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[...]a successful public health movement in the United States must make eliminating systemic racism a top priority. Had the federal government more closely monitored the deceptive advertising campaigns of Purdue Pharma, it could have countered the company's false messages to doctors, preventing tens of thousands of opioid deaths.11 In addition, continuingto allow industry sectors to use developments in science and technology-from digital data collection and precision agriculture to autonomous vehicles-without public accountability enables them to use this knowledge to benefit their bottom lines at the expense of public well-being, a likely cause for health crises of the next decade. [...]our nation needs to strengthen its democracy. According to the American Public Health Association, public health champions the health of all people and communities.

OBJECTIVES In recent years, increased anti-immigrant hostility has trickled into school settings creating toxic climates for immigrant-origin (I-O) students (Rogers, School and society in the age of trump, 2019, UCLA's Institute for Democracy, Education, and Access). Through youth participatory action research (yPAR), this study qualitatively examined how a class of Emerging Bilingual (EB) students aimed to promote more inclusive learning environments by designing, implementing, and evaluating a school-wide program. Here, we consider how the students experienced growth in their civic development as well as how they contended with resistances encountered during the project. METHODS The current study took place at a majority I-O, northeastern high school and was led by an EB class (n = 20) and its teacher. Participants were as follows: on average 16.5 years; 60% female; and 65% Latinx, 30% Black, and 5% mixed-race (Black-Latino). Multiple data sources documenting the students' experiences were collected (including weekly student reflections and ethnographic field notes) and then thematically analyzed using open coding. RESULTS Participating students demonstrated civic development as evidenced through: growing confidence that the program could generate positive change; enhanced sense of connection toward their classmates; and increased commitment to future civic engagement. Nonetheless, some participants demonstrated initial trepidation in both disclosing their migration stories as well as the potential efficacy of engaging in the project. Furthermore, others were disappointed by the disinterest displayed by some of their peers and teachers. CONCLUSIONS Collaborative research can support I-O youths' civic development, though, the resistances encountered and engendered illuminate possible challenges to ensure its benefits. (PsycInfo Database Record (c) 2021 APA, all rights reserved).

BACKGROUND: Although home care workers (HCWs) are increasingly caring for adults with heart failure (HF), many feel unprepared and lack HF training. To serve as the foundation for a future educational intervention, we aimed to elicit HCWs’ HF educational needs. METHODS: We partnered with the largest healthcare union in the US to recruit 41 HCWs employed by 17 home care agencies. Using the nominal group technique, we asked HCWs to respond to 3 questions: When caring for a HF patient: (1) What information do you want? (2) What symptoms worry you? (3) What situations do you struggle with? Participants ranked their responses by priority. Data were consolidated by question. RESULTS: For question 1, participants ranked HF signs and symptoms most highly, followed by HF treatment and medications. For question 2, chest pain was most worrisome, followed by neurologic changes and shortness of breath. For question 3, participants struggled with encouraging patients to follow a heart-specific diet. CONCLUSIONS: HCWs expressed a need to learn more about signs and symptoms of HF and ways to assist patients with HF self-care. These findings can inform the development of a HF training program for HCWs that specifically addresses their expressed needs.

Adolescents in the United States are increasingly seeking treatment for mental health crises in emergency departments and general medical hospitals. Medical needs are often addressed quickly, yet youth remain hospitalized because further psychiatric treatment is not immediately available. We sought to better understand the experiences of caregivers whose children are “boarding” in a medical hospital while awaiting inpatient psychiatric treatment. We conducted semi-structured interviews with caregivers who were recruited, enrolled, and interviewed during their child’s hospital stay. Interviews were audio-recorded, transcribed verbatim, and thematic analysis was facilitated by NVivo 12. Fourteen caregivers enrolled in the study. Themes that emerged included positive hospital and provider experiences; frustration with the medical and mental health care systems; information needs; fears about inpatient psychiatric units; practical challenges and emotional needs; difficulties with caregiver–child communication; difficulties with clinician–caregiver communication; and need for self-care and support. While many caregivers felt positively about the overall experience at the hospital, they also wished for more information about their child’s treatment plan and future, as well as social support, emotional comfort for themselves, and self-care skills and resources. Their experiences illuminate ways in which clinical practice can ameliorate concerns and alleviate stress of caregivers related to their child’s mental health crisis.

Background: The evidence base for understanding hospice use among persons with dementia is almost exclusively based on individuals with a primary terminal diagnosis of dementia. Little is known about whether comorbid dementia influences hospice use patterns. Objective: To estimate the prevalence of comorbid dementia among hospice enrollees and its association with hospice use patterns. Design: Pooled cross-sectional analysis of the nationally representative Health and Retirement Study (HRS) linked to Medicare claims. Subjects: Fee-for-service Medicare beneficiaries in the United States who enrolled with hospice and died between 2004 and 2016. Measurements: Dementia was assessed using a validated survey-based algorithm. Hospice use patterns were enrollment less than or equal to three days, enrollment greater than six months, hospice disenrollment, and hospice disenrollment after six months. Results: Of 3123 decedents, 465 (14.9%) had a primary hospice diagnosis of dementia and 943 (30.2%) had comorbid dementia and died of another illness. In fully adjusted models, comorbid dementia was associated with increased odds of hospice enrollment greater than six months (adjusted odds ratio [AOR] = 1.52, 95% confidence interval [CI]: 1.11-2.09) and hospice disenrollment following six months of hospice (AOR = 2.55, 95% CI: 1.43-4.553). Having a primary diagnosis of dementia was associated with increased odds of hospice enrollment greater than six months (AOR = 2.62, 95% CI: 1.86-3.68), hospice disenrollment (AOR = 1.82, 95% CI: 1.32-2.51), and hospice disenrollment following six months of hospice (AOR = 4.31, 95% CI: 2.37-7.82). Conclusion: Approximately 45% of the hospice population has primary or comorbid dementia and are at increased risk for long hospice enrollment periods and hospice disenrollment. Consideration of the high prevalence of comorbid dementia should be inherent in hospice staff training, quality metrics, and Medicare Hospice Benefit policies.

Purpose: This article describes the first four steps of the intervention mapping framework used to design a programme aimed at increasing adherence to prescribed exercise by people with persistent musculoskeletal pain. Method: In Step 1, a systematic review and qualitative study was completed to inform Step 2 and the identification of the Health Action Process Approach as an appropriate theoretical framework for establishing two programme objectives: enhancing self-management and providing tailored and accessible exercise instructions. Step 3 encompassed the selection of the programme methods, and the programme is described in Step 4. The resulting programme provides virtually delivered motivational interviewing and an app-based exercise programme to support individuals’ adherence to exercise. Results: The resulting intervention was assessed in a proof-of-concept feasibility and acceptability study and was shown to be feasible and acceptable. Refinements to the programme included additional tailoring of the exercise app and modifying the motivational interviewing schedule. Conclusions: Using the intervention mapping approach enabled us to successfully develop an intervention aimed at supporting the development of self-management behaviours and addressing maladaptive beliefs as a means of enhancing individuals’ adherence to exercise. Evaluation and implementation of the intervention should now be carried out.\ud \ud Objectif : décrire les quatre premières étapes du cadre de modélisation d’une intervention, utilisé pour concevoir un programme visant à accroître l’adhésion à une prescription d’exercices chez les personnes souffrant de douleurs musculosquelettiques persistantes. Méthodologie : à la première étape, les chercheurs ont effectué une analyse systématique et une étude qualitative pour étayer la deuxième étape et déterminer le processus d’action en santé dans un cadre théorique approprié qui permettrait de formuler les deux objectifs du programme : améliorer l’autogestion et fournir des directives d’exercices adaptées et accessibles. L’étape trois englobait le choix de la méthodologie du programme, décrite à l’étape quatre. Le programme qui en découle comprend des entrevues motivationnelles virtuelles et un programme d’exercices fondé sur une application pour renforcer l’adhésion à l’exercice. Résultats : l’intervention obtenue, évaluée dans une étude de validation de la faisabilité et de l’acceptabilité, s’est révélée faisable et acceptable. Les améliorations au programme ont inclus de nouvelles adaptations à l’application d’exercices et des modifications au calendrier d’entrevues motivationnelles. Conclusion : grâce à la démarche de modélisation de l’intervention, il a été possible d’élaborer une intervention visant à promouvoir l’acquisition de comportements d’autogestion et à corriger des convictions mésadaptées pour accroître l’adhésion à l’exercice. Il reste maintenant à évaluer et à mettre en œuvre l’intervention.

