The cost of providing care by family and friends (informal care) in the last year of life: A population observational study.

Introduction: Little is known about replacement costs of care provided by informal carers during the last year of life for people dying of cancer and non-cancer diseases.

Aim: To estimate informal caregiving costs and explore the relationship with carer and decedent characteristics.

Design: National observational study of bereaved carers.

Soil microbial communities in the face of changing farming practices: A case study in an agricultural landscape in France.

According to biogeography studies, the abundance and richness of soil microorganisms vary across multiple spatial scales according to soil properties and farming practices. However, soil microorganisms also exhibit poorly understood temporal variations. This study aimed at better understanding how soil microbial communities respond to changes in farming practices at a landscape scale over time.

Safety netting for primary care: evidence from a literature review.

Background: Ensuring patient safety is vital in primary care. One mechanism to increase patient safety is through a practice known as safety netting. Safety netting is widely recommended in national guidelines; however, a variety of definitions exist with no consensus on when safety netting should be used and what advice or actions it should contain.

The complex relationship between household income of family caregivers, access to palliative care services and place of death: A national household population survey.

Background: Previous work shows that more affluent patients with cancer are more likely to die at home, whereas those dying from non-cancer conditions are more likely to die in hospital. Family caregivers are an important factor in determining place of death.

Aim: To investigate associations between family caregivers' household income, patients' access to specialist palliative care and place of patients' death, by level of personal end-of-life care.

Reasons for Refusal of Newborn Vitamin K Prophylaxis: Implications for Management and Education.

Objective: The American Academy of Pediatrics recommends intramuscular (IM) vitamin K prophylaxis for all newborns to prevent vitamin K deficiency bleeding. Given the serious implications of late-onset vitamin K deficiency bleeding, our objective was to examine factors influencing parents' decisions to refuse IM vitamin K prophylaxis.

Methods: Parents intending to refuse IM vitamin K prophylaxis at delivery were recruited from 5 community hospitals, 1 academic medical center, and 2 birthing centers in a single Southeastern state.

The meaning of suffering in patients with advanced progressive cancer.

Background: There is a lack of research into suffering and what it means to the individual patient with advanced cancer and its importance in end of life care.

Aims: To explore the concept of suffering and distress by eliciting what individual patients with advanced cancer perceived as suffering and how they utilised their own resources to manage suffering.

Method: A qualitative study design of focused narrative interviews analysed by thematic analysis was conducted with a heterogeneous sample of 49 palliative day care patients.

A pilot randomised controlled trial to reduce suffering and emotional distress in patients with advanced cancer.

Introduction: A pilot trial was carried out to determine if a focussed narrative interview could alleviate the components of suffering and anxiety and depression in advanced cancer patients.

Intervention: Patients recruited were invited to participate in a focussed narrative interview and reflect on their perspectives on their sense of "meaning", regarding suffering and their psychological, physical, social and spiritual well being - the emphasis was on allowing the patient to tell their story. Patients were encouraged to share what resources they themselves had utilised in addition to what professional care they may have received, to maintain a sense of well being.

Universal newborn screening: knowledge, attitudes, and satisfaction among public health professionals.

Objective: Assess knowledge, attitude, and satisfaction with the newborn screening (NBS) system among pediatric public health leaders in the state of Florida.

Methods: Online surveys and open-ended telephone interviews were administered to 10 county medical directors for a state-funded program that oversees NBS. Survey questions examined basic knowledge regarding NBS, views on provider and parent access to NBS information, and recommendations for improving the information distribution system.

Allied health students' perceptions of effective clinical instruction.

Students of allied health who have positive clinical education experiences often accept employment offered by their clinical sites. Most allied health professionals are not trained to be educators; to improve student clinical experiences, students were surveyed regarding their learning experiences during clinical internships. This study examined the teaching abilities and professional development training needs of clinical supervisors as identified by student perceptions.

Training health care providers to be educators.

Background: Students in the allied health field who have a positive clinical education experience often accept employment opportunities offered by their clinical site. Most allied health professionals are not trained to be educators. Professional development in the area of teaching could assist the professional to be a more effective teacher and therefore improve the clinical experience.

The status of complementary and alternative medicine education in U.S. physician assistant programs.

Background: Many Americans use complementary and alternative medicine (CAM). Medical educators have responded by incorporating CAM education into their curricula. Research has reported on the number and types of CAM therapies included in physician assistant (PA) curricula, but information on the purposes, methods, and practice of CAM education is lacking.