Long-term care, care needs and wellbeing of individuals after cancer in childhood or adolescence (VersKiK): study protocol of a large scale multi-methods non-interventional study.

BACKGROUND: It has been shown previously that a relevant proportion of childhood cancer survivors suffers from late effects, which are often directly related to the cancer itself or its therapy, resulting in particular follow-up needs, additionally burdening healthcare systems. Being diagnosed with cancer at a vulnerable stage of development, this group of cancer survivors is at comparatively higher risk of relapse or subsequent cancer. Although national and international follow-up guidelines based on treatment modalities have been developed, their implementation seems to leave room for improvement. Additionally, they lack a sufficient consideration of the survivors' psychosocial needs, affecting their adherence to them. The aim of the VersKiK study is to provide representative information on late effects in childhood and adolescence cancer survivors in Germany. The main research objectives are: (1) to describe the state of follow-up care among survivors after a cancer diagnosis in childhood or adolescence; (2) to quantify the occurrence of late effects among this group of survivors; (3) to examine the adherence to selected audiological and cardiological follow-up guidelines and to identify factors affecting it; (4) to explore actual follow-up needs of paediatric cancer survivors; (5) to review selected follow-up guidelines with the aim to improve and expand them. METHODS: VersKiK is designed as a mixed-methods non-interventional study. We will use claims data from statutory health insurance companies in combination with individually linked population-based registry data from the German Childhood Cancer Registry (GCCR). This data base will permit us to quantify diagnoses and procedures in comparison to the general population as well as the adherence to existing follow-up guidelines. Additional information will be obtained through interviews with childhood and adolescence cancer survivors and their informal caregivers, as well as in focus groups with healthcare professionals. DISCUSSION: The present study aims to research the actual needs of individuals after cancer diagnosis and treatment in childhood or adolescence - physical, psychological and organisational - in order to improve existing follow-up guidelines. These improvements might further positively affect not only actual care provided to paediatric cancer survivors, but also benefit healthcare systems in general while decreasing consequent medical visits in this group of patients. TRIAL REGISTRATION: Registered at German Clinical Trial Register (ID: DRKS00025960 and DRKS00026092).

[Good Practice of Secondary Data Analysis (GPS): guidelines and recommendations]. / Gute Praxis Sekundärdatenanalyse (GPS): Leitlinien und Empfehlungen.

In 2005, the Working Group for the Survey and Utilisation of Secondary Data (AGENS) of the German Society for Social Medicine and Prevention (DGSMP) and the German Society for Epidemiology (DGEpi) first published "Good Practice in Secondary Data Analysis (GPS)" formulating a standard for conducting secondary data analyses. GPS is intended as a guide for planning and conducting analyses and can provide a basis for contracts between data owners. The domain of these guidelines does not only include data routinely gathered by statutory health insurance funds and further statutory social insurance funds, but all forms of secondary data. The 11 guidelines range from ethical principles and study planning through quality assurance measures and data preparation to data privacy, contractual conditions and responsible communication of analytical results. They are complemented by explanations and practical assistance in the form of recommendations. GPS targets all persons directing their attention to secondary data, their analysis and interpretation from a scientific point of view and by employing scientific methods. This includes data owners. Furthermore, GPS is suitable to assess scientific publications regarding their quality by authors, referees and readers. In 2008, the first version of GPS was evaluated and revised by members of AGENS and the Epidemiological Methods Working Group of DGEpi, DGSMP and GMDS including other epidemiological experts and had then been accredited as implementation regulations of Good Epidemiological Practice (GEP). Since 2012, this third version of GPS is on hand and available for downloading from the DGEpi website at no charge. Especially linguistic specifications have been integrated into the current revision; its internal consistency was increased. With regards to contents, further recommendations concerning the guideline on data privacy have been added. On the basis of future developments in science and data privacy, further revisions will follow.

[Comparison of rehabilitation between in-hospital geriatric departments and geriatric out-of-hospital rehabilitation facilities. Analysis of routine data using the example of femur fractures]. / Vergleich der geriatrischen frührehabilitativen Komplexbehandlung und der geriatrischen Anschlussrehabilitation. Routinedatenanalyse am Beispiel der Femurfraktur.