Introduction: In search of a care model based on the needs of the population, providing disease prevention effectively, in 2004, the National Oral Health Policy was implemented. In order to guarantee integrality and allow access to oral health services for all individuals, the Dental Specialties Centers were created. Objective: To find out if there is a difference in the number of extractions performed in primary care in municipalities with and without the Dental Specialties Center of Reconcavo Baiano. Materials and Methods: Time series study, descriptive, using data available in the Outpatient Information System of the Unified Health System and in the Brazilian Institute of Geography and Statistics. Information was collected on oral health procedures performed in primary care (from 2008 to 2017) and the sociodemographic characteristics of the municipalities. The oral health indicators were calculated: coverage of the first programmatic dental appointment; average collective action of supervised tooth brushing; estimated population coverage of oral health teams; proportion of extraction in relation to procedures. Results: The municipality with CEO presented the lowest results in the ratio of dental extraction ratio in relation to individual preventive and curative clinical procedures. Unique to present 100% coverage of oral health teams, greater coverage of first dental appointment and average collective action of supervised tooth brushing. Municipalities without a CEO had lower coverage of oral health teams and first dental appointments, and lower averages of collective action for supervised tooth brushing. Conclusions: There was a difference in the amount of extraction between municipalities with and without a specialty center. The lower occurrence of extractions in primary care can be attributed to the presence of the CEO and coverage of oral health teams. Keywords: Tooth Extraction. Integrality in Health. Dental Health Services. Health Services Research.

OBJECTIVE: The goal was to evaluate the likelihood of hospital admission, mechanical ventilation, in-hospital mortality, and overall mortality within 30 days after a COVID-19 diagnosis in persons with versus without serious mental illness. METHODS: Adults with and without serious mental illness diagnosed with COVID-19 in the first year of the pandemic were identified in the TriNetX database, a network of electronic health records from 49 U.S. healthcare systems and representing 63.5 million individuals. Propensity score-matched cohorts (N=85,257) were used to compare outcomes. RESULTS: Compared with persons without serious mental illness, persons with serious mental illness were more likely to be hospitalized or to die after COVID-19 diagnosis. No difference in use of mechanical ventilation or death was observed in groups admitted to the hospital with COVID-19. CONCLUSIONS: Disparities in overall mortality after COVID-19 for persons with serious mental illness likely are driven by factors outside of acute care settings.

ObjectiveTo assess the value of the Emergency Department–Pediatric Early Warning Score (ED-PEWS) for triage of children with comorbidity.DesignSecondary analysis of a prospective cohort.Setting and patients53 829 consecutive ED visits of children InterventionED-PEWS, a score consisting of age and six physiological parameters.Main outcome measureA three-category reference standard as proxy for true patient urgency. We assessed discrimination and calibration of the ED-PEWS for children with comorbidity (complex and non-complex) and without comorbidity. In addition, we evaluated the value of adding the ED-PEWS to the routinely used Manchester Triage System (MTS).Results5053 (9%) children had underlying non-complex morbidity and 5537 (10%) had complex comorbidity. The c-statistic for identification of high-urgency patients was 0.86 (95% prediction interval 0.84–0.88) for children without comorbidity, 0.87 (0.82–0.92) for non-complex and 0.86 (0.84–0.88) for complex comorbidity. For high and intermediate urgency, the c-statistic was 0.63 (0.62–0.63), 0.63 (0.61–0.65) and 0.63 (0.55–0.73) respectively. Sensitivity was slightly higher for children with comorbidity (0.73–0.75 vs 0.70) at the cost of a lower specificity (0.86–0.87 vs 0.92). Calibration was largely similar. Adding the ED-PEWS to the MTS for children with comorbidity improved performance, except in the setting with few high-urgency patients.ConclusionsThe ED-PEWS has a similar performance in children with and without comorbidity. Adding the ED-PEWS to the MTS for children with comorbidity improves triage, except in the setting with few high-urgency patients.

PURPOSE: Increased time after spinal cord injury (SCI) is associated with a migration to bladder managements with higher morbidity such as indwelling catheter (IDC). Still it is unclear how this affects bladder-related quality of life (QoL). We hypothesized that time from injury (TFI) would be associated with changes in bladder management, symptoms, and satisfaction. MATERIALS AND METHODS: Cross-sectional analysis of time-related changes in patient-reported bladder management, symptoms, and satisfaction, using the Neurogenic Bladder Research Group SCI Registry. Outcomes included: Neurogenic Bladder Symptom Score (NBSS) and bladder-related satisfaction (NBSS-satisfaction). Multivariable regression was performed to assess associations between TFI and outcomes, adjusting for participant characteristics, injury specifics, and psychosocial aspects of health-related QoL. Participants with TFI 20 years. RESULTS: Of 1420 participants, mean age at injury was 29.7(SD13.4) years and mean TFI was 15.2(SD11.6) years. Participants grouped by TFI included 298(21%) 1–5, 340(24%) 6–10, 198(14%) 11–15, 149(10%) 16–20, and 435(31%) >20 years. As TFI increased, clean intermittent catheterization (CIC) declined (55% 1–5 vs. 45% >20 years, p20 years, p20 years from injury (−3.21[CI-1.29,−5.14,p20 years −0.85[CI-1.07,−0.63

BACKGROUND: National Consensus Project for quality palliative care guidelines emphasizes the importance of a comprehensive assessment of all care domains, including physical, psychosocial, and spiritual aspects of care, for seriously ill patients. However, less is known about how real-world practice compares with this guideline. OBJECTIVE: To describe clinicians' assessment practices and factors influencing their approach. DESIGN: This is a two-part web-based survey of palliative care clinicians from five academic groups in the United States. RESULTS: Nineteen out of 25 invited clinicians (physicians, nurse practitioners, and physician assistants) completed the survey. A majority (62%) reported that, although some elements of assessment were mandatory, their usual practice was to tailor the focus of the consultation. Time limitations and workload received the highest mean scores as reasons for tailored assessment (6.1 on a 0–9 importance scale), followed by beliefs that comprehensive assessment is unnecessary (4.8) and absence of the full interdisciplinary team (4.4). All participants cited symptom acuity, and 91% cited reason for consult as factors influencing a tailored approach. Among domains “always” assessed, physical symptoms were reported most commonly (81%) and spiritual and cultural factors least commonly (24% and 19%, respectively). Although a majority of clinicians reported usually tailoring their consultations, mean importance scores for almost all assessment elements were high (range 3.9–8.8, mean 7.1); however, there was some variation based on reason for consult. Spiritual elements received lower importance scores relative to other elements (5.0 vs. 7.4 mean score for all others). CONCLUSION: Although clinicians placed high importance on most elements included in comprehensive palliative care, in practice they often tailored their consultations, and the perceived relative importance of domains shifted depending upon the type of consultation.

Background Diabetes is a leading cause of death in the United States, and comorbid mental illness is associated with worse diabetes outcomes. Those with criminal justice involvement (CJI) have high rates of mental illness and diabetes prevalence. However, little is known about the relationship between CJI and mental illness among those with diabetes. Methods Using a nationally representative sample of U.S. adults with diabetes from the National Survey of Drug Use and Health (2015-2018), we investigated the relationship between CJI and mental health outcomes (depression, serious psychologic distress, serious mental illness, moderate mental illness, any mental illness, functional status). Multiple linear and logistic regression models were used to assess the relationship between CJI and each mental health outcome adjusting for multiple socio-demographic and comorbidity variables. Results Of 11,594 respondents, representing 25,834,422 adults with diabetes, 17.1% reported prior CJI. In fully adjusted models, CJI was independently associated with all mental health outcomes: depression (aOR 1.80, 95% CI: 1.41, 2.30), serious psychologic distress (aOR 1.53, 95% CI: 1.23, 1.90), serious mental illness (aOR 2.00, 95% CI: 1.58, 2.52), moderate mental illness (aOR 1.72, 95% CI 1.30, 2.26), any mental illness (aOR 1.92, 95% CI: 1.56, 2.35) and functional status (regression coefficient 3.6, 95% CI: 3.53, 3.79). Conclusion Those with diabetes and criminal justice involvement experience concentrated risk for poor mental health outcomes. Our findings suggest that mental health interventions may be imperative to achieving control of diabetes in the justice-involved population.

