Burnout among family medicine residents: a cross-sectional nationwide study.

Background: In addition to pressures typical of other medical professions, family physicians face additional challenges such as building long-term relationships with patients, dealing with patients' social problems, and working at a high level of uncertainty. We aimed to assess the rate of burnout and factors associated with it among family medicine residents throughout Israel.

Methods: A cross sectional study based on a self-administered questionnaire.

Direct Oral Anticoagulants in Special Patient Populations.

Anticoagulants are a cornerstone of treatment in atrial fibrillation. Nowadays, direct oral anticoagulants (DOACs) are extensively used for this condition in developed countries. However, DOAC treatment may be inappropriate in certain patient populations, such as: patients with chronic kidney disease in whom DOAC concentrations may be dangerously elevated; frail elderly patients with an increased risk of falls; patients with significant drug-drug interactions (DDI) affecting either DOAC concentration or effect; patients at the extremes of body mass in whom an "abnormal" volume of distribution may result in inappropriate drug concentrations; patients with recurrent stroke reflecting an unusually high thromboembolic tendency; and, lastly, patients who experience major hemorrhage on an anticoagulant and in whom continued anticoagulation is deemed necessary.

Exploring primary care physician feedback following an integrative oncology consultation.

Objective: To explore responses from primary care physicians (PCPs) from an integrative physician (IP) consultation and recommended integrative oncology (IO) treatment program.

Methods: Chemotherapy-treated patients were referred by their oncology healthcare professional to an IP, a physician dually trained in complementary medicine and supportive cancer care. The consultation summary and patient-centered IO treatment program was then sent to the patient's PCP, with PCP-to-IP responses analyzed qualitatively using ATLAS.

Depression and Medicine Use among Older Adults during the COVID-19 Pandemic: The Role of Psychosocial Resources and COVID-19 Perceived Susceptibility.

A relationship was found between the COVID-19 pandemic and depression among older adults and between depressed mood and increased use of antidepressant medication among older adults during the pandemic. With the aim of broadening the understanding of these relationships, the study examined whether COVID-19 perceived susceptibility mediates the relationship between psychosocial resources (optimism and perceived social support) and depressive symptoms and medication use. Participants included 383 older adults ( = 71.

Sensory retraining for Central Post-Stroke Pain: A subgroup analysis within a randomized controlled trial.

Background: Explicit Sensory Retraining (SR) has been suggested for pain management in several neuropathic pain syndromes.

Objectives: To study the effectiveness of SR on Central Post Stroke Pain (CPSP) symptoms.

Methods: A preplanned subgroup of 23 subjects post-stroke reporting central pain were randomized within a larger study, to receive either explicit sensory discrimination retraining (SR) (in subgroup n = 11) or implicit repeated exposure to stimuli (RE) (in subgroup n = 12), applied to the lower limb.

Explicit versus implicit lower extremity sensory retraining for post-stroke chronic sensory deficits: a randomized controlled trial.

Purpose: Sensory impairment post-stroke limits rehabilitation of balance and gait. This study aims to compare the effect of explicit sensory retraining (ESR) versus implicit repeated exposure (IRE) to stimuli of the lower extremity, assessing their effects on sensation, balance, and gait in individuals with chronic post-stroke sensory impairment.

Materials And Methods: A two-arm parallel double-blind multicenter randomized controlled trial was conducted in physical therapy outpatient clinics.

Perceptions among diabetic patients in the ultra-orthodox Jewish community regarding medication adherence: a qualitative study.

Background: Promoting a healthy lifestyle and achieving strict adherence to medical treatment among patients with diabetes are key objectives in public health. Yet health behaviors are often culturally driven, especially in closed religious communities. This study seeks to reveal key cultural-religious factors, attitudes and behaviors characterizing the lifestyle in one such closed community-the ultra-Orthodox Jewish community-by understanding the attitudes of ultra-Orthodox patients with diabetes toward coping with their illness and the factors impacting their adherence to medicinal treatment.

Depression and Health-Related Quality of Life Among Elderly Patients during the COVID-19 Pandemic in Israel: A Cross-sectional Study.

Aim: This study aims to assess how optimism, social support, and perceived susceptibility are associated with depressive symptoms and health-related quality of life among elderly patients during the COVID-19 pandemic in Israel.

Methods: In a cross-sectional study, 256 participants age 60 through 95 completed the following self-administered questionnaires: Perceived Susceptibility, Life Orientation Test (LOT-R), Multidimensional Scale of Perceived Social Support (MSPSS), Symptoms of Depression (CES-D) and health-related quality of life (SF-12v2 Health Survey). Data were collected from June to July 2020, 3 months after the COVID-19 state of emergency was declared in Israel.