AIM OF THE STUDY: The goal of this study was to compare two types of rehabilitation for geriatric patients with femoral fracture in Germany, i.e. care in geriatric hospital departments (§109 SGB V) and care in geriatric out-of-hospital rehabilitation facilities (§111 SGB V). METHODS: Based on claims data of the AOK ("Allgemeine Ortskrankenkasse"=local insurance fund) insurants with a documented hospital stay with discharge diagnosis fracture of the femur in 2007 (n=25,954) were included and allocated to the respective form of rehabilitative health care via the OPS (German procedure classification for inpatient procedures) procedure 8-550 (§109, n=2028) or via admission to a geriatric rehabilitation unit (§111, n=4061). Excess costs (costs in the first year after fracture--costs in the previous year), risk of rehospitalization due to femoral fracture, and risk of death during the 1-year follow-up were compared using multivariate regression analyses. RESULTS: No significant differences were observed related to the outcomes rehospitalization due to femoral fracture and death. However, slight but significantly higher excess costs were observed in the health care type §109 (compared to §111) in patients with low excess costs. Moreover, insured members treated according to health care type §109 were more often receiving long-term care. CONCLUSION: Further analyses including qualitative endpoints, e.g., achievements of rehabilitation aims, are warranted.

[Rehabilitation in geriatric patients after ischemic stroke--a comparison of 2 organisational systems in Germany using claims data of a statutory health insurance fund]. / Rehabilitation geriatrischer Patienten nach Schlaganfall--Ein Vergleich zweier Versorgungssysteme in Deutschland anhand von Routinedaten der gesetzlichen Krankenkasse.

UNLABELLED: Due to historical aspects in some federal states in Germany rehabilitation of geriatric patients is organized in geriatric departments in hospitals (§ 109 SGB V). In other states rehabilitation of these patients is mainly realized in geriatric rehabilitation facilities outside hospital care after approval by the health insurance (§ 111 SGB V). Thus, it is of interest to compare both types of health care with respect to differences in population characteristics, resource utilization and outcome parameters (i.e., excess costs, rehospitalization, fracture risk and mortality) using a common geriatric indication, the ischemic stroke, as an example. METHODS: Claims data of the AOK (Local Health Care Fund) from seven federal states in Germany were used. Insured persons with a documented hospital stay with discharge diagnosis cerebral infarction/stroke (ICD-10 I63, I64, below denoted by "ischemic stroke") in 2007 (N=39,887) were included and allocated to the respective form of rehabilitative health care via the OPS (German procedure classification for inpatient procedures) procedure 8-550 (§ 109, N=1,272) or via admission to a geriatric rehabilitation unit within 1 month after hospital discharge (§ 111, N=2,200). All direct costs were ascertained and presented with and without costs of long-term care. Excess costs were calculated as the difference of costs between the first year after insult and the costs in the previous year. Excess costs in the 2 types of care were compared using multivariate quantile regression analysis. Risk of hospitalization (due to ischemic stroke or fracture) and risk of death in a 1-year follow-up was analysed using multivariate cox regression. RESULTS: Insured members treated according to health care type § 109 were somewhat older (mean: 81 vs. 80 years of age), more frequently female (72 vs. 67%), more often receiving long-term care (27 vs. 19%) and had more often documented sequelae after insult (>=4 diseases 39 vs. 28%). No significant differences in excess costs between both types of care were observed (quantile regression: 25%-percentile-comparison: p=0.49 and 0.11; median-comparison: p=0.99 and 0.13; 75%-percentile-comparison: p=0.13 and 0.30, with and without costs of long-term care, respectively). Moreover, no significant differences were observed related to the outcomes 'rehospitalization due to ischemic stroke' (hazard ratio - HR [95% confidence interval - CI])=1.12 [0.85-1.48], p=0.43) and death (HR [95% CI]=1.03 [0.88-1.20], p=0.75) in the multivariate model (reference: health care type § 111). Insured members in health care type § 109 had a significant lower risk of rehospitalization due to fracture (HR [95% CI]=0.61 [0.40-0.93], p=0.02). CONCLUSION: According to health care type § 109 and § 111, geriatric patients differ in certain characteristics such as gender, statutory care and documented sequelae after insult. Except for the outcome 'fracture', no significant differences between both types of care have been observed in the selected outcomes. Primary studies with more differentiated data collection may focus on specific treatment and on aims and achievements of rehabilitation.

