High-value Care For Patients Research Articles

Implementing a Serious Illness Risk Prediction Model: Impact on Goals of Care Documentation.

Goals of care conversations can promote high value care for patients with serious illness, yet documented discussions infrequently occur in hospital settings. We sought to develop a quality improvement initiative to improve goals of care documentation for hospitalized patients. Implementation occurred at an academic medical center in Pittsburgh, Pennsylvania. Intervention included integration of a 90-day mortality prediction model grouping patients into low, intermediate, and high risk; a centralized goals of care note; and automated notifications and targeted palliative consults. We compared documented goals of care discussions by risk score before and after implementation. Of the 12,571 patients hospitalized preimplementation and 10,761 postimplementation, 1% were designated high risk and 11% intermediate risk of mortality. Postimplementation, goals of care documentation increased for high (17.6%-70.8%, P< 0.0001) and intermediate risk patients (9.6%-28.0%, P < 0.0001). For intermediate risk patients, the percentage of goals of care documentation performed by palliative medicine specialists increased from pre- to postimplementation (52.3%-71.2%, P = 0.0002). For high-risk patients, the percentage of goals of care documentation completed by the primary service increased from pre-to postimplementation (36.8%-47.1%, P = 0.5898, with documentation performed by palliative medicine specialists slightly decreasing from pre- to postimplementation (63.2%-52.9%, P = 0.5898). Implementation of a goals of care initiative using a mortality prediction model significantly increased goals of care documentation especially among high-risk patients. Further study to assess strategies to increase goals of care documentation for intermediate risk patients is needed especially by nonspecialty palliative care.

Lean Performance Indicators and Facilitators of Outcomes in U.S. Public Hospitals.

This study investigated the association between Lean and performance outcomes in U.S. public hospitals. Public hospitals face substantial pressure to deliver high-quality care with limited resources. Lean-based management systems can provide these hospitals with alternative approaches to improve efficiency and effectiveness. Prior research shows that Lean can have positive impacts in hospitals ranging in ownership type, but more study is needed, specifically in publicly owned hospitals. We performed multivariable regressions using data from the 2017 National Survey of Lean/Transformational Performance Improvement. The data were linked to publicly available hospital performance data from the Agency for Healthcare Research and Quality and the Centers for Medicare & Medicaid Services. We examined 11 outcomes measuring financial performance, quality of care, and patient experience and their associations with Lean adoption. We also explored potential drivers of positive outcomes by examining Lean implementation in each hospital, measured as the number of units using Lean tools and practices; leader commitment to Lean principles; Lean training and education among physicians, nurses, and managers; and use of a daily management system among C-suite leaders and managers. Lean adoption and implementation were associated with improved performance in U.S. public hospitals. Compared with hospitals that did not adopt Lean, those that did had significantly lower adjusted inpatient expenses per discharge and higher-than-average national scores on the appropriate use of medical imaging and timeliness of care. The study results also showed marginally significant improvements in patient experience and hospital earnings before interest, taxes, depreciation, and amortization margins. Focusing on these select outcomes, we found that drivers of such improvements involved the extent of Lean implementation, as reflected by leadership commitment, daily management, and training/education while controlling for the number of years using Lean. Lean is a method of continuous improvement centered around a culture of providing high-value care for patients. Our findings provide insight into the potential benefits of Lean in U.S. public hospitals. Notably, they suggest that leader buy-in is key to success. When executives and managers support Lean initiatives and provide proper training for the workforce, improved financial and operational performance can result. This commitment, starting with upper management, may also play a broader role in the effort to reform healthcare while having a positive impact on patient care in U.S. public hospitals.

