Expanding Hepatitis C Virus Treatment in the New Mexico State Prison System: Using the ECHO Model for Provider and Prison Peer Education.

It is critical to address hepatitis C virus (HCV) in carceral settings to achieve worldwide elimination of the virus. We describe New Mexico's (NM) experience expanding HCV treatment in state prisons, supplemented with Project ECHO (ECHO; virtual mentorship through guided practice) and the NM Peer Education Program (NMPEP). We describe how using these programs may be a model for expanding treatment in prisons globally. ECHO, NM Corrections Department (NMCD) and Wexford Health Services (WHS) collaborate to treat HCV in state prisons and increase HCV knowledge among incarcerated persons using NMPEP. Each person arriving in prison is tested for HCV and those with active infection receive baseline labs, which are reviewed. Patients not meeting criteria for simplified treatment are presented to ECHO for expert guidance. Otherwise, patients are treated by WHS without consultation. NMPEP provides patient-to-patient education in prisons, addressing HCV myths and exploring treatment refusals. From December 2020 to June 2023, 3603 people had HCV viremia. In this study, 1685 people started treatment: 1280 were treated using the simplified algorithm and 405 were presented to ECHO. Of the 988 people who completed treatment and had sustained virologic response (SVR) labs drawn, 89.2% achieved SVR (i.e., cure). Most of the 107 people who did not achieve SVR had presumed reinfection. NMPEP trained 148 peer educators who educated 3832 peers about HCV prevention and treatment. HCV treatment in prisons can be expanded by implementing simplified treatment algorithms, use of the ECHO model for patients with advanced disease and peer education.

Screening for Excessive Alcohol Consumption in Emergency Departments: A Nationwide Assessment of Emergency Department Physicians.

OBJECTIVE: To assess current screening practices for excessive alcohol consumption, as well as perceived barriers, perceptions, and attitudes toward performing this screening among emergency department (ED) physicians. DESIGN: A brief online assessment of screening practices for excessive drinking was disseminated electronically to a representative panel of ED physicians from November 2016 to January 2017. Descriptive statistics were calculated on the frequency of alcohol screening, factors affecting screening, and attitudes toward screening. SETTING: An online assessment was sent to a national panel of ED physicians. PARTICIPANTS: A panel of ED physicians who volunteered to be part of the American College of Emergency Physicians Emergency Medicine Practice Research Network survey panel. MAIN OUTCOME MEASURE: The primary outcome measures were the percentage of respondents who reported screening for excessive alcohol consumption and the percentage of respondents using a validated excessive alcohol consumption screening tool. RESULTS: Of the 347 ED physicians evaluated (38.6% response rate), approximately 16% reported "always/usually," 70% "sometimes," and 14% "never" screening adult patients (≥18 years) for excessive alcohol use. Less than 20% of the respondents who screened for excessive drinking used a recommended screening tool. Only 10.5% of all respondents (15.4% "always," 9.5% "sometimes" screened) received an electronic health record (EHR) reminder to screen for excessive alcohol use. Key barriers to screening included limited time (66.2%) and treatment options for patients with drinking problems (43.1%). CONCLUSIONS: Only 1 in 6 ED physicians consistently screened their patients for excessive drinking. Increased use of EHR reminders and other systems interventions (eg, electronic screening and brief intervention) could help improve the delivery of screening and follow-up services for excessive drinkers in EDs.

Alcohol testing and alcohol involvement among violent deaths by state, 2014-2016.

Blood alcohol concentration (BAC) testing rates vary across states, potentially biasing estimates of alcohol involvement in violent deaths. The National Violent Death Reporting System (NVDRS) collects information on violent deaths, including decedents' BACs. This study assessed characteristics of violent deaths by BAC testing status, and the proportion of decedents with a positive BAC or BAC ≥ 0.08 g/dL. NVDRS data from 2014 to 2016 (2014: 18 states; 2015: 27 states; 2016: 32 states) were analyzed to assess BAC testing (tested, not tested, unknown/missing) by state, decedent characteristics, and death investigation system (e.g., state medical examiner, coroners), in 2019. The proportion of violent deaths with a BAC > 0.0 or ≥ 0.08 g/dL was also assessed. Among 95,390 violent death decedents, 57.1% had a BAC test (range: 9.5% in Georgia to 95.8% in Utah), 2.3% were not tested, and 40.6% had an unknown/missing BAC testing status (range: 1.3% in Alaska to 78.0% in Georgia). Decedents who were 21-44 years, American Indian/Alaska Native or Hispanic, died by poisoning, died by undetermined intent, or were investigated by a state medical examiner were most likely to receive BAC testing. Among the violent deaths with a reported BAC, 41.1% had a positive BAC and 27.7% had a BAC ≥ 0.08 g/dL. About 2 in 5 violent deaths were missing data on alcohol testing. Increased testing and reporting of alcohol among violent deaths could inform the development and use of evidence-based prevention strategies (e.g., increasing alcohol taxes, regulating alcohol outlet density) for reducing violent deaths.

