Exploring the role of discretionary income as a social determinant of health.

OBJECTIVE: The object of this study is to explore the impact of discretionary income on the overall well-being of Americans. DATA SOURCE: The data source used for this study was 2017 Behavioral Risk Factor Surveillance System data comprising 12 states that used the Social Determinants of Health (SDOH) module. STUDY DESIGN: Multivariable logistic regression models were used to analyze the relationship between discretionary income and self-reported health status after adjusting for common SDOH measures, sociodemographic factors, chronic conditions, and perspectives and experiences of respondents regarding specific aspects of their health. Average marginal effects (AME) were reported. DATA COLLECTION/EXTRACTION METHODS: Not applicable. PRINCIPAL FINDINGS: At all income levels, those with discretionary income at the end of the month were 6-7 percentage points more likely to report better than average health than those with none, controlling for other factors (AME: 0.07, 95% CI: 0.02-0.12). CONCLUSION: Our study suggests that discretionary income has a role to play in overall health and well-being that goes beyond that of disposable income and may be an important resource for diverse communities.

Predictors of Pediatric Frequent Emergency Department Use Among 7.6 million Pediatric Patients in New York.

OBJECTIVE: This study examines the characteristics and factors associated with frequent emergency department (ED) utilization among the pediatric population. METHODS: We conducted a pooled cross-sectional secondary analysis using the Healthcare Cost and Utilization Project State Emergency and Inpatient Databases on ED visits to all hospitals in New York from 2011 to 2016 by patients aged 0 to 21. We used multivariable logistic and negative binomial regressions to investigate the predictors of multiple ED visits in the pediatric population. RESULTS: Overall, our study included 7.6 million pediatric patients who accounted for more than 12 million ED visits. Of those, 6.2% of patients were frequent ED users (≥4 visits/year), accounting for 20.8% of all ED visits (5.4 ED visits/year on average). The strongest predictors of frequent ED use were having at least one ED visit related to asthma (aOR = 8.37 [95% CI: 6.34-11.04]), mental health disorders (aOR = 9.67 [95% CI: 8.60-10.89]), or multiple comorbidities compared to none. Larger shares of ED visits for not-emergent conditions were also associated with frequent ED use (aOR = 6.63 [95% CI = 5.08-8.65]). Being covered by Medicaid compared to private (aOR = 0.45 [95% CI: 0.42-0.47]) or no insurance (aOR = 0.41 [95% CI: 0.38-0.44]) were further associated with frequent ED use. The results from the negative binomial regression yielded consistent findings. CONCLUSIONS: Pediatric patients who exhibit increased ED use are more medically complex and have increased healthcare needs that are inextricably tied to social determinants of health. Better integrated health systems should emphasize connecting vulnerable patients to appropriate social and primary care services outside of emergency settings.

Emergency Department Utilization by Adolescents Experiencing Homelessness in Massachusetts.

BACKGROUND: Adolescents who experience homelessness rely heavily on emergency departments (EDs) for their health care. OBJECTIVES: This study estimates the relationship between homelessness and ED use and identifies the sociodemographic, clinical, visit-level, and contextual factors associated with multiple ED visits among adolescents experiencing homelessness in Massachusetts. RESEARCH DESIGN: We used the Healthcare Cost and Utilization Project State Emergency Department Databases on all outpatient ED visits in Massachusetts from 2011 to 2016. We included all adolescents who were 11-21 years old. We estimated the association between homelessness and ED utilization and investigated predictors of multiple ED visits among adolescents who experience homelessness using multivariate logistic and negative binomial regressions. RESULTS: Our study included 1,196,036 adolescents, of whom about 0.8% experienced homelessness and this subset of adolescents accounted for 2.2% of all ED visits. Compared with those with stable housing, adolescents who were homeless were mostly covered through Medicaid (P<0.001), diagnosed with 1 or more comorbidities (P<0.001), and visited the ED at least once for reasons related to mental health; substance and alcohol use; pregnancy; respiratory distress; urinary and sexually transmitted infections; and skin and subcutaneous tissue diseases (P<0.001). Homeless experience was associated with multiple ED visits (incidence rate ratio=1.18; 95% confidence intervals, 1.16-1.19) and frequent ED use (4 or more ED visits) (adjusted odds ratio=2.21; 95% confidence interval, 2.06-2.37). Factors related to clinical complexity and Medicaid compared with lack of coverage were also significant predictors of elevated ED utilization within the cohort experiencing homelessness. CONCLUSIONS: Adolescents who experience homelessness exhibit higher ED use compared with those with stable housing, particularly those with aggravated comorbidities and chronic conditions. Health policy interventions to integrate health care, housing, and social services are essential to transition adolescents experiencing homelessness to more appropriate community-based care.

Applying infectious disease forecasting to public health: a path forward using influenza forecasting examples.

BACKGROUND: Infectious disease forecasting aims to predict characteristics of both seasonal epidemics and future pandemics. Accurate and timely infectious disease forecasts could aid public health responses by informing key preparation and mitigation efforts. MAIN BODY: For forecasts to be fully integrated into public health decision-making, federal, state, and local officials must understand how forecasts were made, how to interpret forecasts, and how well the forecasts have performed in the past. Since the 2013-14 influenza season, the Influenza Division at the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC) has hosted collaborative challenges to forecast the timing, intensity, and short-term trajectory of influenza-like illness in the United States. Additional efforts to advance forecasting science have included influenza initiatives focused on state-level and hospitalization forecasts, as well as other infectious diseases. Using CDC influenza forecasting challenges as an example, this paper provides an overview of infectious disease forecasting; applications of forecasting to public health; and current work to develop best practices for forecast methodology, applications, and communication. CONCLUSIONS: These efforts, along with other infectious disease forecasting initiatives, can foster the continued advancement of forecasting science.

Environmental transmission of Clostridioides difficile ribotype 027 at a long-term care facility; an outbreak investigation guided by whole genome sequencing.

OBJECTIVE: This article describes a CDI outbreak in a long-term care (LTC) facility that used molecular typing techniques and whole-genome sequencing to identify widespread dissemination of the clonal strain in the environment which was successfully removed after terminal cleaning. SETTING: This study was conducted in a long-term care facility in Texas. METHODS: A recently hospitalized LTC patient was diagnosed with CDI followed shortly thereafter by 7 subsequent CDI cases. A stool specimen was obtained from each patient for culturing and typing. An environmental point-prevalence study of the facility was conducted before and after terminal cleaning of the facility to assess environmental contamination. Cultured isolates were typed using ribotyping, multilocus variant analysis, and whole-genome sequencing. RESULTS: Stool samples were available for 5 of 8 patients; of these specimens, 4 grew toxigenic C. difficile ribotype 027. Of 50 environmental swab samples collected throughout the facility prior to the facility-wide terminal cleaning, 19 (38%) grew toxigenic C. difficile (most commonly ribotype 027, 79%). The terminal cleaning was effective at reducing C. difficile spores in the environment and at eradicating the ribotype 027 strain (P<.001). Using multilocus variance analysis and whole-genome sequencing, clinical and environmental strains were highly related and, in some cases, were identical. CONCLUSION: Using molecular typing techniques, we demonstrated reduced environmental contamination with toxigenic C. difficile and the eradication of a ribotype 027 clone. These techniques may help direct infection control efforts and decrease the burden of CDI in the healthcare system.