National Healthcare Quality and Disparities Report
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Topics
- Antibiotics (1)
- Asthma (1)
- Blood Clots (1)
- Brain Injury (1)
- Cardiovascular Conditions (1)
- Children/Adolescents (4)
- Clinical Decision Support (CDS) (1)
- Diagnostic Safety and Quality (3)
- Disparities (2)
- (-) Emergency Department (19)
- Emergency Medical Services (EMS) (2)
- Evidence-Based Practice (9)
- (-) Guidelines (19)
- Healthcare Utilization (1)
- Health Services Research (HSR) (1)
- Imaging (4)
- Implementation (1)
- Infectious Diseases (1)
- Influenza (1)
- Inpatient Care (2)
- Medication (2)
- Opioids (1)
- Pneumonia (2)
- Practice Patterns (2)
- Primary Care (2)
- Provider (1)
- Provider: Clinician (1)
- Provider: Pharmacist (1)
- Provider: Physician (2)
- Quality Improvement (2)
- Quality of Care (3)
- Respiratory Conditions (3)
- Risk (1)
- Sepsis (5)
- Shared Decision Making (3)
- Sickle Cell Disease (1)
- Surgery (1)
- Tools & Toolkits (1)
AHRQ Research Studies
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Research Studies is a compilation of published research articles funded by AHRQ or authored by AHRQ researchers.
Results
1 to 19 of 19 Research Studies DisplayedScott Scott, Kempe A, Bajaj L
"These are our kids": qualitative interviews with clinical leaders in general emergency departments on motivations, processes, and guidelines in pediatric sepsis care.
Researchers sought to identify barriers and facilitators to pediatric sepsis care in general emergency departments (EDs), including care processes, the role of guidelines, and incentivized metrics. They interviewed medical directors, nurse managers, and quality coordinators. They found that leaders in general EDs were motivated to provide high-quality pediatric sepsis care but disagreed on whether reportable metrics would drive improvements. Leaders universally sought direct support from their nearest children's hospitals and actionable guidelines.
AHRQ-funded; HS025696.
Citation: Scott Scott, Kempe A, Bajaj L .
"These are our kids": qualitative interviews with clinical leaders in general emergency departments on motivations, processes, and guidelines in pediatric sepsis care.
Ann Emerg Med 2022 Oct;80(4):347-57. doi: 10.1016/j.annemergmed.2022.05.030..
Keywords: Children/Adolescents, Emergency Department, Sepsis, Guidelines, Evidence-Based Practice
Greenwald E, Olds E, Leonard J
Pediatric sepsis in community emergency care settings: guideline concordance and outcomes.
The authors sought to describe the rate of guideline-concordant care, and hypothesized that guideline-concordant care in community pediatric emergency care settings would be associated with decreased hospital length of stay (LOS). They found that guideline-concordant care was not associated with hospital LOS. The elements that drove overall concordance were timely recognition, vascular access, and timely antibiotics. Emergency care for pediatric sepsis in the community settings studied was concordant with guidelines in only 24% of the cases. They recommended future study to evaluate additional drivers of outcomes and ways to improve sepsis care in community emergency care settings.
AHRQ-funded; HS025696.
Citation: Greenwald E, Olds E, Leonard J .
Pediatric sepsis in community emergency care settings: guideline concordance and outcomes.
Pediatr Emerg Care 2021 Dec;37(12):e1571-e77. doi: 10.1097/pec.0000000000002120..
Keywords: Children/Adolescents, Sepsis, Emergency Department, Guidelines, Evidence-Based Practice
Trent SA, George N, Havranek EP
Established evidence-based treatment guidelines help mitigate disparities in quality of emergency care.
Evidence-based guidelines are often cited as a means of ensuring high-quality care for all patients. The objective of this study was to assess whether emergency department (ED) adherence to core evidence-based guidelines differed by patient sex and race/ethnicity and to assess the effect of ED guideline adherence on patient outcomes by sex and race/ethnicity. The investigators concluded that longstanding, nationally reported evidence-based guidelines can help eliminate sex and race/ethnicity disparities in quality of care.
AHRQ-funded; HS022400.