The project ECHO first responder resiliency program: curriculum development, listening groups and lessons learned to support providers virtually during a pandemic.

The First Responder (FR) Resilience ECHO Program continues as a virtual telementoring platform supporting FRs both within New Mexico and internationally. The program began initially to support FRs through the opioid epidemic, and as the COVID-19 pandemic grew, the curriculum and audience broadened to include self-care and resilience skills to participants around the world. The notion of a FR was changed as providers everywhere were facing new challenges in their front-facing experience, whether this be a sense of overwhelm, an experience of detachment or of overload. The curriculum was altered with ongoing input from participants to address the needs of those working to help others during the COVID-19 pandemic, and included didactics in psychological first aid, self-care and resilience, peak performance skills, communication methods, diagnostic and systems descriptions, as well as the development of effective peer support programs around the nation. Perhaps the most important innovation was the development of listening groups, where participants could connect with one another in breakout rooms (15-20 min) to witness one another's account of their current situation. Project ECHO is a well-established and renowned telementoring program that assists clinicians in the treatment of disease through the demonopolization of knowledge. The FR Resiliency ECHO Program grew out of the core ECHO model to assist FRs in developing skills to work with various crises that our society currently faces, in particular, the opioid epidemic and later, the COVID-19 pandemic. The project created a unique online experience and curriculum to facilitate both skill development and a sense of ongoing connection to a community of peers. This article describes the curriculum, the development of the listening group experience, and the feedback received from participants through focus groups.

Leveraging Existing Birth Defects Surveillance Infrastructure to Build Neonatal Abstinence Syndrome Surveillance Systems - Illinois, New Mexico, and Vermont, 2015-2016.

Neonatal abstinence syndrome (NAS) is a drug withdrawal syndrome that can occur following prenatal exposure to opioids (1). NAS surveillance in the United States is based largely on diagnosis codes in hospital discharge data, without validation of these codes or case confirmation. During 2004-2014, reported NAS incidence increased from 1.5 to 8.0 per 1,000 U.S. hospital births (2), based on International Classification of Diseases, Ninth Revision, Clinical Modification (ICD-9-CM) diagnosis codes identified in hospital discharge data, without case confirmation. However, little is known about how well these codes identify NAS or how the October 1, 2015, transition from ICD-9-CM to the tenth revision of ICD-CM (ICD-10-CM) codes affected estimated NAS incidence. This report describes a pilot project in Illinois, New Mexico, and Vermont to use birth defects surveillance infrastructure to obtain state-level, population-based estimates of NAS incidence among births in 2015 (all three states) and 2016 (Illinois) using hospital discharge records and other sources (varied by state) with case confirmation, and to evaluate the validity of NAS diagnosis codes used by each state. Wide variation in NAS incidence was observed across the three states. In 2015, NAS incidence for Illinois, New Mexico, and Vermont was 3.0, 7.5, and 30.8 per 1,000 births, respectively. Among evaluated diagnosis codes, those with the highest positive predictive values (PPVs) for identifying confirmed cases of NAS, based on a uniform case definition, were drug withdrawal syndrome in a newborn (ICD-9-CM code 779.5; state range = 58.6%-80.2%) and drug withdrawal, infant of dependent mother (ICD-10-CM code P96.1; state range = 58.5%-80.2%). The methods used to assess NAS incidence in this pilot project might help inform other states' NAS surveillance efforts.

Evaluating Surveillance for Excessive Alcohol Use in New Mexico.

