A Medical Financial Partnership in a Pediatric Medical Home.

The Volunteer Income Tax Assistance (VITA) program is an underutilized free taxpreparation service that directly addresses poverty by maximizing tax refunds. A pediatric medical home (PMH) with an embedded VITA site provides an excellent opportunity for a medical-financial partnership. We sought to assess the knowledge, attitudes, and practices of caregivers of children who used a PMH after embedding a VITA site. We found that a PMH-VITA site was a convenient, trusted, useful, and potentially tax-filing behaviorchanging intervention. Importantly, most caregivers who did not use the PMH-VITA site had no knowledge of availability of free tax filing services but would consider using one the following year. Improved marketing is needed to increase utilization in our target population.

Open medical records.

This is the third in a series of articles from Planetree, an international nonprofit organization founded in 1978 that's "committed to improving medical care from the patient's perspective." For more information, go to www.planetree.org.

Discharge patterns of patients with asthma from the emergency department: a retrospective review.

BACKGROUND: Despite evidence that specific therapies improve outcomes in patients with asthma, they are often not used. Combining several evidence-based therapies into a treatment "bundle" to be offered at the time of discharge from the emergency department, might reduce variation and potentially optimize clinical outcomes. OBJECTIVE: To assess the utilization of four evidence-based therapies for asthma by analyzing the visits of patients with acute exacerbations of asthma discharged from the emergency department. DESIGN: A retrospective chart review. SETTING: Single 650-bed inner-city hospital emergency department. PATIENTS: Two hundred and twenty six patients discharged from the emergency department after 500 acute exacerbations of asthma. MEASUREMENTS: All visits were reviewed for the presence of the four evidence-based components of asthma treatment upon discharge: follow-up referral, oral steroids, asthma education, and inhaled corticosteroids. Visits were also assessed for medications prescribed upon discharge, medication history, and patient's asthma severity based on national guidelines. RESULTS: The four components of asthma treatment were documented as follows: follow-up referral (86.2%), oral steroids (67.8%), asthma education (19.6%), and inhaled corticosteroids (16.2%). Only 3.4% of visits documented all four components in the aggregate. Twenty-three distinct combinations of medication were prescribed upon discharge. The majority of visits failed to document asthma severity. CONCLUSIONS: This retrospective chart review reveals significant variation in the discharge management of patients with asthma, specifically regarding medications prescribed. While follow-up referral was sufficiently documented, the remaining three components were not. With only 3.4% of visits containing all four components, implementing an asthma "bundle" may present an opportunity to improve outcomes in asthma management.

Comparison of pharmacodynamic target attainment between healthy subjects and patients for ceftazidime and meropenem.

STUDY OBJECTIVE: To compare the pharmacodynamics of two beta-lactams--ceftazidime and meropenem--in healthy subjects versus patients. DESIGN: Monte Carlo simulation based on published pharmacokinetic studies. SUBJECTS: One hundred and ninety-seven participants (75 healthy volunteers and 122 patients) from published pharmacokinetic studies of ceftazidime or meropenem. MEASUREMENTS AND MAIN RESULTS: Data on total body clearance and volume of distribution for ceftazidime and meropenem in healthy subjects and patients were obtained from published studies. Monte Carlo simulations were performed based on the pharmacokinetics from each study for ceftazidime 1000 mg every 8 hours and meropenem 1000 mg every 8 hours against isolates of Escherichia coli , Klebsiella pneumoniae , Acinetobacter baumannii , and Pseudomonas aeruginosa collected from North and South America. We calculated the likelihood of obtaining bactericidal exposures (50% time above the minimum inhibitory concentration [MIC] for ceftazidime and 40% time above the MIC for meropenem) for each combination of pharmacokinetic study data and MIC distribution. Linear regression was used to compare target attainments for healthy subjects versus patients. Only three drug-pathogen combinations differed in target attainment between healthy subjects and patients: ceftazidime against P. aeruginosa in North America and meropenem against E. coli and P. aeruginosa in South America. The regression line of target attainment for patients versus healthy subjects had a slope of 1.04 (95% confidence interval [CI] 0.983-1.093) and a y intercept of -3.73 (95% CI -8.265-0.827, r2 = 0.992). The beta values for slope and intercept did not differ to a statistically significant extent between the regression line and the line of identity (p=0.264). CONCLUSION: The pharmacodynamic target attainment calculated with healthy subject pharmacokinetic data was predictive of patient target target attainment for ceftazidime and meropenem.

Effect of aprotinin on the frequency of postoperative atrial fibrillation or flutter.

