Annals of family medicine
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Annals of family medicine · Sep 2021
Voice Assistants and Cancer Screening: A Comparison of Alexa, Siri, Google Assistant, and Cortana.
Despite increasing interest in how voice assistants like Siri or Alexa might improve health care delivery and information dissemination, there is limited research assessing the quality of health information provided by these technologies. Voice assistants present both opportunities and risks when facilitating searches for or answering health-related questions, especially now as fewer patients are seeing their physicians for preventive care due to the ongoing pandemic. ⋯ We show that there are clear differences among the 4 voice assistants and that there is room for improvement across all assistants, particularly in their ability to provide accurate information verbally. In order to ensure that voice assistants provide accurate information about cancer screening and support, rather than undermine efforts to improve preventive care delivery and population health, we suggest that technology providers prioritize partnership with health professionals and organizations.
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Annals of family medicine · Sep 2021
Socioeconomic Disparity Trends in Cancer Screening Among Women After Introduction of National Quality Indicators.
Primary care physicians have an important role in encouraging adequate cancer screening. Disparities in cancer screening by socioeconomic status (SES) may affect presentation stage and cancer survival. This study aimed to examine whether breast, colorectal, and cervical cancer screening rates in women differed by SES and age, and whether screening rates and SES disparities changed after introduction of a primary care-based national quality indicator program. ⋯ We found increased uptake and reduced socioeconomic disparities after introduction of cancer screening indicators. Recent introduction of a cervical cancer screening indicator may increase participation and reduce disparities, as has occurred for breast and colorectal cancer screening. These findings related to Israel's quality indicators program highlight the importance of primary care clinicians in increasing cancer screening rates to improve outcomes and reduce disparities.
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Annals of family medicine · Sep 2021
Financial Incentives for Medical Assistants: A Mixed-Methods Exploration of Bonus Structures, Motivation, and Population Health Quality Measures.
Medical assistants (MAs) have seen their roles expand as a result of team-based primary care models. Unlike their physician counterparts, MAs rarely receive financial incentives as a part of their compensation. This exploratory study aims to understand MA acceptability of financial incentives and perceived MA control over common population health measures. ⋯ MAs perceived that relatively small financial incentives would increase their motivation and quality of care. Our findings suggests target measures should focus on MA work processes that are completed in the same day as the patient encounter, particularly vaccinations. Future investigation is needed to understand the effectiveness of MA financial incentives in practice.
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Annals of family medicine · Sep 2021
Meta AnalysisClinical Features for the Diagnosis of Pediatric Urinary Tract Infections: Systematic Review and Meta-Analysis.
Accurate diagnosis of urinary tract infection in children is essential because children left untreated can experience permanent renal injury. We aimed to assess the diagnostic value of clinical features of pediatric urinary tract infection. ⋯ Few clinical signs and symptoms are useful for diagnosing or ruling out urinary tract infection in children. Clinical prediction rules might be more accurate; however, they should be validated externally. Physicians should not restrict urine sampling to children with unexplained fever or other features suggestive of urinary tract infection.