Patient satisfaction with inpatient care provided by the Sydney Gynecological Oncology Group.

Purpose: Patient satisfaction with the provision of hospital oncology services can have a significant impact on their overall treatment experience.

Aims: To assess patient satisfaction with the inpatient hospital services in the gynecological oncology setting using the IN-PATSAT32 questionnaire developed by the European Organization for Research and Treatment of Cancer (EORTC).

Methods: A modified version of the IN-PATSAT32 questionnaire with additional 16 items was administered to 52 adult surgical inpatients admitted with the Sydney Gynecological Oncology Group.

Fast track surgery: a clinical audit.

Background: Fast track surgery is a concept that utilises a variety of techniques to reduce the surgical stress response, allowing a shortened length of stay, improved outcomes and decreased time to full recovery.

Aims: To evaluate a peri-operative Fast Track Surgical Protocol (FTSP) in patients referred for abdominal surgery.

Methods: All patients undergoing a laparotomy over a 12-month period were entered prospectively on a clinical database.

Molecular markers reveal spatially segregated cryptic species in a critically endangered fish, the common skate (Dipturus batis).

Many sharks and skates are particularly vulnerable to overfishing because of their large size, slow growth, late maturity and low fecundity. In Europe dramatic population declines have taken place in common skate (Dipturus batis L.), one of the largest demersal fish in regional shelf seas, leading to extirpations from substantial parts of its former range.