Hispanic women's experience with "el cambio de vida".

Purpose: To examine the factors that influence Hispanic women's decisions to initiate or not initiate hormone replacement therapy (HRT) during menopause to manage symptoms or to prevent longer-term conditions.

Data Sources: A descriptive study of 51 Hispanic women who completed the Spanish version of the Menopausal Decision-Making Questionnaire (S-MDMQ) to describe their experience with and perceptions about menopause.

Conclusions: Most of the low-income Hispanic women in this study would elect not to take HRT; however, they do use exercise, diet, vitamins, and other self-care activities to manage symptoms of menopause.

Exploring loss to follow-up: abnormal Pap screening in Hispanic patients.

Purpose: The loss of patients to follow-up for abnormal findings from Pap screenings is an important public health concern, particularly among poor and minority women. This study explores factors affecting incomplete follow-up among a group of Hispanic women with low incomes.

Description Of Study: A qualitative descriptive study was conducted of 11 Hispanic patients with incomplete Pap smear follow-up at a public clinic in a major city in south Texas.

Developing an economic IQ in primary care.

Purpose: To describe elements of an economic intelligence quotient (IQ) that can be used to enhance the nurse practitioner's (NP) fiscal viability in a primary care setting.

Data Sources: Anecdotal data from providers and administrators; clinical experiences of the authors; scientific and government publications and guidelines.

Conclusions: In the United States, managed care cost-containment initiatives have led to competition among physicians and NPs for patients and jobs.