Failure to Rescue After Cardiac Surgery at Minority-Serving Hospitals: Room for Improvement

Association of race, demographic and socioeconomic factors with failure to rescue after hepato-pancreato-biliary surgery in the United States

BACKGROUND

We aimed to describe the association of patient-related factors such as race, socioeconomic status, and insurance on failure to rescue (FTR) after hepato-pancreato-biliary (HPB) surgeries.

METHODS

Using the National Inpatient Sample, we analyzed 98,788 elective HPB surgeries between 2004 and 2017. Major and minor complications were identified using ICD9/10 codes. We evaluated mortality rates and FTR (inpatient mortality after major complications). We used multivariate logistic regression analysis to assess racial, socioeconomic, and demographic factors on FTR, adjusting for covariates.

RESULTS

Overall, 43 % of patients (n = 42,256) had pancreatic operations, 36% (n = 35,526) had liver surgery, and 21% (n = 21,006) had biliary interventions. The overall major complication rate was 21% (n = 20,640), of which 8% (n = 1655) suffered FTR. Factors independently associated with increased risk for FTR were male sex, older age, higher Charlson Comorbidity Index, Hispanic ethnicity, Asian or other race, lower income quartile, Medicare insurance, and southern region hospitals.

CONCLUSIONS

Medicare insurance, male gender, Hispanic ethnicity, and lower income quartile were associated with increased risk for FTR. Efforts should be made to improve the identification and subsequent treatment of complications for those at high risk of FTR.

Does Failure to Rescue Drive Race/Ethnicity-based Disparities in Survival After Heart Transplantation?

OBJECTIVE

The objective was to assess whether race/ethnicity is an independent predictor of failure to rescue (FTR) after orthotopic heart transplantation (OHT).

SUMMARY BACKGROUND DATA

Outcomes following OHT vary by patient level factors; for example, non-White patients have worse outcomes than White patients after OHT. Failure to rescue is an important factor associated with cardiac surgery outcomes, but its relationship to demographic factors is unknown.

METHODS

Using the United Network for Organ Sharing database, we included all adult patients who underwent primary isolated OHT between 1/1/2006 snd 6/30/2021. FTR was defined as the inability to prevent mortality after at least one of the UNOS-designated postoperative complications. Donor, recipient, and transplant characteristics, including complications and FTR, were compared across race/ethnicity. Logistic regression models were created to identify factors associated with complications and FTR. Kaplan Meier and adjusted Cox proportional hazards models evaluated the association between race/ethnicity and posttransplant survival.

RESULTS

There were 33,244 adult, isolated heart transplant recipients included: the distribution of race/ethnicity was 66% (n=21,937) White, 21.2% (7,062) Black, 8.3% (2,768) Hispanic, and 3.3% (1,096) Asian. The frequency of complications and FTR differed significantly by race/ethnicity. After adjustment, Hispanic recipients were more likely to experience FTR than White recipients (OR 1.327, 95% CI[1.075-1.639], P =0.02). Black recipients had lower 5-year survival compared with other races/ethnicities (HR 1.276, 95% CI[1.207-1.348], P <0.0001).

CONCLUSIONS

In the US, Black recipients have an increased risk of mortality after OHT compared with White recipients, without associated differences in FTR. In contrast, Hispanic recipients have an increased likelihood of FTR, but no significant mortality difference compared with White recipients. These findings highlight the need for tailored approaches to addressing race/ethnicity-based health inequities in the practice of heart transplantation.

The Emerging Role of "Failure to Rescue" as the Primary Quality Metric for Cardiovascular Surgery and Critical Care

We conducted a thorough literature review on the emerging role of failure to rescue (FTR) as a quality metric for cardiovascular surgery and critical care. For this purpose, we identified all original research studies assessing the implementation of FTR in cardiovascular surgery and critical care from 1992 to 2023. All included studies were evaluated for their quality. Although all studies defined FTR as mortality after a surgical complication, a high heterogeneity has been reported among studies regarding the included complications. There are certain factors that affect the FTR, divided into hospital- and patient-related factors. The identification of these factors allowed us to build a stepwise roadmap to reduce the FTR rate. Recently, FTR has further evolved as a metric to assess morbidity instead of mortality, while being also evaluated in the context of interventional cardiology. All these advances are further discussed in the current review, thus providing all the necessary information to surgeons, anesthesiologists, and physicians willing to implement FTR as a metric of quality in their establishment.

