title: Minimal care concept. An alternative for the management of arthritis.
abstract: This article is a report on the initial year of operation of the Arthritis Minimal Care Unit at the University of Texas Medical Branch at Galveston. The unit provided a comprehensive program for patient with arthritis including an interdisciplinary approach to care and patient-oriented program development with emphasis on patient and family education. The results of our program showed that hospital admission time and cost could be reduced and an improved quality of care could be provided in a Minimal Care Unit as compared to the acute hospital setting.
mesh_terms: D001168:Arthritis / Q000534:rehabilitation*; D003258:Consumer Behavior; D003365:Costs and Cost Analysis; D005069:Evaluation Studies as Topic; D006757:Hospital Units; D006801:Humans; D007902:Length of Stay; D010347:Patient Care Planning; D010348:Patient Care Team; D011787:Quality of Health Care; D012654:Self-Care Units