National Healthcare Quality and Disparities Report
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- (-) Ambulatory Care and Surgery (13)
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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 13 of 13 Research Studies DisplayedBajaj JS, Peña-Rodriguez M, La Reau A
Longitudinal transkingdom gut microbial approach towards decompensation in outpatients with cirrhosis.
The purpose of this study was to ascertain the crucial role of predicting the onset of initial decompensation development. It emphasizes the significance of transkingdom gut microbial interactions, including archaeal methanogens, as potential markers and predictors, and the need for a longitudinal approach to do so. The study included cirrhosis outpatients who were categorized into three groups: those with compensated cirrhosis in Group 1, those with one incidence of decompensation in Group 2, and those with more than one incidence of decompensation in Group 3. Group 3 was further divided based on stability or further decompensation. The presence of bacteria, viruses, and archaea, along with α/β diversity and temporal taxa fluctuations adjusted for clinical variables were analyzed. The study tracked 157 outpatients and found that between 28% and 47% of those patients developed outcomes. Baseline between those who remained stable/developed outcome: While no differences were seen in α/β diversity, commensals were lower and pathobionts were higher in those who decompensated. After decompensation: those experiencing their first decompensation showed a larger decrease in α/β-diversity, bacterial change and viral change vs those with further decompensation. Archaea: 19% had Methanobacter brevii, which was similar between/within groups. The study concluded that the largest changes in transkingdom gut microbial were observed in those reaching the first decompensation, compared with subsequent decompensating events.
AHRQ-funded; HS025412.
Citation: Bajaj JS, Peña-Rodriguez M, La Reau A .
Longitudinal transkingdom gut microbial approach towards decompensation in outpatients with cirrhosis.
Gut 2023 Apr; 72(4):759-71. doi: 10.1136/gutjnl-2022-328403.
AHRQ-funded; HS025412.
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AHRQ-funded; HS025412.
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Keywords: Chronic Conditions, Ambulatory Care and Surgery, Outcomes
Weiner M, Adeoye P, Boeh MJ
Continuous glucose monitoring and other wearable devices to assess hypoglycemia among older adult outpatients with diabetes mellitus.
The purpose of this study was to assess whether vulnerable older adults could use wearable devices, and explore Hypoglycemia frequency over a two week period. The researchers recruited 10 participants with diabetes mellitus to pilot test a continuous glucometer, physical activity monitor, electronic medication bottles, and smartphones which that provided prompts about medications, behaviors, and symptoms. A sample of 70 then wore glucometers and activity monitors and used the smartphone and bottles for a duration of 2 weeks and provided feedback. The study found that patients were interested in assistance with the interpretation of graphs, had challenges with keeping the glucometers attached. Nearly 23% of respondents indicated that they never check their blood sugars. In two weeks of monitoring, 73% had HG and 42% had serious, clinically significant HG.
AHRQ-funded; HS024384.
Citation: Weiner M, Adeoye P, Boeh MJ .
Continuous glucose monitoring and other wearable devices to assess hypoglycemia among older adult outpatients with diabetes mellitus.
Appl Clin Inform 2023 Jan; 14(1):37-44. doi: 10.1055/a-1975-4136..
Keywords: Elderly, Diabetes, Chronic Conditions, Ambulatory Care and Surgery, Patient Self-Management, Medical Devices
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
Stephens KA, Ike B, Baldwin LM
Challenges and approaches to population management of long-term opioid therapy patients.
Primary care is challenged with safely prescribing opioids for patients with chronic noncancer pain (CNCP), specifically to address risks for overdose, opioid use disorder, and death. In this study, the investigators identified sociotechnical challenges, approaches, and recommendations in primary care to effectively track and monitor patients on long-term opioid therapy, a key component for supporting adoption of opioid prescribing guidelines.
AHRQ-funded; HS023750.
Citation: Stephens KA, Ike B, Baldwin LM .
Challenges and approaches to population management of long-term opioid therapy patients.
J Am Board Fam Med 2021 Jan-Feb;34(1):89-98. doi: 10.3122/jabfm.2021.01.190100..
Keywords: Opioids, Pain, Chronic Conditions, Care Management, Medication, Primary Care, Ambulatory Care and Surgery
Curran RL, Kukhareva PV, Taft T
Integrated displays to improve chronic disease management in ambulatory care: a SMART on FHIR application informed by mixed-methods user testing.
