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Khoong EC, Rivadeneira NA, Pacca L, Schillinger D, Lown D, Babaria P, Gupta N, Pramanik R, Tran H, Whitezell T, Somsouk M, Sarkar U. Extent of Follow-Up on Abnormal Cancer Screening in Multiple California Public Hospital Systems: A Retrospective Review. J Gen Intern Med 2023; 38:21-29. [PMID: 35641722 PMCID: PMC9849534 DOI: 10.1007/s11606-022-07657-4] [Citation(s) in RCA: 1] [Impact Index Per Article: 1.0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [Track Full Text] [Figures] [Journal Information] [Submit a Manuscript] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 11/01/2021] [Accepted: 05/03/2022] [Indexed: 01/22/2023]
Abstract
BACKGROUND Inequitable follow-up of abnormal cancer screening tests may contribute to racial/ethnic disparities in colon and breast cancer outcomes. However, few multi-site studies have examined follow-up of abnormal cancer screening tests and it is unknown if racial/ethnic disparities exist. OBJECTIVE This report describes patterns of performance on follow-up of abnormal colon and breast cancer screening tests and explores the extent to which racial/ethnic disparities exist in public hospital systems. DESIGN We conducted a retrospective cohort study using data from five California public hospital systems. We used multivariable robust Poisson regression analyses to examine whether patient-level factors or site predicted receipt of follow-up test. MAIN MEASURES Using data from five public hospital systems between July 2015 and June 2017, we assessed follow-up of two screening results: (1) colonoscopy after positive fecal immunochemical tests (FIT) and (2) tissue biopsy within 21 days after a BIRADS 4/5 mammogram. KEY RESULTS Of 4132 abnormal FITs, 1736 (42%) received a follow-up colonoscopy. Older age, Medicaid insurance, lack of insurance, English language, and site were negatively associated with follow-up colonoscopy, while Hispanic ethnicity and Asian race were positively associated with follow-up colonoscopy. Of 1702 BIRADS 4/5 mammograms, 1082 (64%) received a timely biopsy; only site was associated with timely follow-up biopsy. CONCLUSION Despite the vulnerabilities of public-hospital-system patients, follow-up of abnormal cancer screening tests occurs at rates similar to that of patients in other healthcare settings, with colon cancer screening test follow-up occurring at lower rates than follow-up of breast cancer screening tests. Site-level factors have larger, more consistent impact on follow-up rates than patient sociodemographic traits. Resources are needed to identify health system-level factors, such as test follow-up processes or data infrastructure, that improve abnormal cancer screening test follow-up so that effective health system-level interventions can be evaluated and disseminated.
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Affiliation(s)
- Elaine C Khoong
- Division of General Internal Medicine at Zuckerberg San Francisco General Hospital, Department of Medicine, University of California San Francisco, San Francisco, CA, USA. .,UCSF Center for Vulnerable Populations at Zuckerberg San Francisco General Hospital, San Francisco, CA, USA.
| | - Natalie A Rivadeneira
- Division of General Internal Medicine at Zuckerberg San Francisco General Hospital, Department of Medicine, University of California San Francisco, San Francisco, CA, USA.,UCSF Center for Vulnerable Populations at Zuckerberg San Francisco General Hospital, San Francisco, CA, USA
| | - Lucia Pacca
- Division of General Internal Medicine at Zuckerberg San Francisco General Hospital, Department of Medicine, University of California San Francisco, San Francisco, CA, USA.,UCSF Center for Vulnerable Populations at Zuckerberg San Francisco General Hospital, San Francisco, CA, USA
| | - Dean Schillinger
- Division of General Internal Medicine at Zuckerberg San Francisco General Hospital, Department of Medicine, University of California San Francisco, San Francisco, CA, USA.,UCSF Center for Vulnerable Populations at Zuckerberg San Francisco General Hospital, San Francisco, CA, USA
| | - David Lown
- California Health Care Safety Net Institute, Oakland, CA, USA
| | - Palav Babaria
- Division of General Internal Medicine at Zuckerberg San Francisco General Hospital, Department of Medicine, University of California San Francisco, San Francisco, CA, USA.,Alameda Health System, Oakland, CA, USA
| | | | - Rajiv Pramanik
- Office of Informatics & Technology and Department of Emergency Medicine, Contra Costa Health Services, Martinez, CA, USA
| | - Helen Tran
- Department of Family Medicine, Charles R. Drew University College of Medicine, Los Angeles, CA, USA.,Department of Health Services at Los Angeles County, Los Angeles, CA, USA
| | | | - Ma Somsouk
- UCSF Center for Vulnerable Populations at Zuckerberg San Francisco General Hospital, San Francisco, CA, USA.,Division of Gastroenterology, Department of Medicine, UCSF, San Francisco, CA, USA
| | - Urmimala Sarkar
- Division of General Internal Medicine at Zuckerberg San Francisco General Hospital, Department of Medicine, University of California San Francisco, San Francisco, CA, USA.,UCSF Center for Vulnerable Populations at Zuckerberg San Francisco General Hospital, San Francisco, CA, USA
