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BACKGROUND: Understanding patients' experiences accessing primary health care (PHC) is necessary to improve service organisation. This study aims to examine individual, organisational, and contextual factors associated with patients' experience of accessing the multidisciplinary PHC clinic to which they are attached. METHODS: This cross-sectional study builds on survey data collected in multidisciplinary PHC clinics located in 14 regions in the province of Quebec (Canada). Between September 2022 and June 2023, an online questionnaire was sent to patients with an email contact and attached to a family physician. Two patient-reported experience measures were assessed: (1) difficulty obtaining an appointment with their regular family physician or nurse practitioner and (2) perceived unmet healthcare needs. A self-reported online questionnaire based on the advanced access model was also sent to PHC professionals and administrative staff to assess the use of advanced access strategies in their practice. Multilevel logistic regression models were fit. Stratified analyses were conducted according to the number of consultations received. FINDINGS: In total, 122,397 patients and 847 family physicians, 97 nurse practitioners and 347 administrative staff nested into 104 clinics answered the survey. In the overall sample, having a chronic disorder was the only individual factor associated with the patient experience of access. Organizational factors including estimation of demand and supply, use of a referral algorithm, and strategies to optimise consultations were associated with a better access experience. Patients from medium size clinics compared to small clinics had better experiences of care for both outcomes. Stratified analysis indicated similar results for patients who consulted at the clinic 1-5 times in the last 12 months as observed in the overall sample. CONCLUSIONS: This study indicates that enhancing organizational processes can improve patients' access experiences.
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CONTEXT: Patient and family partners are being increasingly engaged worldwide in processes aimed at the quality improvement (QI) of healthcare services. There is also growing interest in documenting these engagement processes within organizations to share and improve them. To support the provincial implementation of this approach, the Quebec's ministry of health and social services published, in 2018, the "Framework for the partnership approach between patients, their families and health and social service stakeholders". However, while this framework provides guidelines by describing each partner's role and the ways in which patient and family partners should be engaged in QI processes, it remains unclear how these recommendations were actually used and implemented by different healthcare organizations. The aim of this paper is to present the protocol of a multiple case study that is being conducted to document how this approach was implemented in different large healthcare organizations in Quebec. This study is being conducted in partnership with a patient partner/co-researcher. METHODS: This qualitative multiple case study will be conducted in four large healthcare organizations in Quebec. Twelve to 15 key respondents will be recruited for each case. Data will be collected from multiple sources: 1) semi-structured individual interviews with the key respondents, 2) non-participant observations of the meetings of the QI committee engaging PFPs and 3) analysis of documents describing the implementation context, vision, structures and/or processes. The framework method will be used to conduct intracase and intercase qualitative data analysis. DISCUSSION: The multiple cases included will allow for comparisons between different ways of engaging PFPs in QI processes within an organization, the factors influencing these practices, their advantages and disadvantages, and their implementation outcomes. The conclusions drawn from this study will allow us to make recommendations regarding PFP engagement in the QI of care and services and to propose implementation examples for other organizations wishing to design and implement PFP engagement initiatives in their context in Quebec or elsewhere.
Subject(s)
Quality Improvement , Humans , Quebec , Patient Participation , Delivery of Health Care/standardsABSTRACT
This multi-methods study describes the development of a pediatric rehabilitation telehealth intervention fidelity checklist, estimates its inter-rater reliability, and documents raters' implementation experience. A literature scan and expert consultation identified eighteen key behaviors and categorized them into three subdomains, measured using a 5-point measurement system. To estimate the checklist's inter-rater reliability, three raters scored 33 video recordings. A Shrout and Fleiss Class 1,1 intraclass correlation (ICC)) and 95% confidence intervals (CI) calculated ICCs = 0.5 (CI: 0, 0.9) for both the Therapist and the Parent-Therapists subdomains, and the Parent subdomain an ICC = 0.3 (CI: 0, 0.8). In the implementation surveys, raters reported high levels of satisfaction (100%), ease of use (84% to 88%), and confidence in their video ratings (87% to 100%). Changes in procedures and scoring were recommended. Capturing raters' implementation experiences is crucial in the early evaluation of the fidelity checklists for telehealth.
