BACKGROUND Approximately 90,000 Canadians use opioids each year, many of whom experience health and social problems that affect the individual user, families, communities and the health care system. For those who wish to reduce or stop their opioid use, methadone maintenance therapy (MMT) is effective and supporting evidence is well-documented. However, access and availability to MMT is often i...

BACKGROUND To validate the association between country-of-birth and disparities in the stimulant use for ADHD among individuals in Western Australia. METHODS Using linked data, a population-based retrospective cohort of individuals admitted to hospital before age 25 years was followed through to identify having stimulants for ADHD in 2003-2007. Multivariate logistic and linear regressions wer...

BACKGROUND Studies show that religion and spirituality are associated with decreased rates of mental illness. Some studies show decreased rates of suicide in religious populations, but the association between religion, spirituality and suicidal behaviors in people with mental illness are understudied. Few studies have examined the influence of social supports in these relationships. METHODS D...

OBJECTIVE This study aims to determine factors associated with levels of condom use among heterosexual Thai males in sex with regular partners and in sex with casual partners. METHODS The data used in this study are from the national probability sample of the 2006 National Sexual Behavior Study, the third nationally representative cross-sectional survey in Thailand. A subtotal of 2,281 men we...

BACKGROUND In general having a parent who smokes or smoked is a strong and consistent predictor of smoking initiation among their children while authoritative parenting style, open communication that demonstrates mutual respect between child and parent, and parental expectations not to smoke are protective. It has been hypothesized that parental smoking affects their children's smoking initiati...

PURPOSE This cross-sectional study takes a unique look at the association between patterns of walking and cognitive functioning by examining whether older adults with mild cognitive impairment differ in terms of the community settings where they walk and the frequency, intensity, or duration of walking. DESIGN AND METHODS The sample was based on interviews with 884 adults aged 65 years and ol...

BACKGROUND The study investigated whether perceived social support varied among children who have lost their parents to AIDS, those who have lost their parents to other causes, those who are living with HIV/AIDS-infected caregivers and children from intact families (comparison group). METHOD This study employed cross-sectional, quantitative survey that involved 291 children aged 10-18 years i...

BACKGROUND International migration is a global phenomenon challenging healthcare professionals to provide culturally competent care. OBJECTIVES The purpose of this study was to investigate the influence of leaders on the cultural competence of healthcare professionals. METHODS A cross-sectional survey was conducted from 2010 to 2012 to obtain data for a social network analysis in 19 inpatie...

INTRODUCTION Recognition of the factors related to women's health is necessary. Evidence is available that the social structure including social capital plays an important role in the shaping people's health. The aim of the current study was to investigate the association between self-rated health and social capital in women of reproductive age. METHODS This study is a population-based cross-...

In this study, we investigated the status of researching drug information online, and the type of Internet user who uses anonymous Web communities and websites. A Web-based cross-sectional survey of 10875 male and female Internet users aged 16 and over was conducted in March 2010. Of 10282 analyzed respondents, excluding medical professionals, about 47% reported that they had previously searche...