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Torrico T, Shaheen S, Weinstein D, Padhy R, Salam MT. Challenges of treating catatonia in the community setting without access to electroconvulsive therapy. THE JOURNAL OF MEDICINE ACCESS 2023; 7:27550834231220504. [PMID: 38144544 PMCID: PMC10748610 DOI: 10.1177/27550834231220504] [Citation(s) in RCA: 0] [Impact Index Per Article: 0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [Grants] [Track Full Text] [Download PDF] [Figures] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 03/01/2023] [Accepted: 11/24/2023] [Indexed: 12/26/2023]
Abstract
Catatonia is a psychomotor syndrome resulting from an underlying psychiatric or medical disorder commonly observed in inpatient psychiatric units. While benzodiazepines and electroconvulsive therapy (ECT) are effective treatment options, the unavailability of ECT in many community psychiatric hospitals in the United States negatively affects patient outcomes. We present a 25-year-old African American male with a psychiatric diagnosis of schizophrenia complicated by malignant catatonia who was admitted to a community psychiatric hospital. He required intensive medical stabilization with supportive management, and transfer requests to ECT-equipped hospitals were initiated. While awaiting transfer for 148 days, the patient's symptoms did not fully remit with lorazepam (even with 36 mg daily in divided doses) and other psychotropic medication trials, including antipsychotics and mood stabilizers. After nearly 5 months of inpatient stay, he was successfully transferred, received ECT treatment, and experienced rapid resolution of catatonia. After discharge, to obtain three monthly sessions of maintenance ECT, he had 5-h one-way ground transportation arranged to an out-of-county ECT-equipped facility. There was no relapse in catatonia by the 2-year follow-up. This report highlights a significant healthcare disparity when attempting to manage severe catatonia within community hospital settings without access to ECT in the United States. Alternative treatments, including antipsychotics, had minimal impact on symptoms and possibly increased morbidity in this case while awaiting ECT. Treatment at our designated safety net hospital still required referral to 14 ECT-equipped hospitals before successful transfer. This case highlights the urgent need for ECT availability in more community hospitals to treat patients with refractory psychiatric conditions, including catatonia. ECT is an essential psychiatric treatment that, for certain conditions, has no appropriate alternatives. We propose that access to ECT be considered in the determination of safety net hospital systems, with improved ability to transfer patients who are suffering from treatable life-threatening mental health conditions.
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Affiliation(s)
- Tyler Torrico
- Noninvasive Neuromodulation Unit, Experimental Therapeutics Branch, Intramural Research Program, National Institute of Mental Health, Bethesda, MD, USA
- Department of Psychiatry, Kern Medical, Bakersfield, CA, USA
| | - Shahzeb Shaheen
- Department of Psychiatry, Kern Medical, Bakersfield, CA, USA
| | - David Weinstein
- Department of Psychiatry, Kern Medical, Bakersfield, CA, USA
| | - Ranjit Padhy
- Department of Psychiatry, Kern Medical, Bakersfield, CA, USA
| | - Md. Towhid Salam
- Department of Psychiatry, Kern Medical, Bakersfield, CA, USA
- Department of Population and Public Health Sciences, Keck School of Medicine of USC, University of Southern California, Los Angeles, CA, USA
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Khoong EC, Commodore-Mensah Y, Lyles CR, Fontil V. Use of Self-Measured Blood Pressure Monitoring to Improve Hypertension Equity. Curr Hypertens Rep 2022; 24:599-613. [PMID: 36001268 PMCID: PMC9399977 DOI: 10.1007/s11906-022-01218-0] [Citation(s) in RCA: 7] [Impact Index Per Article: 3.5] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [MESH Headings] [Grants] [Track Full Text] [Download PDF] [Figures] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Accepted: 08/05/2022] [Indexed: 01/31/2023]
Abstract
PURPOSE OF REVIEW To evaluate how self-measured blood pressure (SMBP) monitoring interventions impact hypertension equity. RECENT FINDINGS While a growing number of studies have recruited participants from safety-net settings, racial/ethnic minority groups, rural areas, or lower socio-economic backgrounds, few have reported on clinical outcomes with many choosing to evaluate only patient-reported outcomes (e.g., satisfaction, engagement). The studies with clinical outcomes demonstrate that SMBP monitoring (a) can be successfully adopted by historically excluded patient populations and safety-net settings and (b) improves outcomes when paired with clinical support. There are few studies that explicitly evaluate how SMBP monitoring impacts hypertension disparities and among rural, low-income, and some racial/ethnic minority populations. Researchers need to design SMBP monitoring studies that include disparity reduction outcomes and recruit from broader populations that experience worse hypertension outcomes. In addition to assessing effectiveness, studies must also evaluate how to mitigate multi-level barriers to real-world implementation of SMBP monitoring programs.
