Publications by authors named "Meulen J"
Objective: To study experiences of women who gave birth in maternity units that have implemented a 'care bundle' quality improvement initiative to reduce obstetric anal sphincter injury (OASI) and associated morbidity.
Design: Postnatal electronic questionnaire.
Setting: Twenty-nine maternity units across England, Scotland and Wales.
Background: Centralising prostate cancer surgical and radiotherapy services, requires some patients to travel longer to access treatment, but its impact on actual treatment utilisation and outcomes is unknown.
Methods: Using national cancer registry records linked to administrative hospital data, we identified all patients with high risk and locally advanced prostate cancer diagnosed between 1 April 2019 and 31 March 2020 in the English National Health Service (n = 15,971). Estimated travel times from the patient residential areas to the nearest hospital providing surgery or radiotherapy were estimated for journeys by car and by public transport.
Objective: To determine whether children born with a cleft palate ± lip (CP ± L) and additional congenital differences (ACDs - including 'Congenital malformations and deformations' as coded in ICD-10), are less likely to meet the three national speech outcome standards at age five compared to children with CP ± L and no ACDs.
Design: An observational study, utilizing national data from the UK Cleft Registry and Audit NEtwork (CRANE) Database linked to national administrative data of hospital admissions.
Setting: National Health Service, England.
Background: Various features in health insurance schemes may lead to variation in healthcare. Unwarranted variations raise concerns about suboptimal quality of care, differing treatments for similar needs, or unnecessary financial burdens on patients and health systems. This realist review aims to explore insurance features that may contribute to healthcare variation in Asian countries; and to understand influencing mechanisms and contexts.
View Article and Find Full Text PDFAims: This national study investigated hospital quality and patient factors associated with treatment location for systemic anticancer treatment (SACT) in patients with metastatic cancers.
Materials And Methods: Using linked administrative datasets from the English NHS, we identified all patients diagnosed with metastatic breast and bowel cancer between 1 January 2016 and 31 December 2018, who subsequently received SACT within 4 months from diagnosis. The extent to which patients bypassed their nearest hospital was investigated using a geographic information system (ArcGIS).
Cleft lip Sidedness and the Association with Additional Congenital Malformations.
Cleft Palate Craniofac J
June 2024
Objective: To investigate the association between the sidedness of orofacial clefts and additional congenital malformations.
Design: Linkage of a national registry of cleft births to national administrative data of hospital admissions.
Setting: National Health Service, England.
Background And Objective: Radical prostatectomy (RP) is an established treatment for localised prostate cancer that can have a significant impact on urinary and sexual function, with recovery over time. Our aim was to describe functional recovery in the first year after RP, reporting descriptive outcomes alongside validated patient-reported outcome measure scores (Expanded Prostate Cancer Index Composite, EPIC-26).
Methods: Men undergoing RP between September 2015 and November 2019 completed EPIC-26 at baseline and 1, 3, 6, and 12 mo.
Background/objectives: The Family Nurse Partnership is an intensive home visiting programme for adolescent mothers. We aimed to evaluate the effectiveness of the Family Nurse Partnership on outcomes up to age 7 using national administrative data.
Design: We created a linked cohort of all mothers aged 13-19 using data from health, educational and children's social care and defined mothers enrolled in the Family Nurse Partnership or not using Family Nurse Partnership system data.
Background: The National Health Service in England pledged >£365 million to improve access to mental healthcare services via Community Perinatal Mental Health Teams (CPMHTs) and reduce the rate of perinatal relapse in women with severe mental illness. This study aimed to explore changes in service use patterns following the implementation of CPMHTs in pregnant women with a history of specialist mental healthcare in England, and conduct a cost-analysis on these changes.
Methods: This study used a longitudinal cohort design based on existing routine administrative data.
Ovarian cancer is the most lethal gynecologic malignancy, mainly due to late-stage diagnosis, frequent recurrences, and eventually therapy resistance. To identify potentially actionable genetic variants, sequencing data of 351 Belgian ovarian cancer patients were retrospectively captured from electronic health records. The cohort included 286 (81%) patients with high-grade serous ovarian cancer, 17 (5%) with low-grade serous ovarian cancer, and 48 (14%) with other histotypes.
