Articles of Interest

December 26, 2003

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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

Annals of Internal Medicine
Col NF, Pauker SG. The discrepancy between observational studies and randomized trials of menopausal hormone therapy: did expectations shape experience? Ann Intern Med 2003 Dec 2; 139(11):923-29. [Supported by Grant No. R01 HS01332901.]

Goldman L, Kirtane AJ. Triage of patients with acute chest pain and possible cardiac ischemia: the elusive search for diagnostic perfection. Ann Intern Med 2003 Dec 16; 139(12):987-95. [Article appears in Improving Patient Care section, which is partially supported by AHRQ.]

International Journal for Quality in Health Care
Ballard DJ. Indicators to improve clinical quality across an integrated health care system. Int J Qual Health Care 2003 Dec; 15(Suppl 1):i13-i23. [Supported by Grant No. R13 HS10970-01; cites U.S. Preventive Services Task Force guidelines in Guide to Clinical Preventive Services, 2000-2002.]

Meyer GS, Battles J, Hart JC, et al. The U.S. Agency for Healthcare Research and Quality's activities in patient safety research. Int J Qual Health Care 2003 Dec; 15(Suppl 1):i25-30. [First author is former director of AHRQ's Center for Quality Improvement and Patient Safety (CQuIPS); second author is researcher with CQuIPS; fourth author is former researcher in AHRQ's Immediate Office of the Director.]

Journal of General Internal Medicine
Tierney WM, Overhage JM, Murray MD, et al. Effects of computerized guidelines for managing heart disease in primary care. J Gen Intern Med 2003 Dec; 18(12):967-76. [Supported by Grant No. 1 R01 HS07763.]

Covinsky KE, Newcomer R, Fox P, et al. Patient and caregiver characteristics associated with depression in caregivers of patients with dementia. J Gen Intern Med 2003 Dec; 18(12):1006-14. [Supported by Grant No. K02 HS0006-01.]

New England Journal of Medicine
Sawalha AH, Bronze MS, Saint S, et al. Clinical problem-solving. Step by step. N Engl J Med 2003 Dec 4; 349(23):2253-7. [Supported by Grant No. P20 HS11540.]

Nursing Economics
Murray ME, Brennan PF, Moore SM. A model for economic analysis. Nurs Econ 2003 Dec; 21(6):280-7. [Supported by Grant No. R03 HS10667-02.]

Quality and Safety in Health Care
Pronovost PJ, Weast B, Holzmueller CG, et al. Evaluation of the culture of safety: survey of clinicians and managers in an academic medical center. Qual Saf Health Care 2003 Dec; 12(6):405-10. [Supported by Grant No. U18 HS11902-01.]

Battles JB. Patient safety: research methods for a new field. Qual Saf Health Care 2003 Dec; 12 Suppl 2:ii1. [Author is researcher in AHRQ's CQuIPS; introduces special supplemental issue based on papers presented at the AHRQ-sponsored United States/United Kingdom Patient Safety Research Methodology Workshop.]

Battles JB, Lilford RJ. Organizing patient safety research to identify risks and hazards. Qual Saf Health Care 2003 Dec; 12 Suppl 2:ii2-7. [First author is researcher in AHRQ's CQuIPS.]

Henriksen K, Kaplan H. Hindsight bias, outcome knowledge ad adaptive learning. Qual Saf Health Care 2003 Dec; 12 Suppl 2:ii46-50. [First author is researcher in AHRQ's CQuIPS.]

Mackenzie CF, Xiao Y. Video techniques and data compared with observation in emergency trauma care. Qual Saf Health Care 2003 Dec; 12 Suppl 2:ii51-7. [Supported by Grant Nos. 5 U18 HS11279-02 and 5 P20 HS11562-02.]

Zhan C, Miller MR. Administrative data based patient safety research: a critical review. Qual Saf Health Care 2003 Dec; 12 Suppl 2:ii58-63. [Authors are current and former researchers in AHRQ's CQuIPS

AHRQ-Related Articles

American Medical News
Robeznieks A. High surgical volume equals better patient outcomes. Am Med News 2003 Dec 22-29; 46(48):10. [Reviews AHRQ-funded study by Birkmeyer et al. published in the November 26 issue of JAMA.]

British Medical Journal
Van Alem AP, Vrenken RH, de Vos R, et al. Use of automated external defibrillator by first responders in out of hospital cardiac arrest: prospective controlled trial. BMJ 2003 Dec 6; 327(7427):1312-5. [Cites AHRQ-funded articles by Cummins et al., Lancet, 1984, and Circulation, 1986, and Eisenberg et al., Am J Emerg Med, 1986.]

Commonwealth Fund E-Mail Alert
Release of first major reports on U.S. Health Care Quality. Commonwealth Fund E-Mail Alert 2003 Dec 24. [Announces release of AHRQ's National Healthcare Quality Report and National Healthcare Disparities Report.]

Health News Daily
Glendinning D. First annual AHRQ national quality report includes caution about paucity of data. Health News Daily 2003 Dec 23; 15(247):2-3. [Reviews NHQR released December 22, 2003.]

