Ambulatory Care-sensitive Emergency Department Visits Research Articles

ASSOCIATION BETWEEN PROVIDER DISCONTINUITY AND QUALITY OF CARE FOR NURSING HOME RESIDENTS

Abstract Discontinuity in outpatient care has been associated with lower quality care in community settings, but little is known about discontinuity of care in nursing homes (NHs). We examined discontinuity in clinician care and care quality for NH residents using Medicare fee-for-service claims for a 20% national sample of beneficiaries (January 1, 2012 to December 31, 2019). For residents with NH stays of ≥2 years, we examined changes in attributed clinicians during the first two years of their stays. Residents were attributed to the physician or advanced practitioner with a plurality of visits provided to them in the NH in a given year. Estimates were adjusted for resident, clinician, and NH characteristics. The determinant of interest reflected whether there was a change in the attributed clinician from the first to the second year. Among 280,831 residents in our sample, 37.6% (105,551) were attributed to a different clinician in their second year. On a quarterly basis, these residents had a 0.2 percentage point [pp] (95%CI, 0.2-0.3; p-value <.001) higher likelihood of an ambulatory care sensitive (ACS) hospitalization, a 0.2 pp (95% CI, 0.1-0.3; p-value <.001) higher likelihood of an ACS emergency department (ED) visit, and $609 (95% CI, $548.4-$669.5; p-value <.001) higher health care costs in their second year compared to residents without a clinician change. Compared to baseline rates, these represent relative increases of 14.2% in ACS hospitalizations, 11.5% in ACS ED visits, and 8% in costs. Discontinuity in care is associated with lower-quality care for NH residents.

Relationship Between Physician Burnout And The Quality And Cost Of Care For Medicare Beneficiaries Is Complex.

Despite reports of a physician burnout epidemic, there is little research on the relationship between burnout and objective measures of care outcomes and no research on the relationship between burnout and costs of care. Linking survey data from 1,064 family physicians to Medicare claims, we found no consistent statistically significant relationship between seven categories of self-reported burnout and measures of ambulatory care-sensitive admissions, ambulatory care-sensitive emergency department visits, readmissions, or costs. The coefficients for ambulatory care-sensitive admissions and readmissions for all burnout levels, compared with never being burned out, were consistently negative (fewer ambulatory care-sensitive admissions and readmissions), suggesting that, counterintuitively, physicians who report burnout may nevertheless be able to create better outcomes for their patients. Even if true, this hypothesis should not indicate that physician burnout is beneficial or that efforts to reduce physician burnout are unimportant. Our findings suggest that the relationship between burnout and outcomes is complex and requires further investigation.

Association of Private Equity Investment in US Nursing Homes With the Quality and Cost of Care for Long-Stay Residents

Private equity firms have been acquiring US nursing homes; an estimated 5% of US nursing homes are owned by private equity firms. To examine the association of private equity acquisition of nursing homes with the quality and cost of care for long-stay residents. In this cohort study of 302 private equity nursing homes with 9632 residents and 9562 other for-profit homes with 249 771 residents, a novel national database of private equity nursing home acquisitions was merged with Medicare claims and Minimum Data Set assessments for the period from 2012 to 2018. Changes in outcomes for residents in private equity-acquired nursing homes were compared with changes for residents in other for-profit nursing homes. Analyses were performed from March 25 to June 23, 2021. Private equity acquisitions of 302 nursing homes between 2013 and 2017. This study used difference-in-differences analysis to examine the association of private equity acquisition of nursing homes with outcomes. Primary outcomes were quarterly measures of emergency department visits and hospitalizations for ambulatory care-sensitive (ACS) conditions and total quarterly Medicare costs. Antipsychotic use, pressure ulcers, and severe pain were examined in secondary analyses. Of the 259 403 residents in the study (170 687 women [65.8%]; 211 154 White residents [81.4%]; 204 928 residents [79.0%] dually eligible for Medicare and Medicaid; mean [SD] age, 79.3 [5.6] years), 9632 residents were in 302 private equity-acquired nursing homes and 249 771 residents were in 9562 other for-profit homes. The mean quarterly rate of ACS emergency department visits was 14.1% (336 072 of 2 383 491), and the mean quarterly rate of ACS hospitalizations was 17.3% (412 344 of 2 383 491); mean (SD) total quarterly costs were $8050.00 ($9.90). Residents of private equity nursing homes experienced relative increases in ACS emergency department visits of 11.1% (1.7 of 15.3; 1.7 percentage points; 95% CI, 0.3-3.0 percentage points; P = .02) and in ACS hospitalizations of 8.7% (1.0 of 11.5; 1.0 percentage point; 95% CI, 0.2-1.1 percentage points; P = .003) compared with residents in other for-profit homes; quarterly costs increased 3.9% (270.37 of 6972.04; $270.37; 95% CI, $41.53-$499.20; P = .02) or $1081 annually per resident. Private equity acquisition was not significantly associated with antipsychotic use (-0.2 percentage points; 95% CI, -1.7 to 1.4 percentage points; P = .83), severe pain (0.2 percentage points; 95% CI, -1.1 to 1.4 percentage points; P = .79), or pressure ulcers (0.5 percentage points; 95% CI, -0.4 to 1.3 percentage points; P = .30). This cohort study with difference-in-differences analysis found that private equity acquisition of nursing homes was associated with increases in ACS emergency department visits and hospitalizations and higher Medicare costs.