VersKiK: Study protocol of an observational registry-based study on the current state of follow-up care and adherence to follow-up guidelines after cancer in childhood or adolescence.

BACKGROUND: This article describes the study design of the quantitative part of the VersKiK study, The primary objectives of this study are to examine the occurrence of late effects in survivors of childhood or adolescent cancer (module 1), investigate health-related vulnerabilities and medical service utilization within this survivor group (modules 1 and 3), and assess the alignment between documented follow-up care for cardiological and audiological late effects with guideline recommendations, along with evaluating the extent of adherence among paediatric cancer survivors (module 3). METHODS: This is a non-interventional retrospective observational cohort study. It is based on stochastically linked insurance claims data from approximately 150,000 statutory insured persons with information concerning around 25,000-30,000 cancer survivors recorded in the German Childhood Cancer Register (GCCR). To explore adherence to selected follow-up guidelines, intention to treat treatment data from clinical study groups for particular diagnostic entities will be additionally included. DISCUSSION: The growing group of survivors after cancer in childhood and adolescence is representing a special population with an increasing demand for life-long healthcare services through relative high probability of late effects. Currently, there is a limited evidence in Germany on utilization of corresponding medical services and adherence to follow-up guidelines. With this study design, we are aiming to address these gaps and, consequently, suggest improvements to existing follow-up guidelines and follow-up care provision in Germany.

Colonoscopy and fecal occult blood test use in Germany: results from a large insurance-based cohort.

BACKGROUND AND STUDY AIMS: Colonoscopy and guaiac-based fecal occult blood tests (FOBT) are recommended and offered for colorectal cancer (CRC) screening in Germany. We aimed to explore their utilization in a large insurance-based cohort. PATIENTS AND METHODS: Claims data from between 2000 and 2008 were collected for 170493 individuals who were insured by a large health insurance plan in the federal state of Hesse, Germany. The percentages of individuals who had recently utilized CRC screening-related procedures were calculated. Additionally, multiple test use and identification of CRC screening providers were ascertained. RESULTS: Following the inception of the current CRC screening program in 2002, colonoscopy utilization rates varied only slightly and FOBT use decreased in individuals aged ≥50 years. At the end of 2008, the age-standardized percentages of individuals who had undergone colonoscopy within ≤10 years were 23% for men and 26% for women. The proportions of individuals who had used FOBT within ≤1 year were 14% for men and 22% for women. Patient education had been utilized by 38% of eligible persons and was increasingly followed by screening colonoscopy. For women, practices that specialized in gynecology were the main providers of FOBT (93%) and patient education (61%). CONCLUSIONS: This study provides new insights into the inter-related utilization of colonoscopy, FOBT, and patient education in Germany, and may be particularly informative for the design of strategies to increase CRC screening uptake. It indicates that sex differences in CRC screening test use could result to a large extent from general visits to different types of specialist physicians involved in the CRC screening process.

[Internal confirmation of diagnoses in routine statutory health insurance data: concept with examples and case definitions]. / Interne Validierung von Diagnosen in GKV-Routinedaten: Konzeption mit Beispielen und Falldefinition.