OBJECTIVE: To reweight the Agency for Healthcare Research and Quality Patient Safety for Selected Indicators Composite (Patient Safety Indicator [PSI] 90) from weights based solely on the frequency of component PSIs to those that incorporate excess harm reflecting patients' preferences for outcome‐related health states. DATA SOURCES: National administrative and claims data involving hospitalizations in nonfederal, nonrehabilitation, acute care hospitals. STUDY DESIGN: We estimated the average excess aggregate harm associated with the occurrence of each component PSI using a cohort sample for each indicator based on denominator‐eligible records. We used propensity scores to account for potential confounding in the risk models for each PSI and weighted observations to estimate the “average treatment effect in the treated” for those with the PSI event. We fit separate regression models for each harm outcome. Final PSI weights reflected both the disutilities and the frequencies of the harms. DATA COLLECTION/EXTRACTION METHODS: We estimated PSI frequencies from the 2012 Healthcare Cost and Utilization Project State Inpatient Databases with present on admission data and excess harms using 2012–2013 Centers for Medicare & Medicaid Services Medicare Fee‐for‐Service data. PRINCIPAL FINDINGS: Including harms in the weighting scheme changed individual component weights from the original frequency‐based weighting. In the reweighted composite, PSIs 11 (“Postoperative Respiratory Failure”), 13 (“Postoperative Sepsis”), and 12 (“Perioperative Pulmonary Embolism or Deep Vein Thrombosis”) contributed the greatest harm, with weights of 29.7%, 21.1%, and 20.4%, respectively. Regarding reliability, the overall average hospital signal‐to‐noise ratio for the reweighted PSI 90 was 0.7015. Regarding discrimination, among hospitals with greater than median volume, 34% had significantly better PSI 90 performance, and 41% had significantly worse performance than benchmark rates (based on percentiles). CONCLUSIONS: Reformulation of PSI 90 with harm‐based weights is feasible and results in satisfactory reliability and discrimination, with a more clinically meaningful distribution of component weights.

Background Medical emergency teams use medications to rescue deteriorating patients. Medication management is the system of steps and processes, including prescribing, distribution, administration, and monitoring, to achieve the best outcomes from medication use. Systems or standards for medication management by medical emergency teams have not been defined. Objectives The aim of the study was to propose potential solutions to improve medical emergency team medication management by evaluating medication supply and related medication management practices during medical emergency team activations and understanding clinicians' perceptions about medical emergency team medication management in acute hospitals. Methods A prospective multicentre audit of intensive care unit–equipped hospitals in Victoria, Australia, was conducted. After advertisement and invitation via scheduled email newsletters to hospitals, a representative of the medical emergency team from each hospital self-administered an online audit tool during December 2019 and January 2020. Audit data were analysed descriptively, and perceptions were analysed using content analysis. Results Responses were received from 32 of the 44 (72.7%) eligible hospitals. At 17 of the 32 (53.1%) hospitals, arrest trolleys provided medications for medical emergency team activations, in addition to arrest calls. At 15 of the 32 (46.9%) hospitals, separate, dedicated medical emergency team medication supplies were used to care for deteriorating patients. Dedicated medical emergency team supplies contained a median of 20 (range = 8–37) medications, predominantly cardiovascular (median = 8, mode = 7, range = 4–16) and neurological medications (median and mode = 6, range = 0–11). Variation was observed in all storage and other supply-related medication management practices studied. The four most frequent categories of clinicians' perceptions described systematic challenges with availability of the right medication in the right place at the right time. Conclusions Current supply and related medication management practices and clinicians' perceptions demonstrated further development is necessary for medication management to meet the needs of medical emergency team clinicians and their patients.

Introduction: Most research shows the situation of first world countries regarding human resources of health; therefore, it is necessary to characterize our Latin American reality. Objective: To characterize the type of work and post-graduate training of health human resources in eight Latin American countries. Methods: A descriptive study was carried out, through self-applied surveys on the characteristics of its work center, and post-graduate training that them has had. Results: Of the 1283 people who responded to the survey, 87.1% worked in a hospital (average monthly salary: 840 dollars), 23.3% also worked in a clinic (average monthly salary: 1200 dollars). In addition, only 20.5% worked in an establishment of the first level of care (average monthly salary: 420 dollars). 31.2% had completed a post-graduate course, 23.2% had a diploma, 17.8% had a master’s degree and 5.1% had a doctoral degree. Conclusions: The human resources in health work mainly in hospitals and the salaries are different according to the place where they work. The physicians are those who have higher remuneration, but in the private sector the salaries are more similar than in the other sectors. Less than a third have taken courses or other academic activities, having been completed several years ago. This serves to improve the work and training characteristics.

In the United States, nutrition-related morbidities are rising steadily at rates corresponding to increasing overweight and obesity in the population. Such morbidities take huge tolls on personal health and impose high costs on health care systems. In 2019, the Academy of Nutrition and Dietetics (Academy) and the Academy of Nutrition and Dietetics Foundation (Academy Foundation) embarked on a new project titled "The State of Food and Nutrition Series" to demonstrate the value of nutrition interventions led by registered dietitian nutritionists for individuals with the following 3 high-priority non-communicable diseases that affect many in the United States and globally: type 2 diabetes mellitus, chronic kidney disease, and hypertension. Poor nutritional status contributes to disease onset and progression in these non-communicable diseases, and appropriate medical nutrition therapy can prevent or delay worsening and ameliorate poor health outcomes. However, many people who have these conditions do not have access to an registered dietitian nutritionist, and consequently do not receive the nutrition care they need. On February 19-20, 2020 in Arlington, VA, as the first stage in The State of Food and Nutrition Series, the Academy and the Academy Foundation gathered health care policymakers, clinicians, and researchers from across the country for the State of Food and Nutrition Series Forum, where Academy leaders sought input to build a comprehensive research strategy that will quantify the impact of patient access to registered dietitian nutritionist-led nutrition interventions for type 2 diabetes mellitus, chronic kidney disease, and hypertension. This article summarizes the findings of that forum.

Aim: Missing data cause problems through decreasing sample size and the potential for introducing bias. We tested four missing data methods on the Sequential Organ Failure Assessment (SOFA) score, an intensive care research severity adjuster. Methods: Simulation study using 2015–2017 electronic health record data, where the complete dataset was sampled, missing SOFA score elements imposed and performance examined of four missing data methods – complete case analysis, median imputation, zero imputation (recommended by SOFA score creators) and multiple imputation (MI) – on the outcome of in-hospital mortality. Results: MI performed well, whereas other methods introduced varying amounts of bias or decreased sample size. Conclusion: We recommend using MI in analyses where SOFA score component values are missing in administrative data research.

PURPOSE: Decision aids have been found to improve patients’ knowledge of treatments and decrease decisional regrets. Despite these benefits, there is not widespread use of decision aids for newly diagnosed prostate cancer (PCa). This analysis investigates factors that impact men’s choice to use a decision aid for newly diagnosed prostate cancer. MATERIALS AND METHODS: This is a retrospective analysis of a PCa registry from the Michigan Urological Surgery Improvement Collaborative (MUSIC). We included data from men with newly diagnosed, clinically localized PCa seen from 2018-21 at practices offering a PCa decision aid (Personal Patient Profile-Prostate; P3P). The primary outcome was men’s registration to use P3P. We fit a multilevel logistic regression model with patient-level factors and included urologist specific random intercepts. We estimated the intra-class correlation (ICC) and predicted the probability of P3P registration among urologists. RESULTS: A total of 2629 men were seen at practices that participated in P3P and 1174 (45%) registered to use P3P. Forty-one percent of the total variance of P3P registration was attributed to clustering of men under a specific urologist’s care. In contrast, only 1.5% of the variance of P3P registration was explained by patient factors. Our model did not include data on socioeconomic, literacy or psychosocial factors, which limits the interpretation of the results. CONCLUSIONS: These results suggest that urologists’ effect far outweighs patient factors in a man’s decision to enroll in P3P. Strategies that encourage providers to increase decision aid adoption in their practices are warranted.

Background Studies of the hospital volume-outcome relationship have highlighted that a greater volume activity improves patient outcomes. While this finding has been known for years, most studies to date have failed to delve into what underlies this relationship. Objective This study aimed to shed light on the basis of the hospital volume effect on patient outcomes by comparing treatment modalities for epithelial ovarian carcinoma patients. Data An exhaustive dataset of 355 patients in first-line treatment for Epithelial Ovarian Carcinoma (EOC) in 2012 in three regions of France was used. These regions account for 15% of the metropolitan French population. Methods In the presence of endogeneity induced by a reverse causality between hospital volume and patient outcomes, we used an instrumental variable approach. Hospital volume of activity was instrumented by the distance from patients’ homes to their hospital, the population density, and the median net income of patient municipalities. Results Based on our parameter estimates, we found that the rate of complete tumor resection would increase by 15.5 percentage points with centralized care, and by 8.3 percentage points if treatment decisions were coordinated by high-volume centers compared to decentralized care. Conclusion As volume alone is an imperfect correlate of quality, policy-makers need to know what volume is a proxy for in order to devise volume-based policies.

