Predicting Outcomes of Penetrating Cardiovascular Injuries at a Rural Center by Different Scoring Systems.

OBJECTIVE: To compare the anatomical and physiological scoring systems and the outcomes of surgical management of penetrating cardiovascular trauma at a rural center. METHODS: Seventy-seven patients underwent emergency surgery at our center between January/2012 and October/2018 due to penetrating cardiovascular trauma. Injury Severity Score (ISS), Revised Trauma Score (RTS), New Injury Severity Score (NISS), and Trauma and Injury Severity Score (TRISS) were calculated. The validation of these risk scores to predict mortality was assessed by the area under the receiver operating characteristic curve analysis. RESULTS: All trauma scores were correlated with mortality. As ISS, NISS, and TRISS values increased and RTS values decreased, the mortality rate increased. The area under the curve (AUC) in the receiver operating characteristic curve analysis was 0.943 for TRISS, 0.915 for RTS, 0.890 for ISS, and 0.896 for NISS (P<0.001 for each). Logistic regression analysis revealed that scores were correlated with mortality (P<0.001 for each). By investigating cardiac injuries alone, only TRISS and RTS results correlated with mortality for cardiac injuries (Mann-Whitney U test, P=0.003 and P=0.01, respectively). The AUC was only statistically significant for TRISS and RTS (AUC=0.929, P<0.05 for both). For vascular injuries, all the scores were significantly correlated with in-hospital mortality (Mann-Whitney U test, P<0.001 for each). TRISS had the highest AUC (AUC=0.946, P<0.001). CONCLUSION: TRISS has the highest predictivity for in-hospital mortality in patients with penetrating cardiovascular trauma.

An initiative to implement immediate postpartum long-acting reversible contraception in rural New Mexico.

BACKGROUND: Over the past decade, many states have developed approaches to reimburse for immediate postpartum long-acting reversible contraception. Despite expanded coverage, few hospitals offer immediate postpartum long-acting reversible contraception. OBJECTIVES: Immediate postpartum long-acting reversible contraception implementation is complex and requires a committed multidisciplinary team. After New Mexico Medicaid approved reimbursement for this service, the New Mexico Perinatal Collaborative developed and initiated an evidence-based implementation program containing several components. We sought to evaluate timing of the implementation process and facilitators and barriers to immediate postpartum long-acting reversible contraception in several New Mexico rural hospitals. The primary study outcome was time from New Mexico Perinatal Collaborative program component introduction in each hospital to the hospital's completion of the corresponding implementation step. Secondary outcomes included barriers and facilitators to immediate postpartum contraception implementation. STUDY DESIGN: In this mixed-methods study, conducted from April 2017 to May 2018, we completed semistructured questionnaires and interviews with 20 key personnel from 7 New Mexico hospitals that planned to implement immediate postpartum long-acting reversible contraception. The New Mexico Perinatal Collaborative introduced program components to hospitals in a stepped-wedge design. Participants contributed baseline and follow-up data at 4 time periods detailing the steps taken towards program implementation and the timing of step completion at their hospital. Qualitative data were analyzed using directed qualitative content analysis principles based on the Consolidated Framework for Implementation Research. RESULTS: Investigators conducted 43 interviews during the 14-month study period. Median time to complete steps toward implementation-patient education, clinician training, nursing education, charge capture, available supplies, and protocols or guidelines-ranged from 7 days for clinician training to 357 days to develop patient education materials. Facilitators of immediate postpartum contraception readiness were local hospital clinical champions and institutional administrative and financial stability. Of the 7 hospitals, 4 completed all Perinatal Collaborative implementation program components and 3 of those piloted immediate postpartum long-acting reversible contraception services. Two publicly funded hospitals currently offer immediate postpartum long-acting reversible contraception without verification of payment for the device or insertion. The third hospital piloted the program with 8 contraceptive devices, did not receive reimbursement due to identified flaws in Medicaid billing guidance and does not currently offer the service. The remaining 3 of the 7 hospitals declined to complete the NMPC program; the hospital that completed the program but did not pilot immediate postpartum long-acting reversible contraception did so because Medicaid billing mechanisms were incompatible with their automated billing systems. Participants consistently reported that lack of reimbursement was the major barrier to immediate postpartum long-acting reversible contraception implementation. CONCLUSION: Despite the New Mexico Perinatal Collaborative's robust implementation process and hospital engagement, most hospitals did not offer immediate postpartum long-acting reversible contraception over the study period. Reimbursement obstacles prevented full service implementation. Interventions to improve immediate postpartum long-acting reversible contraception access must begin with implementation of seamless billing and reimbursement mechanisms to ensure adequate hospital payments.