It Takes a Village: An Ecosystem Perspective on Caring for Patients with High Need

Providing high-value care for patients with high need requires effective organization of collaboration and integration across care sectors. To better organize care, recent work suggests a need to move away from individual organizations that deliver parts of care to encompass care as being delivered by an entire ecosystem including all actors involved in care delivery. However, empirical evidence of processes through which value is created within ecosystems and the governance mechanisms that support value creation is limited. In a qualitative study of eight primary care practices in the United States, we explore with which actors primary care practices interact to deliver high-value care for patients with high need. And, which governing mechanisms help primary care practices interact with actors in the service ecosystem to deliver high-value care for these patient. In adopting a service ecosystem perspective, we categorize the broad group of actors with whom primary care practices interact. We discover that governance mechanisms are more intentional and formalized between actors between which professional understanding is more closely aligned and task interdependence is higher, while more governance voids existed between actors from more divergent sectors such as primary care practices and community resource providers. Key words: Ecosystems, governance voids, governance mechanisms, high cost high need patients

Limping Toward Improvement: The Value of Communicating Diagnostic Uncertainty.

Limping Toward Improvement: The Value of Communicating Diagnostic Uncertainty.

Role of Value-Added Care by Cardiothoracic Anesthesiology and Impact on Outcomes After Cardiac Surgery.

The medical community is increasingly aware of the need for high-quality and high-value patient care. Anesthesiologists in particular have long demonstrated leadership in the field of quality and safety. Cardiothoracic anesthesiologists can improve the quality of care delivered to cardiac patients both with anesthesia-specific practices and in a team-based approach with other perioperative care providers. Collecting large volumes of multicentered data to study, measure, and improve anesthesia care is one of the many commitments of cardiothoracic anesthesiologists to this cause. This article reviews this and other aspects of the work of cardiothoracic anesthesiologists to improve value-added care to cardiac patients.

Surgeons’ perspectives on operating room waste: Multicenter survey

BackgroundWaste is endemic in the U.S. health care system. Operating rooms are a source of significant solid waste. Surgeons are integral to many decisions in the operating room. MethodOnline survey of surgeons at 2 major academic centers in the United States assessing perspectives on intraoperative waste and willingness to work to actively reduce intraoperative waste. ResultsWe received responses from 219 surgeons: 90% agreed or strongly agreed that waste of sterile surgical items is an issue, and 95% agreed or strongly agreed to a willingness to change the operating room workflow to reduce waste. Surgeons estimated 26% of single-use, sterile supplies opened for surgery were unused at the end of the case. The barriers to waste reduction cited most frequently were: (1) lack of awareness of waste, (2) lack of concern for waste, and (3) lack of time to address the waste. ConclusionSurgeons understand there is significant waste in the operating room and are willing to change their workflow to reduce waste. Changes in operating room practices that reduce waste will be beneficial to health systems’ finances and their efforts to improve population health through a reduction in consumption and pollution. Efforts should be directed toward reducing operating room waste with an initial focus on the elimination of unnecessary waste of sterile surgical supplies. Further work is needed to determine the precise sources of perioperative waste and what initiatives can be implemented to reduce this burden while maintaining high-value patient care.

Attributes in primary care practices that promote high value care for patients with high need

Previous research has identified attributes of healthcare delivery that are likely to improve the value of care. Yet, despite policy reforms introducing alternative payment contracts which seek to promote value, no rigorous analysis has associated attributes of primary care with value. This study examines how value-oriented care attributes of primary care practices relate to practices’ cost and quality performance of health care in three types of patients with high need, including patients with major complex chronic conditions, older adults with frailty, and adults under 65 with disability. Our results show that the way care is organized does not differ significantly across patients with different types of need. The observed variation in cost and quality across these groups is likely a result of different patient characteristics. However, when holding patient characteristics constant, our results show that care management, screening for risk factors, and screening for mental health needs result in significant reduction of cost and improvement in quality. For primary care practices, our results suggest ways of organizing, managing and providing care for patients with high need that will likely result in reduced costs and improved quality. Keywords: High need, high costs, care attributes, primary care, vulnerable patients

Socioeconomic Implications of Professional Relationships within Modern Care Delivery Systems

No physician can successfully deliver high-value patient care in the modern-day health care system in isolation. Delivery of effective patient care requires integrated and collaborative systems that depend on dynamic professional relationships among members of the health care team. An overview of the socioeconomic implications of professional relationships within modern care delivery systems and potential employment models is presented.

