1. Scaling-up an integrated care for patients with non-communicable diseases : an analysis of healthcare barriers and facilitators in Slovenia and BelgiumČrt Zavrnik, Katrien Danhieux, Miriam Hurtado Monarres, Nataša Stojnić, Majda Mori-Lukančič, Monika Martens, Zalika Klemenc-Ketiš, Edwin Wouters, Josefien Van Olmen, Tonka Poplas-Susič, 2021, izvirni znanstveni članek Opis: Introduction: Although the concept of integrated care for non-communicable diseases was introduced at the primary level to move from disease-centered to patient-centered care, it has only been partially implemented in European countries. The aim of this study was to identify and compare identified facilitators and barriers to scale-up this concept between Slovenia and Belgium.
Methods: This was a qualitative study. Fifteen focus groups and fifty-one semi-structured interviews were conducted with stakeholders at the micro, meso and macro levels. In addition, data from two previously published studies were used for the analysis. Data collection and analysis was initially conducted at country level. Finally, the data was evaluated by a cross-country team to assess similarities and differences between countries.
Results: Four topics were identified in the study: patient-centered care, teamwork, coordination of care and task delegation. Despite the different contexts, true teamwork and patient-centered care are limited in both countries by hierarchies and a very heavily skewed medical approach. The organization of primary healthcare in Slovenia probably facilitates the coordination of care, which is not the case in Belgium. The financing and organization of primary practices in Belgium was identified as a barrier to the implementation of task delegation between health professionals.
Conclusions: This study allowed formulating some important concepts for future healthcare for non-communicable diseases at the level of primary healthcare. The results could provide useful insights for other countries with similar health systems. Ključne besede: scale-up, noncommunicable diseases, patientcentered care, primary healthcare, integrated healthcare Objavljeno v DKUM: 22.10.2024; Ogledov: 0; Prenosov: 3 Celotno besedilo (428,11 KB) Gradivo ima več datotek! Več... |
2. Implementation of a savvy mobile ECG sensor for heart rhythm disorder screening at the primary healthcare levelStaša Vodička, Tonka Poplas-Susič, Erika Zelko, 2021, izvirni znanstveni članek Opis: Introduction: The Jozef Stefan Institute developed a personal portable electrocardiogram (ECG) sensor Savvy that works with a smartphone, and this was used in our study. This study aimed to analyze the usefulness of telecardiology at the primary healthcare level using an ECG personal sensor.
Methods: We included 400 patients with a history of suspected rhythm disturbance who visited their family physician at the Healthcare Center Ljubljana and Healthcare Center Murska Sobota from October 2016 to January 2018.
Results: The study found that there was no statistically significant difference between the test and control groups in the number of present rhythm disorders and actions taken to treat patients with either observation or administration of a new drug. However, in the test group, there were significantly fewer patients being referred to a cardiologist than in the control group (p < 0.001).
Discussion: The use of an ECG sensor helps family physicians to distinguish between patients who need to be referred to a cardiologist and those who can be treated by them. This method is useful for both physicians and patients because it shortens the time taken to start treatment, can be used during pandemics such as COVID-19, and reduces unnecessary cost. Ključne besede: heart rhythm disorders, palpitations, primary healthcare, personal mobile ECG sensor, referrals Objavljeno v DKUM: 21.10.2024; Ogledov: 0; Prenosov: 1 Celotno besedilo (1,09 MB) Gradivo ima več datotek! Več... |
3. The safety culture of the Ljubljana community health centre's employeesŠpela Tevžič, Tonka Poplas-Susič, Zalika Klemenc-Ketiš, 2021, izvirni znanstveni članek Opis: Introduction: Patient safety is one of the key aspects of healthcare quality and a serious global public health concern. Patient safety culture is a part of the patient safety concept. In Slovenia, primary care is easily accessible, and for medical care, it serves as a gatekeeper to hospital care. For several years, the quality and safety at the primary healthcare level have been the focus of several studies. The present study aimed to assess patient safety culture among all employees of the Community Health Centre Ljubljana.
Methods: We conducted a cross-sectional study in 2017 using the Slovene version of “Medical Office Survey on Patient Safety Culture” from the Agency for Healthcare Research and Quality. Mean percent positive scores on all items in each composite were calculated according to a user guide.