Predicting outcomes of penetrating cardiovascular injuries at a rural center by different scoring systems

Abstract Objective: To compare the anatomical and physiological scoring systems and the outcomes of surgical management of penetrating cardiovascular trauma at a rural center. Methods: Seventy-seven patients underwent emergency surgery at our center between January/2012 and October/2018 due to penetrating cardiovascular trauma. Injury Severity Score (ISS), Revised Trauma Score (RTS), New Injury Severity Score (NISS), and Trauma and Injury Severity Score (TRISS) were calculated. The validation of these risk scores to predict mortality was assessed by the area under the receiver operating characteristic curve analysis. Results: All trauma scores were correlated with mortality. As ISS, NISS, and TRISS values increased and RTS values decreased, the mortality rate increased. The area under the curve (AUC) in the receiver operating characteristic curve analysis was 0.943 for TRISS, 0.915 for RTS, 0.890 for ISS, and 0.896 for NISS (P<0.001 for each). Logistic regression analysis revealed that scores were correlated with mortality (P<0.001 for each). By investigating cardiac injuries alone, only TRISS and RTS results correlated with mortality for cardiac injuries (Mann-Whitney U test, P=0.003 and P=0.01, respectively). The AUC was only statistically significant for TRISS and RTS (AUC=0.929, P<0.05 for both). For vascular injuries, all the scores were significantly correlated with in-hospital mortality (Mann-Whitney U test, P<0.001 for each). TRISS had the highest AUC (AUC=0.946, P<0.001). Conclusion: TRISS has the highest predictivity for in-hospital mortality in patients with penetrating cardiovascular trauma.

Use of post-acute care after hospital discharge in urban and rural hospitals.

OBJECTIVES: Geographic variation in the use of post-acute care (PAC - skilled nursing facility and home health care) after hospital discharge is substantial, but reasons for this remain largely unexplored. PAC use in urban hospitals compared to rural hospitals may be one key contributor. We aimed to describe PAC use, explore substitution of one type of PAC for another, and identify how PAC use varies by diagnosis in urban and rural settings. STUDY DESIGN: Secondary analysis of the 2012 National Inpatient Sample including adult discharges to PAC after a hospitalization. METHODS: We adjusted for differences in patient demographics, comorbidities, hospital care provided, and hospital information, comparing use of PAC in urban and rural settings in multivariable logistic regression. RESULTS: Rural patients discharged from rural hospitals constituted 188,137 (12.1%) of the 1.56 million discharges in the sample. Rural discharges received less home health care (0.85; 0.80-0.90) than urban discharges, resulting in less rural PAC use overall (0.95; 0.91-0.99). Rural discharges received more overall PAC for stroke (OR 1.11; 95% CI 1.03-1.19) and less PAC for sepsis (0.92; 0.86-0.98), hip fracture (0.82; 0.70-0.96), and elective joint arthroplasty, where rural discharges had 41% lower odds of receiving PAC (0.59; 0.49-0.71). CONCLUSIONS: The striking differences in receipt of post-acute care in urban and rural patients may constitute a disparity. Evaluation of costs and outcomes of PAC use in these settings is urgently needed as Medicare expands bundled payments for this care.

Addressing geographic access barriers to emergency care services: a national ecologic study of hospitals in Brazil.

BACKGROUND: Unequal distribution of emergency care services is a critical barrier to be overcome to assure access to emergency and surgical care. Considering this context it was objective of the present work analyze geographic access barriers to emergency care services in Brazil. A secondary aim of the study is to define possible roles to be assumed by small hospitals in the Brazilian healthcare network to overcome geographic access challenges. METHODS: The present work can be classified as a cross-sectional ecological study. To carry out the present study, data of all 5843 Brazilian hospitals were categorized among high complexity centers and small hospitals. The geographical access barriers were identified through the use of two-step floating catchment area method. Once concluded the previous step an evaluation using the Getis-Ord-Gi method was performed to identify spatial clusters of municipalities with limited access to high complexity centers but well covered by well-equipped small hospitals. RESULTS: The analysis of accessibility index of high complexity centers highlighted large portions of the country with nearly zero hospital beds by inhabitant. In contrast, it was possible observe a group of 1595 municipalities with high accessibility to small hospitals, simultaneously with a low coverage of high complexity centers. Among the 1595 municipalities with good accessibility to small hospitals, 74% (1183) were covered by small hospitals with at least 60% of minimum emergency service requirements. The spatial clusters analysis aggregated 589 municipalities with high values related to minimum emergency service requirements. Small hospitals in these 589 cities could promote the equity in access to emergency services benefiting more than eight million people. CONCLUSIONS: There is a spatial disequilibrium within the country with prominent gaps in the health care network for emergency services. Taking this challenge into consideration, small hospitals could be a possible solution and foster equity in access to emergency and surgical care. However more investments in are necessary to improve small hospitals capabilities to fill this gap.