Although recommendations to manage women with rheumatoid arthritis (RA) during the reproductive phase have been established, there is further need for evidence-based information on drug treatment and safety during pregnancy.1 Registries are excellent data sources to address remaining questions. Therefore, a minimal core data set for registers studying pregnancy in rheumatology has been developed recently by an EULAR task force.2 We evaluated the feasibility of data collection according to this minimal core data set in the daily clinical management of pregnant women with RA within the rheumatology department of the University Hospital of Leuven (UHL). We performed a retrospective patient chart study in a population of 1072 patients (360 men and 712 women) with RA with a planned rheumatology outpatient visit at UHL between November 2019 and November 2020. Women were included if they were diagnosed with RA before getting pregnant, had a recorded pregnancy during the past 5 years and …

AimTo describe the nature and causes of reported patient safety incidents relating to care in the community for children dependent on long-term ventilation with the further aim of improving safety.MethodsWe undertook an analysis of patient safety incident data relating to long-term ventilation in the community using incident reports from England and Wales’ National Reporting and Learning System occurring between January 2013 and December 2017. Manual screening by two authors identified 220 incidents which met the inclusion criteria. The free text for each report was descriptively analysed to identify the problems in the delivery of care, the contributory factors and the patient outcome.ResultsCommon problems in the delivery of care included issues with faulty equipment and the availability of equipment, and concerns around staff competency. There was a clearly stated harm to the child in 89 incidents (40%). Contributory factors included staff shortages, out of hours care, and issues with packaging and instructions for equipment.ConclusionsThis study identifies a range of problems relating to long-term ventilation in the community, some of which raise serious safety concerns. The provision of services to support children on long-term ventilation and their families needs to improve. Priorities include training of staff, maintenance and availability of equipment, support for families and coordination of care.

Clear evidence for a weekend effect was first demonstrated by Bell and Redelmeier1 who examined 3.8 million emergency admissions between 1988 and 1997 in an acute care hospital in Ontario. They had noted that staffing levels were lower in acute care hospitals at weekends and hypothesised that this might lead to poorer care and higher mortality. To test this hypothesis, they identified three conditions (ruptured abdominal aortic aneurysm, acute epiglottitis and pulmonary embolism) for which lower staffing on admission was expected to have consequences in outcomes, as well as three control conditions for which this would not be the case. In addition, they conducted an analysis without a prespecified hypothesis, examining the 100 conditions responsible for most deaths. After adjustment for illness severity, they found higher mortality for conditions expected to be affected by lower staffing and no increase for control conditions. From the 100 medical conditions examined, 23 had significantly increased mortality risk for weekend admissions. These two sets of findings provided strong evidence for a weekend effect, suggesting that for some conditions lower staffing on admission affected standards of care and thereby patient outcomes. Since then, dozens of studies of the weekend effect have been conducted, mostly in the UK and the USA.2 In Britain, the issue became much more high profile after an intervention in 2015 by the Secretary of State who suggested that 11 000 patients were unnecessarily dying at the weekend.3 4 This claim was challenged at the time,5 and many pointed out that the National Health Service (NHS) was already a 7-day service.6 7 However, concern about the weekend led eventually to the introduction of ‘7 day services’ in the NHS in England. A new set of 10 clinical standards was introduced to reduce differences between weekend and weekday services, including increased …

Background Health systems globally promote appropriate prescribing by healthcare providers and safe and effective medicine use by consumers. Rx for Change, a publicly available database, provides access to systematic reviews regarding best practices for prescribing and using medicines. Despite the value of the database for improving prescribing and medicine use, its use remains suboptimal. This study aimed to develop a training program for five medicine-focused organisations in Canada and Australia to facilitate the use and understanding of the Rx for Change database. Methods Four steps were undertaken: 1) key informant interviews were completed across all organisations to understand the knowledge user perspective; 2) a directed content analysis was completed of the interview transcripts and proposed training was developed; 3) a second round of feedback on the proposed training by knowledge users was gathered; and 4) feedback was integrated to develop the final training. Results Sixteen key informant interviews with knowledge users were conducted. Themes for training content included the scope of, navigation and strategies for using Rx for Change (generic content) and practical examples on incorporating evidence within their workplace context (tailored content). The final training consisted of an informational video, a 60-minute face-to-face workshop and two post-training reminders. Conclusions A method of engaging knowledge users in the development of a training program to improve the use of an on-line database of systematic reviews was established and used to design training. Next steps include the delivery and evaluation of the training.

Background The State of Victoria in Australia introduced Chinese medicine practitioner registration in 2000 and issued its education guidelines in late 2002 for introduction in 2005. This study obtained practitioners' views on desired capabilities for competent Chinese medicine practice and to identify professional development needs. Methods A questionnaire, consisting of 28 predefined capabilities in four categories with a rating scale of importance from one to five, was developed and sent to all registered Chinese medicine practitioners in the State of Victoria, Australia in October, 2005. Results Two hundreds and twenty eight completed questionnaires were returned which represented a response rate of 32.5%. Of the four categories of capabilities, technical capabilities were considered to be the most important for clinical practice. Specifically, the ability to perform acupuncture treatment and/or dispense an herbal prescription was ranked the highest. In contrast, research and information management capabilities were considered the least important. The educational background of practitioners appeared to be an important factor influencing their rating of capabilities. Significantly, nearly double the number of practitioners with Australian qualifications than practitioners trained overseas valued communication as an important capability. For continuing professional education, clinical skills courses were considered as a priority while research degree studies were not. Conclusion Registered Chinese medicine practitioners viewed skills training as important but did not support the need for research and information management training. This represents a significant hurdle to developing Chinese medicine as a form of evidence-based healthcare.

OBJECTIVE Severe maternal morbidity represents a "near miss" mortality and is an important measure of quality and safety. Racial inequity in maternal morbidity is stark and the reasons for this disparity are poorly understood. We aimed to identify states achieving racial equity in maternal morbidity in order to identify policies that may promote racial equity. METHODS We analyzed Medicaid deliveries from 2008 to 2009 in a sample that included 28 states and the District of Columbia. This dataset included approximately 80% of all Medicaid enrollees and 90% of minority Medicaid enrollees in the US. We determined the Non-Hispanic Black/Non-Hispanic white SMMI rate ratio for each state and categorized the states into groups by rate ratio. We described demographic features of both the general population and study population for these groups of states. RESULTS In a sample that included a total of 1,489,134 births, we found that no state/district is achieving equity in severe maternal morbidity. The severe maternal morbidity rate is higher for Non-Hispanic Black than Non-Hispanic white patients in every state included. With a rate ratio ranging from 1.14 to 2.66, there are varying degrees of inequity. States in the group with the most equitable maternal morbidity rates had less inequity across racial subgroups with respect to educational attainment and poverty. CONCLUSIONS Identifying geographic areas with varying degrees of inequity may be key to identifying policies to promote equity. Socioecological disparities and inadequate access to care may be factors in racial inequity in maternal morbidity.

