Validation Study of a Value-Based Digital Health Questionnaire.

The paradigm of value-based health care is spreading worldwide; however, Value-Based Digital Health (VBDH) is still an emerging concept. VBDH is understood as the use of digital tools to facilitate the generation of value in health. It is accelerated by technological change, cultural, and organizational factors. An accurate diagnosis of the organizational VBDH maturity is crucial to define and implement strategic actions to progress with VBDH transformation. This study aimed to validate a VBDH questionnaire, which measures the degree of maturity of VBDH from the perspective of managers (N = 146) in Spanish healthcare organizations. Results show good internal consistency of the questionnaire. Factor analysis identified seven dimensions to measure VBHC maturity: (1) Resources, incentives, and financing; (2) Knowledge and participation of patients and workers in the strategy of progress towards VBDH; (3) Training of professionals and tool knowledge for advancement in VBDH; (4) Innovation initiatives; (5) Information and its quality; (6) Leadership, strategy and governance; and (7) Knowledge of the fundamentals and objectives, as well as access to relevant VBDH information. The questionnaire presents good validity and internal consistency and meets the requirements to be an instrument for routine use to assess VBDH organizational maturity.

Analysis of the Effects of Lockdown on Staff and Students at Universities in Spain and Colombia Using Natural Language Processing Techniques.

The aim of this study is to analyze the effects of lockdown using natural language processing techniques, particularly sentiment analysis methods applied at large scale. Further, our work searches to analyze the impact of COVID-19 on the university community, jointly on staff and students, and with a multi-country perspective. The main findings of this work show that the most often related words were "family", "anxiety", "house", and "life". Besides this finding, we also have shown that staff have a slightly less negative perception of the consequences of COVID-19 in their daily life. We have used artificial intelligence models such as swivel embedding and a multilayer perceptron as classification algorithms. The performance that was reached in terms of accuracy metrics was 88.8% and 88.5% for students and staff, respectively. The main conclusion of our study is that higher education institutions and policymakers around the world may benefit from these findings while formulating policy recommendations and strategies to support students during this and any future pandemics.

Hospital and outpatient models for Hematopoietic Stem Cell Transplantation: A systematic review of comparative studies for health outcomes, experience of care and costs.

The number of Hematopoietic Stem Cell Transplantations has risen in the past 20 years. The practice of outpatient Hematopoietic Stem Cell Transplantation programs is increasing in an attempt to improve the quality of patient care and reduce the demand for hospital admission. A systematic review of 29 comparative studies between in-hospital and outpatient treatment of Hematopoietic Stem Cell Transplantation, with no restriction by outpatient regime was conducted. This study aims to analyse the current evidence on the effects of the outpatient model on patient-centred outcomes, comparing both in-hospital and outpatient models for autologous and allogeneic HSCT using the Triple Aim framework: health outcomes, costs and experience of care. We found evidence on improved health outcomes and quality of life, on enhanced safety and effectiveness and on reduced overall costs and hospital stays, with similar results on overall survival rates comparing both models for autologous and allogeneic patients. We also found that the outpatient Hematopoietic Stem Cell Transplantation is a safe practice as well as less costly, it requires fewer days of hospital stay both for autologous and allogeneic transplantations. Under a situation of an increasing number of transplants, rising healthcare costs and shortages of hospital capacity, incorporating outpatient models could improve the quality of care for people requiring Hematopoietic Stem Cell Transplantation programs.

The Impact of COVID 19 on University Staff and Students from Iberoamerica: Online Learning and Teaching Experience.

(1) Background: The COVID-19 pandemic has created a great impact on mental health in society. Considering the little attention paid by scientific studies to either students or university staff during lockdown, the current study has two aims: (a) to analyze the evolution of mental health and (b) to identify predictors of educational/professional experience and online learning/teaching experience. (2) Methods: 1084 university students and 554 staff in total from four different countries (Spain, Colombia, Chile and Nicaragua) participated in the study, affiliated with nine different universities, four of them Spanish and one of which was online. We used an online survey known as LockedDown, which consists of 82 items, analyzed with classical multiple regression analyses and machine learning techniques. (3) Results: Stress level and feelings of anxiety and depression of students and staff either increased or remained over the weeks. A better online learning experience for university students was associated with the age, perception of the experience as beneficial and support of the university. (4) Conclusions: The study has shown evidence of the emotional impact and quality of life for both students and staff. For students, the evolution of feelings of anxiety and depression, as well as the support offered by the university affected the educational experience and online learning. For staff who experienced a positive professional experience, with access to services and products, the quality-of-life levels were maintained.

Direct Cost of Parkinson's Disease: A Real-World Data Study of Second-Line Therapies.

Parkinson's disease is one of the main reasons for neurological consultation in Spain. Due to the nature of the disease, it impacts patients, families, and caregivers. Parkinson's disease is a degenerative disease with no cure, although second-line therapies have recently improved the quality of life of patients in advanced stages. The aim of this study was to analyse the costs of the following therapies: deep brain stimulation (DBS), continuous duodenal levodopa/carbidopa infusion (CDLCI), and continuous subcutaneous apomorphine infusion (CSAI). The methodology used was based on real-world data obtained from an integrated healthcare organization in the Basque Country from 2016 to 2018. This bottom-up retrospective approach only took into account the healthcare perspective. The results revealed the annual cost over 3 years and the projected cost for an additional 2 years. The total costs for 5 years of treatment were as follows: €53,217 for DBS, €208,163 for CDLCI, and €170,591 for CSAI. These costs are in line with those found in the available literature on the subject. Additionally, the analysis provided details of the different costs incurred during intervention with the therapies and compared the costs to those reported in other studies.