Articles of Interest

January 16, 2004

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These articles appeared in recently released journals and newsletters. They include articles funded by the Agency for Healthcare Research and Quality (AHRQ) or authored by AHRQ researchers; articles mentioning or discussing AHRQ; articles related to AHRQ-funded Evidence-based Practice Centers; articles mentioning the U.S. Preventive Services Task Force/Put Prevention into Practice; articles mentioning the Presidents Advisory Commission on Consumer Protection and Quality in the Health Care Industry and Agency-supported activities relating to the Quality Interagency Task Force; and other research using AHRQ data.

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AHRQ-Funded/Authored Articles

Ambulatory Pediatrics
Perrin JM, Bloom SR. Promoting safety in child and adolescent health care: conference overview. Ambul Pediatr 2004 Jan-Feb; 4(1):43-6. [Supported by Grant No. 1 R13 HS13883-01.]

Miller MR, Pronovost PJ, Burstin HR. Pediatric safety in the ambulatory setting. Ambul Pediatr 2004 Jan-Feb; 4(1):47-54. [Supported by Grant No. 1 R13 HS13883-01; first author is former AHRQ researcher; third author is director of AHRQ's Center for Primary Care, Prevention, and Clinical Partnerships.]

Johnson KB, Davison CL. Information technology: its importance to child safety. Ambul Pediatr 2004 Jan-Feb; 4(1):64-72. [Supported by Grant No. 1 R13 HS11868-01

Osborn LM, Roberts KB, Greenberg L, et al. The APA/HRSA Faculty Development Scholars Program: Introduction to the Supplement. Ambul Pediatr 2004 Jan-Feb; 4(1 Suppl):83-7. [Cites AHRQ support of the Faculty Development Program through an interagency agreement with the Health Resources and Services Administration (HRSA).]

American Journal of Cardiology
King DE, Egan BM, Geesey ME. Relation of dietary fat and fiber to elevation of C-reactive protein. Am J Cardiol 2003 Dec 1; 92(11):1335-9. [Supported by Grant No. P01 HS1087.]

American Journal of Medical Quality
Aragon SJ. Commentary: a patient-centered theory of satisfaction. Am J Med Qual 2003 Nov-Dec; 18(6):225-8. [Supported by Grant No. T32 HS00032.]

Aragon SJ, Gesell SB. Patient satisfaction theory and its robustness across gender in emergency departments: a multigroup structural equation modeling investigation. Am J Med Qual 2003 Nov-Dec; 18(6):229-41. [Supported by Grant No. T32 HS00032.]

American Journal of the Medical Sciences
Muntner P, Coresh J, Klag MJ, et al. Exposure to radiologic contrast media and an increased risk of treated end-stage renal disease. Am J Med Sci 2003 Dec; 326(6):353-9. [Supported by Grant No. R02 HS06978-01.]

Annals of Internal Medicine
Woolf SH. Patient safety is not enough: targeting quality improvements to optimize the health of the population. Ann Intern Med 2004 Jan 6; 140(1):33-36. [Article appears in Improving Patient Care section, which is partially supported by AHRQ; describes AHRQ as "the principal funding source for research on the uninsured, racial disparities, and other aspects of quality" and cites the agency's allocation of 60% of its grants to patient safety.]

Whitney SN, McGuire AL, McCullough LB. A typology of shared decision making, informed consent, and simple consent. Ann Intern Med 2004 Jan 6; 140(1):54-9. [Supported by Grant No. K08 HS11289.]

Diabetes Care
Chin MH, Cook S, Drum MI, et al. Improving diabetes care in Midwest community health centers with the health disparities collaborative. Diabetes Care 2004 Jan; 27(1):2-8. [Supported by Grant No. R01 HS10479-01.]

European Journal of Cardiovascular Nursing
Burke LE, Dunbar-Jacob J, Sereika S, et al. Development and testing of the Cholesterol-Lowering Diet Self-Efficacy Scale. Eur J Cardiovasc Nurs 2003 Dec; 2(4):265-73. [Supported by Grant No. R02 HS08891-01

Health Psychology
Ditto PH, Smucker WD, Danks JH, et al. Stability of older adults' preferences for life-sustaining medical treatment. Health Psychol 2003 Nov; 22(6):605-15. [Supported by Grant No. HS08180

JAMA
Hersh AL, Stefanick ML, Stafford RS. National use of postmenopausal hormone therapy: annual trends and response to recent evidence. JAMA 2004 Jan 7; 291(1):47-53. [Supported by Grant No. R01 HS013405.]

