HOME DM-BAT: home-based diabetes-modified behavioral activation treatment for low-income seniors with type 2 diabetes-study protocol for a randomized controlled trial.

BACKGROUND: About 13% of African Americans and 13% of Hispanics have diabetes, compared to 8% of non-Hispanic Whites (NHWs). This is more pronounced in the elderly where about 25-30% of those aged 65 and older have diabetes. Studies have found associations between social determinants of health (SDoH) and increased incidence, prevalence, and burden of diabetes; however, few interventions have accounted for the context in which the elderly live by addressing SDoH. Specifically, psychosocial factors (such as cognitive dysfunction, functional impairment, and social isolation) impacting this population may be under-addressed due to numerous medical concerns addressed during the clinical visit. The long-term goal of the project is to identify strategies to improve glycemic control and reduce diabetes complications and mortality in African Americans and Hispanics/Latinos with type 2 diabetes. METHODS: This is a 5-year prospective, randomized clinical trial, which will test the effectiveness of a home-based diabetes-modified behavioral activation treatment for low-income, minority seniors with type 2 diabetes mellitus (T2DM) (HOME DM-BAT). Two hundred, aged 65 and older and with an HbA1c ≥8%, will be randomized into one of two groups: (1) an intervention using in-home, nurse telephone-delivered diabetes education, and behavioral activation or (2) a usual care group using in-home, nurse telephone-delivered, health education/supportive therapy. Participants will be followed for 12 months to ascertain the effect of the intervention on glycemic control, blood pressure, and low-density lipoprotein (LDL) cholesterol. The primary hypothesis is low-income, minority seniors with poorly controlled type 2 diabetes randomized to HOME DM-BAT will have significantly greater improvements in clinical outcomes at 12 months of follow-up compared to usual care. DISCUSSION: Results from this study will provide important insight into the effectiveness of a home-based diabetes-modified behavioral activation treatment for low-income, minority seniors with uncontrolled type 2 diabetes mellitus and inform strategies to improve glycemic control and reduce diabetes complications in minority elderly with T2DM. TRIAL REGISTRATION: ClinicalTrials.gov NCT04203147 ). Registered on December 18, 2019, with the National Institutes of Health Clinical Trials Registry.

Cost-Effectiveness of Technology-Assisted Case Management in Low-Income, Rural Adults with Type 2 Diabetes.

Objective: The objective of this study was to examine whether delivering technology-assisted case management (TACM) with medication titration by nurses under physician supervision is cost effective compared with usual care (standard office procedures) in low-income rural adults with type 2 diabetes. Methods: One hundred and thirteen low-income, rural adults with type 2 diabetes and hemoglobin A1c (HbA1c) ≥8%, were randomized to a TACM intervention or usual care. Effectiveness was measured as differences in HbA1c between the TACM and usual care groups at 6 months. Total cost per patient included intervention or usual care cost, medical care cost, and income loss associated with lost workdays. The total cost per patient and HbA1c were used to estimate a joint distribution of incremental cost and incremental effect of TACM compared with usual care. Incremental cost-effectiveness ratios (ICERs) were estimated to summarize the cost-effectiveness of the TACM intervention relative to usual care to decrease HbA1c by 1%. Results: Costs due to intervention, primary care, other health care, emergency room visits, and workdays missed showed statistically significant differences between the groups (usual care $1,360.49 vs. TACM $5,379.60, p=0.004), with an absolute cost difference of $4,019.11. Based on the intervention cost per patient and the change in HbA1c, the median bootstrapped ICERs was estimated to be $6,299.04 (standard error=731.71) per 1% decrease in HbA1c. Conclusion: Based on these results, a 1% decrease in HbA1c can be obtained with the TACM intervention at an approximate cost of $6,300; therefore, it is a cost-effective option for treating vulnerable populations of adults with type 2 diabetes.

Cost-effectiveness of Telephone-Delivered Education and Behavioral Skills Intervention for African American Adults with Diabetes.

