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In this article, we integrate thematic, grounded theory and narrative analytic techniques. We apply methods from each to the same qualitative data to illustrate how they provide different interpretive scopes on medication meaning making. Findings from each are concatenated to produce an integrated conceptual framework for understanding adolescent experience of psychiatric medication. We conclude that thematic, grounded theory, and narrative methods, when integrated, produce a multidimensional understanding of medication experience.

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Purpose As part of the Mini-Sentinel pilot program, under contract with the Food and Drug Administration, an effort has been made to evaluate the validity of algorithms useful for identifying health outcomes of interest, including suicide and suicide attempt. Method Literature was reviewed to evaluate how well medical episodes associated with these events could be identified in administrative or claims data sets from the USA or Canada. Results Six studies were found to include sufficient detail to assess performance characteristics of an algorithm on the basis of International Classification of Diseases, Ninth Revision, E-codes (950-959) for intentional self-injury. Medical records and death registry information were used to validate classification. Sensitivity ranged from 13.8% to 65%, and positive predictive value range from 4.0% to 100%. Study comparisons are difficult to interpret, however, as the studies differed substantially in many important elements, including design, sample, setting, and methods. Although algorithm performance varied widely, two studies located in prepaid medical plans reported that comparisons of database codes to medical charts could achieve good agreement. Conclusions Insufficient data exist to support specific recommendations regarding a preferred algorithm, and caution should be exercised in interpreting clinical and pharmacological epidemiological surveillance and research that rely on these codes as measures of suicide-related outcomes.

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