty-three patients with an AAA were identified during the study interval. The Asian population comprised 14·0 per cent of the total population of Bradford. Twenty-eight AAAs would be expected per year. All of the aneurysms identified occurred in the Caucasian population and none in the Asian community. Conclusion: These early results suggest that AAA is rare among the Asian population. © 2001 British Journal of Surgery Society Ltd [source]