Purpose: This study investigated the use of private prayer among middle-aged and older patients as a way of coping with cardiac surgery and prayer's relationship to optimism. Design and Methods: The measure of prayer included three aspects: (a) belief in the importance of private prayer, (b) faith in the efficacy of prayer on the basis of previous…

Background: Intraocular surgery in patients with intellectual disability can be hazardous. Our aim was to determine the outcomes of surgery on all such patients seen in a consultant-led service, and to assess the overall risks and benefits. Materials and Methods: A retrospective chart review of patients with moderate to severe intellectual…

For many women, the only alternative to breast reconstruction following a mastectomy is to use external prostheses, which need replacing regularly at a cost of up to $395 per prosthesis. Commonwealth and state governments across Australia have responded to this need by providing subsidies to assist in the purchase of breast prostheses. However,…

This collection of 10 papers is intended as a resource book integrating information on pediatric cochlear implants for educators, parents, implant teams, and rehabilitation specialists. The papers focus on the importance of providing an oral educational environment to maximize cochlear implant success. An introduction notes controversies in the…

This report discusses results of a study that sought to determine if medical students perform equally on undergraduate and postgraduate academic measures regardless of the clinical site of their clerkship. A review of the literature revealed that accreditation requirements and sound education practices require that clinical sites be comparable…

The Committee on Education Programs in Laboratory Animal Science (EPLAS) has prepared this guide to aid institutions in implementing an education and training program that will meet the expectations of the Public Health Service (PHS). This guide was designed to fulfill several purposes. First, it is intended to assist institutional officials and…

Text, illustrations and exercises are utilized in these six learning modules to instruct patients and the general public in exercise and rehabilitative techniques. The first module, "Exercise and Your Life" by Caroline Hughes, distinguishes between static and dynamic exercise and discusses the benefits of exercise. The second module,…

A program during clerkships in internal medicine, pediatrics, and surgery at Ben-Gurion University emphasizes psychosocial conferences teaching to include tutorial guidance throughout the student's preparation of a case presentation in which psychological, sociological, and anthropological aspects of the patients' coping with illness and the…

This digest uses a question-and-answer format to summarize issues in the use of cochlear implants (an array of electrodes surgically implanted into the cochlea) with deaf or hard-of-hearing children. It describes the implants and summarizes the research on the effectiveness of the devices, which indicates that the devices are most effective in…

This paper raises concerns about use of cochlear implants with prelingually deaf children. It presents evidence questioning whether implants actually assist such children to acquire English as a Second Language and finds minimal differences in hearing improvements achieved with implants compared to conventional aids. Use of critical stage theory…

The use of cochlear implants in children with profound bilateral hearing loss is discussed, focusing on how a cochlear implant works; steps in a cochlear implant program (evaluation, surgery, programing, and training); and rehabilitation procedures involved in auditory development and speech development. (JDD)

Because parents' expectations for cochlear implants in children with deafness are sometimes unreasonably high, cochlear implant teams need to be aware of the dynamics involved in expectations and of ways to help parents come to a realistic understanding of the benefits and limitations of implants. Expectations can be clarified through education,…

Describes a New Britain General Hospital (Connecticut) program that uses mid-level practitioners, including physician assistants (PAs), to augment diminished staffs of residents in surgical residencies. Topics discussed include program structure, efforts to reduce the potential for PA/resident conflict, protection of residency program integrity,…

A study of 42 Israeli parents of children with Down syndrome and 48 family doctors found no differences between the parents and doctors regarding support for facial surgery. However, parents who showed less acceptance of their child expressed more support for the operation than parents who showed more acceptance. (Author/CR)

In this article, I analyze women's decisions to have their daughters circumcised based on data from 7,873 women in Kenya collected in the 1998 Kenya Demographic and Health Survey. I use multilevel models to assess the degree to which women's decisions are correlated with the decisions of other women in their community, in addition to studying the…