Nosocomial infection (i.e. infection in healthcare facilities) raises a serious public health problem, as implied by the existence of pathogens characteristic to healthcare facilities such as methicillin-resistant Staphylococcus aureus and hospital-mediated outbreaks of influenza and severe acute respiratory syndrome. For general communities, epidemic modeling based on social networks is being ...

BACKGROUND antibiotic-associated diarrhoea caused by Clostridium difficile is increasing in hospitals, and older people are at particular risk. OBJECTIVE to establish whether reducing patient exposure to injectable third-generation cephalosporins by substituting alternative antibiotics can produce a cost-effective reduction in the incidence of antibiotic-associated diarrhoea. DESIGN we pros...

AIMS The palliative care has spread rapidly worldwide in the recent two decades. The development of hospice services in rural areas usually lags behind that in urban areas. The aim of our study was to investigate whether the urban-rural disparity widens in a country with a hospital-based hospice system. METHODS From the nationwide claims database within the National Health Insurance in Taiwan...

BACKGROUND People aged 75 years and over account for 1 in 4 of all hospital admissions. There has been increasing recognition of problems in the care of older people, particularly in hospitals. Evidence suggests that older people judge the care they receive in terms of kindness, empathy, compassion, respectful communication and being seen as a person not just a patient. These are aspects of car...

OBJECTIVE The annual mortality of road traffic injuries (RTIs) is estimated to be over 80,000 in India; however, there is not enough information about the magnitude, pattern, and factors associated with RTIs in a population-based scenario, where the police and hospital records suffer from severe underreporting. This study was conducted with the aim of identifying the burden, pattern, and risk f...

By a custom established at some unknown date by the now defunct Boards of Guardians, Observation Wards occupy a more important place in the system for dealing with mental patients in London than they do in many parts of England. As most readers are aware, there are two main channels for entering mental hospitals as a certified mental patient. First, the Relieving Officer can arrange for a visit...

BACKGROUND The length of stay and bed usage on acute psychogeriatric admission wards are influenced by several factors. The impact of a dedicated specialist social worker working exclusively with acutely ill psychogeriatric inpatients and with a dedicated budget for domiciliary care packages on the length of stay, bed usage, and costs was evaluated in an opportunistic "before and after" cohort ...

INTRODUCTION Nosocomial infections are one of the greatest problems in public health. Several studies have highlighted the role played by the hospital environment as a possible source of transmission of nosocomial pathogens. METHODS A five-year monitoring of bacterial contamination on healthcare workers hands, surfaces most closely in contact with inpatient wards, operating theatres and "at r...

BACKGROUND Older people often need comprehensive treatment, including many medications, and polypharmacy is common. The aims of this cross-sectional investigation were to examine the potentially inappropriate medication during the hospitalization and to identify the factors that may influence such inappropriateness among elderly in Italy. METHODS A sample of 605 individuals aged 65 years and ...

BACKGROUND Length of stay (LOS) is considered a key measure of emergency department throughput, and from the perspective of the patient, it is perceived as a measure of healthcare service quality. Prolonged LOS can be caused by various internal and external factors. This study examined LOS in the emergency department and explored the main factors that influence LOS and cause delay in patient ca...