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BACKGROUND: The advanced access (AA) model is among the most recommended innovations for improving timely access in primary care (PC). AA is based on core pillars such as comprehensive planning for care needs and supply, regularly adjusting supply to demand, optimizing appointment systems, and interprofessional collaborative practices. Exposure of family medicine residents to AA within university-affiliated family medicine groups (U-FMGs) is a promising strategy to widen its dissemination and improve access. Using four AA pillars as a conceptual model, this study aimed to determine the theoretical compatibility of Quebec's university-affiliated clinics' residency programs with the key principles of AA. METHODS: A cross-sectional online survey was sent to the chief resident and academic director at each participating clinic. An overall response rate of 96% (44/46 U-FMGs) was obtained. RESULTS: No local residency program was deemed compatible with all four considered pillars. On planning for needs and supply, only one quarter of the programs were compatible with the principles of AA, owing to residents in out-of-clinic rotations often being unavailable for extended periods. On regularly adjusting supply to demand, 54% of the programs were compatible. Most (82%) programs' appointment systems were not very compatible with the AA principles, mostly because the proportion of the schedule reserved for urgent appointments was insufficient. Interprofessional collaboration opportunities in the first year of residency allowed 60% of the programs to be compatible with this pillar. CONCLUSIONS: Our study highlights the heterogeneity among local residency programs with respect to their theoretical compatibility with the key principles of AA. Future research to empirically test the hypotheses raised by this study is warranted.
Subject(s)
Health Services Accessibility , Internship and Residency , Quebec , Internship and Residency/organization & administration , Cross-Sectional Studies , Humans , Health Services Accessibility/organization & administration , Family Practice/education , Primary Health Care/organization & administration , Surveys and QuestionnairesABSTRACT
Although realist evaluation (RE) requires multiple data collection methods, qualitative interviews are considered most valuable and are most frequently used. The guiding principles of RE may limit the emergence of new Context-Mechanism-Outcome (CMO) configurations by evoking particular underlying mechanisms. This paper proposes a new method for conducting semi-structured interviews in the RE context by drawing on the literature and examining the ability of vignettes to explore perceptions about specific situations. Vignettes are developed based on researchers' knowledge of the setting and program theory and are updated through an iterative process throughout data collection. Interviews focus on situations illustrated in the vignette to capture variations in interviewees' perceptions. This method constrains interviewees to using retroduction to identify the hidden underlying mechanisms that link contextual elements to outcomes based on their experiences. This method allows researchers to focus on CMO configurations without evoking mechanisms, which contributes to the rigor of the method.
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OBJECTIVES: Evidence suggests that healthcare quality improvement (QI) projects are more successful when decision-makers are involved in the process. However, guidance regarding the engagement of decision-makers in QI projects is lacking. We conducted a scoping review to identify QI projects involving decision-makers published in the literature and to describe the roles decision-makers played. METHODS: Following the Joanna Briggs Institute framework for scoping reviews, we systematically searched for all types of studies in English or French between 2002 and 2023 in: EMBASE, MEDLINE via PubMed, PsycINFO, and the Cumulative Index to Nursing and Allied Health Literature. Criteria for inclusion consisted of literature describing health sector QI projects that involved local, regional or system-level decision-makers. Descriptive analysis was performed. Drawing on QI and participatory research literature, the research team developed an inductive data extraction grid to provide a portrait of QI project characteristics, decision-makers' contributions, and advantages and challenges associated with their involvement. RESULTS: After screening and review, we retained 29 references. 18 references described multi-site projects and 11 were conducted in single sites. Local decision-makers' contributions were documented in 27 of the 29 references and regional decision-makers' contributions were documented in 12. Local decision-makers were more often active participants in QI processes, contributing toward planning, implementation, change management and capacity building. Regional decision-makers more often served as initiators and supporters of QI projects, contributing toward strategic planning, recruitment, delegation, coordination of local teams, as well as assessment and capacity building. Advantages of decision-maker involvement described in the retained references include mutual learning, frontline staff buy-in, accountability, resource allocation, effective leadership and improved implementation feasibility. Considerations regarding their involvement included time constraints, variable supervisory expertise, issues concerning centralised leadership, relationship strengthening among stakeholders, and strategic alignment of frontline staff and managerial priorities CONCLUSIONS: This scoping review provides important insights into the various roles played by decision-makers, the benefits and challenges associated with their involvement, and identifies opportunities for strengthening their engagement. The results of this review highlight the need for practical collaboration and communication strategies that foster partnership between frontline staff and decision-makers at all levels.