Over the course of the last few decades, statutory health insurance data have become increasingly important for health services research. Of particular interest in this context are diagnoses. Since all health insurance data are originally collected for billing purposes, secondary analyses should examine the completeness, plausibility, and validity of the information provided. While an external validation through, for example, a comparison with the physician's records or a second independent medical examination can be seen as a gold standard, this is often not feasible. For this reason, internal validation approaches are recommended for studies based upon diagnoses drawn from routine data. For such approaches, no established standards are currently available. The aim of this contribution is to introduce a generic internal validation concept for chronic diseases. Data employed in the present contribution stem from the health insuree sample of the AOK health insurance fund Hesse. Criteria for assessing the validity of diagnoses (e.g., repetitions, codes assigned by various physicians, prescriptions) are presented for three chronic diseases - heart failure, dementia, and tuberculosis. Building upon these criteria, algorithms for the definition of epidemiologically certain cases are developed and prevalence estimates formed on the basis of these algorithms are compared with other data sources (registers and surveys). Internal confirmation of the diagnoses of heart failure and dementia was possible in 97% and 80% of cases, respectively. The difference between the two diagnoses is due to the low rate of treatment with specific pharmaceuticals in the case of dementia. Prevalence estimates are comparable with those based on other sources. Inpatient discharge diagnoses of tuberculosis were internally confirmed in 100% and outpatient diagnoses in 40% of cases. For this reason, outpatient diagnoses were not considered for the case definition of tuberculosis. A comparison with tuberculosis surveillance data reveals a somewhat higher incidence in the insuree sample. In selecting and weighting criteria as well as employing a case definition, the research aim of the respective investigation must be taken into account. The adopted procedure is to be presented in a transparent manner.

Alzheimer's disease medication and outcomes of hospitalisation among patients with dementia.

AIMS: The use of Alzheimer disease medication for the treatment of dementia symptoms has shown significant benefits with regards to functional and cognitive outcomes as well as nursing home placement (NHP) and mortality. Hospitalisations in these patient groups are characterised by extended length of stays (LOS), frequent readmissions, frequent NHP and high-mortality rates. The impact of Alzheimer disease medication on the aforementioned outcomes remains still unknown. This study assessed the association of Alzheimer disease medication with outcomes of hospitalisation among patients with Alzheimer disease and other forms of dementia. METHODS: A dynamic retrospective cohort study from 2004 to 2015 was conducted which claims data from a German health insurance company. People with dementia (PWD) were identified using ICD-10 codes and diagnostic measures. The main predictor of interest was the use of Alzheimer disease medication. Hospitalisation outcomes included LOS, readmissions, NHP and mortality during and after hospitalisation across four hospitalisations. Confounding was addressed using a propensity score throughout all analyses. RESULTS: A total of 1380 users of Alzheimer disease medication and 6730 non-users were identified. The use of Alzheimer disease medication was associated with significantly shorter LOS during the first hospitalisations with estimates for the second, third and fourth showed a tendency towards shorter hospital stays. In addition, current users of Alzheimer disease medication had a lower risk of hospital readmission after the first two hospitalisations. These associations were not significant for the third and fourth hospitalisations. Post-hospitalisation NHP and mortality rates also tended to be lower among current users than among non-users but differences did not reach statistical significance. CONCLUSIONS: Our results indicate that Alzheimer disease medication might contribute to a reduction of the LOS and the number of readmissions in PWD.

[Impact of demographic changes on health care expenditure in Germany: an analysis considering the expenditures of decedents]. / Einfluss der demographischen Entwicklung auf Gesundheitsausgaben in Deutschland: Eine Analyse unter Berücksichtigung der Ausgaben Versterbender.

The purpose of this study was to evaluate the impact of demographic changes on future health care expenditure of the German social health insurances considering the expenditures of survivors and decedents by age. The study analysed data from 269,646 members up to the age of 99 years of the AOK - one of Germany's largest social health insurers - in the State of Hesse in 2000/2001. In order to determine future health care expenditures, per-capita expenditures by age for outpatient, inpatient, rehabilitation, and nursing services of survivors and decedents (death within the next 12 months) were multiplied by the estimated number of survivors and decedents by age in Germany in 2020, 2035 und 2050. Expenditures for all ages were summed together. The paper shows that demographic changes until 2050 will lead to an increase of health care expenditures by 20% in total or less than 1% annually. Considering the future re-duction in workforce, demographic changes until 2050 will result in an estimated increase in health care expenditures per employee by about 57% (undifferentiated model). Considering the cost of survivors and decedents separately, this increase will amount to 50%. Hence, undifferentiated models overestimate the impact of demographic changes by about 10%.

ECG-synchronized thoracic vest inflation during autonomic blockade, myocardial ischemia, or cardiac arrest.