Engaging family medicine residents in research training: An innovative research skills program in Israel.

Background: The importance of medical research in developing academic and clinical excellence is widely acknowledged. Obstacles hindering research in primary care include negative attitudes, lack of dedicated time, funding shortages, and a relative paucity of mentors. Residency is the appropriate stage for developing research skills and encouraging research performance.

Lower Extremity Position Test: A new clinical quantitative assessment tool of proprioception post stroke.

Objective: To develop a quantitative, inexpensive and easy to use tool, for assessing proprioception of the lower extremity of individuals post-stroke, and examine its test-retest reliability and known-groups validity.

Methods: The Lower Extremity Position Test was developed. Testing procedure: seated subjects were asked to reproduce 12 cm or 22 cm distances on a plastic surface, by verbally stopping passive movement of the foot produced by the tester.

Assessment of texture discrimination ability at the sole of the foot in subjects with chronic stroke compared with young and elderly subjects with no neurological deficits: a reliability and validity study.

Purpose: To examine validity and test-retest reliability of a sensory test developed to evaluate ability of elderly subjects with/out a stroke to discriminate between textures with the sole of their foot.

Methods: Subjects poststroke, old adults and young subjects were tested twice. Twelve materials relevant to foot function (e.

Effect of Magnesium Oxide Supplementation on Nocturnal Leg Cramps: A Randomized Clinical Trial.

Importance: Magnesium supplements are widely marketed for prophylaxis of nocturnal leg cramps (NLC) despite no evidence of significant benefit.

Objective: To determine whether magnesium oxide is better than placebo for NLC prophylaxis.

Design, Setting, And Participants: A randomized, double-blind, placebo-controlled clinical trial of 2 weeks eligibility screening followed by 4 weeks of treatment was conducted in northern Israel, from February to October 2013.

Can outcome-based continuing medical education improve performance of immigrant physicians?

Introduction: Immigrant physicians are a valued resource for physician workforces in many countries. Few studies have explored the education and training needs of immigrant physicians and ways to facilitate their integration into the health care system in which they work. Using an educational program developed for immigrant civilian physicians working in military primary care clinics at the Israel Defence Force, we illustrate how an outcome-based CME program can address practicing physicians' needs for military-specific primary care education and improve patient care.

Urologists' attitudes regarding information sharing with prostate cancer patients--is there a common ground for collaboration with family physicians?

Clinicians often fail to adequately meet prostate cancer patients' information needs, and patients may receive different kinds of information from their doctors. This study aims to describe urologists' attitudes regarding information sharing with prostate cancer patients and to compare these findings with the previously published attitudes of Israeli family physicians. A questionnaire (11 items) was mailed to 87 board-certified practicing urologists.

Family physicians' perceptions, beliefs, and attitudes regarding information sharing with prostate cancer patients throughout the course of the disease.

Objectives: This study aimed to describe family physicians' perceptions regarding the concerns of men with prostate cancer as well as their beliefs and attitudes toward information sharing and decision making with prostate cancer patients throughout the course of their disease.

Materials And Methods: A questionnaire (44 items) was mailed to 780 board-certified family physicians registered in the 2003 computerized database of Clalit Health Services, Israel's largest health maintenance organization.

Results: Three hundred eighty-two (50%) physicians completed the questionnaires.

[Recording of risk factors and preventive pharmaceutical therapy among ischemic heart disease patients in family practice during the years 1993-1998].

The review of international literature yielded unsatisfactory performance of guidelines for secondary prevention of cardiovascular diseases. This study aimed to evaluate records of the implementation of guidelines published in 1995, for the treatment and follow-up of patients after myocardial infarction in family medicine. In a retrospective sectional cohort study we identified all the patients with previous myocardial infarction in the practices of 6 family physicians, with an overall total of 97 patients.

[The creation of a national faculty development program in Israel for family physicians].

University Departments from many countries recruit their faculty members for academic duties without prior formal training (specific for their jobs). This has been the common approach in Israel. Other countries however, have created faculty development (FD) programs to help new faculty accomplish their new tasks.

Ability of primary care physician's to break bad news: a performance based assessment of an educational intervention.

Objective: We have previously described a breaking bad news (BBN) training program for primary care physicians [Ungar L, Alperin M, Amiel GE, Beharier Z, Reis S. Breaking bad news: structured training for family medicine residents. Patient Educ Couns 2002;48:63-68].

Breaking bad news: structured training for family medicine residents.

Previous research has shown that physicians experience incompetence and difficulty in dealing with patients' feelings after they have broken bad news to them. During the past 10 years, we have implemented a longitudinal training program targeting these issues. The present article describes this training and discusses its contribution to doctors' skills at approaching distressed patients.