Citation: Trent SA, George N, Havranek EP .
Established evidence-based treatment guidelines help mitigate disparities in quality of emergency care.
Acad Emerg Med 2021 Sep;28(9):1051-60. doi: 10.1111/acem.14235..
Keywords: Evidence-Based Practice, Guidelines, Emergency Department, Disparities, Quality of Care
Tanabe P, Blewer AL, Bonnabeau E
Dissemination of evidence-based recommendations for sickle cell disease to primary care and emergency department providers in North Carolina: a cost benefit analysis.
Sickle cell disease (SCD) is a genetic condition affecting primarily individuals of African descent, who happen to be disproportionately impacted by poverty and who lack access to health care. Many providers do not feel prepared to care for individuals with SCD, despite the existence of evidence-based guidelines. The authors report the development of a SCD toolbox and the dissemination process to primary care and emergency department (ED) providers in North Carolina (NC). They report the effect of this dissemination on health-care utilization, cost of care, and overall cost-benefit.
AHRQ-funded; HS024501.
Citation: Tanabe P, Blewer AL, Bonnabeau E .
Dissemination of evidence-based recommendations for sickle cell disease to primary care and emergency department providers in North Carolina: a cost benefit analysis.
J Health Econ Outcomes Res 2021 Apr 1;8(1):18-28. doi: 10.36469/jheor.2021.21535..
Keywords: Sickle Cell Disease, Evidence-Based Practice, Guidelines, Primary Care, Emergency Department, Tools & Toolkits
Harder VS, Shaw JS, McCulloch CE
Statewide asthma learning collaborative participation and asthma-related emergency department use.
This study looked at outcomes from participation of pediatric practices in a quality improvement (QI) collaborative to decrease asthma-related emergency department (ED) visits. A statewide network of practices participated in the collaborative from 2015 to 2016. Asthma-related ED visit rates per 100 child-years for children ages 3 to 21 was evaluated using the state’s all-payer claims databases. The authors found that in the postintervention year (2017) participating practices’ ED visit rate decreased by 5.8 per 100 child-years, compared to an increase of 1.8 per 100 child-years in non-participating practices. There were no statistically significant differences in asthma-related ED visit rates during 2016, which indicated that it took some time for QI elements to be successfully implemented in pediatric practices.
AHRQ-funded; HS025297.
Citation: Harder VS, Shaw JS, McCulloch CE .
Statewide asthma learning collaborative participation and asthma-related emergency department use.
Pediatrics 2020 Dec;146(6):e20200213. doi: 10.1542/peds.2020-0213..
Keywords: Children/Adolescents, Asthma, Emergency Department, Quality Improvement, Quality of Care, Primary Care, Guidelines
Dugas AF, Hsieh YH, LoVecchio F
Derivation and validation of a clinical decision guideline for influenza testing in 4 US emergency departments.
This study looked at which patients should be tested for influenza among adult emergency department (ED) patients with fever or respiratory symptoms who met criteria for antiviral treatment per 2013 CDC guidelines. A prospective cohort study was conducted at 4 US EDs from November 2013 to April 2014. All 1941 enrolled participants were tested for influenza using polymerase chain reaction (PCR), and 183 patients (9.4%) had influenza. The CDC clinical decision guidelines (CDGs) for influenza testing includes new or increased cough (2 points), headache (1 point), subjective fever (1 point), and triage temperature >100.4F degrees. The CDG had a sensitivity and specificity of 94.1% and 36.6% respectively in the derivation set and the validation set.
AHRQ-funded; HS009699.
Citation: Dugas AF, Hsieh YH, LoVecchio F .
Derivation and validation of a clinical decision guideline for influenza testing in 4 US emergency departments.
Clin Infect Dis 2020 Jan;70(1):49-58. doi: 10.1093/cid/ciz171..
Keywords: Guidelines, Shared Decision Making, Influenza, Respiratory Conditions, Emergency Department, Evidence-Based Practice, Diagnostic Safety and Quality
Ingraham AM, Ayturk MD, Kiefe CI
Adherence to 20 emergency general surgery best practices: results of a national survey.