Purpose: Evaluate cost-effectiveness of a telephone-delivered education and behavioral skills intervention in reducing glycemic control (HbA1c) and decreasing risk of complications. Methods: Data from a randomized controlled trial, conducted from August 1, 2008 - June 30, 2010 and using a 2x2 factorial design delivered to 255 African American adults not meeting glycemic targets for diabetes were used. Though the primary aim found no significant differences in HbA1c between groups, there was an overall drop in HbA1c across arms and differential cost. Primary clinical outcome was HbA1c measured at 12-months. Costs were estimated based on self-reported utilization of primary care, emergency, and other health care. Costs due to lost wages were calculated based on self-reported days of work missed due to illness. The Michigan Model for Diabetes was used to estimate 10-year probability of developing congestive heart failure, cardiovascular disease, end stage renal disease, stroke, myocardial infarction, all cause death, and CVD death. Total cost per patient and clinical outcomes were used to estimate an incremental cost effectiveness ratio (ICER) using non-parametric bootstrapping. Results: ICERs indicated combined education and skills intervention was $3,630 less expensive than usual care to achieve a 0.6% decrease in HbA1c and was between $34,000 and $95,000 less expensive than usual care to reduce risk of complications. The knowledge only intervention was $661 less expensive than usual care and the behavioral skills only intervention did not indicate cost effectiveness. Conclusion: The combined intervention ICER for HbA1c is comparable to other education programs and the ICER to reduce the probability of complications falls below previously recommended long-term cut-off of $100,000, suggesting cost-effectiveness in an African American population.

Enhancing Language Access: A Pilot Study to Examine the Importance of Understanding the Language Preference and Acculturalization Level in the Provision of Healthcare for Hispanics Veterans With Traumatic Brain Injury.

INTRODUCTION: The purpose of this pilot study was to obtain preliminary data to culturally adapt the Veteran Health Administration Traumatic Brain Injury (TBI) assessment instruments for the Hispanic Veteran population. A qualitative analysis explored the cognitive processes used by Hispanic Veterans whose preferred language was Spanish to understand a specific set of screening questions within the Initial TBI Screening, the Comprehensive TBI Evaluation, the Neurobehavioral Symptom Inventory (NSI), and the La Trobe Communication Questionnaire (LTCQ). MATERIALS AND METHODS: A certified translator completed translation of the TBI instruments, an expert panel resolved inadequate expressions of the translations, and translated instruments were back translated. Male and female Hispanic Veterans with a positive TBI screening underwent a recorded administration of the TBI instruments, including LTCQ, followed by systematic debriefing using semi-structured cognitive interviews which then underwent qualitative analysis. The Marin's Short Acculturation Scale for Hispanics, the Tropp's Psychological Acculturation Scale, the English-Language Proficiency Test Series, and the TBI Demographic and Language Preference interview were administered to the subjects. RESULTS: Fifteen subjects were enrolled for the TBI instruments intervention; 11 of them completed all the additional procedures. The TBI instruments intervention seemed to produce very few variations, indicating adequate cultural equivalence. However, the LTCQ instrument showed suggested cultural variations, but did not suggest a lack of understanding or misinterpretation. The population studied displayed preferential connectedness to the Hispanic/Latino culture and to the Spanish language. The LTCQ indicated that subjects perceived themselves as having a worse execution in terms of communication skills than historical control and TBI groups. English-Language Proficiency Test Series found that most of the subject population did not demonstrate mastery of grade-appropriate basic social and academic vocabulary in English. CONCLUSION: Current findings highlight the importance of using linguistically and culturally appropriate materials upon evaluating Hispanic Veterans with a suspected TBI who have Spanish as their primary or preferred language.

Financial Incentives and Nurse Coaching to Enhance Diabetes Outcomes (FINANCE-DM): a trial protocol.