Patents for the Plastic Surgeon: A Primer.

Although innovation and entrepreneurship are complementary in the process of creating new products, plastic surgeons are frequently discouraged by the challenges associated with the regulatory and administrative environments in patent filing. The following primer provides a step-by-step guide for understanding patents and outlines the steps and costs involved in patent filing. To improve opportunities for successful patent filing, we elaborate on some of the common pitfalls in the process, including the timing of public disclosure, conducting a private art search, selecting a patent attorney or agent, determining the level of inventor involvement, and navigating academic and employment contracts. The innovative drive in plastic surgery provides a strong impetus for strengthening knowledge about patents and patent filing in order to support efforts for providing high-value patient care.

Applied Rapid Qualitative Analysis to Develop a Contextually Appropriate Intervention and Increase the Likelihood of Uptake.

Rapid approaches to collecting and analyzing qualitative interview data can accelerate discovery timelines and intervention development while maintaining scientific rigor. We describe the application of these methods to a program designed to improve care coordination between the Veterans Health Administration (VHA) and community providers. Care coordination between VHA and community providers can be challenging in rural areas. The Telehealth-based Coordination of Non-VHA Care (TECNO Care) intervention was designed to improve care coordination among VHA and community providers. To ensure contextually appropriate implementation of TECNO Care, we conducted preimplementation interviews with veterans, VHA administrators, and VHA and community providers involved in community care. Using both a rapid approach and qualitative analysis, an interviewer and 1-2 note-taker(s) conducted interviews. Over 5 months, 18 stakeholders were interviewed and we analyzed these data to identify how best to deliver TECNO Care. Responses relevant to improving care coordination include health system characteristics; target population; metrics and outcomes; challenges with the current system; and core components. Veterans who frequently visit VHA or community providers and are referred for additional services are at risk for poor outcomes and may benefit from additional care coordination. Using these data, we designed TECNO Care to include information on VHA services and processes, assist in the timely completion of referrals, and facilitate record sharing. Rapid qualitative analysis can inform near real-time intervention development and ensure relevant content creation while setting the stage for stakeholder buy-in. Rigorous and timely analyses support the delivery of contextually appropriate, efficient, high-value patient care.

Chemotherapy Remote Care Monitoring Program: Integration of SMS Text Patient-Reported Outcomes in the Electronic Health Record and Pharmacist Intervention for Chemotherapy-Induced Nausea and Vomiting.

Chemotherapy-induced nausea and vomiting (CINV) is a common cause of unplanned healthcare utilization. The University of Michigan Rogel Cancer Center initiated the chemotherapy remote care monitoring program (CRCMP) to proactively identify patients experiencing CINV and intervene before the need for urgent evaluation. High-risk patients for CINV are identified by neurokinin-1 (NK-1) antagonist administration, enrolled in the CRCMP, and received a daily text message survey for 7 days after chemotherapy administration to report symptoms. Responses above a set threshold trigger a message to the team pharmacist for intervention. The primary outcome of 14-day unplanned healthcare use was evaluated before and after CRCMP implementation. In 8 months, 652 patients received an NK-1 antagonist (2,244 cycles) and 387 patients were enrolled in the CRCMP (59%). Text message response rate was 94%. Clinical pharmacists provided 248 interventions in 121 patient episodes meeting threshold criteria. Fourteen-day unplanned healthcare use was decreased in the CRCMP-enrolled NK-1 episodes (6.68% v 4.53%, P = .02). Admissions were numerically lower for those enrolling in CRCMP when only admissions for nausea were considered (0.63% v 0.35%, P = .33). The CRCMP allowed for real-time management of patient-reported CINV symptom burden based on patient-reported outcomes (PROs) and an electronic medical record-integrated SMS text questionnaire. Clinical pharmacists were key team members to manage patient symptoms. Enrollment in CRCMP significantly reduced overall unplanned healthcare utilization. Although these changes were numerically small, any reduction in unnecessary care utilizing PROs can contribute to high-value care for patients with cancer.