This study’s objective was to evaluate a novel electronic health record (EHR) add-on application for chronic disease management that uses an integrated display to decrease user cognitive load, improve efficiency, and support clinical decision making. The authors designed an application using the technology framework known as SMART on FHIR (Substitutable Medical Applications and Reusable Technologies on Fast Healthcare Interoperability Resources). They used mixed methods to obtain user feedback on a prototype to support ambulatory providers managing chronic obstructive pulmonary disease. Two patient scenarios were presented to the participants using the regular EHR with and without access to their prototype. Results measured was the percentage of expert-recommended ideal care tasks completed. Timing, keyboard and mouse use, and participant surveys were also collected. The 13 participants complete more recommended care using the prototype (81% vs 48%) and recommended tasks per minute over long sessions. Keystrokes per task were also lower with the prototype (6 vs 18). While there was a learning curve for this application, it will increase efficiency and patient care with practice.
AHRQ-funded; HS026198.
Citation: Curran RL, Kukhareva PV, Taft T .
Integrated displays to improve chronic disease management in ambulatory care: a SMART on FHIR application informed by mixed-methods user testing.
J Am Med Inform Assoc 2020 Aug;27(8):1225-34. doi: 10.1093/jamia/ocaa099..
Keywords: Chronic Conditions, Electronic Health Records (EHRs), Health Information Technology (HIT), Care Management, Ambulatory Care and Surgery, Clinical Decision Support (CDS), Decision Making
Lafferty M, Fauer A, Wright N
Causes and consequences of chemotherapy delays in ambulatory oncology practices: a multisite qualitative study.
The purpose of this study was to examine the causes and consequences of chemotherapy treatment delays and possible solutions to improve quality of care. The authors identified four primary themes from the analysis that affect delays. They suggest future investigations to examine nurses' communication practices in the context of timely chemotherapy administration since communication and documentation technologies within healthcare settings continuously evolve.
AHRQ-funded; HS024914.
Citation: Lafferty M, Fauer A, Wright N .
Causes and consequences of chemotherapy delays in ambulatory oncology practices: a multisite qualitative study.
Oncol Nurs Forum 2020 Jul 1;47(4):417-27. doi: 10.1188/20.Onf.417-427..
Keywords: Treatments, Cancer, Ambulatory Care and Surgery, Quality of Care, Clinician-Patient Communication, Communication, Provider: Nurse, Provider, Nursing, Chronic Conditions
Ike B, Baldwin LM, Sutton S
Staff and clinician work-life perceptions after implementing systems-based improvements to opioid management.
The authors assessed the impact of implementing the Six Building Blocks on the work-life of primary care providers and staff. Six rural and rural-serving primary care organizations implemented the Six Building Blocks, with assistance from practice facilitators, clinical experts, and informatics specialists. The authors found that clinicians and staff reported improvement in their work-life after implementing the Six Building Blocks Program to improve opioid medication management and recommended further research on patient experiences specific to practice redesign programs.
AHRQ-funded; HS023750.
Citation: Ike B, Baldwin LM, Sutton S .
Staff and clinician work-life perceptions after implementing systems-based improvements to opioid management.
J Am Board Fam Med 2019 Sep-Oct;32(5):715-23. doi: 10.3122/jabfm.2019.05.190027.
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Keywords: Opioids, Pain, Chronic Conditions, Primary Care: Models of Care, Primary Care, Care Management, Ambulatory Care and Surgery, Quality Improvement, Medication, Provider, Clinician-Patient Communication
Cherrington AL, Khodneva Y, Richman JS
Impact of peer support on acute care visits and hospitalizations for individuals with diabetes and depressive symptoms: a cluster-randomized controlled trial.
This study examined the impact of peer support on the number of acute care visits and hospitalizations for individuals with diabetes with and without depressive symptoms. This randomized controlled trial was conducted from 2010-2012. One year of peer support was given to intervention participants, and the usual care to control participants. A Patient Health Questionnaire (PHQ-8) was given to participants to assess depression symptoms at the beginning of the trial, at 6 months and then at 12 months. There was a lower rate of acute care visits and hospitalizations in those patients with depressive symptoms in the intervention group, but it made no difference for individuals without depressive symptoms.
AHRQ-funded; HS013852.
Citation: Cherrington AL, Khodneva Y, Richman JS .
Impact of peer support on acute care visits and hospitalizations for individuals with diabetes and depressive symptoms: a cluster-randomized controlled trial.
Diabetes Care 2018 Dec;41(12):2463-70. doi: 10.2337/dc18-0550..
Keywords: Ambulatory Care and Surgery, Chronic Conditions, Depression, Diabetes, Hospitalization, Behavioral Health, Patient Self-Management
Stone C, Gebretsadik T, Lee RL
Trends in health care utilization for asthma exacerbations among diverse populations with asthma in the United States.
