Medical care
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The Food and Drug Administration Amendments Act (FDAAA) of 2007 granted FDA-expanded drug safety authority. We hypothesized that meetings involving the FDA Drug Safety and Risk Management (DSaRM) Advisory Committee might serve as a barometer for the impact of FDAAA on drug safety regulatory decision making. ⋯ Increased DSaRM advisory committee activity indicates its advice was being sought more broadly for drug regulatory decision making and at earlier stages of drug development after FDAAA was enacted.
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Antipsychotic medications are commonly prescribed to nursing home residents despite their well-established adverse event profiles. Because little is known about their use in Veterans Affairs (VA) nursing homes [ie, Community Living Centers (CLCs)], we assessed the prevalence and risk factors for antipsychotic use in older residents of VA CLCs. ⋯ Antipsychotic use is common among VA nursing home residents aged 65 and older, including those without a documented evidence-based indication for use. Further quality improvement efforts are needed to reduce potentially inappropriate antipsychotic prescribing.
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Cultural competency has been espoused as an organizational strategy to reduce health disparities in care. ⋯ Greater hospital cultural competency may improve overall patient experiences, but may particularly benefit minorities in their interactions with nurses and hospital staff. Such effort may not only serve longstanding goals of reducing racial/ethnic disparities in inpatient experience, but may also contribute to general quality improvement.
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The Consumer Assessment of Healthcare Providers and Systems (CAHPS®) Clinician and Group Adult Visit Survey enables patients to report their experiences with outpatient medical offices. ⋯ The CG-CAHPS Adult Visit Survey has acceptable psychometric properties at the individual level and practice site level. The analyses suggest that the survey items are measuring their intended concepts and yield reliable information.