Objective: To suggest a behavioural research agenda for patients with end-stage renal disease (ESRD) based on a concise review of seven stages of psychosocial research, a literature review, and... Show moreObjective: To suggest a behavioural research agenda for patients with end-stage renal disease (ESRD) based on a concise review of seven stages of psychosocial research, a literature review, and current behavioural research in other chronic somatic diseases. Methods: Historical behavioural ESRD research was classified. The specialized register of the Cochrane Behavioral Medicine Field was also checked, and additional papers were selected by screening reference lists and related behavioural science journals, to identify promising areas for future research. Results: The top-five topics identified via the literature search pertain to (1) psychological aspects and interventions, (2) adaptation, coping, and depression, (3) exercise, (4) counseling and education, and (5) compliance. 'Illness and treatment beliefs', 'sexuality', 'suicide', 'family support', and 'self-management interventions', were identified on the basis of research in other chronic illnesses as topics for future research. Regarding theory, the Common-Sense Model (CSM) was judged to offer useful theoretical perspectives: regarding methods, qualitative methods can be a valuable addition to quantitative research methods. Conclusion: Illness beliefs, treatment beliefs, and self-management behaviours are promising concepts in the assessment and clinical care of ESRD-patients. Cognitive-behavioural treatments appear to have potential and should be specified and elaborated for specific categories and problems of ESRD-patients. Practice Implications: This research agenda is in line with moves towards patient-centred disease-management to improve the quality of medical care for ESRD-patients. (C) 2009 Elsevier Ireland Ltd. All rights reserved. Show less
Objective: Hospitals in the Netherlands have recently made certain performance data public, allowing patients to choose the location of their care. The objective of this study is to assess (a)... Show moreObjective: Hospitals in the Netherlands have recently made certain performance data public, allowing patients to choose the location of their care. The objective of this study is to assess (a) patient preferences and experiences concerning the transition between primary and secondary health care, (b) patients' needs for choice and information and how these are influenced by personal and morbidity factors. Methods: Two different types of questionnaires were used. The first questionnaire concerns the importance that patients attach to the care provided. The second questionnaire concerns the actual experiences of the patient with the care provided. For the selection of patients, we used the databases of the registration networks of the Departments of General Practice of the Universities of Groningen and Leiden. The questionnaires were returned by 513 patients (Importance 69%) and 1404 patients (Experience 65%). Results: Many patients prefer the GP advising them regarding which hospital or specialist they should be referred to: a quarter of the patients preferred that the GP decided for them. Patients with a curable condition and patients aged between 25 and 65, highly educated and with stable personal characteristics as measured by a purposive scale, more often wished to use information from internet or newspapers to make a decision. The amount of information that was needed on illness or treatment varied greatly. Young people, older people, and those with less stable personal characteristics more often desired only practical information. Conclusions: In spite of making performance data of different health care institutions public, only a limited number of patients want to use this information on a limited number of health problems. Practice implications: Care providers should take differences into account concerning patients' need for information on their illness. (C) 2009 Elsevier Ireland Ltd. All rights reserved. Show less