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Affiliation(s)
- Elaine C Khoong
- Division of General Internal Medicine at Zuckerberg, Department of Medicine, San Francisco General Hospital, UCSF, Building 10, Ward 13, 1001 Potrero Avenue, San Francisco, CA, 94110, USA.
- UCSF Center for Vulnerable Populations at Zuckerberg San Francisco General Hospital, San Francisco, USA.
| | - Yvonne Commodore-Mensah
- Johns Hopkins School of Nursing, Baltimore, MD, USA
- Department of Epidemiology, Johns Hopkins Bloomberg School of Public Health, Baltimore, MD, USA
| | - Courtney R Lyles
- Division of General Internal Medicine at Zuckerberg, Department of Medicine, San Francisco General Hospital, UCSF, Building 10, Ward 13, 1001 Potrero Avenue, San Francisco, CA, 94110, USA
- UCSF Center for Vulnerable Populations at Zuckerberg San Francisco General Hospital, San Francisco, USA
| | - Valy Fontil
- Division of General Internal Medicine at Zuckerberg, Department of Medicine, San Francisco General Hospital, UCSF, Building 10, Ward 13, 1001 Potrero Avenue, San Francisco, CA, 94110, USA
- UCSF Center for Vulnerable Populations at Zuckerberg San Francisco General Hospital, San Francisco, USA
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Melville SJ, Barakzai S, Dahl M, Koltun-Baker E, Rangel E, Dancz CE. Estimated costs of preoperative evaluation of postmenopausal hysterectomy for prolapse at a safety-net hospital: an observational descriptive study. AJOG GLOBAL REPORTS 2022; 2:100078. [PMID: 36276784 PMCID: PMC9563550 DOI: 10.1016/j.xagr.2022.100078] [Citation(s) in RCA: 0] [Impact Index Per Article: 0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Track Full Text] [Download PDF] [Figures] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Indexed: 11/28/2022] Open
Abstract
BACKGROUND In practice, preoperative evaluation prior to hysterectomy varies. Unnecessary preoperative evaluation may add cost and risk with little benefit to the patient. OBJECTIVE This study aimed to describe practice patterns and the associated costs related to preoperative evaluations before hysterectomy for prolapse at a safety-net hospital. STUDY DESIGN This was a retrospective cohort study of postmenopausal women who underwent a hysterectomy for prolapse. Nonfacility-associated cost data were obtained from the Centers for Medicare Services. The biopsy cost was estimated to be $172.55 and $125.23 for ultrasounds. RESULTS A total of 505 postmenopausal cases were identified. Of those, 155 (31%) underwent a preoperative biopsy, 305 (60%) had an ultrasound, and 124 (25%) had both. Of those, 72.9% had an indication for a biopsy. A total of 64 biopsies and 216 ultrasounds lacked clear indication. Of those, 56 biopsies were performed for bleeding in cases with an endometrial thickness of <4 mm. The total cost of nonvalue-added testing was $42,576. CONCLUSION Adherence to a strict preoperative algorithm would have saved $38,092 over the study period, although 0.50% of these biopsies would potentially have detected endometrial cancer preoperatively. These results underscore the value of clinical algorithms at teaching institutions.
