This case study illustrates distinctive features of case study methodology that were responsive to context in ways not often seen in case study research. Located in Alberta, Canada, the study explored the factors that supported or hindered licensed practical nurses' ability to work to the full scope of practice assigned to them by legislation but…

Hospitalization of nursing home residents can be futile as well as costly, and now evidence indicates that treating nursing home residents in place produces better outcomes for some conditions. We examined facility organizational characteristics that previous research showed are associated with potentially avoidable hospital transfers and with…

Fitness centers are a viable option for physical activity, particularly in climates with significant weather variation. Due to variation in economic and social expressions of exclusivity, fitness centers may have some relation to social inequalities in physical inactivity and related health outcomes; thus, our objective was to explore this…

Introduction: Administrators must balance the demands of delivering therapy services with the need to provide staff with educational opportunities promoting evidence-based practice. Increasingly, the use of multifaceted, interactive knowledge translation strategies, such as knowledge brokering, is suggested as an effective way to encourage…

While American literature on sustaining restraint reduction is relatively robust, there is a lack of research published on the same issue in Canadian continuing care (CC) settings. Statistics from Canada's largest publicly funded and operated CC organization have revealed telling patterns in mechanical restraint use. Over a 4-year study period…

The present study investigated the predictive accuracy of the Psychopathy Checklist: Youth Version (PCL: YV; A. E. Forth, D. S. Kosson, & R. D. Hare, 2003) for youth and adult recidivism, with respect to gender, ethnicity, and age, in a sample of 161 Canadian young offenders who received psychological services from an outpatient mental health…

The overall use of acute care services by nursing home (NH) residents in Canada has not been well documented. Our objectives were to identify the major causes of hospitalization among NH facility residents and to compare rates to those of community-dwelling seniors. A retrospective cohort was defined using population-level health administrative…

Purpose: This study examines population-based trends in home care service utilization, alone and in conjunction with hospitalizations, during a period of health reform in Canada. It focuses on the extent to which observed trends suggest enhanced community-based care relative to three competing hypotheses: cost-cutting, medicalization, and…

The successes and problems of the polyclinic (so named to indicate that many subspecialties of internal medicine and related services are represented) approach are discussed. The polyclinic is described as a means of improving the quality of care and the teaching of ambulatory care in clinics of university teaching hospitals. (Editor/LBH)

The Working Together (WT) project involved the design and delivery of an online learning resource for healthcare teams in long-term care (LTC) so that knowledge regarding interprofessional collaborative patient-centred practice (ICPCP) could be readily accessed and then transferred to the workplace. The purpose of this paper is to better…

In the early 1990s, a restructuring of the health services system of Alberta (Canada) amalgamated public health units and hospital districts into 17 Regional Health Authorities. Many of the regions have pursued community grant initiatives in addition to their regular funding, and it seemed that there would be value in comparing the experiences of…

The evaluation strategy adopted by a rural Ontario (Canada) community health center is described, focusing on problems caused by multiple programs, variable and culturally diverse client base, and nontraditional approaches to health and wellness. The evaluation attempted to give a broad picture of the center's dynamics, processes, and efficacy.…

The physical and social environments are recognized as important therapeutic tools in the care of nursing home residents with dementia, yet little is known about the environments of rural nursing homes. This study was conducted in one rural health authority (16,000 km[superscript 2]) in the province of Saskatchewan. Long-term institutional care…

The fifth report in the series, The Impact of Junior Colleges, presents the results of a health survey form administered to 11,000 students entering the post-secondary educational system in British Columbia, fall 1971. The objective of the research was to assess the impact of colleges from the point of view of the students, the community and…

Describes changes in management and accreditation among Canadian health organizations caused by changing federal transfer payments and philosophies of service. Examines the status quo of evaluation in organizations based on either quality assurance or continuous quality improvement. Challenges facing evaluators in the health care sector are…