Association of Team-Based Primary Care With Health Care Utilization and Costs Among Chronically Ill Patients

Empirical study findings to date are mixed on the association between team-based primary care initiatives and health care use and costs for Medicaid and commercially insured patients, especially those with multiple chronic conditions. To evaluate the association of establishing team-based primary care with patient health care use and costs. We used difference-in-differences to compare preutilization and postutilization rates between intervention and comparison practices with inverse probability weighting to balance observable differences. We fit a linear model using generalized estimating equations to adjust for clustering at 18 academically affiliated primary care practices in the Boston, Massachusetts, area between 2011 and 2015. The study included 83 953 patients accounting for 138 113 patient-years across 18 intervention practices and 238 455 patients accounting for 401 573 patient-years across 76 comparison practices. Data were analyzed between April and August 2018. Practices participated in a 4-year learning collaborative that created and supported team-based primary care. Outpatient visits, hospitalizations, emergency department visits, ambulatory care-sensitive hospitalizations, ambulatory care-sensitive emergency department visits, and total costs of care. Of 322 408 participants, 176 259 (54.7%) were female; 64 030 (19.9%) were younger than 18 years and 258 378 (80.1%) were age 19 to 64 years. Intervention practices had fewer participants, with 2 or more chronic conditions (n = 51 155 [37.0%] vs n = 186 954 [46.6%]), more participants younger than 18 years (n = 337 931 [27.5%] vs n = 74 691 [18.6%]), higher Medicaid enrollment (n = 39 541 [28.6%] vs n = 81 417 [20.3%]), and similar sex distributions (75 023 women [54.4%] vs 220 097 women [54.8%]); however, after inverse probability weighting, observable patient characteristics were well balanced. Intervention practices had higher utilization in the preperiod. Patients in intervention practices experienced a 7.4% increase in annual outpatient visits relative to baseline (95% CI, 3.5%-11.3%; P < .001) after adjusting for patient age, sex, comorbidity, zip code level sociodemographic characteristics, clinician characteristics, and plan fixed effects. In a subsample of patients with 2 or more chronic conditions, there was a statistically significant 18.6% reduction in hospitalizations (95% CI, 1.5%-33.0%; P = .03), 25.2% reduction in emergency department visits (95% CI, 6.6%-44.0%; P = .007), and a 36.7% reduction in ambulatory care-sensitive emergency department visits (95% CI, 9.2%-64.0%; P = .009). Among patients with less than 2 comorbidities, there was an increase in outpatient visits (9.2%; 95% CI, 5.10%-13.10%; P < .001), hospitalizations (36.2%; 95% CI, 12.2-566.6; P = .003), and ambulatory care-sensitive hospitalizations (50.6%; 95% CI, 7.1%-329.2%; P = .02). While establishing team-based care was not associated with differences in the full patient sample, there were substantial reductions in utilization among a subset of chronically ill patients. Team-based care practice transformation in primary care settings may be a valuable tool in improving the care of sicker patients, thereby reducing avoidable use; however, it may lead to greater use among healthier patients.