The authors used a hybrid questionnaire to examine national adherence to emergency general surgery (EGS) best practices. They found that there was substantial room for performance improvement, and that adopting an acute care surgery model predicts better performance. They conclude that this novel overview of adherence to EGS best practices will enable surgeons and policymakers to address variations in EGS care nationally.
AHRQ-funded; HS022694.
Citation: Ingraham AM, Ayturk MD, Kiefe CI .
Adherence to 20 emergency general surgery best practices: results of a national survey.
Ann Surg 2019 Aug;270(2):270-80. doi: 10.1097/sla.0000000000002746..
Keywords: Surgery, Emergency Department, Guidelines, Quality of Care, Quality Improvement
Simon E, Miake-Lye IM, Smith SW
An evaluation of guideline-discordant ordering behavior for CT pulmonary angiography in the emergency department.
The aim of this study was to determine rates of and possible reasons for guideline-discordant ordering of CT pulmonary angiography for the evaluation of suspected pulmonary embolism (PE) in the emergency department. The investigators concluded that many of the guideline-discordant orders were placed for patients who presented with evidence-based risk factors for PE that are not included in the risk stratification scores. They suggest that guideline-discordant ordering may indicate that in the presence of these factors, the assessment of risk made by current scoring systems may not align with clinical suspicion.
AHRQ-funded; HS024376.
Citation: Simon E, Miake-Lye IM, Smith SW .
An evaluation of guideline-discordant ordering behavior for CT pulmonary angiography in the emergency department.
J Am Coll Radiol 2019 Aug;16(8):1064-72. doi: 10.1016/j.jacr.2018.12.015..
Keywords: Respiratory Conditions, Emergency Department, Guidelines, Evidence-Based Practice, Blood Clots
Trent SA, Jarou ZJ, Havranek EP
Variation in emergency department adherence to treatment guidelines for inpatient pneumonia and sepsis: a retrospective cohort study.
Evidence-based clinical practice guidelines (CPGs) for the treatment of pneumonia and sepsis have existed for many years with multiple studies suggesting improved patient outcomes. Despite their importance, little is known about variation in emergency department (ED) adherence to these CPGs. The objectives of this study were to estimate variation in ED adherence across CPGs for pneumonia and sepsis and identify patient, provider, and environmental factors associated with adherence.
AHRQ-funded; HS022400.
Citation: Trent SA, Jarou ZJ, Havranek EP .
Variation in emergency department adherence to treatment guidelines for inpatient pneumonia and sepsis: a retrospective cohort study.
Acad Emerg Med 2019 Aug;26(8):908-20. doi: 10.1111/acem.13639.
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Keywords: Emergency Department, Evidence-Based Practice, Guidelines, Inpatient Care, Pneumonia, Sepsis
Trent SA, Havranek EP, Ginde AA
Effect of audit and feedback on physician adherence to clinical practice guidelines for pneumonia and sepsis.
This study examined the effect of feedback with blinded peer comparison on emergency physician adherence to guidelines for appropriate antibiotic administration for inpatient pneumonia and completion of the 3-hour Surviving Sepsis Bundle for patients with severe sepsis. A quasi-experiment was conducted with attending physicians randomized into 6 clusters at a single urban safety net hospital. Feedback with blinded peer comparison significantly improved guideline adherence from 52% to 65% with feedback.
AHRQ-funded; HS022400.
Citation: Trent SA, Havranek EP, Ginde AA .
Effect of audit and feedback on physician adherence to clinical practice guidelines for pneumonia and sepsis.
Am J Med Qual 2019 May/Jun;34(3):217-25. doi: 10.1177/1062860618796947..
Keywords: Antibiotics, Emergency Department, Guidelines, Infectious Diseases, Inpatient Care, Medication, Pneumonia, Provider, Provider: Physician, Sepsis
Koziatek CA, Simon E, Horwitz LI
Automated pulmonary embolism risk classification and guideline adherence for computed tomography pulmonary angiography ordering.
The objective of this study was to measure the performance of automated, structured data-only versions of the Wells and revised Geneva risk scores in emergency department encounters during which a computed tomography pulmonary angiography was ordered. The hypothesis was that such an automated method would classify a patient's pulmonary embolism risk with high accuracy compared to manual chart review.