Results: The final sample contained 1021 participants (67.8% response rate), of which 909 (89.0%) were women. The mean age of the sample was 43.0±11.0 years. The dimensions most highly rated by the respondents were: teamwork and patient care tracking/follow-up. The lowest scores came from leadership support for patients’ safety and work pressure and pace.
Conclusion: Patient safety culture in the Community Health Centre Ljubljana is high, but there are certain areas of patient safety that need to be evaluated further and improved. Our study revealed differences between professions, indicating that a customized approach per profession group might contribute to the successful implementation of safety strategies. Patient safety culture should be studied at national levels. Ključne besede: patient safety, safety culture, family medicine, primary healthcare, Slovenia Objavljeno v DKUM: 18.10.2024; Ogledov: 0; Prenosov: 1 Celotno besedilo (415,12 KB) Gradivo ima več datotek! Več... |
4. Working conditions and satisfaction with working conditions among Slovenian family medicine trainees : a cross-sectional studyKlemen Pašić, Vojislav Ivetić, 2021, izvirni znanstveni članek Opis: Introduction: In order to achieve a high standard in training programmes for future family medicine specialists, it is essential to have good tutors with well-organised family medicine practices. Proper working conditions for young doctors are essential for their satisfaction and future professional development. The aim of our study was to check the current working conditions of family medicine trainees in the practical modular part of the training programme in Slovenia, and to determine their satisfaction with working conditions.
Methods: A cross-sectional study was conducted. The data was collected through a questionnaire distributed to 105 family medicine trainees undergoing the practical modular part of their training programme.
Results: The study showed that the following 7 out of 25 organisational and labour law factors are significantly associated with a trainee's general satisfaction with working conditions: the location where work with patients takes place, the privacy of the premises, the accessibility of the main tutor, a constant patient population, suitable places for rest, paid out-of-hours substitutions, and appropriate pay grade.
Conclusion: The results we obtained can be used to address certain aspects of trainee's working conditions in Slovenia that need improvement. By determining which working conditions significantly affect a trainee's satisfaction, we have the opportunity to modify these conditions and thereby improve the training programme. This could result in a less stressful and more efficient residency programme. Ključne besede: family medicine, primary healthcare, trainees, working conditions, satisfaction Objavljeno v DKUM: 08.10.2024; Ogledov: 0; Prenosov: 4 Celotno besedilo (385,25 KB) Gradivo ima več datotek! Več... |
5. Mapping users' experience of a family history and genetic risk algorithm tool in primary careŠpela Miroševič, Kaja Krajc, Zalika Klemenc-Ketiš, Polona Selič-Zupančič, 2022, izvirni znanstveni članek Opis: Introduction: The development of a family history (FH) questionnaire (FHQ) provides an insight into a patient's familiarity of a trait and helps to identify individuals at increased risk of disease. A critical aspect of developing a new tool is exploring users' experience.
Objective: The objective of this study was to examine users' experience, obstacles and challenges, and their views and concerns in the applicability of a new tool for determining genetic risk in Slovenia's primary care.
Methods: We used a qualitative approach. The participants completed a risk assessment software questionnaire that calculates users' likelihood of developing familial diseases. Audio-taped semi-structured telephone interviews were conducted to evaluate their experience. There were 21 participants, and analyses using the constant comparative method were employed.
Results: We identified 3 main themes: obstacles/key issues, suggestions for improvements, and coping. The participants were poorly satisfied with the clarity of instructions, technical usability problems, and issues with the entry of relatives' data. They expressed satisfaction with some of the characteristics of the FHQ (e.g., straightforward and friendly format, easy entry, and comprehension). They suggested simpler language, that the disease risk should be targeted toward the disease, that the FHQ should include patient-specific recommendations, and that it should be part of the electronic medical records. When discussing what would they do with the results of the FHQ, the participants used different coping strategies: active (e.g., seeking information) or passive (e.g., avoidance).
Discussion/conclusion: User experience was shown to be a synthesis of obstacles, overcoming them with suggestions for improvements, and exploration of various coping mechanisms that may emerge from dealing with the stressor of "being at risk." Ključne besede: primary healthcare, family history, qualitative methodology Objavljeno v DKUM: 01.10.2024; Ogledov: 0; Prenosov: 2 Celotno besedilo (361,59 KB) Gradivo ima več datotek! Več... |
6. Mistreatment by patients : an analysis of the patient-related social stressors among Slovenian healthcare workersTatjana Kozjek, Vanja Erčulj, 2021, izvirni znanstveni članek Opis: Introduction: Healthcare workers (HCWs) are often exposed to mistreatment by patients, which has negative effects on both staff and institutions. To take appropriate action to help HCWs in this context, patient-related social stressors (PSS) should be explored. The purpose of the research was to identify the most pronounced patient behaviour contributing to the social stress (SS) of HCWs, and compare PSS between different HCWs and different types of healthcare institutions.
