Showing papers by "Joan R. Bloom published in 1991"

Quality of life research in oncology. Past achievements and future priorities.

Abstract: The status of quality of life research in oncology is assessed, and priorities for future research with regard to conceptual and theoretical developments, focus and content of research, research designs and practical strategies for research implementation, and transferring information to clinical practice and medical policy decision-making are identified. There is general agreement that quality of life is a subjective and multidimensional construct, yet comprehensive theoretical models have not been developed and applied fully. We recommend that future research be based on conceptual models that explicate the interrelationships among quality of life domains throughout the stages of cancer care. These models, and the longitudinal research that follows from them, should attend specifically to cross-class and cross-cultural issues to avoid overgeneralization from theory and research that are based largely on the views of the majority culture. We encourage the inclusion of this theory-based quality of life assessment as a standard component of clinical trials. Success in this endeavor will require additional standardization of quality of life measures for use across a range of cancer patient populations, including the development of age-specific norms and instruments designed to assess the entire family system.

Factors affecting the use of screening mammography among African American women.

Abstract: Our objective was to determine the influence of health consciousness in the utilization of mammography in asymptomatic African American women. The sample consisted of 670 women who participated in a household interview in two cities. Logistic regression was used to determine the independent effects of health consciousness, holding constant other factors believed to be related to mammography utilization. Health insurance, income below the poverty line, and an annual physical were not significant predictors. The single most important predictor of having a mammogram was the regular practice of breast self-examination; the group of women who practiced self-examination was almost twice as likely to have a mammogram.

Nursing Turnover and Hospital Efficiency: An Organization Level Analysis

Abstract: This study tests the competing arguments that organizational turnover rates are positively associated with organizational inefficiency or, alternatively, that turnover rates are positively related to organizational inefficiency only in those organizations experiencing very high or very low rates of turnover. The findings strongly support the former argument: in a national sample of 407 hospitals, turnover among registered nurses was found to be positively and linearly associated with both operating and personnel costs per adjusted admission. However, subset analyses based on hospital size, location, and teaching status, suggest that the strength of the turnover-costrelationship is contingent upon the type of institution in which turnover occurs.

Factors Affecting the Use of Screening Mammography among

Abstract: Our objective was to determine the influence of health consciousness in the utilization of mammography in asymptomatic African American women. The sample consisted of 670 women who participated in a household interview in two cities. Logistic regression was used to determine the independent effects of health consciousness, holding constant other factors believed to be related to mammography utilization. Health insurance, income below the poverty line, and an annual physical were not significant predictors. The single most important predidor of having a mammogram was the regular practice of breast selfexamination; the group of women who practiced selfexamination was almost twice as likely to have a mammogram.

The Effect of the Social Organization of Work on Voluntary Tunover of Hospital Nurses in the United States

Abstract: In light of current concerns over nursing shortages and productivity, turnover among hospital nurses in the United States has assumed renewed importance as a managerial issue. This study examines the thesis that the social organization of work in hospitals is an importnt determinate of voluntary turnover among among registered nurses. This perspective differed from previous work in this area in that both turnover and its determinants are conceptualized at the organizational rather than individual level, thus opening the way for adminisrtative intervention to reduce turnover. The conceptual model is tested using multiple regression techniques on a sample of 435 hospitals. Results suggest that both organizational characteristics and enviromental conditions are important contributors to turnover.

Nursing Turnover and Hospital Efficiency: An Organization Level Analysis

Abstract: This study tests the competing arguments that organizational turnover rates are positively associated with organizational inefficiency or, alternatively, that turnover rates are positively related to organizational inefficiency only in those organizations experiencing very high or very low rates of turnover. The findings strongly support the former argument: in a national sample of 407 hospitals, turnover among registered nurses was found to be positively and linearly associated with both operating and personnel costs per adjusted admission. However, subset analyses based on hospital size, location, and teaching status, suggest that the strength of the turnover-costrelationship is contingent upon the type of institution in which turnover occurs.