BACKGROUND Drug manufacturer rebates paid to health plans and pharmacy benefit management companies have come under increased public scrutiny. Over the past several years, numerous articles have appeared in the literature encouraging a shift to a more quality-based decision-making process for health plan drug formularies. OBJECTIVE To propose a new basis for formulary placement decisions that...

many studies have been carried out and many methods have been used for estimating health staff re-quirements in health facilities or system, each have different advantages and disadvantages. differences in the extent to which utilization matches needs in different conditions intensify the limitations of each approach when used in iso-lation. is the utilization-based approach efficient in a situ...

Background: Health utilization inequality is a major concern for health policymakers. Equality in utilization of services is very important for having a healthy society. The aim of this study was to describe inequality in dental care utilization in Iran, Therefore, concentration index, its curve, and the predictors of inequality in utilization of dental services and their spending were calculat...

OBJECTIVE To assess physicians views on health insurance and its implication on the health care system. METHODS We carried out a cross-sectional study in 2 major hospitals in Riyadh, Kingdom of Saudi Arabia. Data were collected from January to December 2002 through self-administered questionnaires that were distributed to a total sample of 400 physicians. The instrument consisted of 28 items ...

Hypertension is a highly prevalent risk factor and a major contributor to a myriad of cardiovascular diseases. It is difficult to overestimate the overall impact of effective hypertension control on the cardiovascular disease burden in the population. Because of consistent efforts to increase the awareness and treatment of hypertension in the United States during the past several decades, the o...

BACKGROUND The present study is a utilization review of outpatient services offered by specialists and underlying social factors among urban families in Fars Province, Iran. METHODS The present study conducted among 1900 residents in urban areas of Fars Province in January 2013. Sampling was carried out through a three-step method, which was designed based on utilization of health services su...

This article describes the most essential roles, skills, and competencies needed by middle managers in occupational therapy organizations. Middle-level managers are responsible for a specific segment of the organization. They are uniquely positioned to foster changes in the department. Because of the challenges in the health care environment, it is important to discuss the roles that middle man...

Dr. Perry is associate professor, Centre for Nursing and Health Studies, Athabasca University, Edmonton, Alberta, Canada. W hat does it mean to "live one's mission" as a caregiver in a Catholic health care institution? Dur ing three years I spent as a clinical nurse educator in a Catholic hospital, I often asked nurses to tell me about those times in their careers when they felt satisfied that ...