OBJECTIVES To determine whether children participating in the Special Supplemental Nutrition Program for Women, Infants, and Children (WIC) had more caregiver-reported preventive dental care visits (PDCVs) and preventive dental services (PDS) than nonparticipating children. METHODS A secondary data analysis was performed utilizing the National Survey of Children's Health 2017 and 2018 combined datasets. The analytic sample included 10,356 children aged 1-4 years. It was further stratified into three groups by WIC eligibility and participation to include WIC participation, income-eligible nonparticipants, and higher-income nonparticipants. The independent variables included child-level characteristics (age, sex, race/ethnicity, and insurance) and caregiver-level characteristics (age of mother and the highest level of education in the household). The dependent variable was the report of PDCV and PDS (dental cleaning, toothbrushing instructions, and fluoride treatment) in the past 12 months. RESULTS Of the 10,356 children aged 1-4 years, 3025 were eligible for WIC and nearly half of those eligible (49.5%) reported participating in the WIC program. Caregivers of WIC-participating children had a higher reported prevalence of PDCV for their children than those of income-eligible nonparticipants (57.6% vs. 49.6%, respectively) (p

PURPOSE Delays and disruptions in health systems because of the COVID-19 pandemic were identified by a previous systematic review from our group. For improving the knowledge about the pandemic consequences for cancer care, this article aims to identify the effects of mitigation strategies developed to reduce the impact of such delays and disruptions. METHODS Systematic review with a comprehensive search including formal databases, cancer and COVID-19 data sources, gray literature, and manual search. We considered clinical trials, observational longitudinal studies, cross-sectional studies, before-and-after studies, case series, and case studies. The selection, data extraction, and methodological assessment were performed by two independent reviewers. The methodological quality of the included studies was assessed by specific tools. The mitigation strategies identified were described in detail and their effects were summarized narratively. RESULTS Of 6,692 references reviewed, 28 were deemed eligible, and 9 studies with low to moderate methodological quality were included. Five multiple strategies and four single strategies were reported, and the possible effects of mitigating delays and disruptions in cancer care because of COVID-19 are inconsistent. The only comparative study reported a 48.7% reduction observed in the number of outpatient visits to the hospital accompanied by a small reduction in imaging and an improvement in radiation treatments after the implementation of a multiple organizational strategy. CONCLUSION The findings emphasize the infrequency of measuring and reporting mitigation strategies that specifically address patients' outcomes and thus a scarcity of high-quality evidence to inform program development. This review reinforces the need of adopting standardized measurement methods to monitor the impact of the mitigation strategies proposed to reduce the effects of delays and disruptions in cancer health care because of COVID-19.

PURPOSE Pain is among the most common and consequential symptoms of cancer, particularly in the context of lung cancer. Māori have extremely high rates of lung cancer, and there is evidence that Māori patients with lung cancer are less likely to receive curative treatment and more likely to receive palliative treatment and to wait longer for their treatment than non-Māori New Zealanders. The extent to which Māori patients with lung cancer are also less likely to have access to pain medicines as part of their supportive care remains unclear. METHODS Using national-level Cancer Registry and linked health records, we describe access to subsidized pain medicines among patients with lung cancer diagnosed over the decade spanning 2007-2016 and compare access between Māori and non-Māori patients. Descriptive and logistic regression methods were used to compare access between ethnic groups. RESULTS We observed that the majority of patients with lung cancer are accessing some form of pain medicine and there do not appear to be strong differences between Māori and non-Māori in terms of overall access or the type of pain medicine dispensed. However, Māori patients appeared more likely than non-Māori to first access pain medicines within 2 weeks before their death and commensurately less likely to access them more than 24 weeks before death. CONCLUSION Given the plausibility that there are differences in first access to pain medicines (particularly opioid medicines) among Māori approaching end of life, further investigation of the factors contributing to this disparity is required.

BACKGROUND: Additional real-world studies are needed to more fully elucidate the effectiveness of antifibrotic treatment in slowing the progression of idiopathic pulmonary fibrosis (IPF). OBJECTIVE: To compare mortality and hospitalization between Medicare beneficiaries with IPF who initiate antifibrotic therapy and those who did not receive treatment. METHODS: A retrospective observational study of Medicare beneficiaries using the 100% Medicare Research Identifiable File was conducted. We included patients aged 67 years and over diagnosed with IPF (≥ 1 inpatient or ≥ 2 outpatient claims with IPF diagnosis, J84.112]) during the study period (January 1, 2010-December 31, 2017). Patients who initiated antifibrotic treatment (pirfenidone or nintedanib) between October 15, 2014 (FDA approval date) and December 31, 2017 (ie, treated patients) were compared with those who did not receive treatment during a historical period (January 1, 2012-October 14, 2014) before the availability of antifibrotics (ie, untreated historical controls). Patients were matched by propensity score, and the outcomes, mortality, and hospitalization (all cause and respiratory related) were compared using a Cox proportional hazards model. RESULTS: We identified 4,641 treated patients and 4,641 propensity score-matched controls who met all study criteria; 352 treated patients who lacked matches were excluded from the study. Cox regression analysis of treated patients vs matched controls showed a significantly lower risk of mortality (HR = 0.62, 95% CI = 0.57-0.68); lower risk of hospitalization (HR = 0.71, 95% CI = 0.67-0.76; HR = 0.70, 95% CI = 0.64-0.76); and lower rate in number of hospitalizations per month (incident rate ratio [IRR] = 0.65, 95% CI = 0.60-0.71; IRR = 0.65, 95% CI = 0.58-0.73). CONCLUSIONS: This study suggests that treatment with antifibrotics may confer a survival benefit and protection against all-cause and respiratory-related hospitalization for IPF patients. DISCLOSURES: This work was sponsored by F. Hoffmann-La Roche/Genentech, Inc. Corral is employed by Genentech, Inc. Reddy, Chang, Broder, and Gokhale are employed by Partnership for Health Analytic Research LLC, a health services research company, which was hired by Genentech to conduct this research. Mooney has received advisory board/consulting fees and research support from Genentech, unrelated to this work. Mooney also reports advisory board/consulting fees and research support from Boehringer Ingelheim; personal fees from Imvaria; and grants from Celgene and Pliant, unrelated to this work. Through their employment with Partnership for Health Analytic Research, Reddy, Chang, Broder, and Gokhale have been compensated to conduct research for AbbVie, Akcea, ASPC, Amgen, AstraZeneca, BMS, Boston Scientific Corporation, Celgene, Eisai, Ethicon, GRAIL, Helsinn, Illumina, Innovation and Value Initiative, Ionis, Jazz, Kite, Novartis, Otsuka, Pathnostics, PhRMA, Prothena, Sage, Verde Technologies, Genentech, Inc., Greenwich Biosciences, Inc., Mirum Pharmaceuticals, Inc., Sanofi US Services, Inc., Sunovion Pharmaceuticals, Inc., and Dompe US, Inc., unrelated to this work. This research was presented as an abstract at CHEST 2020 Annual Meeting (virtual), October 18-21, 2020, and American Thoracic Society 2020 Virtual Meeting, June 2020.

PURPOSE The burden of cancer disproportionately affects low- and middle-income countries. Low 5-year survival figures for children with cancer in low-income countries are due to late presentation at diagnosis, treatment abandonment, absence of sophisticated multidisciplinary care, and lack of adequate resources. The reasons for late presentation are partly due to limited awareness of cancer symptoms, high treatment costs, and facility-level barriers to timely access to treatment. Given the systemic challenges, the regional need for palliative oncology care for children care is high. Despite the enormity of the need for palliative oncology for children with cancer in Africa, its level of development remains poor. This paper presents the evidence on the status of palliative oncology care for children in sub-Saharan Africa. METHODS This review provides an overview of the current status of palliative oncology care for children in sub-Saharan Africa, using the WHO building blocks for health systems strengthening as reference points, before proposing a forward-looking prioritized agenda for its development. RESULTS We noted that survival rates for children with cancer remain much poorer in Africa compared with developed countries and palliative oncology care resources are scant. Our results also show low coverage for palliative oncology care services for children, lack of a critical mass of health workers with the skills to deliver the care, a lack of robust documentation of the burden of cancer, widespread lack of access to essential controlled medicines, limited funding from government and limited coverage for palliative oncology care in most cancer control plans. CONCLUSION This review highlights priority areas for action that align to the WHO health system building blocks for strengthening health systems., Countries must prioritize integration of pediatric palliative care in SSA pediatric oncology.

BackgroundThis study explores the meaning of actionable healthcare performance indicators for quality of care-related decisions. To do so, we analyse the constructs offitness for purposeandfitness for useacross healthcare systems and in practice based on the literature, expert opinion and user experience.MethodsA multiphase qualitative study was undertaken. Phases included a literature review, a first round of one-on-one interviews with a panel of academics and thought leaders in the field (n=16), and a second round of interviews with real-world users of performance indicators (n=16). Thematic analysis was conducted between phases in order to triangulate findings in a stepwise process.ResultsCommon uses of healthcare performance indicators were differentiated within micro-meso-macro contexts of healthcare systems. Each purpose of use signals different decision-making tasks, and in effect information needs. An indicator’s fitness for use can be appraised by three clusters of considerations: methodological, contextual and managerial. Methodological considerations gauge an indicator’s perceived importance, engagement potential, interpretability, standardisation, feasibility of remedial actions, alignment to care models and sensitivity to change. Information infrastructure, system governance, workforce capacity and learning culture were found as enabling contextual considerations. Managerial considerations influencing an indicator’s use in practice were found to span the selection of indicators, data collection, analysis, display of results and delivery of information to decision-makers.ConclusionThe actionability of a healthcare performance indicator should be appraised by its alignment with the intended purpose of use beyond aggregate healthcare system levels, in combination with the extent to which methodological, contextual and managerial fitness for use considerations are met. Striking a better balance between the importance weighted to an indicator’s statistical merits and emphasis put to its fitness for purpose and use is needed for indicators that are ultimately actionable for quality of care-related decision-making.

