BACKGROUND Reducing rates of rehospitalization has attracted attention from policymakers as a way to improve quality of care and reduce costs. However, we have limited information on the frequency and patterns of rehospitalization in the United States to aid in planning the necessary changes. METHODS We analyzed Medicare claims data from 2003-2004 to describe the patterns of rehospitalization...

BACKGROUND A survey was conducted of 26 physician offices and the County Health Department to determine the quality of vaccine storage. METHODS All refrigerators were examined for secure electrical supply, firmly shut door, storage of inappropriate items, and expired vaccines. A maximum-minimum thermometer was then placed in the middle of the storage area for 24 hours, and temperatures were r...

it is unclear how the final rule on "clinically appropriate" and "medically necessary" drugs will apply to hospital formularies and Part B drugs given in the doctor's office.

Introduction: Otolaryngology is a field with a high referral rate; however, there is a dearth of research on the quality of referral letters written in this field. This study was carried out to explicitly assess the quality of referral letters, more specifically in the field of otology.   Materials and Methods: Two otologists assessed referral letters written by general ...

Background: Physicians’ satisfaction is closely related to the effectiveness of health services, including quality of services as well as patient compliance, satisfaction, and outcomes. Objectives: This study was designed to examine the job satisfaction level of physicians working at a referral hospital in Tehran. Methods: This rese...

introduction: increasing volume of information in various sciences, such as medicine, has led to the use of various strategies to effectively provide students, researchers, and teachers with medical and paramedical information. the iranian ministry of health and medical education has developed an online digital library, called iranian national medical digital library (inmdl), which provides acc...

background: clinical supervision is an important factor in the development of competency in residency program. attending physicians play a key role in supervision of residents. however little is known about how attending physicians and residents perceive the quality of clinical supervision. the aim of this study was to explore the differences between perceived qualities of supervision in these ...

background and purpose: emergency physicians play an important role in the immediate diagnosis of bioterrorism activities. the present study was conducted with the purpose of comparing the effectiveness of virtual learning and classroom learning in approach to bioterrorism and chemical terrorism for emergency physician s. methods: this was a semi-empirical study, which was conducted via testing...