Tuberculosis (TB) is still a major public health challenge in Nepal and worldwide. Most transmissions occur between the onset of symptoms and the consultation with formal health care centers. This study aimed to determine the duration of delay for the first consultation and its associated factors with unacceptable delay among the new sputum pulmonary tuberculosis cases in the central developmen...

Objective. Treating complications associated with diabetes and hypertension imposes significant costs on health care systems. This study estimated the hospitalization costs for inpatients in a public hospital in Zimbabwe. Methods. The study was retrospective and utilized secondary data from medical records. Total hospitalization costs were estimated using generalized linear models. Results. The...

OBJECTIVES We examined the charges, their variability, and respective payer group for diagnosis and treatment of the ten most common outpatient conditions presenting to the Emergency department (ED). METHODS We conducted a cross-sectional study of the 2006-2008 Medical Expenditure Panel Survey. Analysis was limited to outpatient visits with non-elderly, adult (years 18-64) patients with a sin...

There is compelling evidence from animal experiments that noise exposure suppresses testosterone in males by affecting the hypothalamic-pituitary-testicular axis. Virtually nothing is known about its effect in humans. Therefore, the aim of this study was to explore the association between occupational noise exposure and serum testosterone in a representative sample of the general population. Th...

BACKGROUND Professional development is essential in the health disciplines. Knowing the cost and value of educational approaches informs decisions and choices about learning and teaching practices. OBJECTIVE The primary aim of this study was to conduct a cost analysis of participation in continuing professional development via social media compared with live conference attendance. METHODS C...

OBJECTIVE To analyse factors affecting variations in the observed quality of antenatal and sick-child care in primary-care facilities in seven African countries. METHODS We pooled nationally representative data from service provision assessment surveys of health facilities in Kenya, Malawi, Namibia, Rwanda, Senegal, Uganda and the United Republic of Tanzania (survey year range: 2006-2014). Ba...

OBJECTIVE To describe gender differences in pre-hospital delay times and symptom presentation in patients suspected of acute coronary syndrome (ACS) in a primary care setting. METHODS Over 150 participating GPs included 298 consecutive patients suspected of ACS (52% female, mean age 66 years, 22% eventually diagnosed with ACS according to international guidelines) in a 28-month time period. D...

OBJECTIVE To assess the influence of general practice opening hours on healthcare seeking behaviour after transient ischaemic attack (TIA) and minor stroke and feasibility of clinical assessment within 24 hours of symptom onset. DESIGN Population based prospective incidence study (Oxford vascular study). SETTING Nine general practices in Oxfordshire. PARTICIPANTS 91 000 patients followed ...

BACKGROUND Limited literacy skills are common in the United States (US) and are related to lower HIV knowledge and worse health behaviors and outcomes. The extent of these associations is unknown in countries like Mozambique, where no rigorously validated literacy and numeracy measures exist. METHODS A validated measure of literacy and numeracy, the Wide Range Achievement Test, version 3 (WRA...

BACKGROUND Hospital emergency departments (EDs) are as barometers of the health care system. Crowded EDs threaten delivery of timely care. Prolonged ED wait times reduce the quality of care and increase adverse and sometimes irreversible events. OBJECTIVES The purpose of this study was to determine the patients' waiting time at Namazi and Shahid Faghihi hospitals in Shiraz, Iran. PATIENTS A...