PURPOSE With the existing oncology disparities in Latin America, physician expertise has been cited as a possible contributor to inferior oncologic outcomes in some cancers. As two-dimensional radiotherapy rapidly evolved to intensity-modulated radiation therapy in Latin America, adequate contouring education is an actionable target to improving physician knowledge and clinical outcomes. Yet, topics of interest to Latin American radiation oncologists are underreported. We assessed Latin American interest in a virtual platform for case discussion and identified the educational topics of most interest to them. MATERIALS AND METHODS A Spanish-language online survey was designed by a team of Latin American educators. The questions assessed professional nationality, desire for an online educational platform for case presentation, career length, and topics of interest. Educational topics included head and neck (H&N), CNS, GI, lung, gynecologic, breast, and pediatric cancers, lymphoma, sarcoma, stereotactic body radiotherapy (SBRT), brachytherapy, and medical physics. RESULTS One hundred thirty-three surveys were included for analysis. Overall, 127 respondents (98%) affirmed interest in participating in a virtual platform for case discussion and treatment advances. The most popular educational themes were H&N cancers (24%), SBRT (14%), and CNS cancers (13%). Of countries with > 10 respondents, the most popular educational topic remained H&N cancers for Argentina, Chile, and Mexico, but the most popular topic among Peruvian respondents was CNS cancer (27%). CONCLUSION With international collaboration and a large sample size, we present the first survey results describing Latin American radiation oncology educational interests. Participants were overwhelmingly interested in a virtual platform, and most were specifically interested in H&N cancer education. These results can be used for focused didactic preparation in Latin America. Future efforts should expand on improving representation and outreach among Central American radiation oncologists.

Context The symptom burden associated with heart failure (HF) remains high despite improvements in therapy and calls for the integration of palliative care into traditional HF care. Little is also known about how patients with HF perceive palliative care and patient-level characteristics associated with the need for palliative care, which could influence the utilization of palliative care in HF management. Objectives To identify characteristics of HF patients associated with perceived need for palliative care. Methods We analyzed data from the Hopeful Heart Trial, which studied the efficacy of a collaborative care intervention for treating both systolic HF and depression. Palliative care preferences were collected during routine study follow-up. We assessed the association of perceived need for palliative care during study follow-up and baseline data on sociodemographics, clinical measures, and patient-centered outcomes. We then used descriptive statistics and logistic regression to analyze our data. Results Participants were on average 64 years old, male, and reported severe HF symptoms and poor to below average quality of life (. Most had unfavorable impressions of palliative care, but many still perceived a need for palliative care. Factors associated with perceived need for palliative care included depression, non-white race, more severe HF symptoms, and lower mental & physical health-related quality of life. Conclusion HF patients’ beliefs about palliative care may affect utilization of palliative care. Specific characteristics can help identify patients with HF who may benefit from palliative care involvement. Education targeted towards patients with selected attributes may help incorporate palliative care into HF management.

PURPOSE The 2-year Russian oncology residency focuses on diagnosis and treatment of malignancies but lacks evidence-based medicine (EBM) and patient communication skills (PCS) training. To overcome these educational disparities, the 5-year national program, the Higher School of Oncology (HSO), involving Russian expatriate physicians trained in the United States was established. METHODS A retrospective study was conducted. Highly motivated oncology residents were enrolled in the program through the three-step selection process. US-trained Russian expatriate physicians acted as mentors. EBM skills were taught through weekly online journal clubs and clinical case presentations. PCS training included live seminars and simulations after journal clubs. EBM knowledge was assessed using Fresno test among newly enrolled and postgraduate year (PGY) 2-5 HSO residents. PCS were evaluated via simulation exam including two clinical scenarios (maximum score 100 each) among 17 PGY2 HSO residents and seven non-HSO trainees. RESULTS Overall, 54 residents were enrolled over 5 years (8-13 annually); four were released from the program. The mean age was 24 ± 1 years, and 56% were females. Median scores of Fresno test were significantly higher among PGY 2-4 HSO residents compared with newly enrolled participants: 111 (IQR, 71-128) versus 68 (IQR, 42-84), P = .042; moreover, performance correlated with year of program participation (rs = 0.5; P < .0001). PCS assessment score was significantly higher among HSO residents than non-HSO trainees: 71 (IQR, 58-84) versus 15 (IQR, 10-30) for scenario number 1 ( P < .0001) and 78 (IQR, 71-85) versus 22 (IQR, 4-58) for scenario number 2 ( P = .005), respectively. CONCLUSION The involvement of Western-trained expatriates in remote education improves EBM and PCS among oncology trainees from their home country. This strategy can be useful in overcoming global medical education disparities in other specialties and in countries facing similar challenges.

PURPOSE COVID-19 has affected cancer care worldwide. Clinical trials are an important alternative for the treatment of oncologic patients, especially in Latin America, where trials can be the only opportunity for some of them to access novel and, sometimes, standard treatments. METHODS This was a cross-sectional study, in which a 22-question survey regarding the impact of the COVID-19 pandemic on oncology clinical trials was sent to 350 representatives of research programs in selected Latin American institutions, members of the Latin American Cooperative Oncology Group. RESULTS There were 90 research centers participating in the survey, with 70 of them from Brazil. The majority were partly private or fully private (n = 77; 85.6%) and had confirmed COVID-19 cases at the institution (n = 57; 63.3%). Accruals were suspended at least for some studies in 80% (n = 72) of the responses, mostly because of sponsors' decision. Clinical trials' routine was affected by medical visits cancelation, reduction of patients' attendance, reduction of other specialties' availability, and/or alterations on follow-up processes. Formal COVID-19 mitigation policies were adopted in 96.7% of the centers, including remote monitoring and remote site initiation visits, telemedicine visits, reduction of research team workdays or home office, special consent procedures, shipment of oral drugs directly to patients' home, and increase in outpatient diagnostic studies. Importantly, some of these changes were suggested to be part of future oncology clinical trials' routine, particularly the ones regarding remote methods, such as telemedicine. CONCLUSION To our knowledge, this was the first survey to evaluate the impact of COVID-19 on Latin American oncology clinical trials. The results are consistent with surveys from other world regions. These findings may endorse improvements in clinical trials' processes and management in the postpandemic period.

COVID-19 has had a disproportionate impact on ethnic minorities in the UK, raising questions about whether learning from the past few decades about the interplay between ethnicity and health inequalities has been effectively incorporated in current health policy. As digital health approaches, such as remote consultations and apps, become more widespread during and after the pandemic, it is important to ensure that these do not contribute to ‘widening the gap’. We highlight three areas in which existing knowledge and evidence can be translated into cross-sectoral action to avoid further ethnic and digital health inequalities: data and measurement, improved communication, and embedded equality impact.

Early and accurate identification of cognitive and functional decline in bilingual Latino/a older adults with Alzheimer's disease and related dementias continues to be a substantial public health concern. This paper highlights the heterogeneity in the clinical expression of Alzheimer's disease among bilingual Latino/as, the clinical decisions leading to a culturally and linguistically congruent neuropsychological assessment, and the interdisciplinary, multi-setting partnerships needed to ensure a healthy longevity post-diagnosis for the patient, the caregiver, and the family. Psychologists play an important role in advocating for the best standard of care, as the patients and families endure the long journey of care with dignity and respect.

Background The scale and extent of sexual violence perpetrated in the United Kingdom is being increasingly acknowledged. Support after the initial disclosure is often sought in NHS sexual health clinics. The purpose of this service evaluation was to explore patient satisfaction and experience amongst sexual health clinic attendees who disclosed sexual violence and were subsequently managed in a specialist sexual abuse survivors clinic. Methods Semi-structured interviews were conducted with ten service users and interview transcripts were analysed using interpretative phenomenological analysis (IPA) to assess users’ experiences within the clinic. Results Participants were all female (aged 18–54 years) and had experienced sexual violence between 2 weeks and 15 years prior to interview, and the majority self-identified as White British (6/10). IPA analysis revealed three distinct overarching themes which were important to this group of patients when evaluating their care: delivery of care in the context of judgement and stigma, aspects of care identified as healing or harmful to recovery, and the importance of the processes of providing care. Conclusion Understanding the experiences of sexual violence survivors in healthcare settings can optimise the provision of patient-oriented care and support. This includes ensuring the service user is in control of the consultation, the risks of re-traumatisation are minimised, and individuals receive relevant and accurate information but in a manageable volume and format.

