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Zupancic JAF. Economic considerations for resuscitative interventions in the immediate newborn period. Semin Perinatol 2023:151783. [PMID: 37380528 DOI: 10.1016/j.semperi.2023.151783] [Citation(s) in RCA: 0] [Impact Index Per Article: 0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Submit a Manuscript] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Indexed: 06/30/2023]
Abstract
We present a systematic scoping review of the literature, which documents that only a very small number of interventions related to delivery room stabilization and resuscitation have been studied for their economic impact. Published analyses are mostly of programmatic interventions such as resuscitation training programs, are mostly in low-resource settings, and are of variable methodological quality. Investigators who are conducting clinical studies of delivery room interventions can address these deficiencies in the literature by engaging with health services researchers to assess economic outcomes alongside those studies. We provide a framework of five questions that clinical researchers may use to decide on when such an ancillary study is indicated, and to provide them with the necessary language to discuss the methodological details of potential evaluations with their health services colleagues. Emphasis should be given to interventions that are targeted to high volumes of patients, are expensive, or are likely to lead to changes in costly chronic outcomes.
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Affiliation(s)
- John A F Zupancic
- Department of Neonatology, Beth Israel Deaconess Medical Center, Boston, MA, USA; Division of Newborn Medicine, Harvard Medical School, Boston, MA, USA.
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Kaempf JW, Moore GP. Extremely premature birth bioethical decision-making supported by dialogics and pragmatism. BMC Med Ethics 2023; 24:9. [PMID: 36774482 PMCID: PMC9922460 DOI: 10.1186/s12910-023-00887-z] [Citation(s) in RCA: 0] [Impact Index Per Article: 0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 05/26/2022] [Accepted: 01/26/2023] [Indexed: 02/13/2023] Open
Abstract
Moral values in healthcare range widely between interest groups and are principally subjective. Disagreements diminish dialogue and marginalize alternative viewpoints. Extremely premature births exemplify how discord becomes unproductive when conflicts of interest, cultural misunderstanding, constrained evidence review, and peculiar hierarchy compete without the balance of objective standards of reason. Accepting uncertainty, distributing risk fairly, and humbly acknowledging therapeutic limits are honorable traits, not relativism, and especially crucial in our world of constrained resources. We think dialogics engender a mutual understanding that: i) transitions beliefs beyond bias, ii) moves conflict toward pragmatism (i.e., the truth of any position is verified by subsequent experience), and iii) recognizes value pluralism (i.e., human values are irreducibly diverse, conflicting, and ultimately incommensurable). This article provides a clear and useful Point-Counterpoint of extreme prematurity controversies, an objective neurodevelopmental outcomes table, and a dialogics exemplar to cultivate shared empathetic comprehension, not to create sides from which to choose. It is our goal to bridge the understanding gap within and between physicians and bioethicists. Dialogics accept competing relational interests as human nature, recognizing that ultimate solutions satisfactory to all are illusory, because every choice has downside. Nurturing a collective consciousness via dialogics and pragmatism is congenial to integrating objective evidence review and subjective moral-cultural sentiments, and is that rarest of ethical constructs, a means and an end.