AHRQ-funded; HS024376.
Citation: Koziatek CA, Simon E, Horwitz LI .
Automated pulmonary embolism risk classification and guideline adherence for computed tomography pulmonary angiography ordering.
Acad Emerg Med 2018 Sep;25(9):1053-61. doi: 10.1111/acem.13442..
Keywords: Respiratory Conditions, Risk, Diagnostic Safety and Quality, Emergency Department, Imaging, Guidelines
Trent SA, Johnson MA, Morse EA
Patient, provider, and environmental factors associated with adherence to cardiovascular and cerebrovascular clinical practice guidelines in the ED.
The primary objectives of this study were to estimate differences in emergency department (ED) adherence across coronary-related clinical practice guidelines (CPGs) and identify patient, provider, and environmental factors associated with adherence. The investigators found that adherence to ED CPGs for acute coronary syndrome, ST-elevation myocardial infarction, or acute ischemic stroke, differs significantly between cardiovascular and cerebrovascular diseases and is more likely to occur when the diagnosis is highly suggested by the patient's complaint and acknowledged as the primary diagnosis by the treating ED physician.
AHRQ-funded; HS022400.
Citation: Trent SA, Johnson MA, Morse EA .
Patient, provider, and environmental factors associated with adherence to cardiovascular and cerebrovascular clinical practice guidelines in the ED.
Am J Emerg Med 2018 Aug;36(8):1397-404. doi: 10.1016/j.ajem.2017.12.062..
Keywords: Cardiovascular Conditions, Emergency Department, Guidelines, Practice Patterns
Kim HS, McCarthy DM, Hoppe JA
Emergency department provider perspectives on benzodiazepine-opioid coprescribing: a qualitative study.
This study examined attitudes of emergency department residents, attending physicians, and pharmacists from three hospitals on coprescribing benzodiazepines and opioids. There is mounting evidence that this increases overdose risk. Focus groups were conducted using semistructured interviews which were audio-recorded and transcribed. Participants were reluctant to admit coprescribing and said when they did that specific discharge instructions were provided. The decision was also influenced by a provider’s belief in the efficacy of combination therapy as well as self-imposed pressure to escalate care or avoid hospital admission. They did not like the idea of using computerized alerts, but were support of pharmacist-assisted interventions.
AHRQ-funded; HS023011; HS000078.
Citation: Kim HS, McCarthy DM, Hoppe JA .
Emergency department provider perspectives on benzodiazepine-opioid coprescribing: a qualitative study.
Acad Emerg Med 2018 Jan;25(1):15-24. doi: 10.1111/acem.13273..
Keywords: Emergency Department, Guidelines, Medication, Opioids, Practice Patterns, Provider: Clinician, Provider: Pharmacist, Provider: Physician
Sharp AL, Huang BZ, Tang T
Implementation of the Canadian CT Head Rule and Its association with use of computed tomography among patients with head injury.
The researchers evaluated the association of implementation of the Canadian CT Head Rule on head computed tomography (CT) imaging in community emergency departments (EDs). They found that a multicomponent implementation of the Canadian CT Head Rule was associated with a modest reduction in CT use and an increased diagnostic yield of head CTs for adult trauma encounters in community EDs.
AHRQ-funded; HS021271.
Citation: Sharp AL, Huang BZ, Tang T .
Implementation of the Canadian CT Head Rule and Its association with use of computed tomography among patients with head injury.
Ann Emerg Med 2018 Jan;71(1):54-63.e2. doi: 10.1016/j.annemergmed.2017.06.022.
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Keywords: Brain Injury, Clinical Decision Support (CDS), Shared Decision Making, Emergency Department, Guidelines, Healthcare Utilization, Imaging
Probst MA, Kanzaria HK, Schoenfeld EM
Shared decisionmaking in the emergency department: a guiding framework for clinicians.
The authors developed a simple framework to illustrate how shared decisionmaking should be approached in clinical practice. They believe it should be the preferred or default approach to decisionmaking, except in clinical situations in which 3 factors interfere. These 3 factors are lack of clinical uncertainty or equipoise, patient decisionmaking ability, and time, all of which can render shared decisionmaking infeasible. The authors next discuss how to address each factor.
