Journal of hospital medicine : an official publication of the Society of Hospital Medicine
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Review
Systematic Review of Interventions to Reduce Urinary Tract Infection in Nursing Home Residents.
Urinary tract infections (UTIs) in nursing homes are common, costly, and morbid. ⋯ Several practices, often implemented in bundles, such as improving hand hygiene, reducing and improving catheter use, managing incontinence without catheters, and enhanced barrier precautions, appear to reduce UTI or CAUTI in nursing home residents. Journal of Hospital Medicine 2017;12:356-368.
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People with substance use disorders (SUD) have high rates of hospitalization and readmission, long lengths of stay, and skyrocketing healthcare costs. Yet, models for improving care are extremely limited. We performed a needs assessment and then convened academic and community partners, including a hospital, community SUD organizations, and Medicaid accountable care organizations, to design a care model for medically complex hospitalized patients with SUD. ⋯ We developed a business case and secured funding from Medicaid and hospital payers. IMPACT provides one pathway for hospitals, payers, and communities to collaboratively address the SUD epidemic. Journal of Hospital Medicine 2017;12:339-342.
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Overuse of medical services is an increasingly recognized driver of poor-quality care and high cost. A practical framework is needed to guide clinical decisions and facilitate concrete actions that can reduce overuse and improve care. We used an iterative, expert-informed, evidence-based process to develop a framework for conceptualizing interventions to reduce medical overuse. ⋯ This interaction is influenced by other utilization drivers, including healthcare system factors, the practice environment, the culture of professional medicine, the culture of healthcare consumption, and individual patient and clinician factors. The variable strength of the evidence supporting these domains highlights important areas for further investigation. Journal of Hospital Medicine 2017;12:346-351.
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Pain management is a core competency of hospital medicine, and effective acute pain management should be a goal for all hospital medicine providers. The prevalence of opioid use in the United States, both therapeutic and non-medical in origin, has dramatically increased over the past decade. ⋯ In this review, we provide an evidence-based approach to appropriate and safe use of opioid analgesics in treating acute pain in hospitalized patients who are opioid-dependent. Journal of Hospital Medicine 2017;12:375-379.
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Observational Study
Association Between Radiologic Incidental Findings and Resource Utilization in Patients Admitted With Chest Pain in an Urban Medical Center.
Increasing use of testing among hospitalized patients has resulted in an increase in radiologic incidental findings (IFs), which challenge the provision of high-value care in the hospital setting. ⋯ Radiologic IFs were very common among patients hospitalized with chest pain of suspected cardiac origin and independently associated with an increase in the LOS. Interventions to address radiologic IFs may reduce LOS and, thereby, support high-value care. Journal of Hospital Medicine 2017;12:323-328.