To evaluate, in the absence of lung inflation, the cardiovascular effects of single and repetitive pleural pressure increments induced by thoracic vest inflations and timed to occur during specific portions of the cardiac cycle, seven chronically instrumented dogs were studied. Reflexes and left ventricular (LV) performance were varied by autonomic blockade, circumflex coronary occlusion (with and without beta-blockade), or cardiac arrest. Single late systolic, but not early systolic, vest inflations significantly increased LV stroke volume both before (+12.4%) and after myocardial depression by coronary occlusion+beta-blockade (+18.5%) when performed after a period of apnea to control preload and rate. During vest inflations, LV and aortic pressures increased to a greater degree than esophageal pressure (by 51 vs. 39 mmHg, P = 0.0001). Lung inflations (26 trials in 3 dogs) during early or late systole failed to increase stroke volume, despite peak esophageal pressures of 11-26 mmHg. With autonomic reflexes intact, repetitive vest inflations coupled to early systole, late systole, or diastole induced a large (40%) but unspecific systemic flow increase. In contrast, during autonomic blockade, flow increased slightly (7.5%, P < 0.05) with late systolic compared with diastolic inflations but not relative to baseline. During coronary occlusion (with or without beta-blockade), no cycle-specific differences were seen, whereas matched vest inflations during cardiac arrest generated 20-30% of normal systemic flow. Thus only single late systolic thoracic vest inflations associated with large increments in pleural pressure increased LV emptying, presumably by decreasing LV afterload and/or focal cardiac compression. However, during myocardial ischemia and depression, coupling of vest inflation to specific parts of the cardiac cycle revealed no hemodynamic improvement, suggesting that benefits of this circulatory assist method, if any, are minor and may be restricted to conditions of cardiac arrest.

Coronary and systemic vascular response to inspiratory resistive breathing.

To evaluate the coronary and systemic cardiovascular response to graded inspiratory resistive breathing, seven dogs were studied 2-4 wk after chronic instrumentation to measure circumflex coronary artery and ascending aortic blood flows as well as aortic and left ventricular (LV) blood pressures. The experiments were performed under chloralose anesthesia (to exclude any confounding emotional effects by dyspnea on cardiovascular variables) and hyperoxic conditions (to prevent chemoreflex activation by hypoxemia). In a randomized fashion, the dogs were subjected to graded inspiratory resistive breathing (spontaneous breathing alone and moderate and severe resistive loading, corresponding to resistances of approximately 0, 40, and 110 cmH2O.s.l-1, respectively). Each run lasted 10 min. Compared with mechanical ventilation with the respiratory muscles at rest, spontaneous breathing alone and moderate and severe inspiratory resistive loading induced pronounced and significant increases in circumflex coronary blood flow (19, 32, and 62%, respectively), which were almost exclusively accounted for by significant decrements in coronary vascular resistance and were paralleled (r = 0.88, P less than 0.0001) by significant increments (18, 31, and 57%) in heart rate transmural-aortic pressure product, an indicator of LV myocardial O2 demand. An increase in myocardial O2 consumption during resistive breathing was confirmed by analysis of coronary sinus blood samples in additional experiments (n = 3). Cardiac output significantly increased (10, 14, and 35%) because of increases in heart rate (15, 24, and 49%), with LV stroke volume and diastolic dimensions remaining unchanged.(ABSTRACT TRUNCATED AT 250 WORDS)

Pharmacotherapeutic circles. Results of an 18-month peer-review prescribing-improvement programme for general practitioners.

