Do race and gender influence the use of invasive procedures?
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OBJECTIVE: To assess the influence of race and gender influence on the use of invasive procedures in patients with acute myocardial infarction (AMI) in community hospitals. DESIGN: Prospective, observational. SETTING: Five mid-Michigan community hospitals. PATIENTS: All patients (838) identified with AMI between January 1994 and April 1995 in 1 of these hospitals. MEASUREMENTS AND MAIN RESULTS: After adjusting for age, hospital of admission, insurance type, severity of AMI, and comorbidity, using white men as the reference group, the rate of being offered cardiac catheterization (CC) was 0.88 (95% confidence interval [95% CI], 0.60 to 1.29) for white women; 0.79 (95% CI, 0.41 to 1.50) for black men; and 1.14 (95% CI, 0.53 to 2.45)for black women. Among patients who underwent CC, after also adjusting for coronary artery anatomy, the rate of being offered angioplasty, using white men as the reference group, was 1.22 (95% CI, 0.75 to 1.98) for white women; 0.61 (5% CI, 0.29 to 1.28, P =.192) for black men; and 0.40 (95% CI, 0.14 to 1.13) for black women The adjusted rate of being offered bypass surgery was 0.47 (95% CI, 0.24 to 0.89) for white women; 0.36 (95% CI, 0.12 to 1.06) for black men; and 0.37 (95% CI, 0.11 to 1.28)for black women. CONCLUSIONS: Our study shows that white women are less likely than white men to be offered bypass surgery after AMI. Although black men and women with AMI are less likely than white men to be offered percutaneous transluminal coronary angioplasty or coronary artery bypass grafting in both unadjusted and adjusted analyses, these findings did not reach statistical significance. Our study is limited in power due to the small number of blacks in the sample. (+info)
Where health and welfare meet: social deprivation among patients in the emergency department.
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CONTEXT: As a safety net provider for many disadvantaged Americans, the emergency department (ED) may be an efficient site not only for providing acute medical care, but also for addressing serious social needs. OBJECTIVE: To characterize the social needs of ED patients, and to evaluate whether the most disadvantaged patients have connections with the health and welfare system outside the ED. DESIGN: Cross-sectional survey conducted over 24 hours in the fall of 1997. SETTING: Three EDs: an urban public teaching hospital, a suburban university hospital, and a semirural community hospital. PARTICIPANTS: Consecutive patients presenting for care, including those transported by ambulance. The survey response rate was 91% (N = 300; urban = 115, suburban = 102, rural = 83). MAIN OUTCOME MEASURE: Index of socioeconomic deprivation described by the US Census Bureau (based on food, housing, and utilities). RESULTS: Of all ED patients, 31% reported one or more serious social deprivations. For example, 13% of urban patients reported not having enough food to eat, and 9% of rural patients reported disconnection of their gas or electricity (US population averages both less than 3%). While 40% of all patients had no consistent health care outside the ED (< or = 1 visit/year), those with higher levels of social deprivation had the least contact with the health care system outside the ED (P < .01). Although those with higher levels of deprivation were more likely to receive public assistance, still almost one-quarter of patients with high-level social deprivation were not receiving public aid. CONCLUSION: Many ED patients suffer from fundamental social deprivations that threaten basic health. The most disadvantaged of these patients frequently lack contact with other medical care sites or public assistance networks. Community efforts to address serious social deprivation should include partnerships with the local ED. (+info)
Occupational and environmental medicine in a family medicine residency.
