This retrospective study examined the interview scores, admission grades, and optometry grades of students who received one of two types of admission interviews. The INDIV-BLIND group (N = 36) represented those students who had received an individual interview (i.e., one interviewer) for which the interviewer had no access to the candidate's file. The PANEL-ACCESS group (N = 21) was made up of those students who had received a panel interview (i.e., two interviewers) for which the interviewers had access to the candidate's file. The two groups were compared using two admission grades and seven optometry grades. Both t-test and Wilcoxon Score statistical procedures were used to test the null hypothesis (H0) that there were no significant grade differences (p
Web-based surveys may have advantages related to the speed and cost of data collection as well as data quality. However, they may be biased by low and selective participation. We predicted that such biases would distort point-estimates such as average symptom level or prevalence but not patterns of associations with putative risk-factors.
A structured psychiatric interview was administered to parents in two successive surveys of child mental health. In 2003, parents were interviewed face-to-face, whereas in 2006 they completed the interview online. In both surveys, interviews were preceded by paper questionnaires covering child and family characteristics.
The rate of parents logging onto the web site was comparable to the response rate for face-to-face interviews, but the rate of full response (completing all sections of the interview) was much lower for web-based interviews. Full response was less frequent for non-traditional families, immigrant parents, and less educated parents. Participation bias affected point estimates of psychopathology but had little effect on associations with putative risk factors. The time and cost of full web-based interviews was only a quarter of that for face-to-face interviews.
Web-based surveys may be performed faster and at lower cost than more traditional approaches with personal interviews. Selective participation seems a particular threat to point estimates of psychopathology, while patterns of associations are more robust.
This study is grounded in a phenomenological lifeworld perspective. It aims at providing rich descriptions of lived experience of the process of losing weight after obesity surgery. Two women participated in in-depth interviews four times each during the first postoperative year. Based on the women's experiences, a meaning structure--the ambivalence of losing weight after obesity surgery--was identified across the women's processes of change. This consisted of five core themes: movement and activity--freedom but new demands and old restraints; eating habits and digestion--the complexity of change; appearance--smaller, but looser; social relations--stability and change; and being oneself--vulnerability and self-assurance. These core themes changed over time in terms of dominance. The experience of ambivalence is discussed according to a phenomenological perspective of the body as lived experience.
Notes
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The aim of the study was to present and evaluate a work-task-oriented interview technique focusing on the placement of the hands relative to the body and assessing per cent time spent in five standard work postures during a working day.
The reproducibility of estimated time spent in each work posture was tested by the test-retest method in 32 subjects; 16 were interviewed by the same interviewer and 16 were interviewed by another one at the retest. The validity concerning estimated time spent in th five standard work postures was tested in relation to observations in 58 male blue-collar workers. The mean registration (assessment) time was 6 hours and 15 minutes.
No evident differences in the reproducibility depending on same or different interviewers at test and retest could be observed. The linear relationship between times estimated by the interview and by observations was high for four of the work postures: 'sitting' (r = 0.86), 'standing with hands above shoulder level' (r = 0.87), 'between shoulder and knuckle level' (r = 0.75), and 'below knuckle level' (r = 0.93). When the work posture 'standing with hands between shoulder and knuckle level' was divided into 'hands fixed' (r = 0.62) and 'hands not fixed' (r = 0.50) the correlations were weak. Current musculoskeletal complaints did not influence the accuracy of the estimations.
The present task-oriented interview technique may be the best available method to estimate these work postures in a way that requires few resources compared to observations and technical measurements.
To investigate current medical school admission processes and whether they differ from those in 1986 when they were last reviewed by the Association of American Medical Colleges (AAMC).
In spring 2008, admission deans from all MD-granting U.S. and Canadian medical schools using the Medical College Admission Test (MCAT) were invited to complete an online survey that asked participants to describe their institution's admission process and to report the use and rate the importance of applicant data in making decisions at each stage.
The 120 responding admission officers reported using a variety of data to make decisions. Most indicated using interviews to assess applicants' personal characteristics. Compared with 1986, there was an increase in the emphasis placed on academic data during pre-interview screening. While GPA data were among the most important data in decision making at all stages in 1986, data use and importance varied by the stage of the process in 2008: MCAT scores and undergraduate GPAs were rated as the most important data for deciding whom to invite to submit secondary applications and interview, whereas interview recommendations and letters of recommendation were rated as the most important data in deciding whom to accept.
This study underscores the complexity of the medical school admission process and suggests increased use of a holistic approach that considers the whole applicant when making admission decisions. Findings will inform AAMC initiatives focused on transforming admission processes.
We compared the appropriateness of visits to a pediatric emergency department (ED) by provincial telephone health line-referral, by self- or parent-referral, and by physician-referral.
A cohort of patients younger than 18 years of age who presented to a pediatric ED during any of four 1-week study periods were prospectively enrolled. The cohort consisted of all patients who were referred to the ED by a provincial telephone health line or by a physician. For each patient referred by the health line, the next patient who was self- or parent-referred was also enrolled. The primary outcome was visit appropriateness, which was determined using previously published explicit criteria. Secondary outcomes included the treating physician's view of appropriateness, disposition (hospital admission or discharge), treatment, investigations and the length of stay in the ED.