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Delivery of Health Care , Quality Improvement , Humans , Decision MakingABSTRACT
The advanced access (AA) model is among the most recommended innovations for improving timely access in primary health care (PHC). Originally developed for physicians, it is now relevant to evaluate the model's implementation in more interprofessional practices. We compared AA implementation among family physicians, nurse practitioners, and nurses. A cross-sectional online open survey was completed by 514 PHC providers working in 35 university-affiliated clinics. Family physicians delegated tasks to other professionals in the team more often than nurse practitioners (p = .001) and nurses (p < .001). They also left a smaller proportion of their schedules open for urgent patient needs than did nurse practitioners (p = .015) and nurses (p < .001). Nurses created more alternatives to in-person visits than family physicians (p < .001) and coordinated health and social services more than family physicians (p = .003). During periods of absence, physicians referred patients to walk-in services for urgent needs significantly more often than nurses (p = .003), whereas nurses planned replacements between colleagues more often than physicians (p <.001). The variations among provider categories indicate that a one-size-fits-all implementation of AA principles is not recommended.
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Interprofessional Relations , Physicians, Family , Humans , Cross-Sectional StudiesABSTRACT
OBJECTIVES: The advanced access model is highly recommended to improve timely access to primary healthcare (PHC). However, its adoption varies among PHC providers. We aim to identify the advanced access profiles of PHC providers. DESIGN: A cross-sectional study was conducted between October 2019 and March 2020. Latent class analysis (LCA) measures were used to identify PHC provider profiles based on 14 variables, 2 organisational context characteristics (clinical size and geographical area) and 12 advanced access strategies. SETTING AND PARTICIPANTS: All family physicians, nurse practitioners and nurses working in the 49 university-affiliated team-based PHC clinics in Quebec, Canada, were invited, of which 35 participated. PRIMARY OUTCOME MEASURE: The LCA was based on 335 respondents. We determined the optimal number of profiles using statistical criteria (Akaike information criterion, Bayesian information criterion) and qualitatively named each of the six advanced access profiles. RESULTS: (1) Low supply and demand planification (25%) was characterised by the smallest proportion of strategies used to balance supply and demand. (2) Reactive interprofessional collaboration (25%) was characterised by high collaboration and long opening periods for appointment scheduling. (3) Structured interprofessional collaboration (19%) was characterised by high use of interprofessional team meetings. (4) Small urban delegating practices (13%) was exclusively composed of family physicians and characterised by task delegation to other PHC providers on the team. (5) Comprehensive practices in urban settings (13%) was characterised by including as many services as possible on each visit. (6) Rural agility (4%) was characterised by the highest uptake of advanced access strategies based on flexibility, including adjusting the schedule to demand and having a large number of open-slot appointments available in the next 48 hours. CONCLUSION: The different patterns of advanced access strategy adoption confirm the need for training to be tailored to individuals, categories of PHC providers and contexts.
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Nurse Practitioners , Physicians, Family , Humans , Quebec , Cross-Sectional Studies , Bayes Theorem , Universities , Primary Health CareABSTRACT
BACKGROUND: Juvenile idiopathic arthritis (JIA) is a common pediatric rheumatic condition and is associated with symptoms such as joint pain that can negatively impact health-related quality of life. To effectively manage pain in JIA, young people, their families, and health care providers (HCPs) should be supported to discuss pain management options and make a shared decision. However, pain is often under-recognized, and pain management discussions are not optimal. No studies have explored decision-making needs for pain management in JIA using a shared decision making (SDM) model. We sought to explore families' decision-making needs with respect to pain management among young people with JIA, parents/caregivers, and HCPs. METHODS: We conducted semi-structured virtual or face-to-face individual interviews with young people with JIA 8-18 years of age, parents/caregivers and HCPs using a qualitative descriptive study design. We recruited participants online across Canada and the United States, from a hospital and from a quality improvement network. We used interview guides based on the Ottawa Decision Support Framework to assess decision-making needs. We audiotaped, transcribed verbatim and analyzed interviews using thematic analysis. RESULTS: A total of 12 young people (n = 6 children and n = 6 adolescents), 13 parents/caregivers and 11 HCPs participated in interviews. Pediatric HCPs were comprised of rheumatologists (n = 4), physical therapists (n = 3), rheumatology nurses (n = 2) and occupational therapists (n = 2). The following themes were identified: (1) need to assess pain in an accurate manner; (2) need to address pain in pediatric rheumatology consultations; (3) need for information on pain management options, especially nonpharmacological approaches; (4) importance of effectiveness, safety and ease of use of treatments; (5) need to discuss young people/families' values and preferences for pain management options; and the (6) need for decision support. Themes were similar for young people, parents/caregivers and HCPs, although their respective importance varied. CONCLUSIONS: Findings suggest a need for evidence-based information and communication about pain management options, which would be addressed by decision support interventions and HCP training in pain and SDM. Work is underway to develop such interventions and implement them into practice to improve pain management in JIA and in turn lead to better health outcomes.
