Publications by authors named "Hayley Arnet"
Purpose: This study evaluates a pilot implementation of the Liverpool Care Pathway (LCP), a clinical tool used to guide the care of dying patients in the last days of life, on the end-of-life care for dying patients in three regions in rural Australia.
Methods: The LCP was implemented at 13 participating sites: nine hospitals (general wards), one community-based palliative care service, and three in-hospital palliative care units. To evaluate the implementation of the LCP, 415 eligible patient records were examined: 223 pre-implementation and 192 post-implementation (116 on the LCP and 76 receiving usual care).
Background: Innovations to be deployed during consultations with patients may influence the clinical performance of the medical practitioner. This study examined the impact on General Practitioners' (GPs) consultation performance of novel computer software, designed for use while consulting the patient.
Methods: Six GPs were video recorded consulting six actor-patients in a simulated clinical environment.
Background: Access to specialists is mediated by general practitioners in many countries. In these settings, specialists rely on information in referral letters when deciding which cases to schedule for their clinics.
Method: Two-hundred and seven consecutive referral letters to gastroenterologists were scored for the amount of information relayed to the specialist, using a published schedule.
Background: Many people will consult a medical practitioner about lower bowel symptoms, and the demand for access to general practitioners (GPs) is growing. We do not know if people recognise the symptoms of lower bowel cancer when advising others about the need to consult a doctor. A structured vignette survey was conducted in Western Australia.
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- Smokers often dismiss serious respiratory symptoms as everyday issues, which can hinder their willingness to seek medical help for potential health concerns like lung cancer.
- A pilot study involving a structured survey of patients in Western Australia found that specific symptoms, such as a chronic cough or weight loss, significantly increased the likelihood of recommending a medical consultation.
- Although smoking history raised the perceived risk of cancer, only a small percentage of respondents recognized cancer symptoms in smokers, suggesting a gap in awareness about the seriousness of their symptoms.
Background: Extraneous distractions may influence the flow of general practice consultations. This study piloted a methodology to examine the impact of interrupting general practitioners (GPs) while consulting actor-patients.
Methods: Six GPs were video recorded consulting six actor-patients each presenting a different clinical scenario in a simulated surgery.
One in three men and one in four women in Australia will be diagnosed with cancer in the first 75 years of life. The majority will survive the cancer and ultimately die from unrelated causes. Many cancer patients and their families will experience some physical, social, economic and psychological sequelae, regardless of the prognosis.
View Article and Find Full Text PDFBackground: In Australia and in the United Kingdom (UK) access to specialists is sanctioned by General Practitioners (GPs). It is important to understand how practitioners determine which patients warrant referral.
Methods: A self-administered structured vignette postal survey of General Practitioners in Western Australia and the United Kingdom.
Introduction: The speed of diagnosis impacts on prognosis and survival in all types of cancer. In most cases survival and prognosis are significantly worse in rural and remote Australian populations who have less access to diagnostic and therapeutic services than metropolitan communities in this country. Research suggests that in general delays in diagnosis were a factor of misdiagnosis, the confounding effect of existing conditions and delayed or misleading investigation of symptoms.
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