OBJECTIVE: To assess the effectiveness of the pharmacotherapeutic circle (PTC), a general practitioner (GP) prescribing-improvement programme to enhance prescribing quality and reduce drug costs. DESIGN: Combined pre- and post-intervention time-series design using an internal comparison of subgroups and an external comparative control. SETTING: Small discussion groups meeting 8 times over 18 months. PARTICIPANTS: 79 GPs exceeding the mean drug costs/patient of all Hessian physicians by > or = 40%; 10 moderators. INTERVENTIONS: Peer-review feedback of prescription patterns based on guidelines targeting 3 suboptimal prescribing areas: drug prescriptions lacking evidence-based efficacy (target A); presumptive prescribing habits (target B); and underprescribing of new, effective therapies (target C). MAIN OUTCOME MEASURES AND RESULTS: Significant decreases in prescription rates for target A drugs were recorded for varicose vein medications (p = 0.006), peripheral vasodilators (p = 0.0001) and topical antirheumatics (p = 0.0145), but not for prokinetics/enzymes/digestives. Prescribing of target B drugs such as benzodiazepines and nonsteroidal anti-inflammatory drugs declined markedly (p = 0.0019 and 0.0014, respectively). Target C drug prescriptions such as for opioids and proton pump inhibitors were not significantly increased. Highly significant reductions in prescription costs were observed for target A and B drugs, irrespective of whether GPs were stratified into high, medium or low prescribers. When mean prescribing costs for PTC participants were compared with those of a control group comprising 8000 GPs over a 21-month period, PTC GPs decreased their costs by 2%, whereas drug costs for all Hessian physicians rose by 10%. CONCLUSIONS: PTCs appear to be an effective method to optimise the quality of drug prescribing and reduce drug costs.

Development of indicators for assessing the quality of prescribing of lipid-lowering drugs: data from the pharmacotherapeutic quality circles in Hesse, Germany.

OBJECTIVE: To develop indicators based on prescription analysis in order to assess adherence using guidelines and to monitor prescribing behavior. SETTING AND MATERIAL: Eleven pharmacotherapeutic circles (PTC) of the Association of Statutory Health Insurance Physicians (KV Hesse; 10 PTCs including 155 GPs as participants, mostly high prescribers; one circle with 11 moderators trained in pharmacology). These provided a total of 183,997 drug prescriptions involving 54,970 patients (prescriptions reimbursed by the substitute fund--Ersatzkassen--II. quarter 2000); claims form from 151 GPs. On average, 5.1% of the patients with prescriptions received lipid-lowering drugs. METHOD: Development and application of indicators based on the guideline for the treatment of hypercholesterolemia developed by a GP's guideline group of the quality circles in Hesse (Hausärztliche Leitliniengruppe Hessen). The ratio of prescribing for primary and secondary prevention was chosen as a top indicator for measuring adherence to the guideline. Prescribing for secondary prevention was assessed by a set of special diagnoses. The second indicator relates to patient groups (here: older than 75 years) where the benefit of prescribing is not clear. Further indicators measure the prescribing of first choice drugs, avoidance of risk combinations and costconscious prescribing. The indicators are presented in the prescription analysis and will be discussed during the circle meeting. RESULTS: On average, the moderators prescribed 34% of the lipid-lowering drugs for primary prevention, the GP circle participants 36.7%. On average, moderators and GP participants prescribed lipid-lowering drugs for 4.9% and 7.5% of patients older than 75 years, respectively (6% and 22% in primary prevention). Approximately, 28% of all lipid-lowering drugs issued by the participants involved simvastatin and pravastatin as first-choice drugs compared to 36.5% in the case of the moderators. The prescribing of statins with fibrates or macrolides in combination is seldom. Cost-conscious prescribing can be assessed for each GP by the percentage of generic prescribing and the number of different brands per active agent. Both, moderators and participants used generics when prescribing fibrates, bile acid sequestrants or other types of lipid-lowering drugs (moderators 53.8% and GP participants 78.5%). Three months is too short a period for assessing compliance of lipid-lowering drug prescribing. CONCLUSION: It is possible to derive indicators from the guidelines and to integrate them into prescription analysis. The indicators reveal prescribing problems. The evaluation of PTCs in 2002 will involve the use of indicators as an instrument to assess the success in the implementation of guidelines.

[Prospective comparative observational study on the antibiotic treatment of secondary peritonitis in Germany -- efficacy and cost analysis]. / Antibiotische Behandlung der sekundären Peritonitis in Deutschland. Prospektive vergleichende Beobachtungsstudie zur Wirksamkeit und den Behandlungskosten.