Quantifying the reduction in nonmedical costs after the introduction of a rural county hospital in Ecuador / Cuantificación de la reducción de los costos no médicos mediante la apertura de un hospital en un cantón rural del Ecuador

OBJECTIVE: This study attempts to quantify the impact of the introduction of local second-level health services on nonmedical costs (NMCs) for residents of the rural Ecuadorian county of La Maná. METHODS: NMCs for patients accessing second-level health care were assessed by using a quasi-experimental pre- and postintervention study design. In 2007, before local second-level health care services existed, and then in 2008, after the introduction of second-level health care services in the form of a county hospital, 508 patients from the county who sought second-level health care were interviewed. RESULTS: Mean NMCs per patient per illness episode were US$ 93.58 before the county hospital opened and US$ 12.62 after it opened. This difference was largely due to reductions in transport costs (US$ 50.01 vs. US$ 4.28) and food costs (US$ 25.38 vs. US$ 7.28) (P < 0.001 for each category). CONCLUSIONS: NMCs can be decreased sevenfold with the introduction of a county hospital in a rural province previously lacking second-level health care. Introduction of rural second-level health care reduces financial barriers and thus may increase access to these health services for poorer patients in rural communities.

OBJETIVO: Este estudio tiene por objeto cuantificar la repercusión de la introducción de servicios de salud locales de segundo nivel sobre los costos no médicos para los residentes del cantón rural ecuatoriano de La Maná. MÉTODOS: Se evaluaron los costos no médicos de los pacientes que tuvieron acceso a atención médica de segundo nivel mediante un estudio cuasiexperimental de análisis previo y posterior a la intervención. En el 2007 (antes de que existieran servicios locales de este tipo) y en el 2008 (después de la introducción de atención médica de segundo nivel representada por el hospital del cantón) se entrevistaron a 508 pacientes del cantón que requirieron atención médica de segundo nivel. RESULTADOS: Los costos no médicos medios por paciente y por episodio de enfermedad fueron de US$ 93,58 antes de la apertura del hospital local y de US$ 12,62 después de la inauguración del establecimiento. Esta diferencia se debió en gran parte a la reducción de los costos de transporte (US$ 50,01 frente a US$ 4,28) y de los costos de alimentación (US$ 25,38 frente a US$ 7,28) (P < 0,001 para cada categoría). CONCLUSIONES: Es posible reducir los costos no médicos a una séptima parte mediante la apertura de un hospital local en una zona rural que anteriormente carecía de atención médica de segundo nivel. La introducción de atención médica de segundo nivel en una zona rural reduce los obstáculos financieros y, por lo tanto, podría aumentar el acceso a estos servicios de salud para los pacientes más pobres en las comunidades rurales.

Gestión de hospitales rurales: una medición en las provincias de Llanquihue, Chiloé y Palena / The nature and management of rural hospitals: an assessment in the provinces of Llanquihue, Chiloé and Palena (Chile)

Se evalúan 11 Hospitales rurales (tipo 4 o de baja complejidad) del Servicio de Salud Llanquihue Chiloé Palena mediante un instrumento de control de gestión basado en el análisis de Liderazgo, Usuarios, Recursos Humanos, Planificación Estratégica, Procesos, Información y Análisis, Compromiso Social y Resultados. Los establecimientos presentan deficiencias en las siguientes áreas: gestión de sus procesos clínicos, (incluyendo la gestión de nuevas prestaciones y de los procesos de apoyo), gestión del desempeño, medición y análisis del rendimiento organizacional y los resultados de la efectividad organizacional. Se identifican como áreas de buen desempeño, el liderazgo para la dirección superior, el conocimiento de los pacientes y usuarios, la gestión de esa relación, gestión del personal, educación y capacitación y el compromiso con la comunidad. Se concluye la utilidad de la herramienta y la necesidad de extender el análisis a todos los establecimientos similares, con algunas modificaciones, la importancia de introducir posibilidades reales para la gestión clínica en aspectos críticos (urgencia, cirugía, atención del parto, atención cerrada y abierta) y en procesos de apoyo (laboratorio, imagenología y traslados).

Eleven hospitals classified as low complexity in Llanquihue Chiloé Palena Health Service were evaluated using components of a management control instrument. This instrument is based in the score of eight items: leadership, users, human resources, strategic planning, process, analysis and information, social agreements and results. These hospitals are underscored in management of clinical process, performance, measure and analysis of organizational performance. By opposition, leadership, users and patients knowledge, education and social agreements are well evaluated. In conclusion, the management evaluation tool is useful for these hospitals. Also it is necessary to extend analysis to other hospitals, with some modification. To improve the evaluation we suggest including clinical management of care, emergency services and supporting technical services (laboratory, imaging and transfers).