PURPOSE: The relationship between adding aprotinin to standard care and the frequency of postoperative atrial fibrillation or flutter (POAF) in patients undergoing cardiothoracic surgery (CTS) with cardiopulmonary bypass (CPB) was studied. METHODS: This was a retrospective cohort evaluation. All patients at a hospital who underwent CTS with CPB between October 1999 and October 2003 and who received aprotinin during surgery were included in the treatment group. Control patients were those who did not receive aprotinin; they were matched with treatment group patients for age, valvular surgery, history of atrial fibrillation or flutter, renal dysfunction, peripheral artery disease, smoking, angina, diabetes mellitus, congestive heart failure, previous CTS, sex, beta-blocker intolerance, and use of preoperative digoxin. The primary endpoint was POAF; secondary endpoints were perioperative transfusion use, length of stay (LOS), stroke, myocardial infarction, renal failure, graft occlusion, and death. RESULTS: A total of 438 patients (219 per group) were evaluated. The patients' mean age was 68 years, 67% were men, and 74% had had valvular surgery. Patients who received aprotinin (mean +/- S.D. dose, 2.75 million +/- 1.24 million kallikrein-inhibiting units) did not have a significantly lower frequency of POAF than control patients (28% versus 27%, respectively [p = 0.92]), nor was there a significant difference in secondary endpoints. CONCLUSION: Aprotinin therapy was not associated with a significant reduction in POAF in patients undergoing CTS with CPB. Perioperative transfusion use, LOS, stroke, myocardial infarction, renal failure, graft occlusion, and mortality also did not differ significantly between aprotinin and control groups.

Impact of prophylactic postoperative beta-blockade on post-cardiothoracic surgery length of stay and atrial fibrillation.

BACKGROUND: Previous studies have shown that post-cardiothoracic surgery atrial fibrillation (AF) increases the risk of hospital length of stay (LOS), overall mortality, pulmonary edema, and need for a balloon pump. A meta-analysis of 2 previous trials showed a nonsignificant reduction in LOS with postoperative beta-blockers but only encompassed 1200 patients, with few valve surgery patients, and neither study used a hospital within the US. OBJECTIVE: To evaluate the impact of postoperative beta-blockers on LOS and AF. Secondary endpoints of overall mortality, pulmonary edema, and need for an intra-aortic balloon pump (IABP) were also evaluated between groups. METHODS: This was a prospective cohort evaluation of all patients undergoing cardiothoracic surgery at our institution between October 1999 and October 2003. Patients receiving prophylactic postoperative beta-blockers were matched (1:1) with patients not receiving prophylaxis for age >70 years, valvular surgery, history of AF, gender, and use of preoperative digoxin and beta-blockers. RESULTS: Patients (n = 1660) receiving postoperative beta-blockade had a reduction in LOS (mean +/- SD 10.22 +/- 11.38 vs 12.40 +/- 15.67; p = 0.001) and AF (23.5% vs 28.4%; p = 0.02). Mortality, pulmonary edema, and need for IABP were reduced by >50% (p < 0.001; p = 0.001; p < 0.001, respectively), while myocardial infarction and stroke were not significantly impacted. CONCLUSIONS: In this observational cohort study, prophylactic postoperative beta-blocker use was associated with shorter hospital LOS by an average of 2.2 days and a 17.3% lower incidence of AF. It may also be associated with reductions in overall mortality, pulmonary edema, and need for an IABP.

Economic analysis of intravenous plus oral amiodarone, atrial septal pacing, and both strategies to prevent atrial fibrillation after open heart surgery.

STUDY OBJECTIVES: To compare the cost-effectiveness of intravenous plus oral amiodarone, atrial septal pacing, and both strategies combined to prevent atrial fibrillation after open heart surgery. Secondary objectives were to compare the cost-effectiveness of amiodarone versus no amiodarone and of pacing versus no pacing, and to compare hospitalization costs of the various strategies. DESIGN: Piggyback cost analysis of a randomized, 2 x 2 factorial trial. SETTING: Urban academic hospital. PATIENTS: One hundred and sixty patients with coronary artery and/or valvular disease. INTERVENTION: Patients were randomized to receive amiodarone or matching placebo and then further randomized to receive atrial septal pacing or no pacing. MEASUREMENTS AND MAIN RESULTS: The economic analysis was conducted from a hospital perspective. Charges were converted to costs using cost:charge ratios. For the cost-effectiveness analysis, a joint distribution of costs and effectiveness was performed using the nonparametric bootstrap method. Amiodarone plus pacing significantly decreased the frequency of atrial fibrillation after open heart surgery, compared with amiodarone alone, pacing alone, and placebo. Total costs (mean+/-SD) were $27,026+/-30,226 for the placebo group, $22,725+/-17,661 for the amiodarone group, $33,868+/-60,309 for the pacing group, and $18,697+/-8174 for the amiodarone plus pacing group (p=0.27). In the joint distribution cost-effectiveness analysis, when compared with placebo, the probability of lower cost but higher effect (superiority) was 67% for amiodarone, 15% for pacing, and 97% for amiodarone plus pacing. In the multivariate analysis, preoperative beta-blockers and amiodarone were negatively associated with hospital costs (p<0.05). CONCLUSIONS: Data suggest that both amiodarone alone and the combination of amiodarone plus pacing are cost-effective compared with placebo. Additional comparative studies of these strategies are warranted to confirm these findings.

