Mechanically ventilated COVID-19 patients admitted to the intensive care unit in the United States with or without respiratory failure secondary to COVID-19 pneumonia: a retrospective comparison of characteristics and outcomes.

BACKGROUND: There is increasing heterogeneity in the clinical phenotype of patients admitted to the intensive care unit (ICU) with coronavirus disease 2019 (COVID-19,) and reasons for mechanical ventilation are not limited to COVID pneumonia. We aimed to compare the characteristics and outcomes of intubated patients admitted to the ICU with the primary diagnosis of acute hypoxemic respiratory failure (AHRF) from COVID-19 pneumonia to those patients admitted for an alternative diagnosis. METHODS: Retrospective cohort study of adults with confirmed SARS-CoV-2 infection admitted to nine ICUs between March 18, 2020, and April 30, 2021, at an urban university institution. We compared characteristics between the two groups using appropriate statistics. We performed logistic regression to identify risk factors for death in the mechanically ventilated COVID-19 population. RESULTS: After exclusions, the final sample consisted of 319 patients with respiratory failure secondary to COVID pneumonia and 150 patients intubated for alternative diagnoses. The former group had higher ICU and hospital mortality rates (57.7% vs. 36.7%, P<0.001 and 58.9% vs. 39.3%, P<0.001, respectively). Patients with AHRF secondary to COVID-19 pneumonia also had longer ICU and hospital lengths-of-stay (12 vs. 6 days, P<0.001 and 20 vs. 13.5 days, P=0.001). After risk-adjustment, these patients had 2.25 times higher odds of death (95% confidence interval, 1.42-3.56; P=0.001). CONCLUSIONS: Mechanically ventilated COVID-19 patients admitted to the ICU with COVID-19-associated respiratory failure are at higher risk of hospital death and have worse ICU utilization outcomes than those whose reason for admission is unrelated to COVID pneumonia.

Action Beyond Exhibition: Amplifying Photovoice Through Social Action After a Community Health Needs Assessment in Philadelphia.

Photovoice is a participatory action research method that was founded on mobilizing communities toward action. However, there is limited research detailing the action stages of photovoice that are meant to follow the initial research. In this article, we describe the action stage of a youth photovoice project conducted at the planning phase of a Community Health Needs Assessment of the Latino community in North Philadelphia. In collaboration with local leaders, we utilized photovoice to prioritize the health needs identified in the assessment. We announced a request for proposals and launched twelve, 1-year, community catalyst grants in the amount of US$50,000 each. While grants were funded and implemented, the participants continued to exhibit their findings in Philadelphia City Hall and engage with city policymakers. We developed a health policy workshop where Philadelphia youth beyond the original photovoice participants could learn advocacy skills and policy research to develop a proposal addressing a priority health need identified through photovoice. This workshop was expanded into a year-round program where participants can be matched with a career mentor, engage in professional development sessions, and continue to refine and advocate for their policy proposal. We found that successful action planning stemmed from setting goals several steps ahead of the current stage of action while enhancing the ability to center community voice in guiding action forward. Photovoice influenced decision-making throughout each of the steps taken toward action. Future research should recognize and describe action planning as a central tenet of photovoice methodologies.