INTRODUCTION: Given the burden of diabetes in ethnic minorities and emerging data on the efficacy of financial incentives in type 2 diabetes mellitus (T2DM), it is critical to examine the efficacy of financial incentives across and within racial/ethnic groups. METHODS AND ANALYSIS: This trial is an ongoing 5-year, randomised clinical trial designed to test the efficacy of a Financial Incentives And Nurse Coaching to Enhance Diabetes Outcomes (FINANCE-DM) intervention composed of (1) nurse education, (2) home telemonitoring and (3) structured financial incentives; compared with an active control group (nurse education and home telemonitoring alone). The study also will evaluate whether intervention effects are sustained 6 months after the financial incentives are withdrawn (ie, 18 months post-randomisation) and whether the intervention is differentially efficacious across racial/ethnic groups. Participants will include 450 adults with a clinical diagnosis of T2DM and HbA1c of 8% or higher who self-identify as White, African American or Hispanic. Participants will be randomised to one of two groups: the FINANCE intervention or Active Control. The location and setting of this study include primary care clinics at the Medical College of Wisconsin (MCW) in Milwaukee, WI and community partner sites affiliated with the Center for Advancing Population Science at MCW. ETHICS AND DISSEMINATION: This trial was approved by IRB at MCW under PRO00033788. TRIAL REGISTRATION NUMBER: Registration for this trial on the United States National Institute of Health Clinical Trials Registry can be found under ID: NCT04203173 and online (https://clinicaltrials.gov/ct2/show/NCT04203173?id=NCT04203173&draw=2&rank=1).

Hybrid type 1 randomized controlled trial of a tablet-based application to improve quality of care in child mental health treatment.

The quality of child mental health care is highly variable in community practice settings. Innovative technology-based solutions may be leveraged to improve quality of care and, in turn, treatment outcomes. This is a protocol paper that describes an innovative study design in which we rigorously evaluate the effectiveness of a tablet-assisted intervention, Supporting Providers and Reaching Kids (SPARK). SPARK consists of a collection of interactive games and activities that are designed to improve provider fidelity and child engagement in evidence-based psychotherapies. The methodology also allows us to explore the implementation and sustainability of a technology-enhanced intervention in more than two dozen community practice settings. This paper includes a description and justification for sample selection and recruitment procedures, selection of assessment measures and methods, design of the intervention, and statistical evaluation of critical outcomes. Novel features of the design include the tablet-based toolkit approach that has strong applicability to a range of child mental health interventions and the use of a hybrid type 1 effectiveness-implementation trial that allows for the simultaneous investigation of the effectiveness of the intervention and the implementation context. Challenges related to the implementation of a technology-enhanced intervention in existing mental health clinics are discussed, as well as implications for future research and practice.

Peer approaches to self-management (PALS): comparing a peer mentoring approach for disease self-management in African American women with lupus with a social support control: study protocol for a randomized controlled trial.

BACKGROUND: Systemic lupus erythematosus (SLE or lupus) is a chronic autoimmune disease that is associated with increased morbidity, mortality, healthcare costs and decreased quality of life. African Americans in the USA have three to four times greater prevalence of SLE, risk of developing SLE at an earlier age, and SLE-related disease activity, damage, and mortality compared with Caucasians, with the highest rates experienced by African American women. There is strong evidence that patient-level factors are associated with outcomes, which justifies targeting them with intervention. While evidence-based self-management interventions that incorporate both social support and health education have reduced pain, improved function, and delayed disability among patients with SLE, African Americans and women are still disproportionately impacted by SLE. Peer mentoring interventions are effective in other chronic conditions that disproportionately affect minorities, such as diabetes mellitus, HIV, and kidney disease, but there is currently no empirically tested peer mentoring intervention developed for patients with SLE. Preliminary data from our group suggest that peer mentoring improves self-management, reduces disease activity, and improves health-related quality of life (HRQOL) in African American women with SLE. METHODS: This study will test an innovative, manualized peer mentorship program designed to provide modeling and reinforcement by peers (mentors) to other African American women with SLE (mentees) to encourage them to engage in activities that promote disease self-management. Through a randomized, "mentored" or "support group" controlled design, we will assess the efficacy and mechanism(s) of this intervention in self-management, disease activity, and HRQOL. DISCUSSION: This is the first study to test peer mentorship as an alternative strategy to improve outcomes in African American women with SLE. This could result in a model for other programs that aim to improve disease self-management, disease activity, and HRQOL in African American women suffering from chronic illness. The peer mentoring approach is uniquely fitted to African Americans, and this intervention has the potential to lead to health improvements for African American women with SLE that have not been attainable with other interventions. This would significantly reduce disparities and have considerable public health impact. TRIAL REGISTRATION: ClinicalTrials.gov, NCT03734055 . Registered on 27 November 2018.

