Loh C-H, Lin J-D, Choi I-C, Yen C-F, Hsu S-W, Wu J-L, Tang C C
Department of Family & Community Medicine, Tri-Service General Hospital, Taipei, Taiwan.
J Intellect Disabil Res. 2007 Feb;51(Pt 2):101-8. doi: 10.1111/j.1365-2788.2006.00822.x.
There has been no longitudinal study in Taiwan to identify the nature and the scale of medical care utilization of people with intellectual disabilities (IDs) up to the present. The aim of this study is to describe inpatient utilization among people under ID care in institutions in order to identify the pattern of medical care needs and the factors affecting utilization in Taiwan.
The subject cohort was 168 individuals with ID who were cared for by a large public disability institution from 1999 to 2002 in Taipei, Taiwan.
On the examination of the inpatient care that these persons underwent, it was found that these individuals had a heightened need (inpatient rate: 10.1-14.9%) for inpatient care compared with the general population with disabilities (9.37%) in Taiwan. The main reasons for hospitalization were pneumonia, gastrointestinal disorders, cellulites, orthopaedic problems, epilepsy and bronchitis. Using the full model of Generalized Estimating Equations for inpatient care utilization, the factors including low income family, living in an institution, being a subject with cerebral palsy and being a high outpatient user all influenced the use of inpatient care.
This study highlights that health authorities need to promote health planning more in order to ensure an excellent quality of health monitoring and health promotion among people with ID cared for by institutions.
台湾至今尚未有纵向研究来确定智障人士医疗服务利用的性质和规模。本研究旨在描述机构中接受智障护理人群的住院服务利用情况，以确定医疗护理需求模式及影响台湾地区利用情况的因素。
研究队列是1999年至2002年期间在台湾台北一家大型公立残疾机构接受护理的168名智障人士。
在对这些人接受的住院护理进行检查时发现，与台湾残疾普通人群（9.37%）相比，这些个体对住院护理有更高的需求（住院率：10.1 - 14.9%）。住院的主要原因是肺炎、胃肠道疾病、蜂窝织炎、骨科问题、癫痫和支气管炎。使用广义估计方程的完整模型来分析住院护理利用情况，低收入家庭、居住在机构、患有脑瘫以及门诊高使用量等因素均影响住院护理的使用。
本研究强调卫生当局需要进一步推动健康规划，以确保在机构照料的智障人群中实现优质的健康监测和健康促进。
