Research Activities

April 2010, No. 356

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Contents

About Research Activities

Feature Story

Patients admitted to the hospital on weekends wait for major procedures

Patient Safety and Quality

Physicians need to be better educated about FDA-approved indications for drugs and evidence for off-label drug use
To reduce hospital deaths, managing surgical complications may be as important as preventing them
FACE cards have a small positive effect on hospital patients' ability to identify their physicians
Types and rates of fungal infections vary among groups and treatment is often suboptimal
Rural and urban residents have similar perceptions of health care quality, despite differences in care delivery
Making nursing home quality reports public leads to improved posthospitalization care

Women's Health

Chemotherapy that contains anthracyclines is associated with later cardiac illness in breast cancer patients
Women's lack of knowledge and mistrust play a role in underuse of breast cancer adjuvant therapy
Abused women have higher risks for numerous medical disorders
Stressed-out women may delay getting preventive care
Nearly two-thirds of mothers with depression do not receive adequate care for their condition

Child/Adolescent Health

Neighborhoods, abuse, and anxiety contribute to low birth weights
Neighborhood surroundings may affect whether children are overweight
Outpatient advice on pediatric medication safety is inadequate
The stability of a usual source of care is important to the care of low-income children
Rotavirus was culprit in one-fourth of children's diarrhea-related emergency department visits prior to vaccine
Certain factors can help prepare families to bring infants home from neonatal intensive care units

Outcomes/Effectiveness Research

Providing customized clinical information to patients and physicians does not improve diabetes care
Counseling education does not significantly boost residents' dietary counseling of patients with diabetes
Positive outlooks may bring better outcomes for patients with heart failure
Common sleep disorder contributes to work disability and need to modify work duties
Veterans who use pharmacy services at VA facilities tend to be sicker, poorer, and have no alternative insurance

Primary Care

Primary care patients who see physician assistants and nurse practitioners are as complex as those who see doctors
Lack of time, resources to blame for primary care doctors rarely counseling women on birth-defect-causing drugs

Disparities/Minority Health

Older black women with breast cancer do not receive beneficial chemotherapy as often as white women
Many minority patients do not receive or complete colorectal cancer screening tests in urban, primary care settings
Homeless recent immigrants are healthier than other homeless individuals

Elderly/Long-Term Care

Aging causes changes in the brain's white matter, which is worsened by hypertension and other vascular problems
Medication review technique may help identify drug-related problems in the elderly
Many older adults with mental health problems do not believe they need help
A guided care approach helps curb health care costs of elderly patients with chronic conditions
Caregiver dissatisfaction affects outpatient care for the elderly with dementia

Health Information Technology

Nursing home users of information technology start to see its benefits
Computer display helps reduce the rates of ventilator-associated pneumonia in surgical intensive care units

HIV/AIDS Research

HIV patients with psychiatric disorders are less likely to discontinue HAART

Agency News and Notes

New report shows vaginal birth after cesarean is safe for most women
Cholesterol and diabetes drugs lead drug spending for the elderly
Two-thirds of State and local government workers get their health plans from their employers

Announcements

AHRQ launches new HCUP databases and tools webinar series
AHRQ releases supplemental files for tracking repeat visits to different hospital settings
Register for AHRQ's April 26 HCUP hands-on training workshop

Research Briefs

Research Briefs
Healthcare 411
Subscribe to AHRQ's Electronic Newsletter
Visit the AHRQ Patient Safety Network Web Site

AHRQ Publication No. 10-RA007
Current as of April 2010

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Internet Citation:

Research Activities Newsletter. April 2010, No. 356. AHRQ Publication No. 10-RA007. Agency for Healthcare Research and Quality, Rockville, MD. http://www.ahrq.gov/research/apr10/

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