Patient Experiences Navigating Care Coordination For Long COVID: A Qualitative Study.

BACKGROUND: Little is known about how to best evaluate, diagnose, and treat long COVID, which presents challenges for patients as they seek care. OBJECTIVE: Understand experiences of patients as they navigate care for long COVID. DESIGN: Qualitative study involving interviews with patients about topics related to seeking and receiving care for long COVID. PARTICIPANTS: Eligible patients were at least 18 years of age, spoke English, self-identified as functioning well prior to COVID infection, and reported long COVID symptoms continued to impact their lives at 3 months or more after a COVID infection. APPROACH: Patients were recruited from a post-COVID recovery clinic at an academic medical center from August to September 2022. Interviews were audio-recorded, transcribed, and analyzed using thematic analysis. KEY RESULTS: Participants (n=21) reported experiences related to elements of care coordination: access to care, evaluation, treatment, and ongoing care concerns. Some patients noted access to care was facilitated by having providers that listened to and validated their symptoms; other patients reported feeling their access to care was hindered by providers who did not believe or understand their symptoms. Patients reported confusion around how to communicate their symptoms when being evaluated for long COVID, and they expressed frustration with receiving test results that were normal or diagnoses that were not directly attributed to long COVID. Patients acknowledged that clinicians are still learning how to treat long COVID, and they voiced appreciation for providers who are willing to try new treatment approaches. Patients expressed ongoing care concerns, including feeling there is nothing more that can be done, and questioned long-term impacts on their aging and life expectancy. CONCLUSIONS: Our findings shed light on challenges faced by patients with long COVID as they seek care. Healthcare systems and providers should consider these challenges when developing strategies to improve care coordination for patients with long COVID.

Gaps in Patient-Centered Decision-Making Related to Complex Surgery: A Mixed-Methods Study.

INTRODUCTION: We sought to understand the perceptions of surgeons around patient preferred roles in decision-making and their approaches to patient-centered decision-making (PCDM). METHODS: A concurrent embedded mixed-methods design was utilized among a cohort of surgeons performing complex surgical procedures. Data were collected through online surveys. Associations between perceptions and PCDM approaches were examined. RESULTS: Among 241 participants, most respondents were male (67.2%) with an average age of 47.6 y (standard deviation = 10.3); roughly half (52.4%) had practiced medicine for 10 or more years. Surgeons most frequently agreed (94.2%) with the statement, "Patients prefer to make health decisions on their own after seriously considering their physician's opinion." Conversely, surgeons most frequently disagreed (73.0%) with the statement, "Patients prefer that their physician make health decisions for them." Nearly one-third (30.4%) of surgeon qualitative responses (n = 115) indicated that clinical/biological information would help them tailor their approach to PCDM. Only 12.2% of respondents indicated that they assess patient preferences regarding both decision-making and information needs. CONCLUSIONS: Surgeons most frequently agree that patients want to make their own health decisions after seriously considering their physicians opinion. A greater focus on what information surgeons should know before treatment decision-making may help optimize patient experience and outcomes related to complex surgical procedures.

A Journey Through Grief: Experiences of Loss Among Patients With Long COVID.

Long COVID is a growing health concern with data continuing to emerge about the psychosocial consequences of this new chronic condition. We aimed to improve understanding of the experiences of patients with Long COVID, focusing on emotional impacts arising from experiences of loss and grief caused by persistent physical symptoms and changes in lifestyle and social support. Patients (n = 21) were recruited August to September 2022 from a post-COVID recovery clinic to participate in semistructured interviews. We found that Long COVID patients (1) reported experiencing loss across multiple domains including loss of physical health, mental health, social support and connections, roles in their families, and self-identities, and (2) described experiences of grief that mirrored the 5 stages of grief in the Kubler-Ross model: denial, anger, bargaining, depression, and for some, acceptance. Our findings highlight the importance of evaluating the experiences of loss and grief among Long COVID patients as well as support systems for this patient population. Providers may be encouraged to incorporate mental health and bereavement support resources to address critical needs of Long COVID patients.

Which factors influence the approach to shared decision-making among surgeons performing complex operations?

BACKGROUND: Shared decision-making (SDM) aims to create a context in which patients and surgeons work together to explore treatment options and goals of care. The objective of the current study was to characterize demographic factors, behaviors, and perceptions of patient involvement among surgeons relative to SDM. METHODS: Using a cross-sectional survey methodology, surgeon demographics, behaviors, and perceptions of patient involvement were assessed. Surgeon approaches to SDM were measured using a 100-point scale ranging from 'patient-led' (0) to 'surgeon-led' (100). RESULTS: Among 241 respondents, most were male (n = 123, 67.2%) and White (n = 124, 69.3%); roughly one-half of surgeons had been in practice ≥10 years (n = 120, 52.4%). Surgeon approaches to SDM ranged from 0 to 81.0, with a median rating of 50.0 (IQR: 35.5, 62.0). Reported approaches to SDM were associated with years in practice, sharing information, and perceptions of patient involvement. Surgeons in practice 10 + years most frequently utilized a 'Shared, Patient-led' approach to SDM (27.5%), while individuals with less experience more often employed a 'Shared, Surgeon-led' approach (33.3%, p = 0.031). Surgeons with a 'Patient-led' approach perceived patient involvement as most important (M = 3.82, SD = 0.16), while respondents who had a 'Surgeon-led' approach considered this less important (M = 3.57, SD = 0.38; p < 0.001). CONCLUSION: Surgeon factors including demographics, behaviors, and perceptions of patient involvement influenced SDM approaches. SDM between patients and surgeons should strive to be more dynamic and tailored to each specific patient's needs to promote optimal patient-centered care.

When Infections Are Found: A Qualitative Study Characterizing Best Management Practices for Central Line-Associated Bloodstream Infection and Catheter-Associated Urinary Tract Infection Performance Monitoring and Feedback.

Healthcare-associated infections (HAIs) remain a significant patient safety problem that can lead to illness and death, despite the implementation of clinical bundles to prevent HAIs. Management practices can support HAI prevention, but their role in HAI performance monitoring and feedback is not well understood. To address this knowledge gap, we previously conducted semi-structured interviews with staff at 18 hospitals to examine the role of management practices around the prevention of central line-associated bloodstream infections (CLABSIs) and catheter-associated urinary tract infections (CAUTIs). Interview transcripts were analyzed to identify themes related to HAI performance monitoring and feedback. The current analysis focuses on 10 higher-performing hospitals that were successful in preventing CLABSIs and CAUTIs. These institutions had robust practices including timely event analysis, leadership engagement, and multidisciplinary participation in HAI reviews. Across these sites, we found common goals including investigating HAIs without blame and identifying opportunities for improvement. Management practices such as timely analysis of HAIs, collaboration between facility leadership and multidisciplinary team members, and a focus on identifying the failure of a procedure or protocol, rather than the failure of staff members, are all approaches that can support infection prevention efforts. These management practices may be especially important as hospitals attempt to address increases in CLABSI and CAUTI rates that may have occurred during the coronavirus pandemic.