Incorporating Medicare Advantage Admissions Into the CMS Hospital-Wide Readmission Measure.

Importance: Medicare Advantage (MA) enrollment is rapidly expanding, yet Centers for Medicare & Medicaid Services (CMS) claims-based hospital outcome measures, including readmission rates, have historically included only fee-for-service (FFS) beneficiaries. Objective: To assess the outcomes of incorporating MA data into the CMS claims-based FFS Hospital-Wide All-Cause Unplanned Readmission (HWR) measure. Design, Setting, and Participants: This cohort study assessed differences in 30-day unadjusted readmission rates and demographic and risk adjustment variables for MA vs FFS admissions. Inpatient FFS and MA administrative claims data were extracted from the Integrated Data Repository for all admissions for Medicare beneficiaries from July 1, 2018, to June 30, 2019. Measure reliability and risk-standardized readmission rates were calculated for the FFS and MA cohort vs the FFS-only cohort, overall and within specialty subgroups (cardiorespiratory, cardiovascular, medicine, surgery, neurology), then changes in hospital performance quintiles were assessed after adding MA admissions. Main Outcome and Measure: Risk-standardized readmission rates. Results: The cohort included 11 029 470 admissions (4 077 633 [37.0%] MA; 6 044 060 [54.8%] female; mean [SD] age, 77.7 [8.2] years). Unadjusted readmission rates were slightly higher for MA vs FFS admissions (15.7% vs 15.4%), yet comorbidities were generally lower among MA beneficiaries. Test-retest reliability for the FFS and MA cohort was higher than for the FFS-only cohort (0.78 vs 0.73) and signal-to-noise reliability increased in each specialty subgroup. Mean hospital risk-standardized readmission rates were similar for the FFS and MA cohort and FFS-only cohorts (15.5% vs 15.3%); this trend was consistent across the 5 specialty subgroups. After adding MA admissions to the FFS-only HWR measure, 1489 hospitals (33.1%) had their performance quintile ranking changed. As their proportion of MA admissions increased, more hospitals experienced a change in their performance quintile ranking (147 hospitals [16.3%] in the lowest quintile of percentage MA admissions; 408 [45.3%] in the highest). The combined cohort added 63 hospitals eligible for public reporting and more than 4 million admissions to the measure. Conclusions and Relevance: In this cohort study, adding MA admissions to the HWR measure was associated with improved measure reliability and precision and enabled the inclusion of more hospitals and beneficiaries. After MA admissions were included, 1 in 3 hospitals had their performance quintile changed, with the greatest shifts among hospitals with a high percentage of MA admissions.

The Validity and Reliability of Available Intimate Partner Homicide and Reassault Risk Assessment Tools: A Systematic Review.

At least one in seven homicides around the world is perpetrated by intimate partners. The danger of intimate partner homicide (IPH) associated with intimate partner violence (IPV) has led to the development of numerous IPV reassault and IPH risk assessment tools. Using 18 electronic databases and research repositories, we conducted a systematic review of IPH or IPV reassault risk assessment instruments. After review, 43 studies reported in 42 articles met inclusion criteria. We systematically extracted, analyzed, and synthesized data on tools studied, sample details, data collection location, study design, analysis methods, validity, reliability, and feasibility of use. Findings indicate that researchers in eight countries have tested 18 distinct IPH or IPV reassault risk assessment tools. The tools are designed for various professionals including law enforcement, first responders, and social workers. Twenty-six studies focused on assessing the risk of male perpetrators, although eight included female perpetrators. Eighteen studies tested tools with people in mixed-sex relationships, though many studies did not explicitly report the gender of both the perpetrators and victims/survivors. The majority of studies were administered or coded by researchers rather than administered in real-world settings. Reliable and valid instruments that accurately and feasibly assess the risk of IPH and IPV reassault in community settings are necessary for improving public safety and reducing violent deaths. Although researchers have developed several instruments assessing different risk factors, systematic research on the feasibility of using these instruments in practice settings is lacking.

Intimate Partner Violence: Barriers to Action and Opportunities for Intervention Among Health Care Providers in São Paulo, Brazil.

Health care providers (HCPs) who directly interact with women play a critical role in intimate partner violence (IPV) prevention and response. The aim of this study was to identify the structural and interpersonal barriers to IPV response among HCPs working in public health clinics in Santo André, Brazil. Eligible participants included all HCPs providing direct care to individuals at three public health clinics. Participants self-administered an adapted Knowledge, Attitudes, and Practices survey on IPV. Data were analyzed using Epi Info 7 and SAS 9.4. 114 HCPs completed surveys. Less than half of HCPs (41%, n = 34) reported ever having asked a woman about abuse in the past year. HCPs who perceived fewer barriers were more likely to report asking about IPV. The top three reported barriers to asking women about IPV included the following: few opportunities for one-on-one interaction (77%, n = 65), a lack of privacy (71%, n = 60), and fear of offending women (71%, n = 60). Fewer providers who perceived the barriers of lack of privacy asked about IPV (50.8%, n = 33 compared with 84.2%, n = 16; p < .05); less providers who perceived few opportunities for private patient interactions asked about IPV (48.3%, n = 29 compared with 75.0%, n = 18; p < .05). Our results support the need for a systems approach of institution-wide reforms altering the health care environment and avoiding missed opportunities in IPV screening and referring women to appropriate resources or care. Two of the most frequently reported barriers to asking IPV were structural in nature, pointing to the need for policies that protect privacy and confidentiality. Within the Brazilian context, our research highlights the role of HCPs in the design and implementation of IPV interventions that both strengthen health systems and enable providers to address IPV.

A Review of MD STAR net's Research Contributions to Pediatric-Onset Dystrophinopathy in the United States; 2002-2017.

Population studies of rare disorders, such as Duchenne and Becker muscular dystrophies (dystrophinopathies), are challenging due to diagnostic delay and heterogeneity in disorder milestones. To address these challenges, the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention established the Muscular Dystrophy Surveillance, Tracking, and Research Network (MD STAR net) in 2002 in the United States. From 2002 to 2012, MD STAR net longitudinally tracked the prevalence, clinical, and health care outcomes of 1054 individuals born from 1982 to 2011 with pediatric-onset dystrophinopathy through medical record abstraction and survey data collection. This article summarizes 31 MD STAR net peer-reviewed publications. MD STAR net provided the first population-based prevalence estimates of childhood-onset dystrophinopathy in the United States. Additional publications provided insights into diagnostic delay, dystrophinopathy-specific growth charts, and health services use. Ongoing population-based surveillance continually improves our understanding of clinical and diagnostic outcomes of rare disorders.