BackgroundTelemedicine for medical abortion care was rapidly introduced in Great Britain in response to the COVID-19 pandemic. A growing body of literature demonstrates that telemedicine abortion care is safe, effective and highly acceptable to patients. Less is known about the perspectives of abortion care providers (ACPs).MethodsQualitative research within the telemedicine abortion service in Lothian (Edinburgh and surrounding region), UK. We conducted qualitative in-depth interviews with ACPs between May and July 2020 (doctors, n=6; nurses, n=10) and analysed the data thematically.ResultsWe present three themes from our qualitative analysis: (1) Selective use of ultrasound – the move away from routine ultrasound for determination of gestational age was generally viewed positively. Initial anxiety about non-detection of ectopic pregnancy and later gestations was expressed by some ACPs, but concerns were addressed through clinical practice and support structures within the clinic. (2) Identifying safeguarding issues – in the absence of visual cues some ACPs reported concerns about their ability to identify safeguarding issues, specifically domestic violence. Conversely it was acknowledged that teleconsultations may improve detection of this in some situations. (3) Provision of information during the consultation – telephone consultations were considered more focused than in-person consultations and formed only part of the overall ‘package’ of information provided to patients, supplemented by online and written information.ConclusionsACPs providing telemedicine abortion care value this option for patients and believe it should remain beyond the COVID-19 pandemic. Safeguarding patients and the selective use of ultrasound can be initially challenging; however, with experience, staff confidence improves.

BackgroundLittle is known about variations in the provision of chronic care services in primary care.AimTo describe the frequency of chronic care services provided by GPs and analyse the extent of non-random variation in service provision.Design and settingNationwide cohort study undertaken in Denmark using data from 2016.MethodInformation on chronic care services was obtained from national health registers, including annual chronic care consultations, chronic care procedures, outreach home visits, and talk therapy. The associations between services provided, patient morbidity, and socioeconomic factors were estimated. Service variations were analysed, and excess variation related to practice-specific factors was estimated while accounting for random variation.ResultsChronic care provision was associated with increasing patient age, increasing number of long-term conditions, and indicators of low socioeconomic status. Variation across practices ranged from 1.4 to 128 times more than expected after adjusting for differences in patient population and random variation. Variation related to practice-specific factors was present for all the chronic care services that were investigated. Older patients with lower socioeconomic status and multimorbidity were clustered in practices with low propensity to provide certain chronic care services.ConclusionChronic care was provided to patients typically in need of health care, that is, older adults, those with multimorbidity, and those with low socioeconomic status, but service provision varied more than expected across practices. GPs provided slightly fewer chronic care services than expected in practices where many patients with multimorbidity and low socioeconomic status were clustered, suggesting inverse care law mechanisms.

Background: Efforts to provide accessible and effective infant feeding support are advancing to set up new families to meeting their goals. However, data continue to be limited for understanding how inpatient postpartum support and experiences contribute to exclusive breastfeeding during hospitalization. Research Aims: To explore postnatal unit experiences including skin-to-skin contact, overnight support, rooming-in, responsive clinicians, and understandable communication that correlate with early infant feeding outcomes among a sample of mothers who intended to breastfeed. Methods: This was a prospective cross-sectional survey study. Through secure online survey, participants submitted ( N = 2,401) responses from November 2016 to May 2017 about their experiences with maternity healthcare and offered thoughts on the postnatal unit environment. Descriptive statistics were used to examine distributions of maternal characteristics, postpartum experience, and birthing facility characteristics. Results: Exclusive breastfeeding was positively correlated with the following postnatal unit experiences: mother did not ask that her infant be taken out of the postnatal unit room; infant staying in postnatal unit room except for treatment(s); mother got help from clinical staff when needed after pressing the call button; and nurse, midwife, and/or doctor always explained information to mother in ways that they understood. Conclusion: Postnatal unit experiences associated with exclusive breastfeeding during postpartum hospitalization were rooming in; parents who did not ask for their infant to be taken out of the unit room; whether mothers received timely help from clinical staff; and information was explained in a way they could understand.

Zusammenfassung Einleitung Beim Fast-Track(FT)-Konzept handelt es sich um multimodale, interdisziplinäre Maßnahmen zur perioperativen Patientenbetreuung zur Reduktion postoperativer Komplikationen. Trotz guter Evidenz erscheint die Umsetzung verbesserungswürdig, wobei sich nahezu alle Untersuchungen ungeachtet des interdisziplinären Aspektes auf die Implementierung der chirurgischen Module fokussieren. Die Adhärenz zu den anästhesiologischen Maßnahmen (präoperative Patientenoptimierung, Prämedikation, Volumen- und Wärmemanagement, Schmerztherapie) ist hingegen nur unzureichend untersucht. Um den Status quo zu erfassen, wurde eine Umfrage zur Umsetzung der anästhesiologischen FT-Bausteine unter den Mitgliedern der Deutschen Gesellschaft für Anästhesiologie und Intensivmedizin (DGAI) durchgeführt und analysiert, wo mögliches Verbesserungspotenzial besteht. Methoden Mithilfe des Online-Umfragetools SurveyMonkey® wurden 28 Fragen zur perioperativen anästhesiologischen Versorgung kolorektalchirurgischer Patienten an die Mitglieder der DGAI verschickt und die Adhärenz zu den FT-Maßnahmen analysiert. Ergebnisse Während einige der FT-Maßnahmen (Wärmemanagement, PONV-Prophylaxe) bereits routinemäßig umgesetzt sind, gibt es bei anderen Bausteinen eine Divergenz zwischen den aktuellen Empfehlungen und der klinischen Umsetzung. Besonders betroffen sind neben der Prämedikation insbesondere interdisziplinäre Maßnahmen (Prähabilitation) sowie Maßnahmen, die mehrere Schnittstellen (OP, Aufwachraum (AWR), Station) betreffen, wie beispielsweise Volumenmanagement oder perioperative Schmerztherapie Fazit Die anästhesiologischen Empfehlungen des FT-Konzepts werden in Deutschland nur teilweise umgesetzt. Hiervon sind insbesondere die interdisziplinären Bausteine sowie Maßnahmen an den Schnittstellen OP-AWR-Station betroffen. Die Bildung eines interdisziplinären FT-Teams und die interdisziplinäre Ausarbeitung von SOP können die Adhärenz optimieren, was wiederum das kurz- und langfristige Outcome der Patienten verbessert.

IntroductionHospital admissions in many countries fell dramatically at the onset of the COVID-19 pandemic. Less is known about how care patterns differed by patient groups. We sought to determine whether areas with higher levels of socioeconomic deprivation or larger ethnic minority populations saw larger falls in emergency and planned admissions in England.MethodsWe conducted a national observational study of hospital care in the English National Health Service (NHS) in 2019–2020. Weekly volumes of elective (planned) and emergency admissions in 2020 compared with 2019 were calculated for each census area. Multiple linear regression analysis was used to estimate the reductions in volumes for areas in different quintiles of socioeconomic deprivation and ethnic minority populations after controlling for national time trends and local area composition.ResultsBetween March and December 2020, there were 35.5% (3.0 million) fewer elective admissions and 22.0% (1.2 million) fewer emergency admissions with a non-COVID-19 primary diagnosis than in 2019. Areas with the largest share of ethnic minority populations experienced a 36.7% (95% CI 24.1% to 49.3%) larger reduction in non-primary COVID-19 emergency admissions compared with those with the smallest. The most deprived areas experienced a 10.1% (95% CI 2.6% to 17.7%) smaller reduction in non-COVID-19 emergency admissions compared with the least deprived. These patterns are not explained by differential prevalence of COVID-19 cases by area.ConclusionsEven in a healthcare system founded on the principle of equal access for equal need, the impact of COVID-19 on NHS hospital care for non-COVID patients has not been spread evenly by ethnicity and deprivation in England. While we cannot conclusively determine the mechanisms behind these differences, they risk exacerbating prepandemic health inequalities.