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Well-rounded instruction in occupational medicine as part of family medicine residency training is feasible through a program that balances a longitudinal curriculum of monthly occupational and environmental medicine (OEM) lectures, community-based OEM patient care, and worksite assessment. Such training would help equip family medicine residents to integrate occupational medicine into their practices, which, in light of a shortage of board-certified practitioners in OEM, would help fill community needs. The Intern-Resident Training Committee of Carson City Hospital in rural Michigan established both learner and institutional goals and objectives for such a program of instruction. A learner-needs assessment found appreciable interest among the residents for occupational medicine training. In addition, results of a survey of the occupational health community suggested there is inadequate coverage of OEM in medical schools and residencies. Furthermore, a focus group of occupational health managers revealed that clarity of communication and standardization of reporting were paramount concerns. Instruments for standardized OEM history and for OEM case management were developed for use within the residency continuity clinic. The curriculum was implemented with a variety of teaching strategies, including worksite assessment. Practice-based, case-oriented instruction was subsequently phased into the program as residents assumed responsibility for managing cases under the supervision of family medicine preceptors knowledgeable in OEM. An occupational medicine rotation was developed that included focused clinical exposure to OEM patients and studies that would lead to eligibility for a certificate of additional qualification in occupational medicine. Learner evaluations included chart reviews and patient satisfaction surveys. Program evaluations included interviews with occupational health managers. The residents were judged by their preceptors to have performed well. The responses of the health managers and the patients were positive. This program in occupational medicine was found to be educationally sound with demonstrated community benefit and patient satisfaction. Further, it is cost-effective, requiring no external funding. (+info)
Familial occurrence frequencies and relative risks for systemic sclerosis (scleroderma) in three United States cohorts.
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OBJECTIVE: To determine the frequency with which scleroderma (systemic sclerosis; SSc) recurs in families and the familial relative risk (lambda) in the US. METHODS: Family histories of SSc were prospectively surveyed in 3 large US cohorts of SSc patients, 2 in Texas and 1 in Michigan. Diagnoses of familial SSc were verified by rheumatologist evaluation and/or review of medical records. Familial relative risks for first-degree relatives (lambda1) and siblings (lambdas) were calculated using actual reported counts of first-degree relatives in 2 cohorts and recent estimates of SSc prevalence in the US. RESULTS: Compared with the estimated prevalence of SSc in the US (2.6 cases/10,000 population [0.026%]), the disease occurred in 1 or more first-degree relatives in 1.5-1.7% of SSc families in the 3 cohorts (or 11 of 703 families [1.6%]), a significant increase. Familial relative risks in first-degree relatives in the 3 cohorts ranged from 10 to 16 (13 combined), and in siblings they ranged from 10 to 27 (15 combined). CONCLUSION: SSc occurs significantly more frequently in families with scleroderma (1.6%) than in the general population (0.026%). A positive family history of SSc is the strongest risk factor yet identified for SSc; however, the absolute risk for each family member remains quite low (<1%). (+info)
Cost-effectiveness of HIV counseling and testing in US prisons.
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The prevalence of human immunodeficiency virus (HIV) in correctional facilities is much higher than in the general population. However, HIV prevention resources are limited, making it important to evaluate different prevention programs in prison settings. Our study presents the cost-effectiveness of offering HIV counseling and testing (CT) to soon-to-be-released inmates in US prisons. A decision model was used to estimate the costs and benefits (averted HIV cases) of HIV testing and counseling compared to no CT from a societal perspective. Model parameters were HIV prevalence among otherwise untested inmates (1%); acceptance of CT (50%); risk for HIV transmission from infected individuals (7%); risk of HIV acquisition for uninfected individuals (0.3%); and reduction of risk after counseling for those infected (25%) and uninfected (20%). Marginal costs of testing and counseling per person were used (no fixed costs). If infected, the cost was $78.17; if uninfected, it was $24.63. A lifetime treatment cost of $186,900 was used to estimate the benefits of prevented HIV infections. Sensitivity and threshold analysis were done to test the robustness of these parameters. Our baseline model shows that, compared to no CT, offering CT to 10,000 inmates detects 50 new or previously undiagnosed infections and averts 4 future cases of HIV at a cost of $125,000 to prison systems. However, this will save society over $550,000. Increase in HIV prevalence, risk of transmission, or effectiveness of counseling increased societal savings. As prevalence increases, focusing on HIV-infected inmates prevents additional future infections; however, when HIV prevalence is less than 5%, testing and counseling of both infected and uninfected inmates are important for HIV prevention. (+info)
Impairments of memory and learning in older adults exposed to polychlorinated biphenyls via consumption of Great Lakes fish.