Trends in Out-of-Pocket Burden in United States Adults with Kidney Disease: 2002-2011.

BACKGROUND: High out-of-pocket (OOP) cost is a barrier to healthcare access and treatment compliance. Our study examined high OOP healthcare cost and burden trends in adults with kidney disease (KD). METHODS: Using Medical Expenditure Survey 2002-2011 data, we examined the proportion of people greater than 17 years old with KD whose OOP burden was high. Trends by insurance status (private, public or none) and trends by income level (poor, low, middle or high income) were also examined in this study. RESULTS: Approximately 16% of people with KD faced high OOP burden in 2011. The proportion of adults with high OOP burden between 2002 and 2011 fell by 9.7 percentage points. The proportion of privately insured adults facing high OOP burden decreased by 4.7, those who were publicly insured 22.4, and those who were uninsured, 3.1 percentage points. The proportion of those facing high OOP burden who were poor/near poor fell by 26.5, those who had low income 13.4, and those who had middle income, 9 percentage points. CONCLUSIONS: Though high OOP burden declined between 2002 and 2011 in the US population with KD, most of the decline was among the publicly insured, so the uninsured populations with KD remain vulnerable. Providers and policy makers should be aware of the vulnerability of uninsured individuals with KD to high OOP burden.

Cost-Effectiveness of Behavioral Activation for Depression in Older Adult Veterans: In-Person Care Versus Telehealth.

BACKGROUND: This study examined whether delivering behavioral activation for depression through telehealth is cost-effective compared to in-person care. METHODS: This was a randomized, noninferiority trial, with participants assigned to 1 of 2 arms of 8-week behavioral activation therapy: in-person or via telehealth. Primary clinical outcomes included measures of depression (Geriatric Depression Scale, Beck Depression Inventory, and Structured Clinical Interview for DSM-IV) at 12 months follow-up. Quality of life was assessed using the 36-Item Short Form Health Survey. Economic outcomes included the difference in health services utilization costs between 1 year post-intervention and 1 year pre-intervention, as quality-adjusted life-years (QALYs), and incremental cost-effectiveness ratios for differences in cost based on mean travel and median travel relative to the 3 primary outcomes and QALYs. RESULTS: 241 participants were enrolled and completed study procedures between April 2007 and July 2012. Post-intervention, veterans treated in-person had a mean of $2,998 higher VA health care utilization costs relative to their pre-intervention utilization costs, while veterans treated via telehealth had a mean of $870.91 higher costs post-intervention relative to pre-intervention. The difference between bootstrap mean and median QALYs was not significantly different from zero. CONCLUSIONS: Although the intervention costs for telehealth were higher relative to in-person care, veterans receiving behavioral activation via telehealth had lower health utilization costs 1 year after the intervention than those receiving care in person while QALYs were approximately the same. These results demonstrate the noninferiority of telehealth in treating depression in veterans with respect to QALYs and a large and significant cost benefit of using telehealth in terms of health services utilization post-intervention. TRIAL REGISTRATION: ClinicalTrials.gov identifier: NCT00324701.

Effect of an Evidence-based Inpatient Tobacco Dependence Treatment Service on 1-Year Postdischarge Health Care Costs.

BACKGROUND: In 2014, the Medical University of South Carolina (MUSC) implemented a Tobacco Dependence Treatment Service (TDTS) consistent with the Joint Commission (JC) standards recommending that hospitals screen patients for smoking, provide cessation support, and follow-up contact for relapse prevention within 1 month of discharge. We previously demonstrated that patients exposed to the MUSC TDTS were approximately half as likely to be smoking one month after discharge and 23% less likely to have a 30-day hospital readmission. This paper examines whether exposure to the TDTS influenced downstream health care charges 12 months after patients were discharged from the hospital. METHODS: Data from MUSC's electronic health records, the TDTS, and statewide health care utilization datasets (eg, hospitalization, emergency department, and ambulatory surgery visits) were linked to assess how exposure to the MUSC TDTS impacted health care charges. Total health care charges were compared for patients with and without TDTS exposure. To reduce potential TDTS exposure selection bias, propensity score weighting was used to balance baseline characteristics between groups. The cost of delivering the MUSC TDTS intervention was calculated, along with cost per smoker. RESULTS: The overall adjusted mean health care charges for smokers exposed to the TDTS were $7299 lower than for those who did not receive TDTS services (P=0.047). The TDTS cost per smoker was modest by comparison at $34.21 per smoker eligible for the service. DISCUSSION: Results suggest that implementation of a TDTS consistent with JC standards for smoking cessation can be affordably implemented and yield substantial health care savings that would benefit patients, hospitals, and insurers.