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Arthritis, Juvenile , Pain Management , Adolescent , Child , Humans , Arthritis, Juvenile/complications , Arthritis, Juvenile/therapy , Pain , Qualitative Research , Quality of Life , Decision Making, SharedABSTRACT
Objective: This study aims to present a proof of concept of a dashboard on a set of indicators of access to primary healthcare (PHC) based on electronic medical records (EMRs). Methods: This research builds on a multi-method design study including (1) a systematic review, (2) a pilot phase and (3) the development of a dashboard. Results: Eight indicators were carefully selected and successfully extracted from EMRs obtained from 151 PHC providers. Indicators of access over time, as well as among providers and among clinics, have been enabled in the dashboard. Conclusion: EMR data enabled the development of a real-time dashboard on access, giving PHC providers a reliable portrait of their own practice, its evolution over time and how it compares with those of their peers.
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Access to Primary Care , Electronic Health Records , Humans , Health Personnel , Primary Health CareABSTRACT
Objective: This study aims to explore differences in access to care as experienced by patients registered in team-based primary healthcare clinics according to their social vulnerability profile. Method: A total of 1,562 patients from four team-based primary healthcare clinics completed an e-survey conducted between June and November 2021. The social vulnerability index was used to compare the experiences. Results: Patients with low vulnerability consulted at emergency rooms three times more often because their family physician was not available (p = 0.006) than patients with no vulnerability. Lack of continuity was reported two times more often by patients with low vulnerability related to team members not knowing their recent medical history (p = 0.006) and by patients with high vulnerability related to no one being in charge of their file (p = 0.023). Both vulnerable groups reported receiving contradictory information more often than patients with no vulnerability. Conclusion: Patients with high vulnerability experienced more access difficulties related to continuity, interprofessional collaboration and communication with providers.
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Communication , Social Vulnerability , Humans , Primary Health CareABSTRACT
PURPOSE: The purpose of this study is to explore the acceptability of a telerehabilitation intervention provided to parents of children with motor difficulties. MATERIAL AND METHODS: Sixteen parents of children were purposefully recruited to participate in semi-structured interviews aimed at assessing the acceptability of the telerehabilitation intervention. Interviews were analyzed thematically. RESULTS: All participants described evolving acceptability associated with their interactions with the web platform. The opportunities generated, suitability in relation to families' values and perceived effects positively impacted acceptability. The understanding and consistency of intervention delivery, the child's level of involvement, the associated parental burden of the intervention and the therapeutic alliances created also affected acceptability. CONCLUSION: Our study findings support the acceptability of a telerehabilitation intervention for families of children with motor difficulties. Telerehabilitation seems to be more acceptable to families with children without suspected or confirmed diagnoses.
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Telerehabilitation , Humans , Child , Telerehabilitation/methods , Parents , Qualitative ResearchABSTRACT
Since 2012, implementation of the advanced access model in primary care has been highly recommended across Canada to improve timely access. We present a portrait of the implementation of the advanced access model 10 years after its large-scale implementation across the province of Quebec. In total, 127 clinics participated in the study, with 999 family physicians and 107 nurse practitioners responding to the survey. Results show that opening schedules for appointments over a period of 2 to 4 weeks has largely been implemented. However, reserving consultation time for urgent or semi-urgent conditions was implemented by less than half and planning supply and demand for 20% or more of the upcoming year by fewer than one fifth of respondents. More strategies need to be put in place to react to imbalances when they occur. We demonstrate that strategies based on individual practice change are more often implemented than those requiring changes at the clinic.