AHRQ-funded; HS021271; HS024311.
Citation: Probst MA, Kanzaria HK, Schoenfeld EM .
Shared decisionmaking in the emergency department: a guiding framework for clinicians.
Ann Emerg Med 2017 Nov;70(5):688-95. doi: 10.1016/j.annemergmed.2017.03.063.
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Keywords: Shared Decision Making, Emergency Department, Emergency Medical Services (EMS), Evidence-Based Practice, Guidelines
Wang RC
Managing urolithiasis.
More than 1 million patients with suspected urolithiasis present to an emergency department (ED) each year in the United States. This review describes ED evaluation, therapies and the identification of patients who require urgent urologic intervention, with recommendations based on clinical trials; on guidelines from the American College of Emergency Physicians (ACEP), American College of Radiology, and American Urologic Association; and on anecdotal experience.
AHRQ-funded; HS021281.
Citation: Wang RC .
Managing urolithiasis.
Ann Emerg Med 2016 Apr;67(4):449-54. doi: 10.1016/j.annemergmed.2015.10.021.
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Keywords: Diagnostic Safety and Quality, Emergency Department, Guidelines
Kessler DO, Walsh B, Whitfill T
Disparities in adherence to pediatric sepsis guidelines across a spectrum of emergency departments: a multicenter, cross-sectional observational in situ simulation study.
The authors sought to measure and compare adherence to pediatric sepsis guidelines across a spectrum of emergency departments. They found that among 47 teams across 24 emergency departments, adherent teams had significantly higher Emergency Medical Services for Children readiness scores, MD composition of physicians to total team members, teamwork scores, provider perceptions of pediatric preparedness, and provider perceptions of sepsis preparedness. They concluded that only composite team experience level of the providers was associated with improved guideline adherence.
AHRQ-funded; HS020286.
Citation: Kessler DO, Walsh B, Whitfill T .
Disparities in adherence to pediatric sepsis guidelines across a spectrum of emergency departments: a multicenter, cross-sectional observational in situ simulation study.
J Emerg Med 2016 Mar;50(3):403-15.e1-3. doi: 10.1016/j.jemermed.2015.08.004.
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Keywords: Emergency Department, Disparities, Guidelines, Children/Adolescents, Sepsis
Probst MA, Dayan PS, Raja AS
Knowledge translation and barriers to imaging optimization in the emergency department: a research agenda.
This article outlines a research agenda to promote the dissemination and implementation (also known as knowledge translation) of evidence-based interventions for emergency department (ED) imaging, i.e., clinical pathways, clinical decision instruments, and clinical practice guidelines. A multidisciplinary group of stakeholders held online and telephone discussions over a 6-month period culminating at the 2015 Academic Emergency Medicine consensus conference. They were able to identify four overarching research questions.
AHRQ-funded; HS023498.
Citation: Probst MA, Dayan PS, Raja AS .
Knowledge translation and barriers to imaging optimization in the emergency department: a research agenda.
Acad Emerg Med 2015 Dec;22(12):1455-64. doi: 10.1111/acem.12830.
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Keywords: Emergency Department, Evidence-Based Practice, Health Services Research (HSR), Guidelines, Imaging, Implementation
Smith-Bindman R, Moghadassi M, Griffey RT
Computed tomography radiation dose in patients with suspected urolithiasis.
The researchers determined the radiation doses of CT scans for suspected urolithiasis in the emergency department setting. They found that less than 8 percent of patients received appropriately low-dose CT for suspected urolithiasis. Furthermore, they found a 200-fold variation in dose between patients and a 5-fold variation in median dose across hospitals.
AHRQ-funded; HS019312.
Citation: Smith-Bindman R, Moghadassi M, Griffey RT .
Computed tomography radiation dose in patients with suspected urolithiasis.
JAMA Intern Med 2015 Aug;175(8):1413-6. doi: 10.1001/jamainternmed.2015.2697..
Keywords: Emergency Department, Guidelines, Imaging, Emergency Medical Services (EMS)