| October 27, 2020, Issue #736 The number of hospital stays among patients aged 65+ years with Medicare Advantage as the expected primary payer increased 45 percent from 2009 to 2017, while those for which traditional Medicare was the expected primary payer fell 12 percent. (Source: AHRQ, Healthcare Cost and Utilization Project Statistical Brief #262: Medicare Advantage Versus the Traditional Medicare Program: Costs of Inpatient Stays, 2009-2017.)  Registration is open for a webinar that will highlight free training opportunities for nursing homes to prevent and minimize the spread of COVID-19. The AHRQ ECHO National Nursing Home COVID-19 Action Network is a partnership between AHRQ, the Institute for Healthcare Improvement (IHI) and the University of New Mexico's ECHO Institute. More than 15,000 nursing homes certified to participate in the Medicare and Medicaid programs will be able to participate in the 16-week training program using a curriculum developed by the IHI. Training will include best practices in the use of personal protective equipment, infection control, COVID-19 testing and clinical management of asymptomatic and mild cases of COVID-19. Participating nursing homes are eligible to receive $6,000 to cover staff training time. Access more information and register for the webinar, which is scheduled Oct. Oct. 29 at 10:30 a.m. MT. |  A new AHRQ report that highlights agency-sponsored research on some of today's most compelling digital healthcare topics is the subject of a blog post by Director Gopal Khanna, M.B.A., and Chris Dymek, Ed.D., director of AHRQ's Digital Healthcare Research Program. The program's 2019 Year in Review shows how agency research is helping to improve patient-centered care, support clinicians and other healthcare professionals in providing health services, and leverage data and technology to strengthen health systems. The report spotlights the program's development and dissemination of evidence-based clinical decision support, as well as the advancement of the knowledge base about how to digitally collect and use patient-reported outcomes. Access the blog post. To receive all blog posts, submit your email address and select "AHRQ Views Blog." |  An AHRQ-funded study published in the journal Applied Clinical Informatics found that multiple factors, including provider-patient communication difficulties and confusion around provider responsibility, contribute to missed follow-ups after abnormal test results. Prior studies have suggested that lack of timely follow-up and missed follow-up of abnormal test results increase patient safety risks. Researchers have found that up to 65 percent of test results in ambulatory settings may be missed, leading to delayed diagnosis or treatment. In the new study, researchers identified missed test results by querying electronic health record (EHR) data and interviewing physicians who ordered these tests. The authors applied three human factors methods to identify missed follow-ups and their causes, including issues related to workflow and use of EHRs. Access the abstract. |  Effective preparation for future pandemics will require funding now and in the future to ensure development, manufacturing and distribution of effective vaccines, according to a new AHRQ-funded report from AcademyHealth. The report summarizes an expert discussion at an August meeting on the COVID-19 vaccine development experience and existing research. While the United States has stepped up efforts to prepare for public health emergencies, especially global flu pandemics, and had extensive preparedness infrastructure in place for almost 15 years, the field is characterized by repeated cycles of panic and neglect, according to the report. Report authors concluded that once effective COVID-19 vaccines are available, they should be distributed according to countries' health needs, independent of their wealth. Access the report. | AHRQ's Patient Safety Network (PSNet) highlights journal articles, books and tools related to patient safety. Articles featured this week include: Review additional new publications in PSNet's current issue or access recent cases and commentaries in AHRQ's WebM&M (Morbidity and Mortality Rounds on the Web). | AHRQ in the Professional Literature Penicillin allergy labels drive perioperative prophylactic antibiotic selection in orthopedic procedures. Coleman DT, Stone CA, Jr., Wei WQ, et al. J Allergy Clin Immunol Pract. 2020 Jul 18. [Epub ahead of print.] Access the abstract on PubMed®. Quality improvement toolkits: recommendations for development. Hempel S, Miake-Lye I, Brega AG, et al. Am J Med Qual. 2019 Nov/Dec;34(6):538-44. Epub 2019 Jan 24. Access the abstract on PubMed®. Perioperative opioid use and pain-related outcomes in the Veterans Health Administration. Hernandez-Boussard T, Graham LA, Carroll I, et al. Am J Surg. 2020 Jun;219(6):969-75. Epub 2019 Jun 28. Access the abstract on PubMed®. Testing strategies and predictors for evaluating immediate and delayed reactions to cephalosporins. Stone CA, Jr., Trubiano JA, Phillips EJ. J Allergy Clin Immunol Pract. 2020 Aug 19. [Epub ahead of print.] Access the abstract on PubMed®. Local referral of high-risk patients to high-quality hospitals: surgical outcomes, cost savings, and travel burdens. Smith ME, Shubeck SP, Nuliyalu U, et al. Ann Surg. 2020 Jun;271(6):1065-71. Access the abstract on PubMed®. Contribution of social factors to readmissions within 30 days after hospitalization for COPD exacerbation. Goto T, Yoshida K, Faridi MK, et al. BMC Pulm Med. 2020 Apr 29;20(1):107. Access the abstract on PubMed®. Antibiotics for aspiration pneumonia in neurologically impaired children. Thomson J, Hall M, Ambroggio L, et al. J Hosp Med. 2020 Jul;15(7):395-402. Epub 2019 Nov 20. Access the abstract on PubMed®. Validity of medical record abstraction and electronic health record-generated reports to assess performance on cardiovascular quality measures in primary care. Homco J, Carabin H, Nagykaldi Z, et al. JAMA Netw Open. 2020 Jul;3(7):e209411. Access the abstract on PubMed®. Contact Information For comments or questions about AHRQ News Now, contact Bruce Seeman, (301) 427-1998 or Bruce.Seeman@ahrq.hhs.gov. |
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