Ethnic and geographic variations in multimorbidty: Evidence from three large cohorts.

A common characteristic of patients seen at the Veterans Health Administration (VHA) is a high number of concurrent comorbidities (i.e. multimorbidity). This study (i) examines the magnitude and patterns of multimorbidity by race/ethnicity and geography; (ii) compares the level of variation explained by these factors in three multimorbidity measures across three large cohorts. We created three national cohorts for Veterans with chronic kidney disease (CKD:n = 2,190,564), traumatic brain injury (TBI:n = 167,954) and diabetes-mellitus (DM:n = 1,263,906). Multimorbidity was measured by Charlson-Deyo, Elixhauser and Walraven-Elixhauser scores. Multimorbidity differences by race/ethnicity and geography were compared using generalized linear models (GLM). Latent class analysis (LCA) was used to identify groups of conditions that are highly associated with race/ethnic groups. Differences in age (CKD,74.5, TBI,49.7, DM, 66.9 years), race (CKD,80.9%, TBI,76.4%, DM, 63.8% NHW) and geography (CKD,64.4%, TBI,70%, DM, 70.9% urban) were observed among the three cohorts. Accounting for these differences, GLM results showed that risk of multimorbidity in non-Hispanic blacks (NHB) with CKD were 1.16 times higher in urban areas and 1.10 times higher in rural areas compared to non-Hispanic whites (NHW) with CKD. DM and TBI showed similar results with risk for NHB, 1.05 higher in urban areas and 0.97 lower in rural areas for both diseases. Overall, our results show that (i) multimorbidity risk was higher for NHB in urban areas compared to rural areas in all three cohorts; (ii) multimorbidity risk was higher for Hispanics in urban areas compared to rural areas in the DM and CKD cohorts; and (iii) the highest overall multimorbidity risk of any race group or location exists for Hispanics in insular islands for all three disease cohorts. These findings are consistent among the three multimorbidity measures. In fact, our LCA also showed that a three class LC model based on Elixhauser or Charlson provides good discrimination by type and extent of multimorbidity.

Effect of an Evidence-based Inpatient Tobacco Dependence Treatment Service on 30-, 90-, and 180-Day Hospital Readmission Rates.

INTRODUCTION: Smoking is a risk factor for hospitalization and interferes with patient care due to its effects on pulmonary function, wound healing, and interference with treatments and medications. Although benefits of stopping smoking are well-established, few hospitals provide tobacco dependence treatment services (TDTS) due to cost, lack of mandatory tobacco cessation standards and lack of evidence demonstrating clinical and financial benefits to hospitals and insurers for providing services. METHODS: This study explored the effect of an inpatient TDTS on 30-, 90-, and 180-day hospital readmissions. To carry out this work, 3 secondary datasets were linked, which included clinical electronic health record data, tobacco cessation program data, and statewide health care utilization data. Odds ratios (ORs) were calculated using inverse propensity score-weighted logistic regression models, with program exposure as the primary independent variable and 30 (90 and 180)-day readmission rates as the dependent variable, and adjustment for putative covariates. RESULTS: Odds of readmission were compared for patients who did and did not receive TDTS. At 30 days postdischarge, smokers exposed to the TDTS had a lower odds of readmission (OR=0.77, P=0.031). At 90 and 180 days, odds of readmission remained lower in the TDTS group (ORs=0.87 and 0.86, respectively), but were not statistically significant. DISCUSSION: Findings from the current study, which are supported by prior studies, provide evidence that delivery of TDTS is a strategy that may help to reduce hospital readmissions.

Trends in healthcare expenditure in United States adults with chronic kidney disease: 2002-2011.