Estimating Associations Between Medical Home Adoption, Utilization, and Quality: A Comparison of Evaluation Approaches.

Methodological differences between evaluations of medical home adoption might complicate readers' ability to draw conclusions across studies. To study whether associations between medical home adoption and patient care are affected by methodological choices. Among 71 practices participating in the Pennsylvania Chronic Care Initiative (a medical home pilot), we estimated cross-sectional and longitudinal associations between 4 definitions of "medical home adoption" [National Committee on Quality Assurance (NCQA) recognition in year 3, Medical Home Index scores at baseline and 3, and within-practice changes in Medical Home Index scores between baseline and year 3] and utilization and quality. Six utilization and 6 quality measures. In cross-sectional analyses at year 3, NCQA recognition was associated with higher rates of nephropathy monitoring (7.23 percentage points; confidence interval, 0.45-14.02), breast cancer screening (7.48; 2.11-12.86), and colorectal cancer screening (8.43; 2.44-14.42). In longitudinal analyses, NCQA recognition was associated with increases in hospitalization rates (2.75 per 1000 patient-months; 0.52-4.98). In baseline cross-sectional analyses, higher Medical Home Index scores were associated with fewer ambulatory care-sensitive hospitalizations (-0.61 per 1000 patient per month; -1.11 to -0.11), all-cause emergency department visits (-6.80; -12.28 to -1.32), and ambulatory care-sensitive emergency department visits (-5.60; 10.32 to -0.88). There were no statistically significant associations between any other measure of medical home adoption and quality or utilization. The findings of medical home evaluations are sensitive to methodological choices. Meta-analyses, narrative reviews, and other syntheses of medical home studies should consider subdividing their findings by analytic approach.

Impact of the Cincinnati Aligning Forces for Quality Multi-Payer Patient Centered Medical Home Pilot on Health Care Quality, Utilization, and Costs.

To evaluate the potential for a patient-centered medical home initiative to reduce utilization and cost while improving quality, we examined a natural experiment involving 11 primary care practices in Cincinnati, Ohio, that participated in the Aligning Forces for Quality Multi-Payer Patient Centered Medical Home pilot. Our research design involved difference-in-difference analyses, comparing changes in utilization, costs, and quality between patients attributed to pilot practices compared with those attributed to a matched comparison cohort after 2 years of active engagement by the practices. The Cincinnati pilot was associated with a reduction of ambulatory care-sensitive emergency department visits of approximately 0.7 per 1,000 member months or approximately 22.6% (p = .01). While there was a reduction in total costs of care of $7,679 per 1,000 member months, the difference did not reach statistical significance. After 2 years of the pilot, lipid testing in diabetics had increased by 2.7 percentage points (a 3.3% improvement; p < .0001). Patient-centered medical homes have the potential to improve the quality of care and reduce emergency department use but expectations for cost control in a relatively short time horizon and absent other changes may be unrealistic.

Younger Dual-Eligibles Who Use Federally Qualified Health Centers Have More Preventable Emergency Department Visits, but Some Have Fewer Hospitalizations.

To determine whether younger dual-eligibles receiving care at federally qualified health centers (FQHCs) have lower rates of ambulatory care sensitive (ACS) hospitalization and emergency department (ED) visits. We used the 100% Medicare Part A and Part B institutional claims from 2007 to 2010 for dual-eligibles younger than 65 years, enrolled in traditional fee-for-service Medicare, who received care at an FQHC or lived in a primary care service area with an FQHC. Our cross-sectional analysis used negative binomial regressions to model ACS hospitalizations and ED visits as a function of prior year FQHC use. The model adjusted for beneficiary age, gender, race, and chronic diseases, as well as county fixed effects, time trends, and race-FQHC use interactions. FQHC use is associated with a decrease in ACS hospitalization rates for whites (2.8 per 1000 persons), but an increase among blacks (2.5 per 1000 persons). FQHC use is also associated with an increase in ACS ED visits, from 27 to 33 more visits per 1000 persons per year, depending on patient race. ACS hospital use is higher for FQHC users than nonusers, but white FQHC users have fewer ACS hospitalizations. More research is needed to understand how this relationship varies within and between centers.

