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This study aimed to examine the experience and knowledge of mild cognitive impairment (MCI) among Chinese family caregivers of individuals with MCI. The sample was recruited from memory clinics in Zhongnan Hospital in Wuhan, China. In-depth semi-structured interviews were used. Thirteen family members of individuals diagnosed with MCI participated in the study. Data analysis revealed three themes: 1) initial recognition of cognitive decline; 2) experience of the diagnosis of MCI; 3) perception of cognitive decline as a normal part of aging. While family members recognized the serious consequences of memory loss (e.g. getting lost), they would typically not take their family members to see a doctor until something specific triggered their access to the medical care system. The Chinese traditional perception of dementia as part of normal aging may serve to lessen the stigma of individuals with MCI, while the term "laonian chidai" which literally translates to "stupid, demented elderly" may exacerbate the stigma associated with individuals with MCI. It is suggested that family members' worries may be relieved by improving their access to accurate knowledge of the disease, community-based and institutional care services, and culturally appropriately words are needed for MCI. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

The article discusses a study which aims to provide the knowledge necessary to understand health behaviors in China and to offer insight that will contribute to the effectiveness of the timing, focus and content of prevention programs and policies. The study focuses on multi-dimensional aspects of health behaviors across different age groups and genders among urban and rural residents. It found that peak cigarette use happened among middle-aged and young-old populations. It also showed that rural residents had a higher prevalence of unhealthy behaviors.

This study reviewed the prediction of fine particulate matter (PM2.5) from satellite aerosol optical depth (AOD) and summarized the advantages and limitations of these predicting models. A total of 116 articles were included from 1436 records retrieved. The number of such studies has been increasing since 2003. Among these studies, four predicting models were widely used: Multiple Linear Regression (MLR) (25 articles), Mixed-Effect Model (MEM) (23 articles), Chemical Transport Model (CTM) (16 articles) and Geographically Weighted Regression (GWR) (10 articles). We found that there is no so-called best model among them and each has both advantages and limitations. Regarding the prediction accuracy, MEM performs the best, while MLR performs worst. CTM predicts PM2.5 better on a global scale, while GWR tends to perform well on a regional level. Moreover, prediction performance can be significantly improved by combining meteorological variables with land use factors of each region, instead of only considering meteorological variables. In addition, MEM has advantages in dealing with the AOD data with missing values. We recommend that with the help of higher resolution AOD data, future works could be focused on developing satellite-based predicting models for the prediction of historical PM2.5 and other air pollutants. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Introduction: There have been significant improvements in health outcomes in Tibet, health disparities between Tibet and the rest of China has been greatly reduced. This paper tests whether there was a positive association between good primary care and better health outcomes in Tibet. Method: A validated Tibetan version of the Primary Care Assessment Tool (PCAT-T) was used to collect data on 1386 patients aged over 18 years old accessing primary care. Self-rated health (SRH) was employed to measure health outcomes. A multiple binary logistic regression model was used to explore the association between primary care quality and self-rated health status after controlling for socio-demographic and lifestyle variables. Results: This study found that primary care quality had a significant positive association with self-rated health status. Among the nine domains of PCAT-T, family centeredness domain had the highest Odds Ratio (OR = 1.013) with SRH. Patients located in rural area, with higher education levels, without depression, and less frequent drinking were more likely to self-rate as "good health" compared with the reference group. Conclusions: In Tibet, higher quality primary care was associated with better self-rated health status. Primary care should be much strengthened in future health system reform in Tibet. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Introduction: This paper assesses both patients' perspectives on the differences in primary care quality between traditional Tibetan medicine (TTM) hospitals and western medicine (WM) hospitals and the efficacy of the government's investment in these two Prefecture-level primary care structures in Tibet. Method: A validated Tibetan version of the Primary Care Assessment Tool (PCAT-T) was used to collect data on 692 patients aged over 18 years old, who reported the sampling site was their regular source of health care. T-tests were performed to compare the separate and total primary care attributes between WM hospitals and TTM hospitals. Multiple linear regression analysis was conducted to examine the association of the health care setting with primary care attributes while controlling for socio-demographic, health service use and health status characteristics. Results: Compared to WM hospitals, the results showed that TTM hospitals had patients who were older (15.8 % versus 8.4 % over 60 years); with lower education levels (66.0 % versus 35.8 % with below junior high school ) and income levels (46.9 % versus 26.5 % with annual household income below 30,000RMB); more likely to be married (79.2 % versus 60.5 %); made less frequent health care visits; and had higher self-rated health status. Overall, patients assessed the primary care performance in TTM hospitals significantly higher (80.0) than WM hospitals (74.63). There were no differences in health care assessment by patient gender, age, income, education, marital status and occupation. Conclusions: TTM patients reported better primary care experiences than patients using WM hospitals, which validated the government's investment in traditional Tibetan medicine. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

The aim of the present study was to examine the impact of the New Cooperative Medical Scheme (NCMS) on rural elders' access to health-care services. Articles were identified from PubMed, Elsevier, Wiley, EBSCO, EMBASE, SCI Expanded, ProQuest, Google, and CNKI which is the most informative database in Chinese, with the search terms 'rural', 'China', 'old', 'older', or 'elder', 'elderly', or 'aged', 'aging', 'medical insurance', or 'community-based medical insurance', or 'cooperative medical scheme'. Related websites and yearbooks were searched as well. The NCMS has improved the health-care utilization of rural elders, and they have the highest satisfaction with it among all age groups. However, affordability difficulty remained the common barrier for the rural elderly to access quality health care, in spite of the special considerations given to the rural elderly, such as premium remission and free check-ups. Faced with ever-growing health challenges, some impoverished rural elders with poor physical health and functional limitations may lack sufficient access to basic health-care services. Followed by the provider payment reform initiated by the NCMS, a stricter regulation for doctors' prescriptions, clinical practice and disease management is needed to promote rural elders' access to health-care services. Health management for rural elders can be expected for the NCMS to promote rural elders' health-care access once a better coordination between the NCMS and health-care system can be achieved. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]