Stafford RS, Furberg CD, Finkelstein SN. Impact of clinical trial results on national trends in a-blocker prescribing, 1996-2002. JAMA 2004 Jan 7; 291(1):54-62. [Supported by Grant No. R01 HS013405.]

Rogowski JA, Horbar JD, Staiger DO, et al. Indirect vs direct hospital quality indicators for very low-birth-weight infants. JAMA 2004 Jan 14; 291(2):202-9. [Supported by Grant Nos. R01 HS13371 and R01 HS10328.]

Surks MI, Ortiz E, Daniels GH. Subclinical thyroid disease: scientific review and guidelines for diagnosis and management. JAMA 2004 Jan 14; 291(2):228-38. [Second author is researcher in AHRQ's Center for Primary Care, Prevention, and Clinical Partnerships.]

Joint Commission Journal on Quality and Safety
Tang N, Eisenberg JM, Meyer GS. The roles of government in improving health care quality and safety. Jt Comm J Qual Saf 2004 Jan; 30(1):47-55. [First author is former researcher in AHRQ's Immediate Office of the Director; second author is former director of AHRQ; third author is former director of AHRQ's Center for Quality Improvement and Patient Safety.]

Journal of the American Medical Informatics Association
Peleg M, Boxwala AA, Tu S, et al. The InterMed approach to sharable computer-interpretable guidelines: a review. J Am Med Inform Assoc 2004 Jan-Feb 11(1):1-10. [Supported by NLM Grant No. LM06594 with "collaborative support" from AHRQ.]

Journal of Dental Education
Strauss R, Mofidi M, Sandler ES, et al. Reflective learning in community-based dental education. J Dent Ed 2003 Nov; 67(11):1234-42. [Supported by Grant No. T32 HS00032.]

Journal of Rheumatology
Patino PG, Olivieri J, Allison JJ, et al. Nonsteroidal antiinflammatory drug toxicity monitoring and safety practices. J Rheumatol 2003 Dec; 30(12):2680-8. [Supported by Grant No. U18 HS10389.]

Managed Care
Phillips S. Setting research priorities for disaster preparedness: the role of AHRQ. Manag Care 2003 Nov; 12(11 Suppl):16-8. [Author is AHRQ researcher and director of bioterrorism preparedness research.]

New England Journal of Medicine
Dhaliwal G, Schmidt KE, Gilden DJ. True, true, and related. N Engl J Med 2004 Jan 1; 350(1):60-5. [Supported by Grant No. P20 HS11540.]

Schneider EC, Zaslavsky AM, Epstein AM. Use of high-cost operative procedures by Medicare beneficiaries enrolled in for-profit and not-for-profit health plans. N Engl J Med 2004 Jan 8; 350(2):143-50. [Supported by Grant No. P01 HS10803.]

Pediatrics
Smink DS, Finkelstein JA, Kleinman K, et al. The effect of hospital volume of pediatric appendectomies on the misdiagnosis of appendicitis in children. Pediatrics 2004 Jan; 113(1 Pt 1):18-23. [Supported by Grant No. T32 HS00063.]

Madden JM, Soumerai SB, Lieu TA, et al. Length-of-stay policies and ascertainment of postdischarge problems in newborns. Pediatrics 2004 Jan; 113(1 Pt 1):42-9. [Supported by Grant No. 5 R01 HS10060.]

Dougherty D, Simpson LA. Measuring the quality of children's health care: a prerequisite for action. Pediatrics 2004 Jan; 113(1 Pt 2):185-98. [First author is researcher in AHRQ's Office of Extramural Research, Education, and Priority Populations; second author is former deputy director of AHRQ.]

Beal AC, Co JP, Dougherty D, et al. Quality measures for children's health care. Pediatrics 2004 Jan; 113(1 Pt 2):199-209. [Supported by AHRQ grant (no grant number given, possibly performed under R13 HS13883); third author is researcher in AHRQ's Office of Extramural Research, Education, and Priority Populations.]