Assessing Utilization of the Cerebrospinal Fluid Venereal Disease Research Laboratory Test for Diagnosis of Neurosyphilis: a Cohort Study.

Inappropriate use of diagnostic tests contributes to rising healthcare expenditures, and improving appropriate utilization rates is important for high-value patient care. The Venereal Disease Research Laboratory (VDRL) test performed in cerebrospinal fluid (CSF) has historically been improperly utilized, although there is no recent evaluation of its use in clinical practice. Quantify the rates of appropriate CSF-VDRL testing, determine the CSF-VDRL false-positivity rate, and describe the causes of false-positive CSF-VDRL reactivity. Retrospective cohort study PATIENTS: A total of 32,626 patients with CSF-VDRL testing at one of three Mayo Clinic sites (Rochester, MN; Jacksonville, FL; and Scottsdale, AZ) from January 1, 1994, to February 28, 2018. Rate of appropriate CSF-VDRL test utilization from January 1, 2011, to December 31, 2017, and CSF-VDRL true- and false-positivity rates from January 1, 1994, to February 28, 2018. Among 8553 persons with negative CSF-VDRL results, testing was inappropriately ordered for 8399 (98.2%) of these patients. The word "syphilis" or "neurosyphilis" appeared in the notes of 1184 (13.8%) individuals with a negative CSF-VDRL result. From January 1994 through February 2018, 33,933 CSF-VDRL tests were performed on 32,626 individual patients. Among the 60 positive CSF-VDRL results, 43 (71.7%) were true-positives and 17 (28.3%) were false-positives. All patients with false-positive CSF-VDRL results were tested unnecessarily. Neoplastic meningitis was a common cause of false-positive CSF-VDRL results. Inappropriate use of CSF-VDRL testing for the diagnosis of neurosyphilis remains problematic in clinical practice. Following recommended testing algorithms would prevent unnecessary testing and minimize false-positive results.

Value Denominator: The Fundamentals of Costing for Orthopaedic Surgeons.

In any discipline, improving quality and efficiency of services acts as a unifying goal. In health care, the goal of achieving high-value care is the new doctrine for all individual entities: payors, providers, and patients. Value is defined as the ratio of outcomes to costs incurred. Therefore, a strong understanding and interpretation of cost measures is crucial to accurately deriving health care value. Health care costing is not simply limited to the costs of implants or the procedure but the costs required to deliver treatment throughout the episode of care. Consequently, physicians serve a keystone role toward driving change in health care costs and initiate high-value care practices. However, physicians require a better understanding of health care costs and institutional accounting practices. To this effort, it is critical that health care providers begin to close the knowledge gap around health care costing and provide leadership when advocating for high-value patient care. This review is purposed to provide a basic review of fundamental components for health care economics, deciphering health care costing, and preview current strategies that prioritize high-value patient care.

The contemporary management of nonspecific lower back pain.

Low back pain (LBP) is extremely common and causes an enormous burden on the society. This perspective article aims to provide an evidence-based summary in the field of LBP. More specifically, we aimed to present epidemiological data on cost, diagnosis, prognosis, prevention and interventions for patients with LBP. It is critical that both clinicians and policymakers follow best practices by using high-value care for patients with LBP. In addition, nonevidence-based procedures must be immediately abandoned. These actions are likely to reduce societal costs and will improve the quality of life of these patients.

P.039 Generating choosing wisely Canada recommendations for neurology

Background: Many guidelines in neurology encompass the principles of Choosing Wisely Canada (CWC): resource stewardship, patient safety, and high value care. There are currently 49 medical societies with CWC recommendations excluding the Canadian Neurologic Society (CNS). Methods: A descriptive process for list generation is outlined. A review of the American Choosing Wisely recommendations was undertaken to generate an adapted list of ten recommendations. CNS board members vetted this list and an online survey was sent to each CNS member. Results: A short list of recommendations endorsed by the CNS membership at large will be presented according to the survey results. CWC promotion of the list will take place to reach specialists, primary care providers, and trainees to ensure high value neurological care delivery is the standard across Canada. Conclusions: The process to delineate CWC recommendations for neurology is outlined. Participating in the CWC movement is an important leadership initiative for the CNS. It demonstrates the commitment of Canadian neurologists to the principles of high value patient care in neurology.