PURPOSE AND OBJECTIVES: Prevalence of excessive alcohol use and alcohol-attributable mortality is much higher in New Mexico than in other US states. In 2010, excessive alcohol use cost the state roughly $2.2 billion. Moreover, age-adjusted deaths from alcohol-related chronic liver disease increased 52.5% from 14.1 cases in 2010 to 21.5 cases in 2016. In 2017, the New Mexico Department of Health piloted the Recommended Council of State and Territorial Epidemiologists (CSTE) Surveillance Indicators for Substance Abuse and Mental Health, using 5 indicators to monitor alcohol use and health consequences. The purpose of this study is to evaluate the alcohol surveillance system implemented in New Mexico to ensure that the system yields useful, timely data that can help create effective public health interventions and that resources required for surveillance are adequate. INTERVENTION APPROACH: CSTE alcohol surveillance system data come from existing national and state-based surveys and vital statistics. EVALUATION METHODS: This evaluation assessed attributes defined in Evaluating Behavioral Health Surveillance Systems and Centers for Disease Control and Prevention guidelines for evaluating public health surveillance systems. Assessment was informed through data collection, systematic literature review searches, and an interview with the alcohol epidemiologist at New Mexico Department of Health. RESULTS: The CSTE alcohol surveillance system in New Mexico is a useful, stable, and accepted system with good representativeness and population coverage. Data sharing and collaboration between centers within New Mexico Department of Health are well-established, making data access easy and timely. Lastly, the resources required for data collection are accountable and adequate. IMPLICATIONS FOR PUBLIC HEALTH: The CSTE alcohol surveillance system brings together information (alcohol consumption behaviors and associated morbidity, mortality, and policy-related measures) necessary to show a clear picture of the alcohol effects in New Mexico. This information yields useable, timely data from which the state can monitor trends and develop interventions to reduce the prevalence of alcohol-attributable morbidity and mortality.

Enhanced Enforcement of Laws to Reduce Alcohol Overservice Among Licensed Establishments in New Mexico, 2004-2008.

Limited information exists about the effectiveness of interventions to enforce laws prohibiting alcohol sales to intoxicated patrons in licensed establishments. New Mexico Behavioral Risk Factor Surveillance System data were used to evaluate an intervention on binge drinking intensity in licensed (eg, bars) versus unlicensed (eg, homes) locations. The proportion of binge drinkers in licensed locations who consumed 8 or more drinks on a binge drinking occasion decreased from 42.1% in 2004-2005 to 22.6% in 2007-2008 (adjusted odds ratio, 0.4; 95% confidence interval, 0.2-0.9), while the proportion in unlicensed locations was essentially unchanged. Enhanced enforcement of overservice laws may reduce excessive drinking in licensed establishments.

Gestational weight gain, early pregnancy maternal adiposity distribution, and maternal hyperglycemia.

To estimate the effects of gestational weight gain (GWG), central adiposity and subcutaneous fat on maternal post-load glucose concentration, pregnant women [n = 413, 62% black, 57% with pregravid body mass index (BMI) ≥25] enrolled in a cohort study at ≤13 weeks gestation. GWG was abstracted from medical records. In a sub-sample of women (n = 214), waist circumference (WC), and biceps and triceps skinfold thicknesses were measured at enrollment. At 24-28 weeks gestation, post-load glucose concentration was measured using a 50-g 1-h oral glucose tolerance test. After adjustment for pre-pregnancy BMI, age, parity, race/ethnicity, smoking, marital status, annual family income, education, family history of diabetes, and gestational age of GDM screening, each 0.3-kg/week increase in weight in the first trimester was associated with a 2.2 (95% CI 0.1, 4.3)-mg/dl increase in glucose concentration. Each 8.6-mm increase in biceps skinfold thickness and each 11.7-mm increase in triceps skinfold thickness was associated with 4.3 (95% CI 0.2, 8.5)-mg/dl increase in maternal glucose, independent of BMI and other confounders. Neither GWG in the second trimester nor WC at ≤13 weeks was significantly associated with glucose concentration after confounder adjustment. Independent of pre-pregnancy BMI, high early pregnancy GWG and maternal subcutaneous body fat may be positively associated with maternal glucose concentrations at 24-28 weeks.

Caring for the Caregivers: Improving Mental Health among Health Professionals Using the Behavioral Health Professional Workforce Resilience ECHO Program.