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Appointments and Schedules , Health Services Accessibility , Humans , Quebec , Canada , Surveys and QuestionnairesABSTRACT
BACKGROUND: eConsult is a model of asynchronous communication connecting primary care providers to specialists to discuss patient care. This study aims to analyze the scaling-up process and identify strategies used to support scaling-up efforts in four provinces in Canada. METHODS: We conducted a multiple case study with four cases (ON, QC, MB, NL). Data collection methods included document review (n = 93), meeting observations (n = 65) and semi-structured interviews (n = 40). Each case was analyzed based on Milat's framework. RESULTS: The first scaling-up phase was marked by the rigorous evaluation of eConsult pilot projects and the publication of over 90 scientific papers. In the second phase, provinces implemented provincial multi-stakeholder committees, institutionalized the evaluation, and produced documents detailing the scaling-up plan. During the third phase, efforts were made to lead proofs of concept, obtain the endorsement of national and provincial organizations, and mobilize alternate sources of funding. The last phase was mainly observed in Ontario, where the creation of a provincial governance structure and strategies were put in place to monitor the service and manage changes. CONCLUSIONS: Various strategies need to be used throughout the scaling-up process. The process remains challenging and lengthy because health systems lack clear processes to support innovation scaling-up.
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Remote Consultation , Humans , Health Services Accessibility , Primary Health Care , Program Evaluation , Ontario , Referral and ConsultationABSTRACT
AIM: To explore the use and implementation of teleconsultations by primary care nurses in the context of the COVID-19 pandemic. BACKGROUND: Teleconsultation use increased rapidly during the COVID-19 pandemic. Its implementation has been documented for physicians and specialists, but knowledge is still limited in nursing practice. DESIGN: A sequential mixed-methods study. METHODS: Phase 1: A cross-sectional e-survey with 98 nurses (64 nurse clinicians [NCs] and 34 nurse practitioners [NPs]) was conducted in 2020 in 48 teaching primary care clinics in Quebec (Canada). Phase 2: Semi-structured interviews with four NCs and six NPs were conducted in 2021 in three primary care clinics. This study adheres to STROBE and COREQ guidelines. RESULTS: During the pandemic, telephone was the principal teleconsultation modality used by NPs and NCs compared to other teleconsultation modalities (text messages, email and video). The only variable associated with a higher likelihood of using teleconsultations was type of professional (NCs). Video consultation was almost absent from the modalities used. The majority of participants reported several facilitators to using teleconsultations in their work (e.g. web platforms and work-family balance) and for patients (e.g. rapid access). Some barriers to utilisation were identified (e.g. lack of physical resources) for successful integration of teleconsultations at the organisational, technological and systemic levels. Participants also reported positive (e.g. assessment of cognitive deficiency) and negative (e.g. rural population) impacts of using teleconsultations during a pandemic that made the use of teleconsultations complex. CONCLUSION: This study highlights the potential for nurses to use teleconsultations in primary care practice and suggests concrete solutions to encourage their implementation after the pandemic. RELEVANCE TO CLINICAL PRACTICE: Findings emphasize the need for updated nursing education, easy-to-use technology and the strengthening of policies for the sustainable use of teleconsultations in primary health care. IMPLICATIONS FOR THE PROFESSION: This study could promote the sustainable use of teleconsultations in nursing practice. REPORTING METHOD: The study adhered to relevant EQUATOR guidelines; the STROBE checklist for cross-sectional studies and the COREQ guidelines for qualitative studies were used for reporting. PATIENT OR PUBLIC CONTRIBUTION: No patient or public contribution, as the study focused on the use of teleconsultation among health professionals, specifically primary care nurses.