Of the 578 patients who were enrolled, 129 were referred from the health line, 102 were either self- or parent-referred, and 347 were physician-referred. Groups were similar at baseline for sex, but health line-referred patients were significantly younger. Using explicitly set criteria, there was no significant difference in visit appropriateness among the health line-referrals (66%), the self- or parent-referrals (77%) and the physician-referrals (73%) (p = 0.11). However, when the examining physician determined visit appropriateness, physician-referred patients (80%) were deemed appropriate significantly more often than those referred by the health line (56%, p
Assessing the effectiveness of informational video clips on Iranian immigrants' attitudes toward and intention to use the BC HealthGuide Program in the greater Vancouver area.
Consumer-directed health information resources hold great potential for improving public health and easing the demand on health systems. Their value, however, depends largely on the ability of their intended users to access and use them effectively. Little is known about whether British Columbia's ethnocultural communities are using the British Columbia (BC) Ministry of Health's BC HealthGuide (BCHG) program, and if so, when and for what purposes they use the services, as well as level of satisfaction with and users' perceptions of the resources. This study investigated attitudes toward and perceptions of the BCHG program, as well as use patterns and satisfaction levels, within the Iranian community of the Greater Vancouver Area (GVA)--among BC's largest and fastest-growing Middle Eastern immigrant communities--and explored a model for introducing the BCHG program to ethnic communities in the GVA and BC.
In a 2-stage quasi-experimental design, with a combination of quantitative and qualitative research methods, data obtained from structured telephone surveys, in-person interviews, and focus groups involving a randomly selected sample of the target population were analyzed before and after intervention with audiovisual health information: a series of culturally relevant informative video clips developed by direct participation of the community and aired on local television channels in the fall of 2004.
There was low awareness and low utilization of the BCHG program among participants at the beginning of this study. Furthermore, many participants in the initial stage of this study cautioned that self-care resources in general are unsuited to Iranian culture, due to widespread distrust of health advice received via telephone or the Internet, and due to the strong value placed on health advice received directly from a professional medical doctor. Nonetheless, attitudes, perceptions, and self-reported utilization rates of the BCHG program improved substantially among the participants of this study following the screening of culturally appropriate, targeted promotional videos. Participants almost unanimously reported that watching the videos had encouraged them to use the BCHG program, and that they intended to promote the resources to others. In addition, the majority of participants who had accessed at least one of the BCHG program resources reported being satisfied with the services that they had received, and improved utilization rates were maintained at the follow-up focus group stage. At the same time, participants cautioned that gaining the confidence of the wider Iranian community in BC and increasing service utilization will require considerable time and effort. In particular, they suggested using a variety of media and communication channels, carefully selecting the health messengers, and targeting messages to specific community subgroups.
The findings of this study strongly suggest that Iranians living in the GVA are open to alternatives to routine healthcare services, including the use of preventive and self-care resources. However, awareness levels and utilization rates of the BCHG program among the GVA's Iranian immigrant population have until now been low. The noticeable and sustained improvement to attitudes, perceptions, and self-reported utilization rates of the BCHG program among Iranian participants in this study after watching culturally appropriate promotional videos indicates the potential to modify cultural beliefs in regard to the delivery of preventive health information if the relevant messages are delivered appropriately. By carefully considering the demographic and cultural characteristics of the various ethnic communities living in BC, and by targeting promotional activities and services directly to these individual communities, the BCHG program could improve awareness and utilization rates within these communities.
Notes
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Cites: Aust Fam Physician. 2001 Nov;30(11):1108-1211759465
Assessing the effectiveness of the NICHD investigative interview protocol when interviewing French-speaking alleged victims of child sexual abuse in Quebec.
The study was designed to assess the effectiveness of the flexibly structured NICHD Investigative Interview Protocol for child sexual abuse (CSA) investigative interviews by police officers and mental health workers in Quebec. The NICHD Protocol was designed to operationalize "best practice" guidelines and to help forensic interviewers use open-ended prompts to facilitate free recall by alleged victims.
A total of 83 interviews with 3- to 13-year-old alleged victims were matched with 83 interviews conducted by the same interviewers before they were trained to use the Protocol. Interviews were matched with respect to the children's ages, children-perpetrator relationships, and the types and frequency of abuse. Coders categorized each of the prompts used to elicit information about the abuse and tabulated the numbers of new forensically relevant details provided in each response.
Interviewers used three times as many open-ended prompts in Protocol interviews than in non-Protocol interviews, whereas use of all other types of questions was halved, and the total number of questions asked decreased by 25%. Protocol-guided interviews yielded more details than comparison interviews. The mean number of details per prompt increased from 3 to 5 details when the Protocol was used. Even with young children, interviewers using the Protocol employed more invitations to elicit forensically relevant details.
French-speaking investigators using the NICHD Protocol used open-ended prompts rather than focused questions when interviewing alleged victims. In addition, these interviewers needed fewer questions to get relevant information when using the Protocol.
A French version of the NICHD Protocol is now available to police officers and social workers who investigate the alleged sexual abuse of young children in French-speaking countries. This French version allowed trained interviewers to increase the use of invitations and reduce the use of more focused and risky questions. When the number of questions was controlled, more central details and more details in total were obtained in Protocol interviews, because the average prompt elicited more detailed answers in Protocol interviews. However, learning to use the NICHD Protocol required extended training and continued feedback sessions to maintain the high quality of interviewing.
