Reduced mortality among Department of Veterans Affairs patients with schizophrenia or bipolar disorder lost to follow-up and engaged in active outreach to return for care.

OBJECTIVES: We determined whether contacting Department of Veterans Affairs (VA) patients with schizophrenia or bipolar disorders (serious mental illness [SMI]) who had dropped out of care for prolonged periods resulted in reengagement with VA services and decreased mortality. METHODS: We developed a list of patients with SMI who were last treated in fiscal years 2005 to 2006, and were lost to follow-up care for at least 1 year. VA medical centers used our list to contact patients and schedule appointments. Additional VA administrative data on patient utilization and mortality through May 2009 were analyzed. RESULTS: About 72% (2375 of 3306) of the patients who VA staff attempted to contact returned for VA care. The mortality rate of returning patients was significantly lower than that for patients not returning (0.5% vs 3.9%; adjusted odds ratio = 5.8; P < .001), after demographic and clinical factors were controlled. CONCLUSIONS: The mortality rate for returning patients with SMI was almost 6 times less than for those who did not return for medical care. Proactive outreach might result in patients returning to care and should be implemented to reengage this vulnerable group.

Assessment of the reliability of data collected for the Department of Veterans Affairs national surgical quality improvement program.

BACKGROUND: The Office of the Medical Inspector of the Department of Veterans Affairs (VA) studied the reliability of data collected by the VA's National Surgical Quality Improvement Program (NSQIP). The study focused on case selection bias, accuracy of reports on patients who died, and interrater reliability measurements of patient risk variables and outcomes. STUDY DESIGN: Surgical data from a sample of 15 VA medical centers were analyzed. For case selection bias, reviewers applied NSQIP criteria to include or exclude 2,460 patients from the database, comparing their results with those of NSQIP staff. For accurate reporting of patients who died, reviewers compared Social Security numbers of 10,444 NSQIP records with those found in the VA Beneficiary Identification and Records Locator Subsystem, VA Patient Treatment Files, and Social Security Administration death files. For measurement of interrater reliability, reviewers reabstracted 59 variables in each of 550 patient medical records that also were recorded in the NSQIP database. RESULTS: On case selection bias, the reviewers agreed with NSQIP decisions on 2,418 (98%) of the 2,460 cases. Computer record matching identified 4 more deaths than the NSQIP total of 198, a difference of about 2%. For 52 of the categorical variables, agreement, uncorrected for chance, was 96%. For 48 of 52 categorical variables, kappas ranged from 0.61 to 1.0 (substantial to almost perfect agreement); none of the variables had kappas of less than 0.20 (slight to poor agreement). CONCLUSIONS: This sample of medical centers shows adherence to criteria in selecting cases for the NSQIP database, for reporting deaths, and for collecting patient risk variables.

Quality indicators in the Department of Veterans Affairs nursing home care units: a preliminary assessment.

The authors analyzed the minimum data set quality indicators data aggregated nationally from 134 Department of Veterans Affairs nursing home care units with more than 15,000 long-stay residents (>90 days) yearly for federal fiscal years 2003, 2004, and 2005. Despite an increase in the severity of illness and complexity of services as determined by the minimum data set case-mix indices, most of the minimum data set quality indicators showed an improvement (rate decrease) from fiscal year 2003 to fiscal year 2005, whether examined on a year-to-year basis or by an overall 3-year trend. Nationally, there was a 5.1% increase in average case-mix index, while 14 of 24 quality indicators showed a decrease in the prevalence/ incidence rates and only 4 quality indicators showed increased rates. These minimum data set results provide important information for Veterans Affairs quality managers regarding areas of achievement and also identify areas to be targeted for future quality improvement.

Infection surveillance and control programs in the Department of Veterans Affairs nursing home care units: a preliminary assessment.

A survey was conducted to assess the capacity and current practices of the infection surveillance and control programs at the Department of Veterans Affairs' 130 nursing home care units (VA NHCUs) covering a total of 15,006 beds in 2003. All 130 VA NHCUs responded to the survey, although not all NHCUs answered every question. The majority of the VA NHCUs provided specialized services that might pose increased risks of infection. For every 8 to 10 VA NHCU beds, there was 1 regular-pressure or negative-pressure infection control room available. Each VA NHCU had an active ongoing infection surveillance and control program managed by highly educated infection control personnel (ICP), of which 96% had a minimum of a bachelor degree. A median of 12 hours per week of these ICP efforts was devoted to the infection surveillance and control activities. The most frequently used surveillance methods were targeted surveillance for specific infections and for specific organisms. Most VA NHCUs conducted surveillance for antibiotic-resistant organisms. However, VA NHCUs did not use a uniform set of definitions for nosocomial infections for their infection surveillance and control purposes. We conclude that VA NHCUs have a considerable infrastructure and capacity for infection surveillance and control. This information can be used to develop a nationwide VA NHCU nosocomial infection surveillance system.