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COVID-19 , Nurse Practitioners , Remote Consultation , Humans , Remote Consultation/methods , Pandemics , Cross-Sectional Studies , COVID-19/epidemiologyABSTRACT
INTRODUCTION: The 2021 Action Plan for Pain from the Canadian Pain Task Force advocates for patient-centred pain care at all levels of healthcare across provinces. Shared decision-making is the crux of patient-centred care. Implementing the action plan will require innovative shared decision-making interventions, specifically following the disruption of chronic pain care during the COVID-19 pandemic. The first step in this endeavour is to assess current decisional needs (ie, decisions most important to them) of Canadians with chronic pain across their care pathways. METHODS AND ANALYSIS: DesignGrounded in patient-oriented research approaches, we will perform an online population-based survey across the ten Canadian provinces. We will report methods and data following the CROSS reporting guidelines.SamplingThe Léger Marketing company will administer the online population-based survey to its representative panel of 500 000 Canadians to recruit 1646 adults (age ≥18 years old) with chronic pain according to the definition by the International Association for the Study of Pain (eg, pain ≥12 weeks). ContentBased on the Ottawa Decision Support Framework, the self-administered survey has been codesigned with patients and contain six core domains: (1) healthcare services, consultation and postpandemic needs, (2) difficult decisions experienced, (3) decisional conflict, (4) decisional regret, (5) decisional needs and (6) sociodemographic characteristics. We will use several strategies such as random sampling to improve survey quality. AnalysisWe will perform descriptive statistical analysis. We will identify factors associated with clinically significant decisional conflict and decision regret using multivariate analyses. ETHICS AND DISSEMINATION: Ethics was approved by the Research Ethics Board at the Research Centre of the Centre Hospitalier Universitaire de Sherbrooke (project #2022-4645). We will codesign knowledge mobilisation products with research patient partners (eg, graphical summaries and videos). Results will be disseminated via peer-reviewed journals and national and international conferences to inform the development of innovative shared decision-making interventions for Canadians with chronic pain.
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COVID-19 , Chronic Pain , Adult , Humans , Adolescent , Needs Assessment , Chronic Pain/therapy , Pandemics , Canada , Surveys and Questionnaires , Decision MakingABSTRACT
BACKGROUND: Improving access to primary health care is among top priorities for many countries. Advanced Access (AA) is one of the most recommended models to improve timely access to care. Over the past 15 years, the AA model has been implemented in Canada, but the implementation of AA varies substantially among providers and clinics. Continuous quality improvement (CQI) approaches can be used to promote organizational change like AA implementation. While CQI fosters the adoption of evidence-based practices, knowledge gaps remain, about the mechanisms by which QI happens and the sustainability of the results. The general aim of the study is to analyse the implementation and effects of CQI cohorts on AA for primary care clinics. Specific objectives are: 1) Analyse the process of implementing CQI cohorts to support PHC clinics in their improvement of AA. 2) Document and compare structural organisational changes and processes of care with respect to AA within study groups (intervention and control). 3) Assess the effectiveness of CQI cohorts on AA outcomes. 4) Appreciate the sustainability of the intervention for AA processes, organisational changes and outcomes. METHODS: Cluster-controlled trial allowing for a comprehensive and rigorous evaluation of the proposed intervention 48 multidisciplinary primary care clinics will be recruited to participate. 24 Clinics from the intervention regions will receive the CQI intervention for 18 months including three activities carried out iteratively until the clinic's improvement objectives are achieved: 1) reflective sessions and problem priorisation; 2) plan-do-study-act cycles; and 3) group mentoring. Clinics located in the control regions will receive an audit-feedback report on access. Complementary qualitative and quantitative data reflecting the quintuple aim will be collected over a period of 36 months. RESULTS: This research will contribute to filling the gap in the generalizability of CQI interventions and accelerate the spread of effective AA improvement strategies while strengthening local QI culture within clinics. This research will have a direct impact on patients' experiences of care. CONCLUSION: This mixed-method approach offers a unique opportunity to contribute to the scientific literature on large-scale CQI cohorts to improve AA in primary care teams and to better understand the processes of CQI. TRIAL REGISTRATION: Clinical Trials: NCT05715151.
