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Determining positivity of alcohol abuse by Taguchi methods

Tolga Taner (Bogazici University, Institute of Biomedical Engineering, Istanbul, Turkey)
Jiju Antony (Glasgow Caledonian University, Caledonian Business School, Glasgow, UK)

International Journal of Health Care Quality Assurance

ISSN: 0952-6862

Article publication date: 1 March 2005

659

Abstract

Purpose

Aims to establish the critical score and screening accuracy of the CAGE Questionnaire in three treatment settings – primary health care, walk‐in (triage) clinic and the emergency room.

Design/methodology/approach

Taguchi methods are applied to three screens of the CAGE questionnaire.

Findings

Analysis of the sensitivity and specificity data of three CAGE screens by leveling factor (p′), signal‐to‐noise ratios (S/N, SS/N) and their dependent relation resulted in critical CAGE scores of 1, 1 and 2; and high screening accuracy levels of 98.44, 97.20 and 94.92 percent, respectively. The illustrated method yielded excellent (≥95 percent) screening accuracy values for primary health care, emergency room and walk‐in clinic patients.

Originality/value

To reduce misclassification rates of alcohol abuse, screening systems should concentrate first on developing ways to standardize protocols. Further work is needed to establish high screening accuracy in other clinical settings, and particularly in those at risk of alcohol abuse in the general population.

Keywords

Citation

Taner, T. and Antony, J. (2005), "Determining positivity of alcohol abuse by Taguchi methods", International Journal of Health Care Quality Assurance, Vol. 18 No. 2, pp. 83-91. https://doi.org/10.1108/09526860510588115

Publisher

:

Emerald Group Publishing Limited

Copyright © 2005, Emerald Group Publishing Limited

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