Does PCMH "Work"?--The Need to Use Implementation Science to Make Sense of Conflicting Results.

Initiative (PACCI) in the northeastern part of the state. The study found that, compared with control practices, participating in PCMH was associated with better care processes for diabetes and breast cancer screening. No association was found between colorectal cancer screening and PCMH. There were significantly lower rates of all-cause hospitalizations and allcause and ambulatory care–sensitive emergency department visits. More primary care visits were accompanied by fewer specialty visits. Overall, this paper provides strong evidence for

Effect of a Multipayer Patient-Centered Medical Home on Health Care Utilization and Quality

The patient-centered medical home is advocated to reduce health care costs and improve the quality of care. To evaluate the effects of the pilot program of a multipayer patient-centered medical home on health care utilization and quality. An interrupted time series design with propensity score-matched comparison practices, including multipayer claims data from 2 years before (October 1, 2006-September 30, 2008) and 2 years after (October 1, 2008-September 30, 2010) the launch of the pilot program. Uptake of the intervention was measured with audit data from the National Committee for Quality Assurance patient-centered medical home recognition process. SETTING Five independent primary care practices and 3 private insurers in the Rhode Island Chronic Care Sustainability Initiative. Patients in 5 pilot and 34 comparison practices. Financial support, care managers, and technical assistance for quality improvement and practice transformation. Hospital admissions, emergency department visits, and 6 process measures of quality of care (3 for diabetes mellitus and 3 for colon, breast, and cervical cancer screening). The mean National Committee for Quality Assurance recognition scores of the pilot practices increased from 42 to 90 points of a possible 100 points. The pilot and comparison practices had statistically indistinguishable baseline patient characteristics and practice patterns, except for higher numbers of attributed member months per year in the pilot practices (31,130 per practice vs 14,779, P = .01) and lower rates of cervical cancer screening in the comparison practices. Although estimates of the emergency department visits and inpatient admissions of patients in the pilot practices trended toward lower utilization, the only significant difference was a lower rate of ambulatory care sensitive emergency department visits in the pilot practices. The Chronic Care Sustainability Initiative pilot program was associated with a reduction in ambulatory care-sensitive emergency department visits of approximately 0.8 per 1000 member months or approximately 11.6% compared with the baseline rate of 6.9 for emergency department visits per 1000 member months (P = .002). No significant improvements were found in any of the quality measures. After 2 years, a pilot program of a patient-centered medical home was associated with substantial improvements in medical home recognition scores and a significant reduction in ambulatory care sensitive emergency department visits. Although not achieving significance, there were downward trends in emergency department visits and inpatient admissions.

Emergency Department Use by Nursing Home Residents: Effect of Severity of Cognitive Impairment

To examine the 1-year prevalence and risk of emergency department (ED) use and ambulatory care-sensitive (ACS) ED use by nursing home (NH) residents with different levels of severity of cognitive impairment (CI). We used multinomial logistic regression to estimate the effect of CI severity on the odds of any ED visit and any ACS ED visit in a 2006 national random sample of NH residents, controlling for predisposing, enabling, and need characteristics. Of 132,753 NH residents, 62% had at least one ED visit and approximately 24% had at least one ACS ED visit in 2006. The probability of any ED visit or any ACS ED visit varied with the severity of resident CI. Residents with mild CI had up to 15% higher odds of any ED or any ACS ED visit and those with more moderate CI had 9% higher odds of an ACS ED visit compared with those without CI. The probability of any ED visit was negatively associated with advanced dementia (adjusted odds ratio = 0.60; 95% CI = 0.55-0.65). Earlier identification of persons with mild CI may facilitate patient, family, and staff education, as well as advanced care planning to reduce ACS ED visits. Both ACS ED use and hospitalizations, adjusted for case mix, should be used as quality indicators to help ensure greater accountability for high-quality NH care and more appropriate utilization of ED resources.