Behavioral health professionals are at high risk for burnout and poor mental health. Our objective was to understand the impact of the Behavioral Health Providers Workforce Resiliency (BHPWR) ECHO Program on the resilience and burnout of participating behavioral health professionals. We assessed the first two years (March 2022 to March 2024) of the BHPWR ECHO, a national program operating from the University of New Mexico (N = 1585 attendees), using a mixed-methods design. We used a retrospective pre/post survey (n = 53 respondents) and focus interviews with 1-3 participants (n = 9 participants) to assess for changes in knowledge and confidence and assess changes in burnout and resilience. We found that participants increased their knowledge of how to respond when (1) their workload was more than they could manage, (2) they felt that they lacked control, (3) their work did not feel rewarding, and (4) they were experiencing compassion fatigue. They increased their confidence in (1) building a support system and (2) using the wellness tools taught in the course. Respondents were less burnt out (score: 26.0 versus 17.8, p < 0.01) and more resilient (29.9 versus 34.9, p < 0.01) compared to when they started attending the program. Tele-mentoring programs like the BHPWR ECHO Program may improve wellness among health care professionals.

Pre-pregnancy obesity and maternal nutritional biomarker status during pregnancy: a factor analysis.

OBJECTIVE: Pre-pregnancy obesity has been associated with adverse birth outcomes. Poor essential fatty acid (EFA) and micronutrient status during pregnancy may contribute to these associations. We assessed the associations between pre-pregnancy BMI and nutritional patterns of maternal micronutrient and EFA status during mid-pregnancy. DESIGN: A cross-sectional analysis from a prospective cohort study. Women provided non-fasting blood samples at ≥ 20 weeks' gestation that were assayed for red cell EFA; plasma folate, homocysteine and ascorbic acid; and serum retinol, 25-hydroxyvitamin D, a-tocopherol, soluble transferrin receptors and carotenoids. These nutritional biomarkers were employed in a factor analysis and three patterns were derived: EFA, Micronutrients and Carotenoids. SETTING: The Antidepressant Use During Pregnancy Study, Pittsburgh, PA, USA. SUBJECTS: Pregnant women (n 129). RESULTS: After adjustment for parity, race/ethnicity and age, obese pregnant women were 3.0 (95% CI 1.1, 7.7) times more likely to be in the lowest tertile of the EFA pattern and 4.5 (95% CI 1.7, 12.3) times more likely to be in the lowest tertile of the Carotenoid pattern compared with their lean counterparts. We found no association between pre-pregnancy obesity and the Micronutrient pattern after confounder adjustment. CONCLUSIONS: Our results suggest that obese pregnant women have diminished EFA and carotenoid concentrations.

Climate Change ECHO: Telementoring to Improve Climate Literacy for Health Professionals.

Introduction: Climate change is a global public health crisis. Most clinicians and public health professionals do not receive adequate education to manage and communicate climate-related health impacts to their patients. Methods: From July 2021 to February 2022, the Project ECHO Climate Change and Human Health program completed 22 weekly trainings for health professionals. These virtual telementoring sessions were designed to improve both knowledge and self-efficacy about climate-related health impacts and climate change‒related communication skills. Results: Between July 2021 and February 2022, a total of 804 unique participants (from 44 states and 25 countries) attended the sessions. Participants were nurses (24.7%), physicians (16.8%), and public health professionals (8.5%). They completed weekly Zoom polls measuring their knowledge and self-efficacy. On average, participants strongly agreed or agreed that they had learned skills taught in each session (average percentage of those who strongly agreed or agreed=94.6%, range=66.7%-100.0%). Participants (31%) also completed a weekly postsession survey. A total of 91% rated the sessions as excellent or very good regarding evidenced-basis, and 89% rated sessions as excellent or very good regarding improved communication skills with patients and colleagues. Conclusions: Given the global climate crisis, the Climate Change and Human Health ECHO is successfully building resources and capacity for clinicians and public health professionals.

Educating Community Health Professionals About the Health-Related Effects of Climate Change Through ECHO Telementoring.