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Affiliation(s)
- Joseph W. Kaempf
- grid.415337.70000 0004 0456 8744Providence St. Vincent Medical Center, Women and Children’s Services, 9205 SW Barnes Road, Portland, OR 97225 USA
| | - Gregory P. Moore
- grid.412687.e0000 0000 9606 5108Department of Obstetrics, Gynecology, and Newborn Care, The Ottawa Hospital – General Campus, 501 Smyth Road, Box 806, Ottawa, ON K1H 8L6 Canada
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King BC, Hagan J, Richardson T, Berry J, Slaughter JL. Hospital variation in neonatal echocardiography among very preterm infants at US children's hospitals. J Perinatol 2023; 43:181-186. [PMID: 36163416 DOI: 10.1038/s41372-022-01522-2] [Citation(s) in RCA: 3] [Impact Index Per Article: 3.0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [MESH Headings] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Submit a Manuscript] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 05/27/2022] [Revised: 09/12/2022] [Accepted: 09/14/2022] [Indexed: 02/06/2023]
Abstract
OBJECTIVE Estimate hospital variation in echocardiography (echo) among very preterm infants. STUDY DESIGN Retrospective cohort study of very preterm (<32 weeks) infants discharged between 2012 and 2019 from US children's hospitals. Echo exposure was identified using daily billing, and hospital variation was estimated after adjustment for illness severity. Variation in very early echo use (<3 days of life) was compared to exposure to treatment of a patent ductus arteriosus (PDA), and other practice patterns. RESULTS 27,498 subjects across 39 children's hospitals were included. Very early echo use had the greatest hospital variation (3-34%). Increasing very early echo use was not associated with PDA treatment (p = 0.93), but was associated with nitric oxide (p < 0.01) and vasoactive medications (p < 0.01). CONCLUSIONS Hospital variation in echo use among preterm infants was greatest in the first few days of life and was associated with increasing nitric oxide and vasoactive medication use. The impact of this variation on clinical outcomes is uncertain and warrants further investigation.
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Affiliation(s)
- Brian C King
- Division of Newborn Medicine, Department of Pediatrics, University of Pittsburgh School of Medicine and UPMC Children's Hospital of Pittsburgh, Pittsburgh, PA, USA.
| | - Joseph Hagan
- Newborn Center, Texas Children's Hospital, Houston, TX, USA
| | | | - Jay Berry
- Complex Care, Division of General Pediatrics, Boston Children's Hospital, Harvard Medical School, Boston, MA, USA
| | - Jonathan L Slaughter
- Center for Perinatal Research, Nationwide Children's Hospital and Department of Pediatrics, College of Medicine and Division of Epidemiology, College of Public Health, The Ohio State University, Columbus, OH, USA
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Yieh L, King BC, Hay S, Dukhovny D, Zupancic JAF. Economic considerations at the threshold of viability. Semin Perinatol 2022; 46:151547. [PMID: 34887108 DOI: 10.1016/j.semperi.2021.151547] [Citation(s) in RCA: 1] [Impact Index Per Article: 0.5] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Submit a Manuscript] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Indexed: 11/30/2022]
Abstract
Neonatal intensive care for infants born at 22-24 weeks has become more prevalent in the past three decades, but outcomes remain highly variable between centers, in part due to different approaches in management. With this increased frequency of intervention, there has been concern for a concurrent increase in costs of care for survivors. This article reviews the direct medical, direct non-medical, and indirect costs of care for periviable infants and their families, as well as the current limitations of published data. In addition, we highlight the cost-effectiveness of neonatal intensive care and various therapies offered to extremely preterm infants, while also considering the ethical dilemmas inherently tied to periviable decision-making. Strategies to improve the gaps in knowledge on the economic impact of the smallest infants are discussed.
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Affiliation(s)
- Leah Yieh
- Fetal and Neonatal Medicine Institute, Division of Neonatal Medicine, Children's Hospital Los Angeles, Keck School of Medicine, University of Southern California, 4650 Sunset Boulevard, MS #31, Los Angeles, CA 90027, USA; Leonard D. Schaeffer Center for Health Policy and Economics, University of Southern California, Los Angeles, CA, USA.