AIMS: Cephalosporins and broad-spectrum penicillins in combination with metronidazole are suitable for treatment of secondary peritonitis. The aim of this study was to compare the clinical and bacteriological efficacy, length of hospital stay (LOS), treatment costs of ceftriaxone (CRO) in combination with metronidazole vs standard regimens (SR) 1 and 2. METHODS: Patient data were subjected to matched-pairs analysis according to four different categories of the Mannheim peritonitis index. RESULTS. From January 1998 to March 2000, a total of 365 patients from 59 surgical wards in German hospitals were included. Clinical efficacy was 90.2% vs 70.4% ( P=0.004) for CRO/SR 1 and 78.3% vs 82.6% for CRO/SR 2. Bacteriological efficacy was comparable. Antibiotic treatment costs were 593/539 Euros for CRO/SR 1 and 466/750 Euros for CRO/SR 2, i.e., costs for CRO were 37.9% lower than with SR 2. CONCLUSION: Based on clinical, bacteriological, and pharmacoeconomic results, ceftriaxone in combination with metronidazole can be regarded as a first-line antimicrobial treatment of secondary peritonitis.

[Drug therapy courses for family physicians--advanced education in pharmacotherapy]. / Pharmakotherapiezirkel für Hausärzte--Fortbildung in Pharmakotherapie.

UNLABELLED: General practitioners (GPs) are responsible for 70% (or roughly 30 billion DM) of the entire medication prescribed by practising doctors. Pharmacotherapy circles (PTC) are a further education, which focuses on the optimisation of prescription behaviour (best therapy possible in clinical pharmacology, the translatability into daily practice and guides the concept and contents of the further education. The concept of further education in pharmacotherapy circles developed by us follows the rules of quality assurance in medical care: ASSESSMENT: Recording prescriptions in one quarter for evaluation of prescription problems. Problem selection: Medicine groups, whose prescription frequency give an indication of prescription quality, i.e. vein and rheumatism ointments (as little as possible) and proton pump inhibitors and lipid reducers (as many as necessary). The problem analysis takes place as peer review by a group of physicians from the same field, and under the moderation of two doctors from the same field, who have been for at last one year, carefully instructed, in pharmacology and the moderations of groups. The formulation of guidelines shall be shown for an indication area, for which there is no robust therapy (e.g. venous medicaments). The purpose of theses guidelines shall be to optimise the treatment, strengthen the health consciousness of the patient and reduce the prescription of medicaments, whose efficacy has not been proven. The evaluation proves that these goals have been reached. The total reduction in costs is different for individual physicians depending on the original prescription level of the underlying medicament costs. Only the third of "high prescribers" showed economy reserves. There were savings in medicaments with non-proven efficacy among the lower and middle prescribers, however, there were increased expenditures and therapy improvements in other areas.

[Differences in antibiotic prescribing between general practitioners and pediatricians in Hesse, Germany]. / Unterschiede im Verschreibungsverhalten von Antibiotika bei Allgemein- und Kinderärzten in Hessen.

BACKGROUND: A careful consideration of antibiotic prescription is necessary due to emerging antibiotic resistance. Differences in prescription rates between physician groups have only rarely been examined. We compared the prescription of antibiotics for systemic use in children between pediatricians and general practitioners (GPs). METHOD: Data source was the statutory health insurance sample AOK Hesse/KV Hesse. Overall, 47,033 insured children in 2006 between 2 and 17 years of age were included in the analysis. Odds ratios (OR) and 95% confidence intervals (CI) for an antibiotic prescription were calculated by logistic regression adjusted for confounders, comparing pediatricians with GPs. Diagnosis-specific models were constructed. RESULTS: GPs and pediatricians prescribed 79.3% of all antibiotics in 2006 (40.6% and 38.7%, respectively). Significantly decreased ORs for an antibiotic prescription were observed for pediatricians, with OR (95% CI) of 0.46 (0.43-0.49), 0.40 (0.30-0.54) and 0.40 (0.30-0.53) for respiratory tract infections, urinary tract infections and nonsuppurative otitis media, respectively. No significant associations were observed assessing scarlet fever, pneumonia and suppurative otitis media, respectively. CONCLUSION: In this retrospective analysis, pediatricians were associated with a lower antibiotic prescription rate regarding diagnoses where antibiotic therapy is not clearly indicated. However, in diagnoses where antibiotic therapy is clearly indicated, no differences in prescription rates between pediatricians and GPs were observed. Further studies are warranted to gain insight into different treatment strategies between different groups of medical practitioners.