INTRODUCTION: Climate change is a global public health emergency causing extensive morbidity and mortality worldwide. Although most large medical organizations endorse the need to train health care professionals in climate change, such trainings are not readily available. METHODS: This article describes the results of an 8-week, 75-min per week, Climate Change and Human Health ECHO (CCHH ECHO) synchronous telementoring course for post-licensure health professionals. The primary goals were: to increase knowledge, self-efficacy, and communication skills. Participants were eligible to receive up to 10 h of no-cost continuing education credits and a certificate for completing the program. RESULTS: The 8-week course included 625 unique participants from 25 countries. An interprofessional group of clinicians, health professionals, and educators included: 130/28% PhD, 92/20% MD/DO, 52/12% RN/NP/PA, 50/11% MPH. The prospective survey demonstrated a significant improvement in knowledge, confidence, attitudes (P < .001) and communication skills (P = .029) at 3 months post course. CONCLUSIONS: The climate crisis is a public health emergency, and health professionals worldwide are considered the most trusted source of health information. Training current and future health professionals regarding the health-related effects of global warming is vital. The CCHH ECHO may be a successful model to facilitate knowledge transfer and promote communication skills between subject matter experts and course participants.

First Responder Resiliency ECHO: Innovative Telementoring during the COVID-19 Pandemic.

The First Responder ECHO (Extension for Community Outcomes) program was established in 2019 to provide education for first responders on self-care techniques and resiliency while establishing a community of practice to alleviate the enormous stress due to trauma and substance misuse in the community. When the SARS-CoV-2 (COVID-19) pandemic hit the United States (US) in March 2020, a tremendous strain was placed on first responders and healthcare workers, resulting in a program expansion to include stress mitigation strategies. From 31 March 2020, through 31 December 2020, 1530 unique first responders and frontline clinicians participated in the newly expanded First Responder Resiliency (FRR) ECHO. The robust curriculum included: psychological first aid, critical incident debriefing, moral distress, crisis management strategies, and self-care skills. Survey and focus group results demonstrated that, while overall stress levels did not decline, participants felt more confident using psychological first aid, managing and recognizing colleagues who needed mental health assistance, and taking time for self-care. Although first responders still face a higher level of stress as a result of their occupation, this FRR ECHO program improves stress management skills while providing weekly learning-listening sessions, social support, and a community of practice for all first responders.

Innovative COVID-19 Programs to Rapidly Serve New Mexico : Project ECHO.

Project ECHO (Extension for Community Healthcare Outcomes) at the University of New Mexico is a telementoring program that uses videoconferencing technology to connect health care providers in underserved communities with subject matter experts. In March 2020, Project ECHO created 10 coronavirus disease 2019 (COVID-19) telementoring programs to meet the public health needs of clinicians and teachers living in underserved rural and urban regions of New Mexico. The newly created COVID-19 programs include 7 weekly sessions (Community Health Worker [in English and Spanish], Critical Care, Education, First-Responder Resiliency, Infectious Disease Office Hours, and Multi-specialty) and 3 one-day special sessions. We calculated the total number of attendees, along with the range and standard deviation, per session by program. Certain programs (Critical Care, Infectious Disease Office Hours, Multi-specialty) recorded the profession of attendees when available. The Project ECHO research team collected COVID-19 infection data by county from March 11 through May 31, 2020. During that same period, 9765 health care and general education professionals participated in the COVID-19 programs, and participants from 31 of 35 (89%) counties in New Mexico attended the sessions. Our initial evaluation of these programs demonstrates that an interprofessional clinician group and teachers used the Project ECHO network to build a community of practice and social network while meeting their educational and professional needs. Because of Project ECHO's large reach, the results of the New Mexico COVID-19 response suggest that the rapid use of ECHO telementoring could be used for other urgent national public health problems.

Excessive alcohol use and drug overdose deaths, New Mexico, 2015-2016.

