Seventy-two-hour antibiotic retrieval from the ED: a randomized controlled trial of discharge instructional modality.

BACKGROUND: Limited health literacy is a risk factor for poor outcomes in numerous health care settings. Little is known about the impact of instructional modality and health literacy on adherence to emergency department (ED) discharge instructions. PURPOSE: To examine the impact of instructional modality on 72-hour antibiotic retrieval among ED patients prescribed outpatient antibiotics for infections. METHODS: English-speaking ED patients diagnosed as having acute infections and prescribed outpatient antibiotics were randomized to standard discharge instructions, standard instructions plus text-messaged instructions, or standard instructions plus voicemailed instructions targeting ED prescriptions. Health literacy was determined by validated instrument. Seventy-two-hour antibiotic retrieval, 30-day report of prescription completion, and discharge instructional modality preference were assessed. RESULTS: Nearly one-quarter of the 2521 participants demonstrated low health literacy. Low health literacy predicted decreased 72-hour antibiotic retrieval (χ(2) = 9.56, P=.008). No significant association with antibiotic retrieval was noted across the 3 treatment groups (χ(2) = 5.112, P=.078). However, patients randomized to the text message group retrieved antibiotic prescriptions within 72 hours more frequently than did those randomized to the voicemail treatment group (χ(2) = 4.345, P=.037), and patients with low health literacy randomized to voicemailed instructions retrieved their antibiotic prescriptions less frequently than did those randomized to standard of care instructions (χ(2) = 5.526, P=.019). Reported instructional modality preferences were inconsistent with the primary findings of the study. CONCLUSIONS: Discharge instructional modality impacts antibiotic retrieval in patients with low health literacy. Preference for discharge instructional modality varies by degree of health literacy, but does not predict which modality will optimize 72-hour antibiotic retrieval.

Gender differences in acute and chronic pain in the emergency department: results of the 2014 Academic Emergency Medicine consensus conference pain section.

Pain is a leading public health problem in the United States, with an annual economic burden of more than $630 billion, and is one of the most common reasons that individuals seek emergency department (ED) care. There is a paucity of data regarding sex differences in the assessment and treatment of acute and chronic pain conditions in the ED. The Academic Emergency Medicine consensus conference convened in Dallas, Texas, in May 2014 to develop a research agenda to address this issue among others related to sex differences in the ED. Prior to the conference, experts and stakeholders from emergency medicine and the pain research field reviewed the current literature and identified eight candidate priority areas. At the conference, these eight areas were reviewed and all eight were ratified using a nominal group technique to build consensus. These priority areas were: 1) gender differences in the pharmacological and nonpharmacological interventions for pain, including differences in opioid tolerance, side effects, or misuse; 2) gender differences in pain severity perceptions, clinically meaningful differences in acute pain, and pain treatment preferences; 3) gender differences in pain outcomes of ED patients across the life span; 4) gender differences in the relationship between acute pain and acute psychological responses; 5) the influence of physician-patient gender differences and characteristics on the assessment and treatment of pain; 6) gender differences in the influence of acute stress and chronic stress on acute pain responses; 7) gender differences in biological mechanisms and molecular pathways mediating acute pain in ED populations; and 8) gender differences in biological mechanisms and molecular pathways mediating chronic pain development after trauma, stress, or acute illness exposure. These areas represent priority areas for future scientific inquiry, and gaining understanding in these will be essential to improving our understanding of sex and gender differences in the assessment and treatment of pain conditions in emergency care settings.