BACKGROUND Medication errors represent a major public health concern, and inadequate prescription drug labels have been identified as a root cause of errors. A new prescription medication labeling system was implemented by Target pharmacies in May 2005 and aimed to improve health outcomes. OBJECTIVES To evaluate whether the new Target label influenced patient health services utilization. SU...

BACKGROUND Equity is one of the major goals of China's recent health system reform. This study aimed to evaluate the equality of the distribution of health resources and health services between hospitals and primary care institutions. METHODS Data of this study were drawn from the China Health Statistical Year Books. We calculated Gini coefficients based on population size and geographic size...

OBJECTIVES To document and describe outpatient persistent pain management services in Australia. DESIGN, PARTICIPANTS AND SETTING Systematic survey conducted between 1 December 2008 and 31 January 2010 of 57 services providing outpatient care to adult clients with persistent pain, plus five specialised paediatric services throughout Australia. MAIN OUTCOME MEASURES Service structure, includ...

Uzbekistan inherited a hospital-based health system from the Soviet Union. We explore the health system-related challenges faced during the scale-up of ambulatory (outpatient) treatment for drug-susceptible and drug-resistant tuberculosis (TB) in Karakalpakstan in Uzbekistan. Semi-structured interviews were conducted with key informants of the TB services, the ministries of health and finance, ...

BACKGROUND Equity is the core of primary care. The issue of equity in health has become urgent, and China has attached increasing attention to it. With rapid economic development and great changes in medical insurance policy, the pattern of equity in health has changed tremendously. The reform of healthcare in Zhejiang Province is at the forefront in China, and studies on Zhejiang Province are ...

Psychiatric out-patient services have recently come under close scrutiny. Until April 2005, nonattendance rates at first appointments were one of the performance indicators used by the Commission for Healthcare Improvement (now the Health Care Commission) in awarding ‘star ratings’ to National Health Service (NHS) trusts for service efficiency. This attention has allowed some creative thinking ...

To describe current outpatient mental health service use and treatments in Mozambique, the authors reviewed registry entries for 2,071 outpatient psychiatric visits at the Beira Central Hospital in Sofala Province from January 2012 to September 2014. Service use was most common for schizophrenia, followed by epilepsy, delirium, and organic behavioral disorders. Only 3% of consultations for schi...

BACKGROUND Alcohol use can have a significant negative impact on young adults in mental health treatment. This cross-sectional study examined prevalence and factors associated with hazardous drinking among young adults seeking outpatient mental health services, rate of alcohol use disorders (AUDs), and the relationship between hazardous drinking and other types of substance use. METHODS Parti...

conclusions efforts to improve vaccination coverage should be taken into account regarding the differences in the factors that contribute to the incomplete vaccination status of children in the rural and urban areas. the current study findings indicate that vaccination services especially in the urban areas need to be reassessed to ensure that all children are covered. to develop and promote ch...