Methods: 750 HCWs from Slovenian public health centres and hospitals participated in the online survey. Although the non-probability sampling was used, the sample was representative according to gender and HCW type (doctors, nurses and other HCWs).
Results: The results show that the most pronounced patient behaviour contributing to the SS of HCWs are attitudes and behaviour of patients that are challenging in terms of what is - from the HCWs' point of view - considered as acceptable and reasonable (disproportionate patient expectations), and unpleasant, humourless, and hostile patients. HCWs in primary institutions meet less verbally aggressive and unpleasant patients than in tertiary ones. Although among all HCWs less educated ones are more exposed to inappropriate behaviour, doctors are those HCWs who experience more inappropriate behaviour.
Conclusion: Managers should enable HCWs to get comprehensive patient service training, oriented towards improving relationship management and patient-HCW relationships. Ključne besede: healthcare workers, mistreatment, patients, social stressors Objavljeno v DKUM: 04.09.2024; Ogledov: 59; Prenosov: 3 Celotno besedilo (409,95 KB) Gradivo ima več datotek! Več... |
7. Digital twin in sport: from an idea to realizationLuka Lukač, Iztok Fister, Iztok Fister, 2022, izvirni znanstveni članek Opis: A digital twin is a virtual model to reflect a physical object and helps it by making proper decisions. The decision-making process is based on the same input data that the simulated physical object has access to. Due to exploiting artificial intelligence, the decision-making process of the digital twin is more sophisticated than that of the physical object. In this study, the digital twin is applied to the sports training domain, where it addresses those questions that have arisen during the implementation of interval cycling training sessions. Thus, the digital twin runs on a mobile device (i.e., the Raspberry Pi platform), with which a cycle is equipped and demonstrates user-friendliness, robustness, reliability, and accuracy. The interval training sessions are transferred to the mobile device in the form of the domain-specific language EasyTrain, ensuring higher expressive power and ease of use. During the implementation, the digital twin advises the athlete with predicted information obtained by a sophisticated prediction model via a screen. The results of a huge experimental work showed that the difference in the average efficiency of the interval training implementation between the two cyclists that performed the experiments is prominent, as the efficiency of the professional training surpassed 90%, while the amateur training efficiency barely achieved 70%. Ključne besede: digital twin, interval sports training, healthcare, domain-specific language, cycling Objavljeno v DKUM: 23.08.2024; Ogledov: 119; Prenosov: 13 Celotno besedilo (828,02 KB) |
8. Exploring the inherent heterogeneity of vaccine hesitancy : a study of a childhood-vaccine-hesitant populationMonika Lamot, Andrej Kirbiš, Mitja Vrdelja, 2024, izvirni znanstveni članek Opis: Vaccine hesitancy and its determinants have been previously widely researched. Vaccine hesitancy has been defined as a continuum of attitudes, ranging from accepting vaccines with doubts to rejecting them. The present study aims to explore the heterogeneity of a childhood-vaccine-hesitant group by using a person-oriented approach-latent profile analysis. A non-representative cross-sectional sample of vaccine-hesitant Slovenians (N = 421, Mage = 35.21, 82.9% women) was used to identify differences based on their reliance on personal research (“self” researching instead of relying on science), overconfidence in knowledge, endorsement of conspiracy theories, complementary and alternative medicine, and trust in the healthcare system. The analysis revealed three profiles of vaccine-hesitant individuals. The most hesitant profile-vaccine rejecting-expressed the greatest reliance on personal research, expressed the highest endorsement of conspiracy theories and complementary and alternative medicine, showed moderate overconfidence in their knowledge, and expressed the highest levels of distrust in the healthcare system. We further found differences in sociodemographic structure and that the identified profiles differed in their attitudes regarding MMR, HPV, and Seasonal Influenza vaccinations. The present study demonstrates the heterogeneity of the vaccine-hesitant community and offers insights into some of the traits, which are crucial for designing pro-vaccine campaigns. Ključne besede: vaccine hesitancy, heterogeneity, latent profile analysis, complementary and alternative medicine, CAM, conspiracy theories, trust in healthcare system Objavljeno v DKUM: 21.08.2024; Ogledov: 101; Prenosov: 12 Celotno besedilo (836,81 KB) Gradivo ima več datotek! Več... |
9. Fall risk in adult family practice non-attenders : a cross-sectional study from SloveniaNina Ružić Gorenjec, Zalika Klemenc-Ketiš, Rok Blagus, Tonka Poplas-Susič, 2023, izvirni znanstveni članek Opis: Introduction: Not much is known about the fall risk among the adult population of those who rarely visit doctors. We wanted to determine the prevalence of increased fall risk in a population of family practice non-attenders and the factors associated with it.