Kuhlthau K, Ferris TG, Iezzoni LI. Risk adjustment for pediatric quality indicators. Pediatrics 2004 Jan; 113(1 Pt 2):210-6. [Commissioned by AHRQ and presented at Quality Measures for Children's Health Care: Assessing the State of the Science and Practice—A Strategy Development Meeting, February 5-6, 2002, Rockville MD.]

Social Science and Medicine
Macinko JA, Shi L, Starfield B. Wage inequality, the health system, and infant mortality in wealthy industrialized countries, 1970-1996. Soc Sci Med 2004 Jan; 58(2):280-92. [Supported by Grant No. T32 HS00029.]

AHRQ-Related Articles

Academic Medicine
Holmboe ES. Faculty and the observation of trainees' clinical skills: problems and opportunities. Acad Med 2004 Jan; 79(1):16-22. [Cites AHRQ-funded articles by Soumerai et al., JAMA, 1998, and Holmboe et al., Jt Comm J Qual Saf, 2003.]

Ambulatory Pediatrics
Chamberlain JM, Slonim A, Joseph JG. Reducing errors and promoting safety in pediatric emergency care. Ambul Pediatr 2004 Jan-Feb; 4(1):55-63. [Cites AHRQ-funded articles by Leape et al., JAMA, 1995, Kaushal et al., JAMA, 2001, Slonim et al., Pediatrics, 2003, Slonim, Crit Care Med, 2000, and Evans et al., N Engl J Med,1998; cites AHRQ-authored articles by McCormick et al., Pediatrics, 2000, and Thomas et al., (third author is Burstin), Med Care, 2000.]

Kaushal R, Jaggi T, Walsh K, et al. Pediatric medication errors: what do we know? What gaps remain? Ambul Pediatr 2004 Jan-Feb; 4(1):73-81. [Cites several AHRQ-funded articles on medical errors and adverse drug events.]

American Health Line
Health disparities: lawmakers criticize HHS report revisions. Am Health Line 2004 Jan 14; #1. [Reviews differences between AHRQ's June 2003 draft of the National Healthcare Disparities Report and the final executive summary released December 23, 2003.]

Annals of Internal Medicine
Schoenbaum SC, Bovbjerg RR. Malpractice reform must include steps to prevent medical injury. Ann Intern Med 2004 Jan 6; 140(1):51-3. [Cites AHRQ report by Hellinger and Encinosa (researchers in AHRQ's Center for Delivery, Organization, and Markets), Impact of State Laws Limiting Malpractice Awards on Geographic Distribution of Physicians, July 2003; cites AHRQ fact sheet, Medical Errors and Patient Safety, 2003; cites AHRQ-funded article by Gawande et al., N Engl J Med, 2003; and cites AHRQ-authored article by Goode et al. (AHRQ authors are Clancy, Meyer, and Eisenberg), Acad Med, 2002).]

Archives of Internal Medicine
Hennekens CH, Sacks FM, Tonkin A, et al. Additive benefits of pravastatin and aspirin to decrease risks of cardiovascular disease. Arch Intern Med 2004 Jan 12; 164(1):40-4. [Cites AHRQ-funded article by Califf et al., Am J Cardiol, 2002.]

Romo H, Amaral AC, Vincent JL. Effect of patient sex on intensive care unit survival. Arch Intern Med 2004 Jan 12; 164(1):61-5. [Cites AHRQ-funded article by Maynard et al., Arch Intern Med, 1997.]

Blue Sheet
AHRQ reports track quality, disparities in seven clinical conditions. Blue Sheet 2004 Jan 5; 47(1):12-3. [Reviews findings from AHRQ's National Healthcare Quality Report and National Healthcare Disparities Report.]

IoM "quality chasm" summit committee synthesizes recommendations. Blue Sheet 2003 Jan 12; 47(2):7. [Cites remarks by AHRQ Director Carolyn Clancy regarding agency plans to unveil a best practices report.]

BNA's Health Care Policy Report
HHS releases two comprehensive reports on quality, disparities in care. BNA's Health Care Policy Rep 2004 Jan 5; 12(1):25-6. [Reviews findings from AHRQ's National Healthcare Quality Report and National Healthcare Disparities Report.]

Number of high-cost procedures not lower in for-profit plans, study says. BNA's Health Care Policy Rep 2004 Jan 5; 12(2):57-8. [Reviews AHRQ-funded study by Schneider et al. cited in AHRQ-Funded/Authored Articles.]

