Environmental or second-hand smoke can have serious effects on children. Many smokers are more likely to consider quitting if they know they are causing harm to their children and families. Physicians must take the time to point out the dangers of passive smoking to parents who smoke. (SM)

Examined construct validity of Shipko and Noviello's alexithymia scale (SNALEX), designed to assess one's difficulty identifying and expressing feelings, in 101 psychiatric inpatients. SNALEX scores correlated positively with Rorschach index of verbal productivity and negatively with subject age. Results do not support construct validity of SNALEX…

Examines physicians' emotional reactions to patients and reviews recent medical literature regarding role of those reactions in labeling of difficult patient. Conceptualizes labeling of patient as difficult as relationship problem between physician and patient. Examines implications for social worker efforts to humanize this relationship and…

Interviews 105 women in outpatient treatment for substance abuse to examine their recollections of childhood sexual abuse. Overall, 54% reported a history of childhood sexual abuse. Of these, 81% remembered all or part of the abuse their whole lives, whereas the remainder regained previously forgotten memories. (SLD)

A study was conducted in Australia to develop a reliable, valid, and practical measure of atopic dermatitis. The test development process and validity evaluation with two doctors and 51 patients are discussed. Results suggest that operational definitions of the scales need to be defined more clearly. The measure satisfies assumptions for a partial…

Three persons with traumatic brain injury (TBI) were matched with four community participants for leisure activities. Community participants were trained and were given specific interactions suggestions. Integrated social contacts were measured using a multiple-baseline design across participants. Results suggest that social integration can be…

Use of the Comprehensive Health Enhancement Support System, a computerized information system, by patients with breast cancer or HIV was compared. Groups differed in the frequency of access and use of certain aspects (e.g., discussion groups). Identification of patient concerns provided useful information for system improvements. (SK)

Women in menopause require reassurance and reliable information. Based on concerns expressed in letters (N=7,000), women in premenopause want to know what to expect, in perimenopause they want to know whether their experiences are normal, and in postmenopause they need help in making sensible decisions about the use of hormone therapy. (Author/EMK)

Examines patients (N=257) with lumbar spinal stenosis preoperatively and at six months to relate patient expectation to baseline function and pain and to determine how patient expectations and preoperative function interact to predict postoperative outcomes. Results show that patients with many preoperative expectations, particularly those with…

Swedish nurse trainees (n=18) each followed a dementia patient through their training period. Themes emerged related to trainees' role as a personal guide. Creating a relationship with the patient and seeing the patient as a teacher were instructive experiences. (SK)

Tests the hypothesis that pictographs can improve recall of spoken medical instructions. Junior college subjects (N=21) listened to two lists of actions, one of which was accompanied by pictographs during both listening and recall while the other was not. Mean correct recall was 85% with pictographs and 14% without, indicating that pictographs can…

A multidisciplinary care protocol was developed to achieve continuity and integration of information. The protocol integrates medical, nursing, and a variety of extramural events and activities into a comprehensive description of 15 "moments" in the care of breast cancer surgery patients. Implementation and evaluation are reported and…

A continuing medical education course on the physician-patient relationship used on such topics as patient-centered interviews. A majority of 406 respondents (including 205 in a follow-up survey) were using what they learned in practice. Additional workshops on issues of intimacy and difficult relationships were developed. (SK)

Finds that specific communication apprehension showed moderate to large negative effects on health communication (talking with physician, seeking health information) and almost no effects on health behaviors (tobacco use, exercise, health fairs) except diet; and that general-trait communication apprehension showed similar, though smaller, effects…

Identifies barriers and facilitators to the implementation of patient education in community pharmacies and classifies these barriers and facilitators into the diffusion stages of Rogers'"Innovations in Organizations" model. Discusses the implementation of patient education activities that require individual and organizational change in…