A comparison of faecal incontinence scoring systems.

Aim: Questionnaires designed to score the severity of faecal incontinence (FI) are widely used to provide an evaluation of symptoms across settings, studies and time. The Pelvic Floor Disorders Consortium have recommended the use of multiple questionnaires despite some overlap of questions. This study aimed to evaluate whether patient responses to these questionnaires are consistent.

Functional neurological disorders: effective teaching for health professionals.

Objectives: To provide an outline for the delivery of an educational course or lecture about functional neurological disorders (FND) that is directed towards health professionals with varying clinical knowledge and to highlight the educational efficacy that can be derived from a well-designed educational platform.

Method: Through multidisciplinary collaboration, a course designed to develop the skills for diagnosis and management of FND was created. Elements essential to the delivery of education are: (A) knowledge creation; (B) facilitating multidisciplinary cross-pollination; (C) listening to patients' experiences; (D) communication skills practice; (E) case studies; (F) discipline specific mentoring; (G) establishing and addressing participant learning goals and (H) developing collegial and referral networks.

Occupational Therapists, Physiotherapists and Orthopaedic Surgeons Agree on the Decision for Carpal Tunnel Surgery.

Background: Therapist-led pathways have been proposed as waitlist management strategies prior to surgery for conditions such as carpal tunnel syndrome (CTS) in public hospitals. These models of care typically shift the initial care of patients and decision-making from surgeons to therapists and, have been shown to reduce the number of patients requiring surgery and improve wait-times. This occurs despite limited evidence of surgeon-therapist agreement on key decisions, such as the need for surgery.

Evolution of service metrics and utilisation of objective discharge criteria in anterior cruciate ligament reconstruction rehabilitation: a retrospective cohort study with historical control in a public hospital physiotherapy department.

Background: ACL reconstruction (ACLR) is a common procedure requiring rehabilitation in public hospital physiotherapy departments. The rate of re-rupture and reduced rates of return to sport following ACLR are concerning. Current guidelines recommend a progressive approach to rehabilitation based on objective criteria.

Piecemeal cold snare polypectomy versus conventional endoscopic mucosal resection for large sessile serrated lesions: a retrospective comparison across two successive periods.

Objective: Large (≥20 mm) sessile serrated lesions (L-SSL) are premalignant lesions that require endoscopic removal. Endoscopic mucosal resection (EMR) is the existing standard of care but carries some risk of adverse events including clinically significant post-EMR bleeding and deep mural injury (DMI). The respective risk-effectiveness ratio of piecemeal cold snare polypectomy (p-CSP) in L-SSL management is not fully known.

Consumer engagement in occupational therapy health-related research: A scoping review of the Australian Occupational Therapy Journal and a call to action.

Introduction: Consumer engagement in research is becoming an ethical, political, and moral imperative. The aim of this scoping review was to provide a snapshot of the current status of the emerging area of consumer engagement in occupational therapy health-related research, as published in the Australian Occupational Therapy Journal.

Methods: A scoping review was conducted of all health-related original research published in the Australian Occupational Therapy Journal for 5½ years, plus Early View, as at June 2019.

Rate of anastomotic leak following right hemicolectomy by general surgical trainees.

Purpose: Performing a right hemicolectomy (RH) is a core technical competency for general surgical trainees. There is a concern that anastomotic leaks occur more frequently when patients are operated on by trainees rather than by surgeons. This study aims to analyse the quality of care outcomes after RH, stratified by the experience level of the operator.

Effectiveness of interventions to reduce emergency department staff occupational stress and/or burnout: a systematic review.

Objective: The objective of this review was to synthesize the best evidence for the effectiveness of interventions to reduce occupational stress and/or burnout in the emergency department.

Introduction: The prevalence of occupational stress and burnout among busy emergency department staff requires urgent attention. This review summarizes the current evidence to provide recommendations on interventions to reduce occupational stress in the emergency department.

Group education, night splinting and home exercises reduce conversion to surgery for carpal tunnel syndrome: a multicentre randomised trial.

Question: In people with carpal tunnel syndrome who are waitlisted for surgical consultation, does a therapist-led care pathway involving education, splinting and exercises reduce the need for surgery and improve patient outcomes?

Design: A multicentre, randomised controlled trial with concealed allocation, blinded assessment and intention-to-treat analysis.

Participants: One hundred and five people with electrodiagnostically confirmed carpal tunnel syndrome on a waitlist for surgical consultation and recruited from four public hospitals in Australia.

Interventions: The experimental group (n = 52) received a one-off group session of education, splinting, and nerve and tendon gliding exercises.

Practice of endoscopy during COVID-19 pandemic: position statements of the Asian Pacific Society for Digestive Endoscopy (APSDE-COVID statements).

Coronavirus-19 (COVID-19) caused by SARS-CoV-2 has become a global pandemic. Risk of transmission may occur during endoscopy and the goal is to prevent infection among healthcare professionals while providing essential services to patients. Asia was the first continent to have a COVID-19 outbreak, and this position statement of the Asian Pacific Society for Digestive Endoscopy shares our successful experience in maintaining safe and high-quality endoscopy practice at a time when resources are limited.

A cohort investigation of patient-reported function and satisfaction after the implementation of advanced practice occupational therapy-led care for patients with chronic hand conditions at eight Australian public hospitals.