Impact of a Hospital Evidence-Based Practice Center (EPC) on Nursing Policy and Practice.

In 2006, our healthcare system created a hospital Evidence-based Practice Center (EPC) to support the local delivery of high-quality, safe and high value patient care. Since then, the importance of healthcare staff work life has also been highlighted, and together these four elements form the Quadruple Aim framework. Synergistic to this Aim, the Magnet® program promotes and recognizes organizational nursing excellence. To examine the EPC's work to inform nursing policy and practice in support of the goals of the Quadruple Aim framework and Magnet® designation. Methods used included the following: (1) descriptive analysis of the hospital EPC's database of rapid reviews; and (2) administration of a 40-item electronic questionnaire to nurses who requested an EPC review during fiscal years (FY) 2015 and 2016. Of 308 rapid reviews completed in the EPC's first 10years, 59 (19%) addressed nursing topics. The proportion of reviews relevant to nursing increased from 5% (2/39) in the center's first 2years to 44% (25/60) in FY 2015-2016. The majority of nursing reviews (39/59) examined processes of care. Of 23 nurses eligible to participate in the survey, 21 responded (91%). Nurses with administrative or managerial responsibilities requested 70% of reviews; clinical nurse specialists and bedside nurses requested 17% and 9%, respectively. Reviews were used to support clinical program development (48%), provide clinical guidance (33%), update nursing policies or procedures (24%) and develop training and curricula (24%). Nurses were satisfied with the hospital EPC reviews (mean; 4.7/5), and 95% indicated they were likely to request a future review. A dedicated hospital EPC in partnership with nursing offers a unique mechanism for promoting a culture of evidence-based practice. Nurses at all organizational levels use the services of a hospital EPC to inform nursing policy and practice and are highly satisfied with the process, supporting the Quadruple Aim and Magnet® designation.

Improving Complex Pediatric and Adult Spine Care While Embracing the Value Equation

IntroductionValue in health care is defined as the quotient of outcomes to cost. Both pediatric and adult spinal deformity surgeries are among the most expensive procedures offered today. With high variability in both outcomes and costs in spine surgery today, surgeons will be expected to consider long-term cost effectiveness when comparing treatment options. MethodsWe summarize various methods by which value can be increased in complex spine surgery, both through the improvement of outcomes and the reduction of cost. These methods center around standardization, team-based and collaborative approaches, rigorous outcomes tracking through dashboards and registries, and continuous process improvement. ResultsThis manuscript reviews the expert opinion of leading spine specialists on the improvement of safety, quality and improvement of value of pediatric and adult spinal surgery. ConclusionWithout surgeon leadership in this arena, suboptimal solutions may result from the isolated intervention of regulatory bodies or payer groups. The cooperative development of standardized, team-based approaches in complex spine surgery will lead to the high-quality, high-value care for patients.

Comparative Effectiveness of Computed Tomography- Versus Ultrasound-Guided Percutaneous Radiofrequency Ablation Among Medicare Patients 65 Years of Age or Older With Hepatocellular Carcinoma