| | - Brian C King
- Department of Pediatrics, University of Pittsburgh, Pittsburgh PA, USA
| | - Susanne Hay
- Division of Newborn Medicine, Harvard Medical School, Boston, MA, USA; Department of Neonatology, Beth Israel Deaconess Medical Center, Boston, MA, USA
| | - Dmitry Dukhovny
- Division of Neonatology, Department of Pediatrics, Oregon Health & Sciences University, Portland, OR, USA
| | - John A F Zupancic
- Division of Newborn Medicine, Harvard Medical School, Boston, MA, USA; Department of Neonatology, Beth Israel Deaconess Medical Center, Boston, MA, USA
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Yieh L, Dukhovny D. What Helps Us Decide to Adopt an Intervention: Efficacy, Costs, or Both? Pediatrics 2021; 148:peds.2021-051016. [PMID: 34272342 DOI: 10.1542/peds.2021-051016] [Citation(s) in RCA: 0] [Impact Index Per Article: 0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Submit a Manuscript] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Accepted: 05/20/2021] [Indexed: 11/24/2022] Open
Affiliation(s)
- Leah Yieh
- Fetal and Neonatal Institute, Division of Neonatal Medicine, Children's Hospital Los Angeles, Keck School of Medicine, University of Southern California, Los Angeles, California .,Leonard D. Schaeffer Center for Health Policy and Economics, University of Southern California, Los Angeles, California
| | - Dmitry Dukhovny
- Division of Neonatology, Department of Pediatrics, School of Medicine, Oregon Health Sciences University, Portland, Oregon
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King BC, Richardson T, Patel RM, Lee HC, Bamat NA, Hall M, Slaughter JL. Prioritization framework for improving the value of care for very low birth weight and very preterm infants. J Perinatol 2021; 41:2463-2473. [PMID: 34075201 PMCID: PMC8514333 DOI: 10.1038/s41372-021-01114-6] [Citation(s) in RCA: 3] [Impact Index Per Article: 1.0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [Track Full Text] [Download PDF] [Figures] [Journal Information] [Submit a Manuscript] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 02/09/2021] [Revised: 05/10/2021] [Accepted: 05/18/2021] [Indexed: 02/02/2023]
Abstract
OBJECTIVE Create a prioritization framework for value-based improvement in neonatal care. STUDY DESIGN A retrospective cohort study of very low birth weight (<1500 g) and/or very preterm (<32 weeks) infants discharged between 2012 and 2019 using the Pediatric Health Information System Database. Resource use was compared across hospitals and adjusted for patient-level differences. A prioritization score was created combining cost, patient exposure, and inter-hospital variability to rank resource categories. RESULTS Resource categories with the greatest cost, patient exposure, and inter-hospital variability were parenteral nutrition, hematology (lab testing), and anticoagulation (for central venous access and therapy), respectively. Based on our prioritization score, parenteral nutrition was identified as the highest priority overall. CONCLUSIONS We report the development of a prioritization score for potential value-based improvement in neonatal care. Our findings suggest that parenteral nutrition, central venous access, and high-volume laboratory and imaging modalities should be priorities for future comparative effectiveness and quality improvement efforts.
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Affiliation(s)
- Brian C. King
- grid.416975.80000 0001 2200 2638Department of Pediatrics, Section of Neonatology, Baylor College of Medicine and Texas Children’s Hospital, Houston, TX USA
| | - Troy Richardson
- grid.429588.aChildren’s Hospital Association, Lenexa, KS USA
| | - Ravi M. Patel
- grid.189967.80000 0001 0941 6502Division of Neonatology, Emory University School of Medicine and Children’s Healthcare of Atlanta, Atlanta, GA USA
| | - Henry C. Lee
- grid.168010.e0000000419368956Division of Neonatology, Stanford University, Stanford, CA USA
| | - Nicolas A. Bamat
- grid.239552.a0000 0001 0680 8770Division of Neonatology, Children’s Hospital of Philadelphia, Perelman School of Medicine at the University of Pennsylvania, Philadelphia, PA USA
| | - Matthew Hall
- grid.429588.aChildren’s Hospital Association, Lenexa, KS USA
| | - Jonathan L. Slaughter
- grid.240344.50000 0004 0392 3476Division of Neonatology, Nationwide Children’s Hospital, The Ohio State University, Columbus, OH USA
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