Journal of general internal medicine
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The quality of end-of-life (EOL) care in the USA remains suboptimal, with significant variations in care by race and across disease subgroups. Patient-provider communication may contribute to racial and disease-specific variations in EOL care outcomes. ⋯ We observed racial disparities in hospice use and ED visits in the 90 days prior to death among Medicare beneficiaries; however, hospice disparities were largely driven by patients without cancer. Condition-specific differences in palliative care integration at the end-of-life may partly account for variations in EOL care disparities across disease groups.
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Despite past and ongoing efforts to achieve health equity in the USA, racial and ethnic disparities persist and appear to be exacerbated by COVID-19. ⋯ Minority populations have increased odds of severe COVID-19 independent of neighborhood deprivation, a commonly suspected driver of disparate outcomes. Non-English-speaking accounts for differences across and within minority populations. These results support the ongoing need to determine the mechanisms that contribute to disparities during COVID-19 while also highlighting the underappreciated role primary language plays in COVID-19 severity among minority groups.
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Black individuals have been disproportionately affected by the coronavirus disease 2019 (COVID-19). However, it remains unclear whether there are any biological factors that predispose Black patients to COVID-19-related morbidity and mortality. ⋯ Black hospitalized COVID-19 patients had increased risks of developing PE and AKI and higher inflammatory marker levels compared with White patients. This observation may be explained by differences in the prevalence and severity of underlying comorbidities and other unmeasured biologic risk factors between Black and White patients. Future research is needed to investigate the mechanism of these observed differences in outcomes of severe COVID-19 infection in Black versus White patients.
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There is increasing recognition of the importance of supporting patients in their health-related goals. Patient-provider discussions and health-related mobile applications (apps) can support patients to pursue health goals; however, their impact on patient goal setting and achievement is not well understood. ⋯ Efforts to further promote patient-led goal setting should leverage the influence of patient-provider conversations. Use of patient-facing technologies, specifically mobile health apps, may facilitate goal-oriented care, but further work is needed to examine the potential benefits of apps to support patient goals, particularly if providers discuss and endorse use of those apps with patients.
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Observational Study
Physician Financial Incentives to Reduce Unplanned Hospital Readmissions: an Interrupted Time Series Analysis.
In 2012, the Ministry of Health in British Columbia, Canada, introduced a $75 incentive payment that could be claimed by hospital physicians each time they produced a written post-discharge care plan for a complex patient at the time of hospital discharge. ⋯ The introduction of a physician incentive payment was not associated with meaningful changes in hospital readmission rate, perhaps in part because of incomplete uptake by physicians. Policymakers should consider these results when designing similar interventions elsewhere.