ABSTRACT
Beginning with this issue, Maryland Medicine will occasionally include a column provided by members of the Practice Administrator's Committee of the Montgomery County Medical Society. The editorial board believes their viewpoint may be helpful to physicians in the day-to-day business issues they confront.
Subject(s)
Practice Management, Medical , Societies, Medical , Forms and Records Control , Humans , Maryland , Organizational Policy , Referral and ConsultationABSTRACT
The French Radiotherapy-Oncology Society (SFRO) and the National Trade of Radiotherapists-Oncologists (SNRO) elaborated and published a patient information booklet on radiotherapy, in 1999. This present study appraises the pertinence of the form and substance of this booklet one year after its release. Eight radiotherapy centers participated in this research which evaluated 162 patients at treatment initiation. The conclusions of this study demonstrated the importance of clearly informing patients of their disease, treatment, and the secondary effects of treatment. It is essential to emphasize that 97% of the patients declared that an information booklet is a real necessity, and that the one provided by the SFRO responds to the majority of their concerns. Obtaining technical and practical knowledge resulted in a reassurance about their treatment. The most revealing result is that 87% requested direct communication about their illness, and that cancer be named by this word and not other, evasive terms. Seventy-two percent of the patients requested more information about their cancer, different treatment options, and quality of life issues in an attempt to psychologically prepare themselves to face an illness for which they have little control. Patients refuse to be passive, and claim the right to become 'partners' of the medical teams, concerning their treatment and recovery.
Subject(s)
Pamphlets , Patient Education as Topic , Radiation Oncology , Radiotherapy , Data Collection , Humans , Neoplasms/radiotherapy , Patient Satisfaction , Radiotherapy/psychologyABSTRACT
To determine the craniomandibular functional status of patients who seek orthognathic surgery, 48 adults with various dentofacial deformities were examined, and the functional parameters of the patients were compared with those of a normal population. The relationship between function and morphology was also studied. The method of study included a clinical examination of dysfunction, an evaluation of the number and intensity of occlusal contacts, a kinesiographic analysis of mandibular movements at the incisors, an evaluation of ramal and condylar vertical symmetry by means of dental rotational panoramic radiography, and an examination of profile and frontal cephalograms. Results of the examinations showed that the patients seeking orthognathic surgery showed craniomandibular functional patterns different from those of the normal group or healthy population. However, because no significant correlations were found among specific morphologic and functional characteristics and dysfunctional status (with the exception of condylar asymmetry, the maximal deviation of a maximal opening-closing movement defined on the sagittal plane, and the inclination of the maxillary central incisor in relation to the anterior cranial base), no clear cause-effect relationship was proved.