Background Individuals with opioid use disorder (OUD) are at higher risk of poor oral health. Medication for opioid use disorder (MOUD) has been shown to improve outcomes for patients with OUD, but it is unknown how initiation of MOUD affects access to oral health services. Methods This was a retrospective analysis of all individuals in the Massachusetts All-Payer Claims Database prescribed oral buprenorphine-naloxone or injectable naltrexone from 2013 to 2016. We evaluated dental utilization in the year before and after beginning MOUD. A logistic regression predicting dental utilization was conducted. Results Among the 54,791 individuals, rates of dental utilization were low both before and after MOUD (10.5% and 10% with a dental visit, respectively). Of those who did not have a dental visit in the year before starting MOUD, 95.1% did not have a dental visit in the year after. Rates of various procedure types were comparable before and after MOUD. In a logistic regression, a prior dental visit was associated with 9.82 times the odds (95% CI 9.14-10.55) of having a dental visit after starting MOUD; increasing age, being prescribed naltrexone, having a mood disorder or HIV, year of initiation or being on Medicaid were also associated with having a dental visit. Male patients and those with Medicare or private insurance were less likely to have a dental visit. Conclusions Initiating MOUD did not substantially result in increased dental access or substantial changes in dental procedures received. Patients receiving treatment for OUD may require additional support to access dental care.

Background Limited timely, cost-effective, and regional availability of healthcare data is considered one of the limiting factors for timely analyses in the field of health services research and thus for healthcare delivery to the general population. Thus, Internet search engine analyses are coming into focus in this context. Objectives What contribution can data on the volume of Internet searches for various diseases make to the health care of the German population? Where is the potential and where are the limitations? Methods A review of the current literature and a selective overview of Internet search engine analyses of dermatological, allergological, and infectious diseases published in the last 4 years in Germany were performed. Results By analyzing web search data, temporal developments such as seasonality, months with the highest interest, and geographical differences can be mapped at the national, state (Bundeslander), and city level and major points of interest (e.g., skin cancer of the eye or anal itching) regarding a certain health topic can be identified. In addition, some studies were able to show correlations between search volume and external factors (e.g., temperature, care structure) and to registered cases (e.g., skin cancer, Lyme disease). Conclusion Web search data, given the limitations noted, are able to directly provide spatiotemporal mapping regarding the needs of the Internet-using population. They are particularly useful in situations where traditional health data are limited or unavailable.

Index cholecystectomy is the standard of care for gallstone pancreatitis. Hospital-level operative resources and implementation of an acute care surgery (ACS) model may impact the ability to perform index cholecystectomy. We aimed to determine the influence of structure and process measures related to operating room access on achieving index cholecystectomy for gallstone pancreatitis. In 2015, we surveyed 2811 US hospitals on ACS practices, including infrastructure for operative access. A total of 1690 hospitals (60%) responded. We anonymously linked survey data to 2015 State Inpatient Databases from 17 states using American Hospital Association identifiers. We identified patients ≥ 18 years who were admitted with gallstone pancreatitis. Patients transferred from another facility were excluded. Univariate and multivariable regression analyses, clustered by hospital and adjusted for patient factors, were performed to examine multiple structure and process variables related to achieving an index cholecystectomy rate of ≥ 75% (high performers). Over the study period, 5656 patients were admitted with gallstone pancreatitis and 70% had an index cholecystectomy. High-performing hospitals achieved an index cholecystectomy rate of 84.1% compared to 58.5% at low-performing hospitals. On multivariable regression analysis, only teaching vs. non-teaching hospital (OR 2.91, 95% CI 1.11–7.70) and access to dedicated, daytime operative resources (i.e., block time) vs. no/little access (OR 1.93, 95% CI 1.11–3.37) were associated with high-performing hospitals. Access to dedicated, daytime operative resources is associated with high quality of care for gallstone pancreatitis. Health systems should consider the addition of dedicated, daytime operative resources for acute care surgery service lines to improve patient care.

This retrospective cohort study of cancer decedents during 2004–2015 examined end-of-life cancer care quality indicators (QIs) in the provinces of British Columbia (BC), Ontario, and Nova Scotia (NS). These included: emergency department use, in-patient hospitalization, intensive care unit admissions, physician house calls, home care visits, and death experienced in hospital. Ontario saw the greatest 12-year decrease in in-hospital deaths from 52.8% to 41.1%. Hospitalization rates within 30 days of death decreased in Ontario, increased in NS, and remained the same in BC. Ontario’s usage of aggressive end-of-life measures changed very little, while BC increased their utilization rates. Supportive care use increased in both NS and Ontario. Those who were male or living in a lower income/smaller community (in Ontario) were associated with a decreased likelihood of receiving supportive care. Despite the shift in focus to providing hospice and home care services, approximately 50% of oncology patients are still dying in hospital and 11.7% of patients overall are subject to aggressive care measures that may be out of line with their desire for comfort care. Supportive care use is increasing, but providers must ensure that Canadians are connected to palliative services, as its utilization improves a wide variety of outcomes.

Language status can be conceptualized as an equity-relevant variable, particularly for non-English-speaking populations. Deaf and hard-of-hearing (DHH) individuals who use American Sign Language (ASL) to communicate comprise one such group and are understudied in health services research. DHH individuals are at high-risk of receiving lower-quality care due to ineffective patient–provider communication. This perspective outlines barriers to health equity research serving DHH ASL-users due to systems developed by large-scale informatics networks (eg, the Patient-Centered Clinical Outcomes Research Network), and institutional policies on self-serve cohort discovery tools. We list potential to help adequate capture of language status of DHH ASL-users to promote health equity for this population.

Background The Enhanced Transtheoretical Model Intervention (ETMI) is an approach for treating chronic low back pain (CLBP), which demonstrated clinical and cost-effectiveness outcomes. ETMI highlights reassurance, return to normal activities and encouragement of recreational physical activity. In order to optimally implement ETMI, it is important to gain an understanding of the expectations and perceptions of patients before they engage with the intervention. Objectives To explore CLBP patients' perceptions and expectations of the ETMI method prior to their first consultation with physiotherapist. Methods Qualitative semi-structured interviews were conducted with 30 CLBP patients. The interviews were audio-recorded, transcribed, coded, and analysed thematically. Patients were first asked about their expectations of treatment, then they were asked to comment on the ETMI method. Results Three main themes emerged from the interviews: (1) Patient's perceptions of LBP; (2) patient's expectations from current physiotherapy and (3) Patient's expectations from ETMI method. The patients' perceptions of back pain centred on biomechanical causal factors, a desire for diagnostic tests and beliefs that rest cures the pain. Their expectations from current physiotherapy included pain reduction, passive treatment, a structured exercise program and clear information about LBP. In reference to the ETMI method, patients expected pain reduction, practical tools to self-manage, and a combination of ETMI with passive treatment. Conclusion addressing issues around patient's perceptions and expectations of current physiotherapy and of the ETMI method, prior to their first consultation with physiotherapist, could be beneficial for understanding how to improve the ETMI implementation in the health care system.

Background The provision of healthcare during the pandemic caused by the SARS-CoV-2 virus represented a challenge for the management of the resources in the primary care centres. We proposed assessing burnout among the staff of those centres and identifying factors that contributed to its appearance and those that limited it. Methods An observational study which, by means of anonymous questionnaires, collected information about: (i) demographic variables; (ii) the characteristics of each position; (iii) the measures implemented by the medical decision-makers in order to provide care during the pandemic; and (iv) the Burnout Clinical Subtype Questionnaire (BCSQ-36). We performed a descriptive analysis of the burnout mentioned by the staff, and, by means of a multivariate analysis, we identified the factors which influenced it. Using logit models, we analysed whether receiving specific training in COVID-19, feeling involved in decision-making processes, and/or working within different healthcare systems had effects on the development of burnout. Results We analysed the replies of 252 employees of primary care centres in Spain with an average age of 45 (SD = 15.7) and 22 (SD = 11.4) years of experience. 68% of the participants (n = 173) indicated burnout of the frenetic subtype. 79% (n = 200) of the employees had high scores in at least one burnout subtype, and 62% (n = 156) in at least two. Women older than 45 had a lower probability of suffering burnout. Receiving specific training (OR = 0.28; CI95%: 0.11–0.73) and feeling involved in decision-making (OR = 0.32; CI95%:0.15–0.70) each reduced the probability of developing burnout. Working in a different department increased the likelihood of developing burnout of at least one clinical subtype (OR = 2.85; CI95%: 1.38–5.86). Conclusions The staff in primary care centres have developed high levels of burnout. Participation in decision-making and receiving specific training are revealed as factors that protect against the development of burnout. The measures taken to contain the adverse effects of a heavy workload appear to be insufficient. Certain factors that were not observed, but which are related to decisions taken by the healthcare management, appear to have had an effect on the development of some burnout subtypes.