OBJECTIVE To determine if maternal knowledge of prematurity is improved when verbal gestational age-specific counseling is supplemented with written gestational age-specific information. METHODS Prospective, randomized study of 60 pregnant participants assessed to be at risk for premature delivery between 23 and 34 weeks' gestation. Counseling in the control group consisted of gestational age...

The objective of this study was to assess patient satisfaction with the investigation and initial management of infertility. A postal questionnaire survey was carried out of 1366 women attending outpatient clinics for the investigation and initial management of infertility at 12 hospitals throughout Scotland. The response rate to the questionnaire was 59% (806/1366). Overall, 87% of responders ...

BACKGROUND There are no internationally recognized guidelines regarding HIV for employees on cruise ships. The aim of the study was to survey and compare current practices for crews in the cruise industry regarding HIV testing and prevention. MATERIAL AND METHODS Medical representatives from cruise companies were invited to complete a questionnaire on their company's practices regarding HIV-r...

Evidence-based medicine (EBM) is an important component of quality healthcare and a key part of the curriculum for doctors in training. There have been no previous studies comparing attitudes and knowledge of doctors in primary and secondary care towards EBM practice and teaching and this study sets out to investigate this area. We asked participants, a stratified sample of general practitioner...

OBJECTIVES Telephone follow-up is not currently recommended as a strategy to improve retention in randomized trials. The aims of this study were to estimate the effect of telephone follow-up on retention, identify participant characteristics predictive of questionnaire completion during or after telephone follow-up, and estimate the effect of including participants who provided follow-up data d...

The relationship between quality of attachment in infancy and preschooler's reading interests and skills was explored. At 24 months, 77 children and their mothers were tested using the Strange Situation procedure. In a follow-up study 3 years later, 65 mothers completed a questionnaire about the reading interests and skills of their children. Preschool teachers completed a questionnaire about p...

OBJECTIVE The Epworth Sleepiness Scale (ESS) was designed to be self-completed by the patient. However, it may not be understood by all, and unrecognised problems with literacy can impair the process. The ESS has been translated into a pictorial version for use in those with normal or diminished literacy skills. METHODS An evaluation of the patients' ability to self-complete the ESS was under...