A study of blood transfusion services at a district hospital in Malawi.

Background And Objectives: Severe anaemia is an important cause of mortality in developing countries. However, few studies have explored the use of and possibilities for blood transfusion services. The aims of this study are to explore the use of blood transfusion services at a hospital in sub-Saharan Africa and to assess the quality of the transfusion services according to WHO guidelines.

Alcohol liaison in action. The Canterbury experience.

In the changing health service, cooperation between disciplines is essential and innovation important to improve the service for people whose health is at risk or damaged. We describe our response to the challenge of liaison between different disciplines when faced with a multifaceted problem that needs the contribution of medical and psychiatric teams and community workers. Although this method of work has been applied to alcohol misuse, it could also be applied to other clinical problems.

Prevalence of dyspepsia: the epidemiology of overlapping symptoms.

Studies of the epidemiology of dyspepsia have been complicated by the use of different symptom definitions, subject populations and time frames of investigation. Published figures for the prevalence of dyspepsia vary from 20% to 40%, of which perhaps only a quarter can be attributed to peptic ulcer disease. General practitioners see only a fraction of the dyspepsia within the community, the majority of which is either ignored or treated by self-medication.