Exploring agendas of patients attending family medicine clinics in Jordan. A qualitative content analysis study.

OBJECTIVES: To explore concerns, beliefs, and expectations of patients who attend Family Medicine clinics in  the University of Jordan Hospital, Amman, Jordan. Methods: A qualitative descriptive design was used. Semi-structured interviews were conducted with 143 patients (84% females, mean age 45.3±17.8 years) between September and December 2016. A validated patient's agenda form included open-ended questions on patients' main concerns, beliefs, and expectations was used. A qualitative content analysis of answers was completed by coding answers into categories. Results: A good aggregate inter-rater reliability for coding categories was found (κ-values ranging from 0.76-0.88). The most common concern of participants were the need to receive treatment for an acute illness, followed by the desire for clarification on health condition. Forty percent of participants believed that their symptoms were caused by a health condition rather than lifestyle, while 32.5% had no speculations related to the causes behind their symptoms. The highest percentage of patients expected doctors to provide information related to their health condition. Conclusion: The most prominent needs of participants were the need for information and explanation regarding health condition. Family doctors are encouraged to use agenda forms to enhance patient communications and improve outcomes of consultations.

Short course in evidence-based medicine improves knowledge and skills of undergraduate medical students: a before-and-after study.

BACKGROUND: Providing evidence-based care is recognized as a key skill for health care workers from diverse professions and cultures. PURPOSE: We aimed to assess the effectiveness of a short course in evidence-based medicine (EBM) to change the knowledge and skills of undergraduate medical students and point to possible incorporation of EBM in their curriculum. METHODS: This is a before-and-after study that was evaluated by the Fresno questionnaire. A 2-week short course of lectures, seminars, online search, and answering worksheets was conducted on 54 fifth-year medical students rotating through the family medicine department at Jordan University Hospital from September 1 until mid-December 2011. RESULTS: The students achieved a mean score of 26.7 out of 200 in the pretest and 119.5 in the posttest. The mean difference between the pre- and posttests was 92.8, a statistically significant result with a 95% confidence interval of 84.7, 101.0 (p<.0001) with an effect size of 4.2 standard deviation units. CONCLUSIONS: A short course in EBM will significantly improve the skills and knowledge of undergraduate medical students.

Discrepancies between elderly patient's self-reported and prescribed medications: a social investigation.

AIMS: To study some characteristics of the elderly people attending the family practice clinic at the Jordan University Hospital (JUH) and to evaluate their knowledge of the prescribed drugs. METHODS: A total of 400 elderly people (180 men and 220 women) aged 71 ± 5.8 years were studied regarding sociodemographic characteristics and the use of medicinal and nonmedicinal remedies. In addition, agreement between self-reported drug information and information taken from the medical records was also evaluated. FINDINGS: Almost one-third of the patients had full agreement between their knowledge of total number of drugs they take and the numbers found in the medical records, whereas 43.4% underestimated and 21.8% overestimated these numbers. Five drugs/classes were accurately estimated by the patient (methyldopa, ezetimibe, warfarin, statins and antigout drugs). Underestimation was noticed in 17 drugs/classes and overestimation in 14. The significantly underestimated drug classes were biphoshponates, proton pump inhibitors, sulfonylureas and antiepileptic drugs. CONCLUSION: Some aspects of elderly people were evaluated regarding their medication knowledge. Almost two-third of the patients did not take their drugs in the proper way. The results of the study highlight the importance of taking several actions by all healthcare workers and by the community to optimise health care provided for elderly people.

Awareness and behavior about Pap smear testing in family medicine practice.

OBJECTIVE: To describe and estimate the effect of 5 socio-demographic variables and insurance status on awareness of pap smear, and the influence of sociodemographic characteristics, health insurance and knowledge score on having a pap smear test. METHODS: This is a cross-sectional study of 674 female patients, aged 17 years and above between October and December 2006, and attending family medicine clinics at Jordan University Hospital, Amman, Jordan. We collected data on socio-demographic factors, future intention to take the test and barriers to screening. RESULTS: Of 674 patients, 68.1% were aware of the Pap smear as a medical test. Of married women, 40.3% had a screening history. Women who were aware of the test were more likely to be <35 years of age, married, and have higher than secondary education. Women who have had a Pap test were younger and had higher knowledge scores of the Pap smear. The physicians were the main source of information regarding awareness and having the test. Female physicians, particularly gynecologists, were preferred to perform the Pap smear. Fear of the procedure and the results of the test were the major obstacles to having the test. CONCLUSION: There is an imminent need for an awareness campaign; a simple 5-item knowledge test can identify a group of women, who can most benefit from targeted interventions.

Familiarity, knowledge, and attitudes towards epilepsy among attendees of a family clinic in Amman, Jordan.

OBJECTIVE: To investigate the present familiarity, knowledge, and attitudes of Jordanians towards epilepsy. METHODS: This is a cross-sectional study that was conducted over a 6-month period, from April 2006 to October 2006 at the family clinic of Jordan University Hospital, Amman, Jordan. A face-to-face questionnaire interview was conducted with 600 non-epileptic adults who visited the clinic during the study period. RESULTS: The sample matched the overall Jordanian population for literacy rate, however, included a higher proportion of females, and consequently findings may be taken as being only moderately representative of the Jordanian population. Ninety-eight percent of the respondents had heard about epilepsy, 47.3% knew someone with epilepsy, and 39.7% had witnessed a seizure. The major source of knowledge was word of mouth; knowledge about causes and treatment were far below the results reported in western countries. In addition, negative attitudes were present with regard to marriage and employment of epileptic patients (86.8% objected to marriage and 50.8% objected to employment). Eighty-three percent of respondents admitted that their knowledge of epilepsy was not satisfactory and were willing to learn more about epilepsy. The television was believed to be the most efficient and preferred way to disseminate knowledge about epilepsy. CONCLUSION: Although this study does not represent the whole Jordanian population, however, it demonstrated lack of knowledge and emphasized the extent of negative as well as positive attitudes towards epilepsy in Jordan.