BACKGROUND: This study examines trends in healthcare expenditure in adults with chronic kidney disease (CKD) and other kidney diseases (OKD) in the U.S. from 2002 to 2011. METHODS: One hundred and eighty-seven thousand, three hundred and fourty-one adults aged ≥18 from the Medical Expenditure Panel Survey (MEPS) Household Component were analyzed. CKD and OKD were based on ICD-9 or CCC codes. A novel two-part model was used to estimate the likelihood of any healthcare use and total expenditures. Covariates included individual demographics and comorbidities. RESULTS: Approximately 711 adults surveyed from 2002 to 2011 had CKD and 3693 had OKD. CKD was more likely among Non-Hispanic Blacks (NHB), Midwest and Western residents while OKD was more likely among Non-Hispanic Whites (NHW), Hispanics, married and Northeast residents. Both CKD and OKD were more likely in ≥45 years, males, widowed/divorced/single, ≤high school educated, publicly insured, Southern residents, poor and low income individuals. All comorbidities were more likely among people with CKD and OKD. Unadjusted analysis for mean expenditures for CKD and OKD vs. no kidney disease was $39,873 and $13,247 vs. $5411 for the pooled sample. After adjusting for covariates as well as time, individuals with CKD had $17,472 and OKD $5014 higher expenditures, while adjusted mean expenditures increased by $293 to $658 compared to the reference year group. Unadjusted yearly expenditures for CKD and OKD in the US population were approximately $24.6 and $48.1 billion, while adjusted expenditures were approximately $10.7 and $18.2 billion respectively. CONCLUSION: CKD and OKD are significant cost-drivers and impose a profound economic burden to the US population.

Sex differences in healthcare expenditures among adults with diabetes: evidence from the medical expenditure panel survey, 2002-2011.

BACKGROUND: The evidence assessing differences in medical costs between men and women with diabetes living in the United States is sparse; however, evidence suggests women generally have higher healthcare expenditures compared to men. Since little is known about these differences, the aim of this study was to assess differences in out-of-pocket (OOP) and total healthcare expenditures among adults with diabetes. METHODS: Data were used from 20,442 adults (≥18 years of age) with diabetes from the 2002-2011 Medical Expenditure Panel Survey. Dependent variables were OOP and total direct expenditures for multiple health services (prescription, office-based, inpatient, outpatient, emergency, dental, home healthcare, and other services). The independent variable was sex. Covariates included sociodemographic characteristics, comorbid conditions, and time. Sample demographics were summarized. Mean OOP and total direct expenditures for health services by sex status were analyzed. Regression models were performed to assess incremental costs of healthcare expenditures by sex among adults with diabetes. RESULTS: Fifty-six percent of the sample was composed of women. Unadjusted mean OOP costs were higher for women for prescriptions ($1177; 95% CI $1117-$1237 vs. $959; 95% CI $918-$1000; p < 0.001) compared to men. Unadjusted mean total direct expenditures were also higher for women for prescriptions ($3797; 95% CI $3660-$3934 vs. $3334; 95% CI $3208-$3460; p < 0.001) and home healthcare ($752; 95% CI $646-$858 vs. $397; 95% CI $332-$462; p < 0.001). When adjusting for covariates, higher OOP and total direct costs persisted for women for prescription services (OOP: $156; 95% CI $87-$225; p < 0.001 and total: $184; 95% CI $50-$318; p = 0.007). Women also paid > $50 OOP for office-based visits (p < 0.001) and > $55 total expenditures for home healthcare (p = 0.041) compared to men after adjustments. CONCLUSIONS: Our findings show women with diabetes have higher OOP and total direct expenditures compared to men. Additional research is needed to investigate this disparity between men and women and to understand the associated drivers and clinical implications. Policy recommendations are warranted to minimize the higher burden of costs for women with diabetes.

Remote eye care screening for rural veterans with Technology-based Eye Care Services: a quality improvement project.

