QUALITY IMPROVEMENT: Supporting a hospital in difficulty: -experience of a '-buddying' agreement to implement a new medical pathway.

Increased NHS regulation has identified many healthcare organisations with operational and/or financial difficulties. Although the causes are often complex, most cases are effectively managed internally with limited input from external agencies. How best to support the few organisations needing additional support has not been established.

Effects of stimulant medication on cognitive performance of children with ADHD.

The effect that treatment with stimulant medication has on the intellectual performance of children with attention deficit hyperactivity disorder (ADHD) was examined. Thirty-one children diagnosed with ADHD were given a WISC-III before any treatment was implemented. At least 1 year later, children were retested.

Intermediate care in a primary care trust.

Improving the quality of care for older people has been a key aim of the NHS for many years and is an important part of the NHS Plan (DoH 2000). The National Service Framework for Older People, published in 2001, made it clear that intermediate care processes are central to the provision of quality care to this sector of the population (DoH 2001). This article describes a service model of intermediate care in one primary care trust, outlining the processes and challenges encountered in establishing this multidisciplinary cross-agency initiative.

Growth deficits and attention-deficit/hyperactivity disorder revisited: impact of gender, development, and treatment.

Objective: Although the relationship between putative growth deficits and attention-deficit/hyperactivity disorder (ADHD) has been examined in boys, this issue has not been evaluated in girls.

Methods: Height and weight were examined in 124 female ADHD children and 116 female controls using age and parental height corrections, attending to issues of pubertal stage and treatment. Also, we examined the interaction between ADHD status and gender on growth outcomes using data from 124 ADHD and 109 control males.