Awareness about factors that affect the management of hypertension in Puerto Rican patients.

INTRODUCTION: There are few published reports describing the health status of Hispanic populations in the United States with chronic illnesses, such as hypertension. Most studies on hypertension in Hispanics are on Mexican-Americans and little data exist for other Hispanic subgroups, such as Puerto Ricans. Health-related issues specific to a particular Hispanic subgroup may not be generalizable to all Hispanics. Patients' perceptions and awareness of health-related issues specific to a particular medical condition play an important role in the management and outcome. OBJECTIVE: The primary objective of the study is to determine if patients' general perceptions of hypertension, hypertension-related risk factors, complications, and life-style behavior modifications correlated with various patient demographics, such as age, gender, primary language, education level, socioeconomic status, marital status, health insurance category, and employment status. The working hypothesis is that patients who are older, unmarried, less educated, Spanish-speaking only, unemployed, and have low income, are more likely to report lack of awareness to various hypertension-related issues. SETTING: Hospital-based ambulatory center with major emphasis on providing care to underserved populations of the surrounding community, of which Puerto Ricans comprised the predominant ethnic group. STUDY DESIGN: A single, bilingual interviewer administered a series of questions to Hispanic, hypertensive patients. Questions were divided into the following seven categories: patient knowledge and perception of the disease; diet and salt intake; tobacco use; alcohol use; weight control and exercise; and medication and alternative therapy use. Within each category were various questions designed to study the patients' knowledge of hypertension, self-reported compliance with behavior modifications, and patient education on these behaviors. Data from 19 Puerto Rican patients were collected and chi-square tests and pothoc power analyses were performed. Responses to the various questions were correlated to patient demographics and socioeconomic variables. RESULTS: Use of herbal teas correlated significantly with the patients' primary language. Twenty-one percent of the patients who spoke Spanish only used herbal teas for treatment of their hypertension. All patients who reported herbal medication or tea use had a middle school education. There were many trends towards statistical significance in the following categories: patient perceptions and level of formal education; patient knowledge of hypertension and language spoken; salt intake and years of schooling; and correlation of herbal use with employment status, health insurance statu, and age. CONCLUSION: Additional research must be undertaken with larger sample sizes to give validity and statistical significance to the observed findings. This study and previous research, demonstrate some of the special issues that may need to be considered in the delivery of health care to specific Hispanic patient populations.

The impact of re-engineering a multi-institutional residency program on resident perceptions of the individual institutions.

PURPOSE: We report on the development of a survey tool used to assess resident perceptions of support and educational quality among multiple institutions in an integrated surgical residency, as well as its use in measuring the impact of re-engineering on that program. METHODS: The University of Connecticut Integrated General Surgical Residency (UCIGSR) is a multisite program that was placed on probation by the Residency Review Committee in Surgery (RRC) in November 1998. This led to a re-evaluation and a re-engineering of the program. In order to better assess the residents' evaluation of the program, we serially examined their attitudes with a survey of 65 questions. A 4-point grading scale (1 = Poor, 4 = Excellent) was used, and each resident was required to complete a survey beginning shortly after RRC probation was announced and at 6-month intervals. Seven global questions in the survey, directed at residency program support and educational quality, were asked for each of the 4 individual adult hospitals, for a total of 28 questions. Statistical analysis of the data was performed using the Jonckhere-Terpstra and the Mann-Whitney U tests. RESULTS: The results demonstrated significant improvement for all 7 questions in all 4 hospitals between November 1998 (S1) and November 1999 (S3). Average scores for all 7 questions, Hospital Support (HS), Departmental Support (DS), Hospital Teaching (HT), Outpatient Teaching (OTC), Operating Room Teaching (ORT), Grand Rounds (GR), and Morbidity and Mortality Conferences (MM), improved in every hospital by 16-28%. In S1, 1 out of 28 questions received an average score greater than or equal to 3, whereas on the most recent survey, 17 of 28 scored greater than or equal to 3 and 78.5% of the questions demonstrated statistically significant improvement (p < 0.05). Three of the 4 hospitals now have a combined overall average score greater than or equal to 3 for all 7 questions. Areas of strength in each hospital had the least amount of improvement yet remained highly rated. CONCLUSIONS: The survey was able to detect weaknesses and variation in program support and educational quality among institutions in our surgical program. Over time, a re-engineering of the process of educating surgical residents demonstrated a positive effect on all of the institutions. While raising the overall satisfaction level of the residents throughout, the greatest improvement occurred in the lowest rated hospitals. Despite barriers of different institutional cultures and geographic locations, a multi-institutional residency program can institute positive change uniformly, and quantitatively monitor that change.