National Healthcare Quality and Disparities Report
Latest available findings on quality of and access to health care
Data
- Data Infographics
- Data Visualizations
- Data Tools
- Data Innovations
- All-Payer Claims Database
- Healthcare Cost and Utilization Project (HCUP)
- Medical Expenditure Panel Survey (MEPS)
- AHRQ Quality Indicator Tools for Data Analytics
- State Snapshots
- United States Health Information Knowledgebase (USHIK)
- Data Sources Available from AHRQ
Search All Research Studies
Topics
- Ambulatory Care and Surgery (1)
- Back Health and Pain (1)
- Chronic Conditions (4)
- Clinician-Patient Communication (4)
- (-) Communication (6)
- Comparative Effectiveness (1)
- Diagnostic Safety and Quality (1)
- Education: Patient and Caregiver (1)
- Emergency Department (1)
- Imaging (1)
- Medication (2)
- Opioids (3)
- (-) Pain (6)
- Patient-Centered Healthcare (1)
- Primary Care (1)
- Social Media (1)
AHRQ Research Studies
Sign up: AHRQ Research Studies Email updates
Research Studies is a compilation of published research articles funded by AHRQ or authored by AHRQ researchers.
Results
1 to 6 of 6 Research Studies DisplayedMeisel ZF, Shofer F, Dolan A
AHRQ Author: Rhodes KV
A multicentered randomized controlled trial comparing the effectiveness of pain treatment communication tools in emergency department patients with back or kidney stone pain.
The purpose of this trial was to compare the effectiveness of three approaches for communicating opioid risk during an emergency department visit for a common painful condition. Participants were adult patients with kidney stone or musculoskeletal back pain, randomly assigned to one of three risk communication strategies: a personalized probabilistic risk visual aid, a visual aid and video narrative, or general risk information. Findings showed that an emergency medicine communication tool incorporating probabilistic risk and patient narratives was more effective than general information in mitigating preferences for opioids in the treatment of pain but was not more effective with respect to opioid use or risk recall.
AHRQ-authored.
Citation: Meisel ZF, Shofer F, Dolan A .
A multicentered randomized controlled trial comparing the effectiveness of pain treatment communication tools in emergency department patients with back or kidney stone pain.
Am J Public Health 2022 Feb;112(S1):S45-s55. doi: 10.2105/ajph.2021.306511..
Keywords: Pain, Emergency Department, Education: Patient and Caregiver, Opioids, Comparative Effectiveness, Clinician-Patient Communication, Communication
Fenton JJ, Jerant A, Franks P
Watchful waiting as a strategy to reduce low-value spinal imaging: study protocol for a randomized trial.
This paper describes the protocol that will be used for an upcoming randomized control trial to determine the effectiveness of teaching clinicians how to advise watchful waiting when patients request low-value spinal imaging for acute low back pain. The authors will recruit 8-10 primary care and urgent care clinics in Sacramento, California. The study will last 3-6 months and during this time clinicians in the intervention group with receive 3 visits with standardized patient instructors (SPIs) portraying patients with acute back pain. The SPIs will instruct clinicians in a 3-step model emphasizing trust, empathic communication, and negotiation of a watchful waiting approach. The primary outcome looked for will a decreased post-intervention rate of spinal imaging among actual patients with acute back pain compared to the rate of imaging during the baseline period. Secondary outcomes will include use of targeted communication techniques during a follow-up visit with an SP.
AHRQ-funded; HS026415.
Citation: Fenton JJ, Jerant A, Franks P .
Watchful waiting as a strategy to reduce low-value spinal imaging: study protocol for a randomized trial.
Trials 2021 Feb 27;22(1):167. doi: 10.1186/s13063-021-05106-x..
Keywords: Back Health and Pain, Pain, Chronic Conditions, Imaging, Diagnostic Safety and Quality, Clinician-Patient Communication, Communication
Hood-Medland EA, White AEC, Kravitz RL
Agenda setting and visit openings in primary care visits involving patients taking opioids for chronic pain.
This study looked at primary care visit opening styles to assess use of agenda and non-agenda setting visit openings and their effects on participant experience with patients taking opioids for chronic pain. The study analyzed 83 video-recorded US primary care visits at a single academic medical center in California. A total of 49 family medicine and internal resident physicians and 83 patients were filmed. The authors developed a coding scheme that assessed the presence of agenda setting, distinct visit opening styles, and the number of total topics, major topics, surprise patient topics, and returns to prior topics discusses. They identified 2 visit opening styles with agenda setting (agenda eliciting, agenda reframing) and 3 non-agenda opening styles (open-ended question, patient launch, physician launch). Only 11% of visits included agenda setting and was associated with fewer surprise patient topics than visits without agenda setting.
AHRQ-funded; HS022236.
Citation: Hood-Medland EA, White AEC, Kravitz RL .
Agenda setting and visit openings in primary care visits involving patients taking opioids for chronic pain.
BMC Fam Pract 2021 Jan 4;22(1):4. doi: 10.1186/s12875-020-01317-4..
Keywords: Primary Care, Opioids, Medication, Pain, Chronic Conditions, Clinician-Patient Communication, Communication, Ambulatory Care and Surgery
Rolbiecki AJ, Teti M, Crenshaw B
Exploring lived experiences of chronic pain through photo-elicitation and social networking.
The purpose of this study was to understand how patients' use of photo-elicitation and online social networks (Facebook) enhances their understanding of what it means to live with pain. The investigators concluded that photo-elicitation is an innovative way to shed light on patients' lived experience with chronic pain. Despite some technical challenges, Facebook support groups utilizing photo-elicitation can provide a readily available platform that can facilitate interchange of patient experiences and might help patients communicate with their providers.
AHRQ-funded; HS022140.
Citation: Rolbiecki AJ, Teti M, Crenshaw B .
Exploring lived experiences of chronic pain through photo-elicitation and social networking.
Pain Med 2019 Jun;20(6):1202-11. doi: 10.1093/pm/pny175..
Keywords: Pain, Chronic Conditions, Social Media, Communication
Jonassaint CR, Rao N, Sciuto A
Abstract animations for the communication and assessment of pain in adults: cross-sectional feasibility study.
The aim of this study was to develop and test Painimation, a novel tool that uses graphic visualizations and animations instead of words or numeric scales to assess pain quality, intensity, and course. The study concluded that using animations may be a faster and more patient-centered method for assessing pain and is not limited by age, literacy level, or language; however, more data are needed to assess the validity of this approach.
AHRQ-funded; HS022989.
Citation: Jonassaint CR, Rao N, Sciuto A .
Abstract animations for the communication and assessment of pain in adults: cross-sectional feasibility study.
J Med Internet Res 2018 Aug 3;20(8):e10056. doi: 10.2196/10056..
Keywords: Chronic Conditions, Communication, Pain, Patient-Centered Healthcare
Hughes HK, Korthuis PT, Saha S
A mixed methods study of patient-provider communication about opioid analgesics.
The researchers sought to describe patient-provider communication about opioid pain medicine and explore how these discussions affect provider attitudes toward patients. They found that pain management discussions are common in routine outpatient HIV encounters and providers may regard patients less favorably if opioids are discussed during visits. The sometimes-adversarial nature of these discussions may negatively affect provider attitudes toward patients.
AHRQ-funded; 290010012; HS013903.
Citation: Hughes HK, Korthuis PT, Saha S .
A mixed methods study of patient-provider communication about opioid analgesics.
Patient Educ Couns 2015 Apr;98(4):453-61. doi: 10.1016/j.pec.2014.12.003..
.
.
Keywords: Communication, Medication, Opioids, Pain, Clinician-Patient Communication