Cause-specific mortality among Veterans with serious mental illness lost to follow-up.

OBJECTIVE: Although reduced care engagement has been linked to increased mortality for persons with serious mental illness (SMI), there have been limited investigations into specific mortality causes for this group. This study evaluates the effects of care disengagement on mortality cause and time until death in Veterans with SMI. METHOD: A total of 3300 Veterans with SMI lost to Veterans Affairs care for more than 1 year were contacted by providers who attempted treatment reengagement. Fisher's Exact Tests evaluated associations between mortality cause and reengagement status, and a Cox proportional hazard model evaluated the association between reengagement and survival. RESULTS: During the study, 146 (4.6%) patients died. A lack of reengagement was associated with increased noninjury death [odds ratio (OR)=1.64], increased cancer-based mortality (OR=4.76) and an average of 97.4 fewer days of life. CONCLUSIONS: Care reengagement may support medical care management and reduce preventable medical mortality for Veterans with SMI.

Nursing home-associated infections in Department of Veterans Affairs community living centers.

BACKGROUND: Little is known about factors contributing to nursing home-associated infections (NHAIs). We conducted a survey of residents in 133 Department of Veterans Affairs community living centers to determine the roles of indwelling device use, bed locations, and treatment codes on NHAIs. METHODS: A Web-based point prevalence survey of NHAIs using modified Centers for Disease Control and Prevention definitions for health care-associated infections was conducted on November 14, 2007. RESULTS: Among 10,939 residents, 575 had at least one NHAI, for a point prevalence rate of 5.3%. Urinary tract infection, skin infection, asymptomatic bacteriuria, and pneumonia were the most prevalent NHAIs. A total of 2687 residents had one or more indwelling devices; 290 of these also had an NHAI, for a prevalence of 10.8%. In contrast, the prevalence of NHAIs in residents without indwelling devices was 3.5% (P < .0001). Indwelling urinary catheters, percutaneous gastrostomy tubes, peripherally inserted central catheters, and suprapubic urinary catheters were the most commonly used devices. There were 4027 residents in designated units and 6912 residents in dispersed units. The rate of device use was 21.4% in the designated units and 26.4% in the dispersed units (P < .0001). The prevalence of NHAIs was 4.5% in the designated units and 5.7% in the dispersed units (P < .001). Rates of NHAIs and device use varied greatly among the various treatment codes; however, there was a positive correlation between the rates of NHAIs and device use. Stepwise logistic regression analysis of data from long-stay and short-stay skilled nursing care residents revealed that only the presence of an indwelling device, not length of stay or bed location, affected the rate of NHAIs. CONCLUSION: Indwelling device use, but not bed location or treatment code, was found to be associated with increased rate of NHAIs.

Prevalence of nursing home-associated infections in the Department of Veterans Affairs nursing home care units.

BACKGROUND: The Department of Veterans Affairs (VA) is the largest single provider of long-term care in the United States. The prevalence of nursing home-associated infections (NHAIs) among residents of VA nursing home care units (NHCUs) is not known. METHODS: A Web-based point prevalence survey of NHAIs using modified Centers for Disease Control and Prevention definitions for health care-associated infections was conducted in the VA's 133 NHCUs on November 9, 2005. RESULTS: From a total population of 11,475 NHCU residents, 591 had at least 1 NHAI for a point prevalence rate of 5.2%. Urinary tract infection, asymptomatic bacteriuria, pneumonia, skin infection, gastroenteritis, and soft tissue infection were most prevalent, constituting 72% of all NHAIs. A total of 2817 residents (24.5%) had 1 or more indwelling device. Of these 2817 residents with an indwelling device(s), 309 (11.0%) had 1 or more NHAI. In contrast, the prevalence of NHAIs in residents without an indwelling device was 3.3%. Indwelling urinary catheter, percutaneous gastrostomy tube, intravenous peripheral line, peripherally inserted central catheter, and suprapubic urinary catheter were most common, accounting for 79.3% of all devices used. CONCLUSION: There are effective infection surveillance and control programs in VA NHCUs with a point prevalence of NHAIs of 5.2%.