Background Of the 464 million patients diagnosed with diabetes mellitus globally, type 2 diabetes accounts for 90%. Type 2 diabetes contributes to other conditions such as hypertension, dyslipidaemia and cardiovascular diseases. Glycaemic haemoglobin control is essential in reducing long-term macrovascular and microvascular complications. Pharmacist interventions have been documented to have a positive role in diabetes management. In Kuwait, type 2 diabetes prevalence is increasing and found in a young population. Aims To evaluate the influence of the pharmacist-led intervention on diabetes knowledge, medication adherence and HbA1c, and hypertension. In addition, to estimate the 10-years risk of developing cardiovascular events and assess the cost of diabetes-related complications. Method The study was a randomised controlled trial with control and intervention arms conducted at the military hospital in Kuwait. Participants (n=177) were randomly allocated to the intervention group (n=88) and control group (n=89), using a 4-block randomisation procedure. The intervention group received face-to-face education and counselling from the pharmacist with a monthly follow-up for six months. The primary outcome was glycaemic control, and secondary measures were hypertension, lipid profiles, medication adherence, diabetes knowledge, 10-year estimated cardiovascular events and cost. QRISK3 and UKPDS-OM2 were used to estimate the risk of CVD events and cost comparison analysis. ii Results Compared with baseline, the mean reduction of HbA1c, blood pressure, and lipid profiles showed significant improvement in the intervention group. Additionally, improvement in medication adherence, diabetes knowledge, 10-years estimated cardiovascular events were reported with the intervention group. Also, the pharmacist-led intervention was cost-saving. Conclusion The study highlighted that adult type 2 diabetes patients who received the pharmacist-led intervention experienced a reduction in adverse clinical outcomes, improved non-clinical outcomes, and assisted in lifestyle modification.

No description available.

No description available.

Heart failure (HF) is a major public health problem throughout the world. It accounts for one death certificate among nine in the United States. Heart failure and sudden death combined are responsible for the largest number of deaths in America. The total costs of HF in the United States are estimated to be $37 billion each year. Despite substantial medical and surgical advances related to treatment of HF, it remains a very costly condition with high mortality and morbidity rates. Although biological factors contribute to high morbidity and mortality in HF, there are many unexplored psychosocial factors that also likely contribute to these rates. Thus, the purpose of this dissertation was to examine the association between some of the psychosocial factors (i.e. depression, anxiety, comorbid depression and anxiety, stress, cognitive appraisal, and coping) and health outcomes as defined by rehospitalisation and mortality among HF patients. The first paper is a report of longitudinal study of 1,260 patients with HF. The purpose of the study was to determine whether co-morbid symptoms of depression and anxiety are associated with all-cause mortality or rehospitalization for cardiac causes in patients with HF. Anxiety and depression were treated first as continuous level variables, then as categorical variables using standard published cut points. Patients were then divided into four groups based on the presence of symptoms of anxiety and depression. When depression and anxiety were treated as continuous level variables, both comorbid depression and anxiety, and depression alone were significant predictors of all-cause mortality. However, when depression and anxiety were treated as categorical variables, comorbid depression and anxiety was a predictor of all-cause mortality, while anxiety and depressive symptoms considered alone were not independent predictors of the same outcome. None of those variables were significant predictors of cardiac rehospitalization outcome, regardless of whether entered as continuous or categorical level variables. The second paper is a report of a study that was conducted to (1) examine the association of stress with 6-month cardiac event-free survival; (2) examine the relationship of stress with salivary cortisol; and (3) examine the association of salivary cortisol level with 6-month cardiac event-free survival. The study sample was 81 HF patients. A prospective design was used in which patients were followed for 6 months to determine occurrence of 6-month cardiac event-free survival, defined as time to the combined endpoint of cardiac rehospitalization or all-cause death. Stress was not a significant predictor of event-free survival in HF, salivary cortisol was a significant predictor of event-free survival in the unadjusted model, but not in the adjusted model, and stress was not a significant predictor of salivary cortisol level. The final paper is a report of prospective design study that aimed to describe self-reported stress level, cognitive appraisal and coping among patients with HF, and to examine the association of cognitive appraisal and coping strategies with event-free survival based on a proposed model of HF patients’ response to stressors that been suggested according to literature to date. The study sample consisted of 88 HF patients who been followed for 6 months to determine occurrence of the combined endpoint of rehospitalization for cardiac causes or all-cause death. The study showed that stress level was associated with harm and loss cognitive appraisal. Harm/loss and threat cognitive appraisals were associated with avoidant emotional coping. Furthermore, harm/loss cognitive appraisal was a significant predictor of avoidant emotional coping and event free survival. Finally avoidant emotional coping was a significant predictor of event free survival among HF patients in the unadjusted model, but not in the adjusted model. The findings from this dissertation provided further evidence of the importance of psychosocial factors to health outcomes in HF patients. It also filled important gaps in the body of knowledge related to health outcomes among those with HF by demonstrating the need for cognitive and behavioral therapy among HF patients who negatively appraise their health condition.

