Predictors and moderators of aftercare appointment-keeping following brief motivational interviewing among patients with psychiatric disorders or dual diagnosis.

OBJECTIVE: Non-adherence to psychiatric and substance abuse treatment recommendations, especially with regard to aftercare outpatient appointment-keeping following hospitalizations, exacts a high cost on mental health spending and prevents patients from receiving therapeutic doses of treatment. Our primary objective was to evaluate the relationship between potential predictors and moderators of aftercare appointment-keeping among a group of adult patients immediately following hospitalization for severe psychiatric disorders or dual diagnosis. METHODS: Candidate predictors and moderator variables included demographics, psychiatric status, psychiatric symptom severity, and inpatient group adherence, while aftercare appointment-keeping was defined as attendance at the first aftercare appointment. Participants were 121 adult inpatients with a psychiatric disorder or dual diagnosis originally enrolled in an earlier randomized controlled trial comparing standard treatment with standard treatment plus brief motivational interviewing for increasing adherence. RESULTS: RESULTS indicated that, across treatment conditions, those who were female, did not have dual diagnosis, were older (older than 33 years), and were less educated (

Barriers to computed tomography radiation risk communication in the emergency department: a qualitative analysis of patient and physician perspectives.

OBJECTIVES: This qualitative study aimed to characterize the barriers to informed discussions between patients and emergency physicians (EPs) about radiation risk from computed tomography (CT) and to identify future interventions to improve patient understanding of CT radiation risk. METHODS: This study used a focus group approach to collect concepts about radiation risk exposure from a national sample of EPs and a local sample of emergency department (ED) patients. A directed content analysis used an a priori medical ethics framework to explore themes from the focus groups while a subsequent normative ethics analysis compared these results with existing perceptions about discussing CT radiation risk. RESULTS: Focus groups (three each for a total of 19 EPs and 27 patients) identified concepts consistent with core medical ethics principles: patients emphasized autonomy and nonmaleficence more than physicians, while physicians emphasized beneficence. Subjects' knowledge of radiation dose and risk were equivalent to previously published reports. When asked about whether they should talk about radiation with patients, 74% of EPs reported that radiation exposure should be discussed, but the study EPs self-reported doing so with only an average of 24% of patients. Patients reported wanting to hear about radiation from their physicians the next time they need CT scans and thought that a written handout would work better than any other method. When presented with options for how to discuss risk with patients, EPs reported needing easy access to risk information and preferred discussion over other communications approaches, but had mixed support of distributing patient handouts. CONCLUSIONS: The normative view that radiation from diagnostic CT should be discussed in the ED is shared by patients and physicians, but is challenged by the lack of a structured method to communicate CT radiation risk to ED patients. Our analysis identifies promising interest among physicians and patients to use information guides and electronic order prompts as potential informational tools to overcome this barrier.

Feasibility of a computer-assisted alcohol SBIRT program in an urban emergency department: patient and research staff perspectives.

OBJECTIVES: The study objective was to assess the feasibility of a computerized alcohol-screening interview (CASI) program to identify at-risk alcohol users among adult emergency department (ED) patients. The study aimed to evaluate the feasibility of implementing a computerized screening, brief intervention, and referral to treatment (SBIRT) program within a busy urban ED setting, to report on accurate deployment of alcohol screening results, and to assess comprehension and satisfaction with CASI from both patient and research staff perspectives. METHODS: Research assistants (RAs) screened a convenience sample of medically stable ED patients. The RAs brought CASI to patients' bedsides, and patients entered their own alcohol consumption data. The CASI intervention consisted of an alcohol use screening identification test, a personalized normative feedback profile, NIAAA low-risk drinking educational materials, and treatment referrals (when indicated). RESULTS: Five hundred seventeen patients were enrolled. The median age of participants was 37 years (range, 21-85 years); 37% were men, 62% were Hispanic, 7% were Caucasian, 30% were African American, and 2% were multiracial. Eighty percent reported regular use of computers at home. Eighty percent of patients approached consented to participate, and 99% of those who started CASI were able to complete it. Two percent of interviews were interrupted for medical tests and procedures, however, no patients required breaks from using CASI for not feeling well. The CASI program accurately provided alcohol risk education to patients 100% of the time. Thirty-two percent of patients in the sample screened positive for at-risk drinking. Sixty percent of patients reported that CASI increased their knowledge of safe drinking limits, 39% reported some likeliness to change their alcohol use, and 28% reported some intention to consult a health care professional about their alcohol use as a result of their screening results. Ninety-three percent reported CASI was easy to use, 93% felt comfortable receiving alcohol education via computer, and 89% liked using CASI. Ninety percent of patients correctly identified their alcohol risk level after participating in CASI. With regard to research staff experience, RAs needed to provide standby assistance to patients during <1% of CASI administrations and needed to troubleshoot computer issues in 4% of interviews. The RAs distributed the correct alcohol risk normative profiles to patients 97% of the time and provided patients with treatment referrals when indicated 81% of the time. The RAs rated patients as "not bothered at all" by using CASI 94% of the time. CONCLUSIONS: This study demonstrates that an ED-based computerized alcohol screening program is both acceptable to patients and effective in educating patients about their alcohol risk level. Additionally, this study demonstrates that few logistical problems related to using computers for these interventions were experienced by research staff: in most cases, staff accurately deployed alcohol risk education to patients, and in all cases, the computer provided accurate education to patients. Computer-assisted SBIRT may represent a significant time-saving measure, allowing EDs to reach larger numbers of patients for alcohol intervention without causing undue clinical burden or interruptions to clinical care. Future studies with follow-up are needed to replicate these results and assess drinking reductions post-intervention.