Study Design: Prospective cohort.

Introduction: Patients referred to medical specialist outpatient clinics in Australian public hospitals often wait longer than the recommended timeframe for their first appointment. This study examines the use of advanced hand therapy practitioners to facilitate access to care for long-waitlisted patients with chronic hand conditions.

Vesicovaginal fistula following pelvic surgery: Our experiences and recommendations for diagnosis and prompt referral.

Background: Vesicovaginal fistula (VVF) is an uncommon but known complication of pelvic surgery. Post-operative urine leakage should generate a high index of clinical suspicion for early diagnosis of VVF.

Aims: This study aims to identify areas for improvement and provide recommendations for timely and accurate diagnosis of VVF to minimise patient morbidity.

The I-DECIDED clinical decision-making tool for peripheral intravenous catheter assessment and safe removal: a clinimetric evaluation.

Objective: To describe the clinimetric validation of the I-DECIDED tool for peripheral intravenous catheter assessment and decision-making.

Design And Setting: I-DECIDED is an eight-step tool derived from international vascular access guidelines into a structured mnemonic for device assessment and decision-making. The clinimetric evaluation process was conducted in three distinct phases.

How to do a uterine flap as a novel way to repair recurrent obstructed obturator hernia in an elderly female patient.

Here, we present a novel surgical technique to repair an obturator hernia with a uterine flap. The description is both written and in video format.

Global Pediatric Peripheral Intravenous Catheter Practice and Performance: A Secondary Analysis of 4206 Catheters.

Purpose: To describe worldwide characteristics, performance and risk factors of peripheral intravenous catheters (PIVCs), in pediatrics.

Design: A secondary, subgroup analysis of pediatric (<18 years) data was undertaken, using a global, cross-sectional study of PIVCs. Practice characteristics included: demographic, diagnostic, utility, management, performance and resources.

Anatomical Variability of Intercondylar Fossa Geometry in Patients Diagnosed with Primary Anterior Cruciate Ligament Rupture.

The aims of this study were to (1) describe the three-dimensional characteristics and sources of anatomical variability in the geometry of the intercondylar fossa ("notch") in an anterior cruciate ligament (ACL)-injured sample and (2) assess the relationship between patient factors and anatomical variability of the fossa in the context of impingement risk. A retrospective analysis of preoperative magnetic resonance imaging (MRI) for 49 patients with ACL rupture was performed. Scans were examined in the axial plane using an online picture archiving and communication system (PACS) viewer and fossa width and angle assessed at multiple slices, as well as anteroposterior depth, fossa height, and calculated total volume.

The Cold Revolution: How Far Can It Go?

Cold resection for small colonic polyps, and larger lesions, is being rapidly and widely adopted. Driven by an impressive safety and cost profile compared with conventional polypectomy, these advantages are offset by the limitations of smaller and shallower resection, and absent thermal effects that may permit persistence of residual neoplasia. To overcome this, optimal cold snare technique requires inclusion of a margin of normal mucosa and a piecemeal resection technique for larger polyps.

Pelvic floor ultrasound findings in Ugandan women with obstetric fistula, unrepaired fourth degree obstetric tear, and pelvic organ prolapse.

Background: While pelvic floor ultrasound is commonly utilised in high-resource locations, our understanding of pelvic floor characteristics in women suffering with obstetric fistula and unrepaired fourth degree obstetric tears in low-resource areas is limited.

Aims: This study aimed to assess the pelvic floor ultrasound characteristics of Ugandan women suffering with obstetric fistula, unrepaired fourth degree obstetric tears and pelvic organ prolapse, and determine whether obstructed labour resulting in obstetric fistula causes more levator muscle defects compared to parous women without a history of obstructed labour.

Materials And Methods: This was a prospective study in western Uganda assessing 82 women with obstetric fistula, unrepaired fourth degree obstetric tears and pelvic organ prolapse with a pelvic floor ultrasound scan.

A Survey of Emergency Department Quality Improvement Activities: Effective Fast Track Waiting Area Management.

This article describes the quality improvement process used to implement a waiting area within fast track. Staff and patient survey data indicated a significant decrease in workload, with a subsequent high satisfaction of both groups following the redesign process.

Do consumers who identify as Muslim experience culturally safe care (CSC) in the Emergency Department (ED)? A scoping review.

Lack of awareness about cultural and religious values and beliefs of patients presenting to Emergency Departments (ED) can compromise patient care and safety. Muslim Australians represent the fastest growing religious demographic group, with over a 77% growth in the last decade. The changing face of the Australian population requires that Australian health care carefully consider the dominant Western cultural paradigm currently influencing health care delivery.

Recovery of knee extension and incidence of extension deficits following anterior cruciate ligament injury and treatment: a systematic review protocol.

Introduction: Knee extension deficit or loss of extension (LOE) is a potential complication following ACL reconstruction (ACLR); however, the change in postoperative knee extension during rehabilitation is not well defined. The aim of this review is to establish the trajectory of knee extension recovery and incidence of knee extension deficit during rehabilitation after ACL rupture.

Methods And Analysis: A systematic search will be conducted in MEDLINE, Embase, Cochrane Library, Scopus, SPORTDiscus, and relevant trials databases of English language papers in publication as of May 2018, with no restrictions on publication year applied.