BACKGROUND: Excessive alcohol use is an important component of a person's risk for drug overdose death. But alcohol's contribution to overdose death risk has not been well quantified. We aimed to quantify the role of excessive alcohol use, particularly as defined by a blood alcohol concentration (BAC) ≥0.08 g/dL, in drug overdose deaths in New Mexico (NM). METHODS: The study was conducted in 2018. We abstracted death records (scene investigation, toxicology, pathology) for all drug overdose deaths in NM during 2015-2016, information on BAC, other indications of alcohol, risk factors, comorbidities, and drug type and linked this information with demographic characteristics on death certificates. A Poisson regression model was used to determine independent associations between decedents' characteristics and alcohol involvement among drug overdose decedents. RESULTS: Approximately 18 % (n = 170) of the 946 drug overdose decedents in this study had a BAC ≥ 0.08 g/dL. After adjustment, drug overdose decedents who were American Indian/Alaska Native or had a history of alcohol use disorder were more likely to have had a BAC ≥ 0.08 g/dL at the time of death. However, decedents who had methamphetamine involved in their death or who had a history of diabetes, mental illness, or chronic pain were less likely to have a BAC ≥ 0.08 g/dL at the time of death. CONCLUSIONS: Nearly 1 in 5 overdose decedents had a BAC ≥ 0.08 g/dL at the time of death, suggesting that evidence-based alcohol prevention strategies (e.g., increasing alcohol taxes, regulating alcohol outlet density) could reduce the risk of drug overdose death.

Alcohol Consumption and Chronic Liver Disease Mortality in New Mexico and the United States, 1999-2013.

OBJECTIVE: Current chronic liver disease (CLD) mortality surveillance methods may not adequately capture data on all causes of CLD mortality. The objective of this study was to calculate and compare CLD death rates in New Mexico and the United States by using both an expanded definition of CLD and estimates of the fractional impact of alcohol on CLD deaths. METHODS: We defined CLD mortality as deaths due to alcoholic liver disease, cirrhosis, viral hepatitis, and other liver conditions. We estimated alcohol-attributable CLD deaths by using national and state alcohol-attributable fractions from the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention's Alcohol-Related Disease Impact application. We classified causes of CLD death as being alcohol-attributable, non-alcohol-attributable, or hepatitis C. We calculated average annual age-adjusted CLD death rates during five 3-year periods from 1999 through 2013, and we stratified those rates by sex, age, and race/ethnicity. RESULTS: By cause of death, CLD death rates were highest for alcohol-attributable CLD. By sex and race/ethnicity, CLD death rates per 100 000 population increased from 1999-2001 to 2011-2013 among American Indian men in New Mexico (67.4-90.6) and the United States (38.9-49.4), American Indian women in New Mexico (48.4-63.0) and the United States (27.5-39.5), Hispanic men in New Mexico (48.6-52.0), Hispanic women in New Mexico (16.9-24.0) and the United States (12.8-13.1), non-Hispanic white men in New Mexico (17.4-21.3) and the United States (15.9-18.4), and non-Hispanic white women in New Mexico (9.7-11.6) and the United States (7.6-9.7). CLD death rates decreased among Hispanic men in the United States (30.5-27.4). CONCLUSIONS: An expanded CLD definition and alcohol-attributable fractions can be used to create comprehensive data on CLD mortality. When stratified by CLD cause and demographic characteristics, these data may help states and jurisdictions improve CLD prevention programs.

2010 National and State Costs of Excessive Alcohol Consumption.

INTRODUCTION: Excessive alcohol use cost the U.S. $223.5 billion in 2006. Given economic shifts in the U.S. since 2006, more-current estimates are needed to help inform the planning of prevention strategies. METHODS: From March 2012 to March 2014, the 26 cost components used to assess the cost of excessive drinking in 2006 were projected to 2010 based on incidence (e.g., change in number of alcohol-attributable deaths) and price (e.g., inflation rate in cost of medical care). The total cost, cost to government, and costs for binge drinking, underage drinking, and drinking while pregnant were estimated for the U.S. for 2010 and allocated to states. RESULTS: Excessive drinking cost the U.S. $249.0 billion in 2010, or about $2.05 per drink. Government paid for $100.7 billion (40.4%) of these costs. Binge drinking accounted for $191.1 billion (76.7%) of costs; underage drinking $24.3 billion (9.7%) of costs; and drinking while pregnant $5.5 billion (2.2%) of costs. The median cost per state was $3.5 billion. Binge drinking was responsible for >70% of these costs in all states, and >40% of the binge drinking-related costs were paid by government. CONCLUSIONS: Excessive drinking cost the nation almost $250 billion in 2010. Two of every $5 of the total cost was paid by government, and three quarters of the costs were due to binge drinking. Several evidence-based strategies can help reduce excessive drinking and related costs, including increasing alcohol excise taxes, limiting alcohol outlet density, and commercial host liability.