Substance user treatment dropout from client and clinician perspectives: a pilot study.

Reasons for premature termination of outpatient substance user treatment were evaluated from client and clinician perspectives using qualitative (focus groups) and quantitative (survey) methods in a pilot study (N = 44). The sample consisted of clients (n = 22), the majority of whom were male (73%) and African American (50%) or Caucasian (41%). The sample of clinicians (n = 22) were predominantly female (64%), and Caucasian (52%) or African American (24%). The most frequently endorsed reasons for leaving treatment were related to individual rather than program characteristics with heavy drug or alcohol use, transportation or financial problems, and ambivalence about abstinence being highly rated by both clinicians and clients. Survey results indicated that clinicians more frequently attributed treatment dropout to individual- or client-level factors than did clients. Focus group ratings indicated that clinicians felt client motivation and staff connection issues were primary reasons for dropout, whereas clients indicated social support and staff connection issues. The findings suggest that the development of early therapeutic alliance and active problem solving of potential barriers to treatment attendance may influence treatment retention.

Development of a substance abuse consultation and referral service in an academic medical center: challenges, achievements and dissemination.

Approximately 25% of US hospital beds are occupied by individuals with active substance use disorders (SUD). Acute medical hospitalization provides an opportunity to address SUDs and provide patient-centered intervention and referral for treatment. Nationally, some hospitals have developed substance abuse consultation departments to improve the care of hospitalized substance users. In this paper we describe the Addiction Psychiatry Service (APS) in a large urban hospital which provides bed-side SUD consultation, screening, intervention and referral to treatment. APS utilizes the multiple disciplines of psychology, social work and medicine to integrate substance abuse services throughout the hospital and educate future generations of medical and psychology trainees. We conclude with how the APS service is informing the development of similar programs in other academic departments within our hospital and best practice recommendations to further disseminate this service model.

Safety and efficacy of rapid titration using 1mg doses of intravenous hydromorphone in emergency department patients with acute severe pain: the "1+1" protocol.

STUDY OBJECTIVE: We evaluate the safety and efficacy of a pain protocol using 1 mg intravenous (IV) hydromorphone followed by an optional dose of 1 mg IV hydromorphone 15 minutes later. METHODS: Prospective interventional study at an urban academic emergency department (ED). One milligram of IV hydromorphone was administered to adults 21 to 64 years of age who had acute severe pain. Fifteen minutes later, patients were asked whether they wanted more pain medication. If they answered yes, they received another 1 mg of IV hydromorphone and were again asked 15 minutes later whether they wanted more pain medication. The primary efficacy outcome was the proportion of patients who had adequate analgesia, defined as declining additional hydromorphone within 1 hour of entering the protocol. The primary safety outcome was incidence of oxygen desaturation less than 95%. Secondary outcomes included numeric rating scale pain scores and adverse events. RESULTS: Of the 223 patients with complete data, 1 mg IV hydromorphone provided adequate analgesia for 77% (95% confidence interval 71% to 82%) within 15 minutes and 96% (95% confidence interval 92% to 98%) within 1 hour of entering the protocol. Eighty-six percent of patients reported pain scores that decreased by 2 or more numeric rating scale units. Five percent experienced transient oxygen desaturation below 95%, which was corrected promptly with oxygen. CONCLUSION: A rapid titration protocol using IV hydromorphone (1 mg hydromorphone followed by an optional 1 mg 15 minutes later) is efficacious in nonelderly ED patients with acute severe pain. There were no serious adverse events.