BackgroundFor patients with hepatocellular carcinoma (HCC) not eligible for surgical resection, radiofrequency ablation (RFA) is a promising technique that reduces the risk of disease progression. ObjectivesTo evaluate whether the trend of image guidance for RFA is moving toward the more expensive computed tomography (CT) technology and to determine the clinical benefits of CT guidance over the ultrasound (US) guidance. MethodsA cohort of 463 patients was identified from the Surveillance, Epidemiology, and End Results and Medicare–linked database. The temporal trends in use of image guidance were assessed using the Cochrane–Armitage test. The associations between modality of image guidance and survival, complications, and costs were assessed using the Cox regression model, the logistic regression model, and the generalized linear model, respectively. ResultsThe use of CT-guided RFA increased sharply, from 20.7% in 2002 to 75.9% in 2011. Compared with CT-guided RFA, those who received US-guided RFA had comparable risk of periprocedural and delayed postprocedural complications. Stratified analyses by tumor size also showed no statistically significant difference. In adjusted survival analysis, no statistically significant difference was observed in overall and cancer-specific survival. Nevertheless, the cost of CT-guided RFA ($2847) was higher than that of US-guided RFA ($1862). ConclusionsDespite its rapid adoption over time, CT-guided RFA incurred higher procedural costs than US-guided RFA but did not significantly improve postprocedural complications and survival. Echoing the American Board of Internal Medicine’s Choosing Wisely campaign and the American Society of Clinical Oncology’s Value of Cancer Care initiative, findings from our study call for critical evaluation of whether CT-guided RFA provides high-value care for patients with HCC.

Automated quality control process for tracking appropriateness of antiemesis.

317 Background: Quality tracking and improvement are areas of importance for delivery of high value patient care. Quality Oncology Practice Initiatives (QOPI) are tools designed by ASCO to help oncology practices deliver high quality care. Specifically, QOPI measure 29 tracks whether antiemetics are administered appropriately with moderate/high emetic risk chemotherapy. In this study, we attempted to automate this quality measure using an adapted Microsoft Structured Query Language (SQL) procedure. Our primary aim was to develop an efficient and cost effective system to track appropriate anti emesis that is adaptable to other cancer centers. A secondary aim was to quantify any degree of over treatment in anti emesis in our center. Methods: We created an SQL procedure which accessed the EPIC CLARITY database and used 9 steps to identify how many chemotherapy administrations in our center for the year 2017 were given sufficient, over, or under anti emesis. We adapted our center’s antiemesis guidelines from 2017 ASCO Clinical Practice Guideline Update for antiemetics. The program identified “pass”/”fail”/”pass(-)” for appropriate/insufficient/over treatment of anti emesis, respectively. Results: 1490 patient/chemotherapy encounters were found for 2017. 862/118/510 were high/intermediate/low emetic risk, respectively. 1314/14/162 chemotherapy administrations received “pass”/”fail”/”pass (-)”, respectively. The reason for 13 of 14 “fails” was lack of steroid in high emetic risk regimens. The primary reason for “pass (-)” was use of fosaprepitant in low/intermediate risk regimens. The time required to execute the program for all 1490 encounters was 40 seconds; the average time for manual review was 3 minutes per encounter. There was no discordance between “pass/fail” status in comparing automated and manual reviews. Conclusions: We have created an automated process which rapidly and accurately verifies adherence to QOPI measure 29. It eliminates time and costs associated with manual review. Further, this program saves costs by identifying areas of over treatment in anti emesis. We have demonstrated on a large scale an adaptable and shareable process for other centers using similar EMR databases.

Value-based surgical care: a view from the surgeon's knife.

NHS trusts across the country are facing unprecedented financial pressures, along with rising levels of demand and widespread variation in surgical quality and cost. There is a moral and financial imperative to provide the most efficient use of resources in order to ensure sustainability of a system that is free at the point of use, and provide consistently high-value care for patients across the country. Delivering 'value' does not mean any reduction in the quality of care - it means achieving the same or higher quality at the same or lower cost. Avoidable and costly incidents in surgery occur every day: patients do not receive the right care, procedures or tests are performed without real benefit, complications lead to prolonged hospital stays, to readmissions and re-interventions. Put simply: poor quality surgical care is expensive. The concept of value-based health care is well known in the UK, yet its principles are not yet fully embedded in the health-care system, surgical training or practice. The shift towards better value-based care with a focus on delivery system reform (Getting It Right First Time), outcomes-based commissioning and payment reform (accountable care systems and integrated care systems) provides an opportunity to make significant improvements in surgical care. Radical and immediate change is required, and everyone, from trainees at the frontline, to clinical leaders, trust chief executives, local commissioners and policy-makers, has vital roles to play. The health-care system needs to be designed, organized and paid for differently to deliver better surgical value for patients.