Family Medicine
Parkerton PH, Smith DG, Straley HL. Primary care practice coordination versus physician continuity. Fam Med 2004 Jan; 36(1):15-21. [Cites Consumer Assessment of Health Plans Survey (CAHPS®) fact sheet posted on AHRQ Web site.]

Parchman ML, Burge SK. The patient-physician relationship, primary care attributes, and preventive services. Fam Med 2004 Jan; 36(1):22-7. [Cites AHRQ-funded article by Flocke et al., Med Care, 1998.]

Health News Daily
IoM "quality chasm" summit committee synthesizes recommendations. Health News Daily 2003 Jan 12; 16(7):6-7. [Cites remarks by AHRQ Director Carolyn Clancy regarding agency plans to unveil a best practices report.]

House Democrats charge political tinkering with AHRQ disparities report. Health News Daily 2003 Jan 14; 16(9):1-2. [Discusses House members' request for internal correspondence regarding proposed changes to AHRQ's June 2003 National Healthcare Disparities Report draft and other materials related to the report released December 23, 2003.]

Joint Commission Journal on Quality and Safety
Rozich JD, Howard RJ, Justeson JM, et al. Standardization as a mechanism to improve safety in health care. Jt Comm J Qual Saf 2004 Jan; 30(1):5-14. [Cites AHRQ-funded article by Bates et al., JAMA 1995.]

Tu GS, Meehan TP, Fine JM, et al. Which strategies facilitate improvement in quality of care for elderly hospitalized pneumonia patients? Jt Comm J Qual Saf 2004 Jan; 30(1):25-35. [Cites AHRQ-funded article by Soumerai et al. JAMA, 990.]

JAMA
Staats PS, Yearwood T, Charapata SG, et al. Intrathecal ziconitide in the treatment of refractory pain in patients with cancer or AIDS: a randomized controlled trial. JAMA 2004 Jan 7; 291(1):63-70. [Cites AHRQ guideline, Management of Cancer Pain, 1994.]

Peterson ED, Coombs LP, DeLong ER, et al. Procedural volume as a marker of quality for CABG surgery. JAMA 2004 Jan 14; 291(2):195-201. [Cites AHRQ-authored article by Kelly and Hellinger (researcher in AHRQ's Center for Delivery, Organization, and Markets), Med Care, 1986; cites several AHRQ-funded articles on hospital/surgical volume.]

Journal of the American Medical Informatics Association
Chen ES, Mendonca EA, McKnight LK, et al. PalmCIS: a wireless handheld application for satisfying clinician information needs. J Am Med Inform Assoc 2004 Jan-Feb 11(1):19-28. [Cites AHRQ-funded articles by Leape et al., JAMA, 1995, and Lobach et al., Proc AMIA Symp, 2001.]

Patterson ES, Nguyen AD, Halloran JP, et al. Human factors barriers to the effective use of ten HIV clinical reminders. J Am Med Inform Assoc 2004 Jan-Feb 11(1):50-9. [Cites AHRQ-funded articles by Bozzette et al., N Engl J Med, 1998, and Safran et al., Lancet, 1995.]

Bell DS, Cretin S, Marken RS, et al. A conceptual framework for evaluating outpatient electronic prescribing systems based on their functional capabilities. J Am Med Inform Assoc 2004 Jan-Feb 11(1):60-70. [Cites AHRQ publication Distribution of Health Care Expenses, MEPS Highlights #1, 2001; cites AHRQ-funded articles by Leape et al., JAMA, 1995, and Bates et al., JAMA, 1997.]

Journal of Pain and Palliative Care Pharmacotherapy
Lipman AG. Symptom-related research from the Agency for Healthcare Research and Quality. J Pain Palliat Care Pharmacother 2003; 17(1):39-45. [Summarizes AHRQ research as abstracted from AHRQ publication Research Activities.]

Journal Watch
Volumes influence operative mortality rates. Journal Watch 2004 Jan 1; 24(1):11. [Summarizes and comments on AHRQ-funded article by Birkmeyer et al., N Engl J Med, 2003.]

Medicine and Health
Some tough nuts to crack in first AHRQ quality report. Med Health 2004 Jan 12; 58(2):1, 7-8. [Reviews findings from AHRQ's National Healthcare Quality Report.]