Methods: We included participants from family medicine practices in this cross-sectional study. To be included in the study, the participants had to be adults living in the community (home-dwelling people) who had not visited their chosen family physician in the last five years (non-attenders). The identification of the eligible persons was done through a search of electronic medical records, which yield 2,025 non-attenders. Community nurses collected data in the participants’ homes. The outcome measure was increased fall risk as assessed by the Morse fall scale: increased risk (≥25) vs. no risk.
Results: The sample consisted of 1,945 patients (96.0% response rate) with a mean age of 60.4 years (range 20.5 to 99.7 years). An increased fall risk was determined in 482 or 24.8% (95% CI: [22.9, 26.8]) of the patients. The multivariate model showed a significant association of increased fall risk with higher age (p<0.001), lower systolic blood pressure (p=0.047), poor family function (p=0.016), increased risk of malnutrition (p=0.013), higher number of chronic diseases (p=0.027), higher pain intensity (p<0.001), lower self-assessment of current health (p=0.002), and higher dependence in daily activities (p<0.001).
Conclusion: Non-attenders may have an increased risk of falling which depends on their health status and age. The inclusion of community nurses in primary healthcare teams could be of use not only to identify the non-attenders’ health needs, but also to better manage their health, especially the factors that were identified to be associated with greater fall risk. Ključne besede: fall risk, primary healthcare, family practice, non-attenders, cross-sectional studies Objavljeno v DKUM: 17.07.2024; Ogledov: 125; Prenosov: 4 Celotno besedilo (570,04 KB) Gradivo ima več datotek! Več... |
10. Peer support as part of scaling-up integrated care in patients with type 2 diabetes and arterial hypertension at the primary healthcare level : a study protocolTina Virtič, Matic Mihevc, Črt Zavrnik, Majda Mori-Lukančič, Tonka Poplas-Susič, Zalika Klemenc-Ketiš, 2023, izvirni znanstveni članek Opis: Introduction: Type 2 diabetes (T2D) and arterial hypertension (AH) are among the greatest challenges facing health systems worldwide and require comprehensive patient-centred care. The key to successful management in chronic patients is self-management support, which was found to be only weakly implemented in Slovenia. The aim of the study is to develop an evidence-based model of peer support for people with T2D and AH at the primary healthcare level in Slovenia, which could represent a potential solution for upgrading integrated care for these patients.
Methods: A prospective interventional, mixed-methods pilot study will begin by recruiting approximately 40 eligible people with T2D and AH through purposive sampling. The participants will receive structured training, led by a specialist nurse, to become trained peer supporters. Each will voluntarily share their knowledge and experience at monthly group meetings with up to 10 people with T2D and AH over a three-month period in the local community. Data will be collected through interviews and focus groups and questionnaires about socio-demographic and clinical data, knowledge about T2D and AH, participants’ quality of life, level of empowerment and acceptability of the intervention.
Expected results: The study will provide an evidence-based model for integrating peer support into the local community. It is expected that the intervention will prove feasible and acceptable with educational, psychosocial and behavioural benefits.
Conclusion: Peer support through empowerment of people with T2D and AH, family members and other informal caregivers in the local community could scale-up the integrated care continuum and contribute to sustainability of the healthcare system. Ključne besede: diabetes type 2, arterial hypertension, peer support, self-management, integrated primary, healthcare Objavljeno v DKUM: 17.07.2024; Ogledov: 103; Prenosov: 4 Celotno besedilo (304,20 KB) Gradivo ima več datotek! Več... |