End-stage renal disease (ESRD) introduces physical, psychological, social, emotional and spiritual challenges into patients’ lives. Spirituality has been found to contribute to improved health outcomes, mainly in the areas of quality of life (QOL) and well-being. No studies exist to explore the influences of spirituality on the health outcomes and general well-being in patients with end-stage renal disease receiving haemodialysis (HD) treatment in Scotland. This study was therefore carried out to examine and explore spirituality in the day-to-day lives of patients with ESRD receiving HD treatment and how it may influence their health outcomes and, in particular, QOL and general well-being. The study described in this thesis employed a sequential mixed method approach over two stages: quantitative and qualitative. Following ethical approval, a cross-sectional survey was conducted with 72 patients from 11 dialysis units recruited from four Health Boards in Scotland. The participants in the study were regular patients attending the dialysis units three times per week. Data on patients’ quality of life, general well-being, and spirituality were collected using self-administered questionnaires including demographic information: the Short Form Medical Outcome Study Questionnaire (SF-36v2), the General Health Questionnaire, and the Spiritual Well-Being Questionnaire. The data were analysed using the Predictive Analytics Software for Windows. The findings highlighted that patients’ quality of life was markedly lower than the United Kingdom general population average norms of 50. Increasing age was associated with better mental health but worse physical health. The survey also found that there were no significant associations between spirituality and patients’ quality of life and general well-being. However, it was considered important to complement and enrich the survey findings by gaining a deeper understanding of the influences of spirituality on patients’ health outcomes and general well-being by carrying out the qualitative component of the study. Qualitative data were collected using semi-structured interviews with a subsample of 21 patients from those who participated in the survey. A thematic approach using Framework Analysis informed the qualitative data analysis. Four main themes emerged from the qualitative interviews: ‘Emotional and Psychological Turmoil’, ‘Life is Restricted’, ‘Spirituality’ and ‘Other Coping Strategies’. The findings from the interviews confirmed that patients’ quality of life might be affected because of the physical challenges such as unremitting fatigue, disease unpredictability, or being tied down to a dialysis machine, or the emotional and psychological challenges imposed by the disease into their lives such as wholesale changes, dialysis as a forced choice and having a sense of indebtedness. The findings also revealed that spirituality was an important coping strategy for the majority of participants who took part in the qualitative component (n=16). Different meanings of spirituality were identified including connection with God or Supernatural Being, connection with the self, others and nature/environment. Spirituality encouraged participants to accept their disease and offered them a sense of protection, instilled hope in them and helped them to maintain a positive attitude to carry on with their daily lives, which may have had a positive influence on their health outcomes and general well-being. The findings also revealed that humour was another coping strategy that helped to diffuse stress and anxiety for some participants and encouraged them to carry on with their lives. The findings from this study contribute knowledge to increase our understanding of the influence of spirituality on the health outcomes and general well-being of patients with end-stage renal disease currently receiving haemodialysis treatment. Based on the findings from this thesis, recommendations are made for clinical practice, patient and nurse education and for future research.