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Affiliation(s)
- Sam J.F. Melville
- Departments of Obstetrics and Gynecology, University of Southern California, Los Angeles, CA
| | - Syem Barakzai
- Departments of Obstetrics and Gynecology, University of Southern California, Los Angeles, CA
| | - Molly Dahl
- Departments of Obstetrics and Urology, University of Southern California, Los Angeles, CA
| | - Emma Koltun-Baker
- Departments of Obstetrics and Gynecology, University of Southern California, Los Angeles, CA
| | - Enanyeli Rangel
- Departments of Obstetrics and Gynecology, University of Southern California, Los Angeles, CA
| | - Christina E. Dancz
- Departments of Obstetrics and Gynecology, University of Southern California, Los Angeles, CA
- Corresponding author.
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Sharma AE, Khoong EC, Rivadeneira N, Sierra M, Fang MC, Gupta N, Pramanik R, Tran H, Whitezell T, Fontil V, Lee SY, Sarkar U. Warfarin Monitoring in Safety-Net Health Systems: Analysis by Race/Ethnicity and Language Preference. J Gen Intern Med 2022; 37:2703-2710. [PMID: 34993871 PMCID: PMC9411299 DOI: 10.1007/s11606-021-07283-6] [Citation(s) in RCA: 1] [Impact Index Per Article: 0.5] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Submit a Manuscript] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 04/23/2021] [Accepted: 11/17/2021] [Indexed: 01/07/2023]
Abstract
BACKGROUND Racial/ethnic disparities in anticoagulation management are well established. Differences in warfarin monitoring can contribute to these disparities and should be measured. OBJECTIVE We assessed for differences in international normalized ratio (INR) monitoring by race/ethnicity and language preference across safety-net care systems serving predominantly low-income, ethnically diverse populations. DESIGN Cross-sectional analysis of process and safety data shared from the Safety Promotion Action Research and Knowledge Network (SPARK-Net) initiative, a consortium of five California safety-net hospital systems. PARTICIPANTS Eligible patients were at least 18 years old, received warfarin for at least 56 days during the measurement period from July 2015 to June 2017, and had INR testing in an ambulatory care setting at a participating healthcare system. MAIN MEASURES We conducted a scaled Poisson regression for adjusted rate ratio of having at least one INR checked per 56-day time period for which a patient had a warfarin prescription. Adjusting for age, sex, healthcare system, and insurance status/type, we assessed for racial/ethnic and language disparities in INR monitoring. KEY RESULTS Of 8129 patients, 3615 (44%) were female; 1470 (18%), Black/African American; 3354 (41%), Hispanic/Latinx; 1210 (15%), Asian; 1643 (20%), White; and 452 (6%), other. Three thousand five hundred forty-nine (45%) were non-English preferring. We did not observe statistically significant disparities in the rate of appropriate INR monitoring by race/ethnicity or language; the primary source of variation was by healthcare network. Older age, female gender, and uninsured patients had a slightly higher rate of appropriate INR monitoring, but differences were not clinically significant. CONCLUSIONS We did not find a race/ethnicity nor language disparity in INR monitoring; safety-net site was the main source of variation.
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Affiliation(s)
- Anjana E Sharma
- Department of Family and Community Medicine, Center for Excellence In Primary Care, University of California San Francisco, San Francisco, USA.,Center for Vulnerable Populations, University of California San Francisco, San Francisco, CA, USA
| | - Elaine C Khoong
- Center for Vulnerable Populations, University of California San Francisco, San Francisco, CA, USA.,Division of General Internal Medicine at Zuckerberg San Francisco General Hospital and Trauma Center, Department of Medicine, University of California San Francisco, San Francisco, USA
| | - Natalie Rivadeneira
- Division of General Internal Medicine at Zuckerberg San Francisco General Hospital and Trauma Center, Department of Medicine, University of California San Francisco, San Francisco, USA
| | - Maribel Sierra
- Center for Vulnerable Populations, University of California San Francisco, San Francisco, CA, USA
| | - Margaret C Fang
- Division of Hospital Medicine at UCSF Health, Department of Medicine, University of California San Francisco, San Francisco, USA
| | | | | | - Helen Tran
- Los Angeles County Department of Health Services, Charles R. Drew University College of Medicine, Los Angeles, CA, USA
| | | | - Valy Fontil
- Center for Vulnerable Populations, University of California San Francisco, San Francisco, CA, USA.,Division of General Internal Medicine at Zuckerberg San Francisco General Hospital and Trauma Center, Department of Medicine, University of California San Francisco, San Francisco, USA
| | - Shin-Yu Lee
- San Francisco Department of Public Health (SFDPH), San Francisco Health Network (SFHN), San Francisco, USA
| | - Urmimala Sarkar
- Center for Vulnerable Populations, University of California San Francisco, San Francisco, CA, USA. .,Division of General Internal Medicine at Zuckerberg San Francisco General Hospital and Trauma Center, Department of Medicine, University of California San Francisco, San Francisco, USA.