Modern Healthcare
Tieman J. We're only partway there. HHS' first annual quality report shows some big strides have been made but points out acute need for more preventive care. Mod Healthc 2004 Jan 5; 34(1):4-5. [Discusses findings and recommendations in AHRQ's NHQR.]

Pediatrics
Potts AL, Barr FE, Gregory DF, et al. Computerized physician order entry and medication errors in a pediatric critical care unit. Pediatrics 2004 Jan; 113(1 Pt 1):59-63. [Cites AHRQ-funded articles by Kaushal et al., JAMA, 2001, Leape et al., JAMA, 1995, and Bates et al., JAMA, 1995 and JAMA, 1997.]

Cabana MD, Rand C, Slish K, et al. Pediatrician self-efficacy for counseling parents of asthmatic children to quit smoking. Pediatrics 2004 Jan; 113(1 Pt 1):78-81. [Cites AHRQ-funded article by Cummings et al., Health Serv Res, 2001.]

Yu SM, Huang ZJ, Singh GK. Health status and health services utilization among U.S. Chinese, Asian Indian, Filipino, and other Asian/Pacific Islander children. Pediatrics 2004 Jan; 113(1 Pt 1):101-7. [Cites AHRQ-authored article by Weinick and Krauss, Am J Public Health, 2000.]

Shaller D. Implementing and using quality measures for children's health care: perspectives on the state of the practice. Pediatrics 2004 Jan; 113(1 Pt 2):217-27. [Cites AHRQ's CAHPS® and Healthcare Cost and Utilization Project (HCUP) as interview responses; includes several AHRQ staff members as interviewees for study.]

Pink Sheet
Medicare Rx deadlines include study of acquisition prices due in 2006. Pink Sheet 2004 Jan 12; 14-5. [Notes that Medicare Rx law tasks AHRQ to study the comparative clinical efficacy of drugs and that a priority list for research is due June 8, although the agency has not yet received funding to begin work on developing an agenda.]

U.S. Preventive Services Task Force (USPSTF)/Put Prevention into Practice-Related Articles

American Family Physician
Fink K, Clark B. Screening for osteoporosis in postmenopausal women. Am Fam Physician 2004 Jan 1; 69(1):139-40. [First author is USPSTF Progam Director; case study questions are based on USPSTF recommendations on osteoporosis screening as published in Ann Intern Med, 2002, and on AHRQ evidence review, Screening for Postmenopausal Osteoporosis, 2002.]

American Journal of Preventive Medicine
Sheridan SL, Harris RP, Woolf SH for the Shared Decision-Making Workgroup of the U.S. Preventive Services Task Force. Am J Prev Med 2004; 26(1):56-66. [Supported by Contract No. 290-97-0011 to Research Triangle Institute-University of North Carolina Evidence-based Practice Center.]

Family Medicine
Mainous AG, Kern D, Hainer B, et al. The relationship between continuity of care and trust with stage of cancer at diagnosis. Fam Med 2004 Jan; 36(1):35-39. [Cites Guide to Clinical Preventive Services, 1996.]

Evidence-based Practice Centers-Related Articles

JAMA
McBride BF, Karapanos AK, Krudysz A, et al. Electrocardiographic and hemodynamic effects of a multicomponent dietary supplement containing ephedra and caffeine: a randomized controlled trial. JAMA 2004 Jan 14; 291(2):216-21. [Cites EPC report on ephedra and ephedrine.]

Journal of Pain and Palliative Care Pharmacotherapy
Agency for Health Care Research and Quality, U.S. Department of Health and Human Services. Management of Cancer Pain Evidence Report/Technology Assessment: Number 35—management of cancer pain summary. J Pain Palliat Care Pharmacother 2002; 16(2):91-102. [Supported by Contract No. 290-97-0019 with the New England Medical Center Evidence-based Practice Center.]

Research by Others Using AHRQ Data or Products

Journal of Pain and Palliative Care Pharmacotherapy
Fishbain DA, Cutler RB, Rosomoff HL, et al. Can patients taking opioids drive safety? A structured evidence-based review. J Pain Palliat Care Pharmacother 2002; 16(1):9-28. [Uses AHRQ evidence rating scale.]

Current as of January 16, 2004