Es wird vielfach postuliert, dass Erwartungen Bedeutung für den Verlauf und die Ergebnisse einer medizinischen Rehabilitationsmaßnahme haben (vgl. Deck, 1999; Deck, Zimmermann, Kohlmann & Raspe, 1998b; Faller, Vogel & Bosch, 2000; Hafen, Bengel, Jastrebow & Nübling, 2000; Kühn, Pannicke, Mohs & Schneider, 2001). Im ersten Teil der Arbeit wird diese Thematik aus einer gesundheitspsychologischen Perspektive untersucht. Die sozial-kognitive Theorie von Bandura (1997) wird gewählt, in der Erwartungen wie Ergebnis- und Selbstwirksamkeitserwartungen als zentrale Prädiktoren von gesundheitlichen Ergebnissen angesehen werden. Diese Theorie vermag den Einfluss von Erwartungen auf Gesundheitsverhalten und den Gesundheitszustand zu erklären und zugleich auch die Bildung von Erwartungen zu beschreiben. Auch wenn Ergebniserwartungen die Behandlungsergebnisse vorhersagen, können Diskrepanzen zwischen den anfänglichen Erwartungen der Patienten und ihren Behandlungsergebnissen vorliegen. Aus einer Selbstregulationsperspektive wird angenommen, dass unerwartet schlechte Behandlungsergebnisse möglicherweise negative emotionale und motivationale Folgen haben, die sich auf den weiteren Rehabilitationsprozess auswirken. Zur Erklärung dieser Effekte wird im zweiten Teil der Arbeit ein Modell vorgestellt, das die zentralen Konstrukte und Annahmen der sozial-kognitiven Theory von Bandura (1997; Marlatt & Gordon, 1985), der Selbstregulationstheorie von Carver and Scheier (1998) und der kognitiv-transaktionalen Stresstheorie von Lazarus (1991) vereint. Die Daten der zweiten multizentrischen MSK-QMS Studie zur stationären Rehabilitation nach Hüftgelenkersatz bot als Längsschnittstudie die Möglichkeit, die Fragestellungen beider Teile der Arbeit empirisch zu untersuchen. An dieser Studie nahmen 1065 Rehabilitanden nach Hüftgelenkersatz teil. Die Ergebnisse bestätigen, dass positive Ergebniserwartungen und hohe Selbstwirksamkeitserwartungen gute Behandlungsergebnisse bei Patienten einer stationären Rehabilitationsmaßnahme nach Hüftgelenkersatz vorhersagen. Weitere Analysen zeigen, dass die Erwartungen zu Reha-Beginn durch verschiedene direkte und symbolische Erfahrungen sowie Indikatoren des körperlichen und emotionalen Zustandes beeinflusst werden. Darüber hinaus haben Diskrepanzen zwischen anfänglichen Erwartungen und Behandlungsergebnissen (indirekte) emotionale sowie (direkte und indirekte) motivationale Effekte. Die Befunde werden theoretisch eingebettet und theoriegestützt interpretiert. Praktische Konsequenzen werden abgeleitet. / There is a growing body of literature emphasizing that expectations have effects on the process and outcomes of an inpatient rehabilitation (cp. Deck, 1999; Deck, Zimmermann, Kohlmann & Raspe, 1998b; Faller, Vogel & Bosch, 2000; Hafen, Bengel, Jastrebow & Nübling, 2000; Kühn, Pannicke, Mohs & Schneider, 2001). The first part of the present thesis examines this issue from a health psychology perspective. The social-cognitive theory of Bandura (1997) is chosen that postulates expectations such as outcome expectancies and perceived self-efficacy as main predictors of health outcomes. This theory is able to explain how expectations affect health behaviour and health outcomes and how expectations are formed. Even though outcome expectations predict health outcomes, patients may experience discrepancies between their initial expectations and their later health outcomes. From a self-regulation perspective it is assumed that the experience of unexpected worse health outcomes may have negative emotional and motivational consequences that affect the further process of rehabilitation. To describe these effects a model is introduced in the second part of the thesis that includes main constructs and assumptions of the social-cognitive theory of Bandura (1997; Marlatt & Gordon, 1985), the self-regulation theory of Carver and Scheier (1998) and the cognitiv-transactional theory of Lazarus (1991). In both parts of the thesis research questions are derived that are tested in a longitudinal study (MSK-QMS study). The participants are 1065 adult inpatients who had undergone elective total hip replacement surgery. The results confirm that positive outcome expectations and high perceived self-efficacy predicted better health outcomes in inpatients after hip replacement surgery. Further analyses indicate, that patients'' expectations at admission are affected by several direct and symbolic experiences as well as different indicators of physical and emotional states. Moreover, discrepancies between initial outcome expectations and later health outcomes have (indirect) emotional and (direct and indirect) motivational effects. The results are theory based interpreted. Practical consequences are derived.