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Liu J, Pang EM, Iacob A, Simonian A, Phibbs CS, Profit J. Evaluating Care in Safety Net Hospitals: Clinical Outcomes and Neonatal Intensive Care Unit Quality of Care in California. J Pediatr 2022; 243:99-106.e3. [PMID: 34890584 PMCID: PMC8960349 DOI: 10.1016/j.jpeds.2021.12.003] [Citation(s) in RCA: 1] [Impact Index Per Article: 0.5] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Submit a Manuscript] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 08/03/2021] [Revised: 11/22/2021] [Accepted: 12/02/2021] [Indexed: 10/19/2022]
Abstract
OBJECTIVES To examine the characteristics of safety net (sn) and non-sn neonatal intensive care units (NICUs) in California and evaluate whether the site of care is associated with clinical outcomes. STUDY DESIGN This population-based retrospective cohort study of 34 snNICUs and 104 non-snNICUs included 22 081 infants born between 2014 and 2018 with a birth weight of 401-1500 g or gestational age of 22-29 weeks. Quality of care as measured by the Baby-MONITOR score and rates of survival without major morbidity were compared between snNICUs and non-snNICUs. RESULTS Black and Hispanic infants were cared for disproportionately in snNICUs, where care and outcomes varied widely. We found no significant differences in Baby-Measure Of Neonatal InTensive care Outcomes Research (MONITOR) scores (z-score [SD]: snNICUs, -0.31 [1.3]; non-snNICUs, 0.03 [1.1]; P = .1). Among individual components, infants in snNICUs exhibited lower rates of human milk nutrition at discharge (-0.64 [1.0] vs 0.27 [0.9]), lower rates of no health care-associated infection (-0.27 [1.1] vs 0.14 [0.9]), and higher rates of no hypothermia on admission (0.39 [0.7] vs -0.25 [1.1]). We found small but significant differences in survival without major morbidity (adjusted rate, 65.9% [95% CI, 63.9%-67.9%] for snNICUs vs 68.3% [95% CI, 67.0%-69.6%] for non-snNICUs; P = .02) and in some of its components; snNICUs had higher rates of necrotizing enterocolitis (3.8% [3.4%-4.3%] vs 3.1% [95% CI, 2.8%-3.4%]) and mortality (95% CI, 7.1% [6.5%-7.7%] vs 6.6% [6.2%-7.0%]). CONCLUSIONS snNICUs achieved similar performance as non-snNICUs in quality of care except for small but significant differences in any human milk at discharge, infection, hypothermia, necrotizing enterocolitis, and mortality.
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Affiliation(s)
- Jessica Liu
- Division of Neonatology, Department of Pediatrics, Perinatal Epidemiology and Health Outcomes Research Unit, Stanford University School of Medicine and Lucile Packard Children’s Hospital, Palo Alto, CA,California Perinatal Quality Care Collaborative, Palo Alto, CA
| | - Emily M. Pang
- Division of Neonatology, Department of Pediatrics, Perinatal Epidemiology and Health Outcomes Research Unit, Stanford University School of Medicine and Lucile Packard Children’s Hospital, Palo Alto, CA
| | - Alexandra Iacob
- California Perinatal Quality Care Collaborative, Palo Alto, CA,Division of Neonatal/Perinatal Medicine, Department of Pediatrics, School of Medicine, University of California Irvine, Orange, CA
| | - Aida Simonian
- California Perinatal Quality Care Collaborative, Palo Alto, CA
| | - Ciaran S. Phibbs
- Division of Neonatology, Department of Pediatrics, Perinatal Epidemiology and Health Outcomes Research Unit, Stanford University School of Medicine and Lucile Packard Children’s Hospital, Palo Alto, CA,Health Economics Resource Center and Center for Implementation to Innovation, Veterans Affairs Palo Alto Healthcare System, Menlo Park, CA
| | - Jochen Profit
- Division of Neonatology, Department of Pediatrics, Perinatal Epidemiology and Health Outcomes Research Unit, Stanford University School of Medicine and Lucile Packard Children's Hospital, Palo Alto, CA; California Perinatal Quality Care Collaborative, Palo Alto, CA.
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