CONTEXT: Veterans are at high risk for eye disease because of age and comorbid conditions. Access to eye care is challenging within the entire Veterans Hospital Administration's network of hospitals and clinics in the USA because it is the third busiest outpatient clinical service and growing at a rate of 9% per year. ISSUE: Rural and highly rural veterans face many more barriers to accessing eye care because of distance, cost to travel, and difficulty finding care in the community as many live in medically underserved areas. Also, rural veterans may be diagnosed in later stages of eye disease than their non-rural counterparts due to lack of access to specialty care. In March 2015, Technology-based Eye Care Services (TECS) was launched from the Atlanta Veterans Affairs (VA) as a quality improvement project to provide eye screening services for rural veterans. LESSONS LEARNED: By tracking multiple measures including demographic and access to care metrics, data shows that TECS significantly improved access to care, with 33% of veterans receiving same-day access and >98% of veterans receiving an appointment within 30 days of request. TECS also provided care to a significant percentage of homeless veterans, 10.6% of the patients screened. Finally, TECS reduced healthcare costs, saving the VA up to US$148 per visit and approximately US$52 per patient in round trip travel reimbursements when compared to completing a face-to-face exam at the medical center. Overall savings to the VA system in this early phase of TECS totaled US$288,400, about US$41,200 per month. Other healthcare facilities may be able to use a similar protocol to extend care to at-risk patients.

Community-based implementation of trauma-focused interventions for youth: Economic impact of the learning collaborative model.

This study investigated the economics of the learning collaborative (LC) model in the implementation of Trauma-Focused Cognitive-Behavioral Therapy (TF-CBT), an evidence-based intervention for traumatic stress in youth. We evaluated the cost-effectiveness of the LC model based on data from 13 LCs completed in the southeastern United States. Specifically, we calculated cost-effectiveness ratios (CERs) for 2 key service outcomes: (a) clinician TF-CBT competence, based on pre- and post-LC self-ratings (n = 574); and (b) trauma-related mental health symptoms (i.e., traumatic stress and depression), self- and caregiver-reported, for youth who received TF-CBT (n = 1,410). CERs represented the cost of achieving 1 standard unit of change on a measure (i.e., d = 1.0). The results indicated that (a) costs of $18,679 per clinician were associated with each unit increase in TF-CBT competency and (b) costs from $5,318 to $6,548 per youth were associated with each unit decrease in mental health symptoms. Thus, although the impact of LC participation on clinician competence did not produce a favorable CER, subsequent reductions in youth psychopathology demonstrated high cost-effectiveness. Clinicians and administrators in community provider agencies should consider these findings in their decisions about implementation of evidence-based interventions for youth with traumatic stress disorders. (PsycINFO Database Record

Early Experience with Technology-Based Eye Care Services (TECS): A Novel Ophthalmologic Telemedicine Initiative.

PURPOSE: The aging population is at risk of common eye diseases, and routine eye examinations are recommended to prevent visual impairment. Unfortunately, patients are less likely to seek care as they age, which may be the result of significant travel and time burdens associated with going to an eye clinic in person. A new method of eye-care delivery that mitigates distance barriers and improves access was developed to improve screening for potentially blinding conditions. We present the quality data from the early experience (first 13 months) of Technology-Based Eye Care Services (TECS), a novel ophthalmologic telemedicine program. DESIGN: With TECS, a trained ophthalmology technician is stationed in a primary care clinic away from the main hospital. The ophthalmology technician follows a detailed protocol that collects information about the patient's eyes. The information then is interpreted remotely. Patients with possible abnormal findings are scheduled for a face-to-face examination in the eye clinic. PARTICIPANTS: Any patient with no known ocular disease who desires a routine eye screening examination is eligible. METHODS: Technology-Based Eye Care Services was established in 5 primary care clinics in Georgia surrounding the Atlanta Veterans Affairs hospital. MAIN OUTCOME MEASURES: Four program operation metrics (patient satisfaction, eyeglass remakes, disease detection, and visit length) and 2 access-to-care metrics (appointment wait time and no-show rate) were tracked. RESULTS: Care was rendered to 2690 patients over the first 13 months of TECS. The program has been met with high patient satisfaction (4.95 of 5). Eyeglass remake rate was 0.59%. Abnormal findings were noted in 36.8% of patients and there was >90% agreement between the TECS reading and the face-to-face findings of the physician. TECS saved both patient (25% less) and physician time (50% less), and access to care substantially improved with 99% of patients seen within 14 days of contacting the eye clinic, with a TECS no-show rate of 5.2%. CONCLUSIONS: The early experience with TECS has been promising. Tele-ophthalmology has the potential to improve operational efficiency, reduce cost, and significantly improve access to care. Although further study is necessary, TECS shows potential to help prevent avoidable vision loss.

