Developing accreditation for community based surgery: the Irish experience.

Purpose Carrying out minor surgery procedures in the primary care setting is popular with patients, cost effective and delivers at least as good outcomes as those performed in the hospital setting. This paper aims to describe the central role of clinical leadership in developing an accreditation system for general practitioners (GPs) undertaking community-based surgery in the Irish national setting where no mandatory accreditation process currently exists. Design/methodology/approach In all, 24 GPs were recruited to the GP network.

Testing two screening instruments for autism spectrum disorder in UK community child health services.

Aim: The aim of this study was to test the accuracy of two screening instruments in UK Community health services: Modified Checklist for Autism in Toddlers (M-CHAT) and Social Communication Questionnaire (SCQ) for autism spectrum disorder (ASD). A two-stage screening and in-depth assessment procedure, combined with sampling stratification and statistical weighting, allowed the accuracy of the screens to be estimated in the entire population of referred children.

Method: The study included all referrals of children aged 18 to 48 months to community paediatric and speech and language therapy services in two London districts over a 12-month period between September 2004 and September 2005.

Emotional and behavioural problems in young children with autism spectrum disorder.

Aim: To assess the frequency, pervasiveness, associated features, and persistence of emotional and behavioural problems in a community sample of young children with autism spectrum disorder (ASD).

Method: Parents (n=277) and teachers (n=228) of 4- to 8-year-olds completed the Developmental Behaviour Checklist (DBC). Intellectual ability and autism symptomatology were also assessed.

Co-occurring Psychiatric Disorders in Preschool and Elementary School-Aged Children with Autism Spectrum Disorder.

We employed a clinical sample of young children with ASD, with and without intellectual disability, to determine the rate and type of psychiatric disorders and possible association with risk factors. We assessed 101 children (57 males, 44 females) aged 4.5-9.

Self-care coping strategies in people with diabetes: a qualitative exploratory study.

Background: The management of diabetes self-care is largely the responsibility of the patient. With more emphasis on the prevention of complications, adherence to diabetes self-care regimens can be difficult. Diabetes self-care requires the patient to make many dietary and lifestyle changes.

Quality of life and quality of care in patients with diabetes experiencing different models of care.

Objective: To study variation in quality of life and quality of care in patients with diabetes experiencing three different models of care: traditional hospital care, hospital/general practitioner (GP) shared care, and structured GP care.

Research Design And Methods: A cross-sectional study involving 1,456 patients with diabetes (71% response rate) was conducted. Quality of life was assessed with the Audit of Diabetes-Dependent Quality of Life (ADDQoL) instrument and quality of care with a 10-point process-of-care report card.