This article discusses trends in asthma hospitalization and outpatient visit rates from 2004 to 2010. The rates for all populations included in this study went down during the time period, in particular the population from the Tennessee Medicaid program (49%). Other populations used in the study included subjects 4 to 50 years enrolled in the US Department of Defense Military Health System (MHS), and 3 large integrated health delivery systems (IHCDS) of the Population Based Effectiveness in Asthma and Lung Diseases (PEAL) Network. The 3 PEAL health plans included Harvard Pilgrim Health Care, Kaiser Permanente Georgia, and Kaiser Permanent Northern California. A total of 473,524 subjects in those 3 study populations were identified. These downward trends are encouraging but need to continue, particularly in diverse populations.
AHRQ-funded; HS019669; HS022093.
Citation: Stone C, Gebretsadik T, Lee RL .
Trends in health care utilization for asthma exacerbations among diverse populations with asthma in the United States.
J Allergy Clin Immunol Pract 2018 Jan - Feb;6(1):295-97.e5. doi: 10.1016/j.jaip.2017.07.038..
Keywords: Asthma, Healthcare Utilization, Hospitalization, Healthcare Delivery, Chronic Conditions, Ambulatory Care and Surgery
Simon TD, Cawthon ML, Popalisky J
Development and validation of the Pediatric Medical Complexity Algorithm (PMCA) Version 2.0.
The Pediatric Medical Complexity Algorithm (PMCA) was developed to stratify children by level of medical complexity. The researchers sought to refine PMCA and evaluate its performance based on the duration of eligibility and completeness of Medicaid data. They concluded that PMCA version 2.0 identifies children with C-CD with good sensitivity and very good specificity when applied to Medicaid data.
AHRQ-funded; HS020506.
Citation: Simon TD, Cawthon ML, Popalisky J .
Development and validation of the Pediatric Medical Complexity Algorithm (PMCA) Version 2.0.
Hosp Pediatr 2017 Jul;7(7):373-77. doi: 10.1542/hpeds.2016-0173.
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Keywords: Chronic Conditions, Hospitals, Medicaid, Ambulatory Care and Surgery, Children/Adolescents
Cunha CB, D'Agata EM
Implementing an antimicrobial stewardship program in out-patient dialysis units.
The purpose of this review is to highlight the key elements and interventions of antimicrobial stewardship programs (ASP). The Infectious Disease Society of America and the Society of Healthcare Epidemiology of America have provided evidence-based guidelines for the development and implementation of an ASP. Many of their recommendations can be adapted to the out-patient dialysis setting.
AHRQ-funded; HS021666.
Citation: Cunha CB, D'Agata EM .
Implementing an antimicrobial stewardship program in out-patient dialysis units.
Curr Opin Nephrol Hypertens 2016 Nov;25(6):551-55. doi: 10.1097/mnh.0000000000000281.
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Keywords: Antimicrobial Stewardship, Antibiotics, Medication, Ambulatory Care and Surgery, Kidney Disease and Health, Chronic Conditions
Viswanathan M, Kahwati LC, Golin CE
Medication therapy management interventions in outpatient settings: a systematic review and meta-analysis.
Medication therapy management (MTM) services (also called clinical pharmacy services) aim to reduce medication-related problems and their downstream outcomes. The purpose of this study was to assess the effect of MTM interventions among outpatients with chronic illnesses. The investigators graded the evidence as insufficient for most outcomes because of inconsistency and imprecision that stemmed in part from underlying heterogeneity in populations and interventions.
AHRQ-funded; 290201200008I.
Citation: Viswanathan M, Kahwati LC, Golin CE .
Medication therapy management interventions in outpatient settings: a systematic review and meta-analysis.
JAMA Intern Med 2015 Jan;175(1):76-87. doi: 10.1001/jamainternmed.2014.5841..
Keywords: Medication, Ambulatory Care and Surgery, Chronic Conditions, Evidence-Based Practice, Patient-Centered Outcomes Research, Provider: Pharmacist, Provider
Navar-Boggan AM, Fanaroff A, Swaminathan A
The impact of a measurement and feedback intervention on blood pressure control in ambulatory cardiology practice.
This study evaluated the impact of a targeted provider feedback intervention on rates of blood pressure control. Providers received quarterly provider-specific reports over a period of one year for a group of 300 patients treated in outpatient cardiology clinic practices. These reports as a stand-alone intervention did not affect overall BP control rates in cardiology clinics.
AHRQ-funded; HS021092
Citation: Navar-Boggan AM, Fanaroff A, Swaminathan A .
The impact of a measurement and feedback intervention on blood pressure control in ambulatory cardiology practice.
Am Heart J. 2014 Apr;167(4):466-71. doi: 10.1016/j.ahj.2013.12.015..
Keywords: Blood Pressure, Ambulatory Care and Surgery, Diabetes, Chronic Conditions, Quality Measures, Quality of Care