Racial Disparities in Length of Stay Among Severely Ill Patients Presenting With Sepsis and Acute Respiratory Failure

Importance

Although racial and ethnic minority patients with sepsis and acute respiratory failure (ARF) experience worse outcomes, how patient presentation characteristics, processes of care, and hospital resource delivery are associated with outcomes is not well understood.

Objective

To measure disparities in hospital length of stay (LOS) among patients at high risk of adverse outcomes who present with sepsis and/or ARF and do not immediately require life support and to quantify associations with patient- and hospital-level factors.

Design, Setting, and Participants

This matched retrospective cohort study used electronic health record data from 27 acute care teaching and community hospitals across the Philadelphia metropolitan and northern California areas between January 1, 2013, and December 31, 2018. Matching analyses were performed between June 1 and July 31, 2022. The study included 102 362 adult patients who met clinical criteria for sepsis (n = 84 685) or ARF (n = 42 008) with a high risk of death at the time of presentation to the emergency department but without an immediate requirement for invasive life support.

Exposures

Racial or ethnic minority self-identification.

Main Outcomes and Measures

Hospital LOS, defined as the time from hospital admission to the time of discharge or inpatient death. Matches were stratified by racial and ethnic minority patient identity, comparing Asian and Pacific Islander patients, Black patients, Hispanic patients, and multiracial patients with White patients in stratified analyses.

Results

Among 102 362 patients, the median (IQR) age was 76 (65-85) years; 51.5% were male. A total of 10.2% of patients self-identified as Asian American or Pacific Islander, 13.7% as Black, 9.7% as Hispanic, 60.7% as White, and 5.7% as multiracial. After matching racial and ethnic minority patients to White patients on clinical presentation characteristics, hospital capacity strain, initial intensive care unit admission, and the occurrence of inpatient death, Black patients experienced longer LOS relative to White patients in fully adjusted matches (sepsis: 1.26 [95% CI, 0.68-1.84] days; ARF: 0.97 [95% CI, 0.05-1.89] days). Length of stay was shorter among Asian American and Pacific Islander patients with ARF (-0.61 [95% CI, -0.88 to -0.34] days) and Hispanic patients with sepsis (-0.22 [95% CI, -0.39 to -0.05] days) or ARF (-0.47 [-0.73 to -0.20] days).

Conclusions and Relevance

In this cohort study, Black patients with severe illness who presented with sepsis and/or ARF experienced longer LOS than White patients. Hispanic patients with sepsis and Asian American and Pacific Islander and Hispanic patients with ARF both experienced shorter LOS. Because matched differences were independent of commonly implicated clinical presentation-related factors associated with disparities, identification of additional mechanisms that underlie these disparities is warranted.

The Association of Guideline-Concordant Sentinel Lymph Node Biopsy for Melanoma at Minority-Serving Hospitals

BACKGROUND

Minority-serving hospitals (MSHs) have been associated with lower guideline adherence and worse outcomes for various cancers. However, the relationship among MSH status, concordance with sentinel lymph node biopsy (SLNB) guidelines, and overall survival (OS) for patients with cutaneous melanoma is not well studied.

METHODS

The National Cancer Database was queried for patients diagnosed with T1a*, T2, and T3 melanoma between 2012 and 2017. MSHs were defined as the top decile of institutions ranked by the proportion of minorities treated for melanoma. Based on National Comprehensive Cancer Network guidelines, guideline-concordant care (GCC) was defined as not undergoing SLNB if thickness was < 0.76 mm without ulceration, mitosis ≥ 1/mm², or lymphovascular invasion (T1a*), and performing SLNB for patients with intermediate thickness melanomas between 1.0 and 4.0 mm (T2/T3). Multivariable logistic regressions examined associations with GCC. The Kaplan-Meier method and log-rank tests were used to evaluate OS between MSH and non-MSH facilities.

RESULTS

Overall, 5.9% (N = 2182/36,934) of the overall cohort and 37.8% of minorities (n = 199/527) were managed at MSHs. GCC rates were 89.5% (n = 33,065/36,934) in the overall cohort and 85.4% (n = 450/527) in the minority subgroup. Patients in the overall cohort (odds ratio [OR] 0.85; p = 0.02) and the minority subgroup (OR 0.55; p = 0.02) were less likely to obtain GCC if they received their care at MSHs compared with non-MSHs. Minority patients receiving care at MSHs had a decreased survival compared with those treated at non-MSHs (p = 0.002).

CONCLUSIONS

Adherence to SLNB guidelines for melanoma was lower at MSHs. Continued focus is needed on equity in melanoma care for minority patients in the United States.