Exposure to DDT and diabetic nephropathy among Mexican Americans in the 1999-2004 National Health and Nutrition Examination Survey.

Concentrations of the pesticide DDT (dichlorodiphenyltrichloroethane) and its metabolite DDE (dichlorodiphenyldichloroethylene), in the blood of Mexican Americans, were evaluated to determine their relationships with diabetes and diabetic nephropathy. The data were derived from the National Health and Nutrition Examination Survey (NHANES) 1999-2004 (unweighted N = 1,411, population estimate = 13,760,609). The sample included teens, 12-19 years old, which accounted for 19.8% of the data. The time of the study overlapped the banning of DDT in Mexico in the year 2000, and those participants born in Mexico were exposed to DDT before they immigrated to the US. We sought to better understand the relationship of DDT with diabetes in a race/ethnicity group prone to develop diabetes and exposed to DDT. In this study, nephropathy was defined as urinary albumin to creatinine ratio >30 mg/g, representing microalbuminuria and macroalbuminuria, and total diabetes was defined as diagnosed and undiagnosed diabetes (glycohemoglobin, A1c ≥ 6.5%). The proportion with the isomer p,p'-DDT >0.086 ng/g (above the maximum limit of detection) was 13.3% for Mexican Americans born in the US, and 36.9% for those born in Mexico. Levels of p,p'-DDT >0.086 ng/g were associated with total diabetes with nephropathy (odds ratio = 4.42, 95% CI 2.23-8.76), and with total diabetes without nephropathy (odds ratio = 2.02, 95% CI 1.19-3.44). The third quartile of p,p'-DDE (2.99-7.67 ng/g) and the fourth quartile of p,p'-DDE (≥7.68 ng/g) were associated with diabetic nephropathy and had odds ratios of 5.32 (95% CI 1.05-26.87) and 14.95 (95% CI 2.96-75.48) compared to less than the median, respectively, whereas p,p'-DDE was not associated with total diabetes without nephropathy. The findings of this study differ from those of a prior investigation of the general adult US population in that there were more associations found with the Mexican Americans sample.

Clinical Factors and Expenditures Associated With ICD-9-CM Coded Trauma for the U.S. Population: A Nationally Representative Study.

BACKGROUND: There is a lack of information on annual healthcare expenditures both per person and for the U.S. population associated with trauma, as identified by International Classification of Disease Ninth Revision, Clinical Modification (ICD-9-CM) codes. METHODS: This paper employed a two-part model to estimate the unadjusted and adjusted annual per individual expenditures and population burden of trauma exposure for the U.S. population, using a nationally representative survey of medical care expenditures. In addition, we estimated a logit model to examine the demographic and comorbidity factors associated with the likelihood of experiencing trauma. RESULTS: Approximately 18.2% of U.S. adults were found to have trauma exposure during the survey year of 2011. The most frequent trauma ICD-9-CM code was injury not elsewhere classified/not otherwise specified. Adjusted likelihood of trauma was higher among individuals under the age of 65; males; non-Hispanic whites; nonmarried or never married; and individuals living with comorbidities of stroke, joint pain, arthritis, and asthma. The most expensive of the top 10 ICD-9-CM trauma codes was dislocation of the knee. Significant differences in expenditure categories were found for office-based, outpatient, emergency department (ED), dental, and other medical care. After adjustment for comorbidities and demographics, the adjusted per-person burden of trauma was estimated to be $1,689 (95% confidence interval [CI] = $1,006 to $2,372), with an incremental burden on the U.S. population of $60.8 billion per year. CONCLUSIONS: Trauma results in a significant healthcare expenditure burden, both per person and on the U.S. POPULATION: Clinicians should be aware that individuals in the U.S. population with certain comorbidities such as stroke, joint pain, arthritis, and asthma are more likely to have trauma and that differences exist in expenditures for office-based, outpatient, dental, and the ED.