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Primary Health Care , Quality Improvement , Humans , Canada , Randomized Controlled Trials as Topic , Cluster AnalysisABSTRACT
Introduction: The aim of this study was to quantify the amount of deterioration in hearing and to document the trajectory of hearing loss in early identified children with unilateral hearing loss (UHL). We also examined whether clinical characteristics were associated with the likelihood of having progressive hearing loss. Methods: As part of the Mild and Unilateral Hearing Loss Study, we followed a population-based cohort of 177 children diagnosed with UHL from 2003 to 2018. We applied linear mixed models to examine hearing trends over time including the average amount of change in hearing. Logistic regression models were used to examine the relationship between age and severity at diagnosis, etiology, and the likelihood of progressive loss and amount of deterioration in hearing. Results: The median age of the children at diagnosis was 4.1 months (IQR 2.1, 53.9) and follow-up time was 58.9 months (35.6, 92.0). Average hearing loss in the impaired ear was 58.8â dB HL (SD 28.5). Over the 16-year period, 47.5% (84/177) of children showed deterioration in hearing in one or both ears from their initial diagnostic assessment to most recent assessment including 21 (11.9%) who developed bilateral hearing loss. Average deterioration in the impaired ear ranged from 27 to 31â dB with little variation across frequencies. Deterioration resulted in a change in category of severity for 67.5% (52/77) of the children. Analysis for children who were followed for at least 8 years showed that most lost a significant amount of hearing rapidly in the first 4 years, with the decrease stabilizing and showing a plateau in the last 4 years. Age and severity at diagnosis were not significantly associated with progressive/stable loss after adjusting for time since diagnosis. Etiologic factors (ENT external/middle ear anomalies, inner ear anomalies, syndromic hearing loss, hereditary/genetic) were found to be positively associated with stable hearing loss. Conclusion: Almost half of children with UHL are at risk for deterioration in hearing in one or both ears. Most deterioration occurs within the first 4 years following diagnosis. Most children did not experience sudden "large" drops in hearing but more gradual decrease over time. These results suggest that careful monitoring of UHL especially in the early years is important to ensure optimal benefit from early hearing loss detection.
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INTRODUCTION: Attachment to a primary care provider is an important component of primary care as it facilitates access. In Québec, Canada, attachment to a family physician is a concern. To address unattached patients' barriers to accessing primary care, the Ministry of Health and Social Services mandated Québec's 18 administrative regions to implement single points of access for unattached patients (Guichets d'accès première ligne (GAPs)) that aim to better orient patients towards the most appropriate services to meet their needs. The objectives of this study are to (1) analyse the implementation of GAPs, (2) measure the effects of GAPs on performance indicators and (3) assess unattached patients' experiences of navigation, access and service utilisation. METHODS AND ANALYSIS: A longitudinal mixed-methods case study design will be conducted. Objective 1. Implementation will be analysed through semistructured interviews with key stakeholders, observations of key meetings and document analysis. Objective 2. GAP effects on indicators will be measured using performance dashboards produced using clinical and administrative data. Objective 3. Unattached patients' experiences will be assessed using a self-administered electronic questionnaire. Findings for each case will be interpreted and presented using a joint display, a visual tool for integrating qualitative and quantitative data. Intercase analyses will be conducted highlighting the similarities and differences across cases. ETHICS AND DISSEMINATION: This study is funded by the Canadian Institutes of Health Research (# 475314) and the Fonds de Soutien à l'innovation en santé et en services sociaux (# 5-2-01) and was approved by the CISSS de la Montérégie-Centre Ethics Committee (MP-04-2023-716).
Subject(s)
Health Services Accessibility , Primary Health Care , Humans , Canada , Document AnalysisABSTRACT
INTRODUCTION: Chronic pain represents a major health issue, affecting the physical and mental health of approximately one in five people worldwide. It is now widely recognized that health professionals should use interventions that meet the needs of people living with chronic pain. Therefore, physiotherapists should attend to patients' perceived needs regarding physiotherapy services, i.e. the needs that are perceived by patients themselves based on their beliefs, values, preferences and expectations. However, previous reviews have mainly focused on health professionals' and experts' evaluations of patients' needs, which may result in inadequate answers to these needs. Therefore, a better understanding of patients' perceived needs could lead to more ethical and higher quality physiotherapy services. OBJECTIVE: The aim of this scoping review is thus to explore what is known from the existing literature about the perceived needs of people living with chronic pain regarding physiotherapy services. METHODS: This scoping review will follow Arksey and O'Malley's six-step framework. Medline, Embase, CINHAL, and APA PsycINFO will be used to search the scientific literature. The grey literature will also be searched using Google Scholar, OpenGrey and ProQuest Dissertation & Theses Global (PQDTGlobal). Studies published in English and French will only be considered. Two independent reviewers will perform the selection and extraction processes. Descriptive statistics will be performed to characterize the included studies. Quantitative, qualitative and mixed methods studies will be analyzed and synthetized using convergent qualitative meta-integration. Thereby, we will use the seven steps for convergent qualitative meta-integration proposed by Frantzen and Fetters to transform, analyze and integrate the quantitative and qualitative data. INCLUSION CRITERIA: Included studies will describe the perceived needs of adults living with chronic pain regarding physiotherapy services. Studies focusing on the perspectives of health professionals and rehabilitation services other than physiotherapy will be excluded.