Background: Children who enter foster care usually do so because of maltreatment by their birth families. Early adversity such as this is associated with many negative outcomes, including disturbances of attachment and mental health in childhood and throughout the lifespan. Young children (under 5) are particularly at risk due to maltreatment rates being highest in this age range, and because of the vital brain development that occurs during this time. Improving the quality of existing relationships for young children is the most cost effective way to improve mental health outcomes. It is important that research investigates which relational and psychological variables that exist within the foster carer-child relationship may be protective against developing negative mental health outcomes, so as to inform carer training and future interventions for this vulnerable group. Aims: The aims of this research project were twofold. The first aim was to systematically review the existing literature on links between foster carer psychological variables (such as commitment to their foster child), and/or child psychological variables (such as their attachment style), and the mental health outcomes of children in foster care. The second aim was to investigate whether foster carer acceptance, commitment, awareness of influence and reflective functioning (RF) predict the mental health outcomes of Scottish preschool aged children who are looked after in foster care. Method: A systematic review of the existing literature was undertaken to address the first aim. The search strategy resulted in 12 quantitative studies that investigated links between child or carer psychological variables and child mental health outcomes. An empirical study of 179 pre-school aged children in foster care in Scotland was carried out to address the second aim. Participants were taking part in a wider RCT of a novel intervention to improve outcomes and permanency decisions for children in foster care. Foster carer acceptance, commitment, and awareness of influence was assessed using the This Is My Baby Interview, and scores of RF were coded from the transcripts of this interview using a computer-based algorithm. Child mental health information was gathered using the Infant Toddler Social Emotional Assessment. Data was gathered at 2 time points; baseline assessments occurred around 4 weeks after entry to care, and follow-up assessments were carried out a year later. Results: The systematic review found good evidence that foster child attachment security is linked to more positive mental health outcomes. It also found some evidence suggesting that foster carer psychological variables such as commitment and quality of caregiving also relate to child mental health outcomes, but this research is in its infancy and it is therefore difficult to draw firm conclusions around this. The results of the empirical study showed that carer commitment and awareness of influence predict child competence at baseline, and RF predicts internalising and externalising problems at follow up. No predictive relationships were found between carer variables and child mental health over time. Conclusion: The results from both studies suggest that carer psychological variables such as commitment to their foster child may relate to child mental health development. These results have implications in terms of foster carer training, and for intervention development for this vulnerable population. This research is however in its infancy, and the results suggest a complex picture with regard to carer psychological variables and child mental health. Large-scale high quality longitudinal research is needed to provide a clear understanding of these relationships.

Thesis (Ph.D. (Nutrition))--North-West University, Potchefstroom Campus, 2009.

Abstract Purpose This study is designed to determine whether managed care has had an influence on the number and distribution of procedures with demonstrated volume and outcome endogeneity in Florida healthcare markets; in addition, methods are developed to determine which measures of managed care activity best predict the impact of managed care on surgical procedure utiliation. Rationale A shift in surgical procedure volume on the basis of preferred provider arrangements has the potential to redistribute surgical procedures within hospital markets. The surgical procedures for which such a distribution could have the greatest impact on population health are those for which the volume of cases performed has a strong inverse influence on the outcomes observed. A shift in high risk surgical procedures to low volume hospitals could potentially reduce the number of cases performed at high volume centers and increase cases at low volume centers, adversely impacting quality in both. Methods A retrospective population based cohort design is used to capitalize on the variability among Florida metropolitan statistical areas between 1995 and 1999, a period which captured the full business life cycle of managed care plans in Florida. Multiple regression models are used to measure the impact of changes in managed care activity as measured by penetration, index of competition and consolidation on the change in the number and distribution of seven procedures for which volume is associated with patient outcome, controlling for socio-demographic and market factors known to influence surgical procedure utilization. Difference scores derived for each of the model variables were used to measure change from the baseline in 1995 to 1999. Post hoc analysis of the count data models was performed using the cases from all study years in a log linear generalized estimating equation to provide validation of the difference score approach. Key Findings Study procedure volume increased over the period, and remained a consistent proportion of the total inpatient surgical procedure volume. Procedure rate remained stable over the study period with substantial small area variation. Change in managed care concentration was consistently and negatively associated with procedure volume at both the MSA (&betaâ&beta = -19.67; p = 0.0489) and hospital level (&betaâ&beta = -4.088; p = 0.0027).Change in the total population and the number of specialty surgeons had a substantial, consistent and positive relationship to change in procedure volume at both the market and hospital level. The change in the index of competition was positively associated with change in hospital market share (&betaâ&beta = 0.1005; p = 0.05); whereas, neither change in managed care penetration nor change in managed care index of competition was predictive of change in procedure volume at the market level. The managed care variables were not correlated when difference scores were tested providing evidence that the managed care variables measure different constructs and behave differently. Implications As markets for managed care became more concentrated, the number of surgical procedures with volume and outcome endogeneity declined; the specific reasons for the observed decline require additional study. Competitive managed care markets have a favorable impact on hospital market share for these high risk, high margin procedures. Studies of managed care require consideration of the stage of managed care development in order to understand its influence and the use of difference scores as a method to measure change over time has substantial potential for the study of health care markets.

Thesis (Ph.D. (Nutrition))--North-West University, Potchefstroom Campus, 2009.