View Article and Find Full Text PDFBackground And Objective: Magnetic resonance imaging (MRI) can detect recurrences after focal therapy for prostate cancer but there is no robust guidance regarding its use. Our objective was to produce consensus recommendations on MRI acquisition, interpretation, and reporting after focal therapy.
Methods: A systematic review was performed in July 2022 to develop consensus statements.
Objectives: A national survey aimed to measure how men with prostate cancer perceived their involvement in and decisions around their care immediately after diagnosis. This study aimed to describe any differences found by socio-demographic groups.
Design: Cross-sectional study of men who were diagnosed with and treated for prostate cancer.
Aim: Evidence is lacking on whether there were inequalities in the recovery of colorectal cancer (CRC) services within the English National Health Service (NHS) following the COVID-19 pandemic. The aim of this study was to evaluate recovery according to patient age and socioeconomic status.
Method: Using routinely collected data, CRC patients diagnosed and treated in the English NHS were identified for two timeframes: the 'initial pandemic period' (April-June 2020) and the 'pandemic period' (April 2020-March 2022).
Background: Life-saving emergency major resection of colorectal cancer (CRC) is a high-risk procedure. Accurate prediction of postoperative mortality for patients undergoing this procedure is essential for both healthcare performance monitoring and preoperative risk assessment. Risk-adjustment models for CRC patients often include patient and tumour characteristics, widely available in cancer registries and audits.
View Article and Find Full Text PDFBackground: Women with a pre-existing severe mental disorder have an increased risk of relapse after giving birth. We aimed to evaluate associations of the gradual regional implementation of community perinatal mental health teams in England from April, 2016, with access to mental health care and with mental health, obstetric, and neonatal outcomes.
Methods: For this cohort study, we used the national dataset of secondary mental health care provided by National Health Service England, including mental health-care episodes from April 1, 2006, to March 31, 2019, linked at patient level to the Hospital Episode Statistics, and birth notifications from the Personal Demographic Service.
Background: The distances that patients have to travel can influence their access to cancer treatment. We investigated the determinants of travel time, separately for journeys by car and public transport, to centres providing radical surgery or radiotherapy for prostate cancer.
Methods: Using national cancer registry records linked to administrative hospital data, we identified patients who had radical surgery or radiotherapy for prostate cancer between January 2017 and December 2018 in the English National Health Service.
Background: This national study investigated hospital quality and patient factors associated with treatment location for breast cancer surgery.
Methods: By using linked administrative data sets from the English National Health Service, the authors identified all women diagnosed between January 2, 2016, and December 31, 2018, who underwent breast-conserving surgery (BCS) or a mastectomy with or without immediate breast reconstruction. The extent to which patients bypassed their nearest hospital was investigated using a geographic information system (ArcGIS).
Aims: -rearranged mesenchymal tumours are a recently identified and rare subgroup of soft tissue neoplasms with distinct morphological features and genetic alterations. This study aims to further investigate the immunohistochemical profile and underlying genetic alterations in these tumours in order to get more insight on their underlying biology and the unique profile of these tumours.
Methods: Two new molecular confirmed cases of -rearranged mesenchymal tumours were thoroughly studied with immunohistochemical stainings (RB1, CD34, ALK and pan-TRK), fluorescence in situ hybridisation (FISH) and RNA-based next-generation sequencing.
Background: Hysteroscopic resection is the first-choice treatment for symptomatic type 0 and 1 fibroids. Traditionally, this was performed under general anesthesia. Over the last decade, surgical procedures are increasingly being performed in an outpatient setting under procedural sedation and analgesia.
View Article and Find Full Text PDFObjectives: We assessed how often National Health Service (NHS) hospitals reported that they had specific supportive services for patients with prostate cancer available onsite, including nursing support, sexual function and urinary continence services, psychological and genetic counselling, and oncogeriatric services. We identified groups of hospitals with similar patterns of supportive services.
Design/setting: We conducted an organisational survey in 2021 of all NHS hospitals providing prostate cancer services in England and Wales.