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An association between in utero polychlorinated biphenyl (PCB) exposure and impaired childhood intellectual functioning has been reported, but the potential impact of PCB exposure during adulthood on intellectual functioning has received little attention. We assessed the impact of PCBs and other fish-borne contaminants on intellectual functioning in older adults. The subjects were 49- to 86-year-old Michigan residents recruited from an existing cohort. Fish eaters ate > 24 lb of sport-caught Lake Michigan fish per year and non-fish eaters ate < 6 lb of Lake Michigan fish per year. A battery of cognitive tests including tests of memory and learning, executive function, and visual-spatial function was administered to 180 subjects (101 fish eaters and 79 non-fish eaters). Blood samples were analyzed for PCBs and 10 other contaminants. We evaluated cognitive outcomes using multiple regression. PCBs and dichlorodiphenyl dichloroethene (DDE) were markedly elevated in fish eaters. After controlling for potential confounders PCB, but not DDE, exposure was associated with lower scores on several measures of memory and learning. These included the Weschler Memory Scale verbal delayed recall (p = 0.001), the semantic cluster ratio (p = 0.006), and list A, trial 1 (p = 0.037), from the California Verbal Learning Test. In contrast, executive and visual-spatial function were not impaired by exposure to either PCBs or DDE. In conclusion, PCB exposure during adulthood was associated with impairments in memory and learning, whereas executive and visual-spatial function were unaffected. These results are consistent with previous research showing an association between in utero PCB exposure and impairments of memory during infancy and childhood. (+info)
Influenza vaccine effectiveness among elderly nursing home residents: a cohort study.
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Outbreaks of influenza in nursing homes still occur, even when a large portion of residents have been inoculated with inactivated vaccine. Data were collected in 1991--1992 from 83 eligible skilled nursing homes located in southern Lower Michigan to determine the effectiveness of inactivated influenza vaccine in preventing influenza-like illness and influenza-associated pneumonia. Surveillance was conducted to identify the occurrence of influenza in the homes and, at the end of the season, specific data were gathered on all residents of homes with influenza activity. Age- and sex-adjusted estimates of vaccine effectiveness were calculated using Cox proportional hazards models for each nursing home. Estimates were pooled using precision-based weights calculated from data for each home. Vaccine was found to be 33% effective in preventing total respiratory illness (influenza-like illness and clinically diagnosed pneumonia). In prevention of pneumonia alone, vaccine was 43% effective. The estimate for prevention of pneumonia rose to 55% if the period under consideration was limited to the time of peak influenza activity. Given the number of eligible homes and the cohort methodology used, the results support continuation of current policy, encouraging use of vaccine in all nursing home residents. (+info)
Risk adjustment alternatives in paying for behavioral health care under Medicaid.
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OBJECTIVE: To compare the performance of various risk adjustment models in behavioral health applications such as setting mental health and substance abuse (MH/SA) capitation payments or overall capitation payments for populations including MH/SA users. DATA SOURCES/STUDY DESIGN: The 1991-93 administrative data from the Michigan Medicaid program were used. We compared mean absolute prediction error for several risk adjustment models and simulated the profits and losses that behavioral health care carve outs and integrated health plans would experience under risk adjustment if they enrolled beneficiaries with a history of MH/SA problems. Models included basic demographic adjustment, Adjusted Diagnostic Groups, Hierarchical Condition Categories, and specifications designed for behavioral health. PRINCIPAL FINDINGS: Differences in predictive ability among risk adjustment models were small and generally insignificant. Specifications based on relatively few MH/SA diagnostic categories did as well as or better than models controlling for additional variables such as medical diagnoses at predicting MH/SA expenditures among adults. Simulation analyses revealed that among both adults and minors considerable scope remained for behavioral health care carve outs to make profits or losses after risk adjustment based on differential enrollment of severely ill patients. Similarly, integrated health plans have strong financial incentives to avoid MH/SA users even after adjustment. CONCLUSIONS: Current risk adjustment methodologies do not eliminate the financial incentives for integrated health plans and behavioral health care carve-out plans to avoid high-utilizing patients with psychiatric disorders. (+info)