Among infants with bronchiolitis treated in the emergency department, combined therapy with dexamethasone and epinephrine may significantly reduce hospital admissions. (Current Controlled Trials number, ISRCTN56745572.)
The PFM accurately represents patient flow through the department and can provide simulated patient flow information on a variety of scenarios. It can effectively simulate changes to the model and its effects on patient flow.
Aim-To refine and psychometrically test the Am I ON TRAC for Adult Care questionnaire. Background. Inadequate transition to adult care for adolescents with special health care needs has been associated with greater risk of treatment non-adherence, lack of medical follow-up, increased morbidity and mortality. Presently there are no well-validated measures assessing adolescents' readiness to transition from paediatric to adult medical care.
Design-Descriptive cross-sectional study.Methods-The Am I ON TRAC for Adult Care questionnaire was refined to improve the instrument's methodological soundness. A literature review informed the revisions. A convenience sample of 200 adolescents, 12-19 years, was recruited from four outpatient clinics at a paediatric hospital in Western Canada between April -June 2012. Construct validity was evaluated by Exploratory Factory Analysis; concurrent validity was assessed using the Psychosocial Maturity Index. Internal consistency was evaluated by computing Cronbach's alpha estimates.Results-Factor analysis of the knowledge items identified a 14-item unidimensional scale. Knowledge and behaviour sub-scale scores increased with age, with a stronger relationship between knowledge and age. Psychosocial maturity correlated with both sub-scale scores, but had
CIHR Author ManuscriptCIHR Author Manuscript CIHR Author Manuscript a stronger association with behaviour. Psychosocial maturity and age had a weak but significant correlation suggesting age is a loose proxy for maturity. Only 27% of 17-year-olds, but 62% 18-year-olds, scored above the behaviour cut-off for transition readiness.
Conclusion-TheAm I ON TRAC for Adult Care questionnaire is a psychometrically sound measure that has potential to be used as a readiness assessment tool in both clinical practice and research.
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