International Journal for Quality in Health Care
Schwappach DL, Blaudszun A, Conen D, et al. 'Emerge'" benchmarking of clinical performance and patients' experiences with emergency care in Switzerland. Int J Qual Health Care 2003 Dec; 15(6) :473-85. [Cites AHRQ-authored article by Burstin et al., Am J Med, 1999.]

Bindels R, Hasman A, Derickx M, et al. User satisfaction with a real-time automated feedback system for general practitioners: a quantitative and qualitative study. Int J Qual Health Care 2003 Dec; 15(6):501-8. [Cites AHRQ-funded article by Tierney et al., JAMA, 1988.]

Rubin HR. Preface [to supplement on Healthcare Performance Indicators and Patient Safety (HPI and PS)]. Int J Qual Health Care 2003 Dec; 15(Suppl 1):i1. [Cites AHRQ conference support and presentations by former CQuIPS director Gregg Meyer.]

Tregloan L. ISQua's 4th International Summit on Indicators, Buenos Aires, October 2001. Int J Qual Health Care 2003 Dec; 15(Suppl 1):i3-4. [Cites conference support from AHRQ.]

Classen DC, Metzger J. Improving medication safety: the measurement conundrum and where to start. Int J Qual Health Care 2003 Dec; 15(Suppl 1):i41-7. [Cites AHRQ-funded article by Classen et al., JAMA, 1991.]

Abstracts en este numero. Int J Qual Health Care 2003 Dec; 15(Suppl 1):i63-4. [Provides Spanish abstracts of articles by Ballard and Meyer et al. cited in AHRQ Funded/Authored Articles, by Classen et al. cited above, and by Mainz and Frankel et al. cited in Evidence-based Practice Centers-Related Articles.]

Journal of Family Practice
Ehman MG, Haas JS. Can I find a doctor? Availability of primary care physicians in the San Francisco Bay area. J Fam Pract 2003 Nov; 52(11):876-82. [Cites AHRQ publication to Health Care—Sources and Barriers, MEPS Research Findings No. 3, 1997.]

Strickland C. Spinal manipulation effective for low back pain. J Fam Pract 2003 Dec; 52(12):925-9. [Cites AHRQ-funded article by Cherkin et al., Ann Intern Med, 2003.]

Dantz B, Ashton AK, D'Mello DA, et al. The scope of the problem: physical symptoms of depression. J Fam Pract 2003 Dec; Suppl: S6-8. [Cites AHRQ guideline, Depression in Primary Care, Volume 2, Treatment of Major Depression, 1997.]

Leon FG, Ashton AK, D'Mello DA, et al. Depression and comorbid medical illness: therapeutic and diagnostic challenges. J Fam Pract 2003 Dec; Suppl: S19-33. [Cites AHRQ guideline, Depression in Primary Care, Volume 2, Treatment of Major Depression, 1997.]

Journal of General Internal Medicine
Humair JP, Cornuz J. A new curriculum using active learning methods and standardized patients to train residents in smoking cessation. J Gen Intern Med 2003 Dec; 18(12):1023-7 (plus unnumbered appendix). [Cites PHS guideline, Treating Tobacco Use and Dependence, 2000.]

Hughes JR. Motivating and helping smokers to stop smoking. J Gen Intern Med 2003 Dec; 18(12):1053-7. [Cites PHS guideline, Treating Tobacco Use and Dependence, 2000.]

Journal of Pediatrics
Silverstein JH, Rosenbloom AL. The journey to metabolic control in diabetes: many more miles to go. J Pediatr 2003 Dec; 143(6):704-6. [Cites AHRQ-funded article by Levine et al., J Pediatr, 2001.]

Pink Sheet
AHRQ comparative trial funding awaits supplemental appropriation. Pink Sheet 2003 Dec 15; 65(50):14. [Cites provision in Medicare Rx bill authorizing $50 million in funding for FY 2004 for AHRQ to develop a research agenda on the comparative clinical effectiveness and "appropriateness" of health care products and services; cites provision in pending omnibus bill earmarking $12 million for cost-effectiveness and clinical effectiveness research.]

Quality Letter
AHRQ awards hospital grants to improve patient safety. Qual Lett 2003 Dec; 15(12):15. [Announces AHRQ award of $4 million in patient safety grants.]

Quality and Safety in Health Care
Avery AJ. Classifying and identifying errors. Qual Saf Health Care 2003 Dec; 12(6):404. [Cites AHRQ-funded article by Leape et al., JAMA, 1995.]

Margo CE. A pilot study in ophthalmology of inter-rater reliability in classifying diagnostic errors: an underinvestigated area of medical error. Qual Saf Health Care 2003 Dec; 12(6):416-20. [Cites AHRQ-authored articles by Battles et al., Acad Med, 2001, and Arch Pathol Lab Med, 1998.]

Nieva VF, Sorra J. Safety culture assessment: a tool for improving patient safety in healthcare organizations. Qual Saf Health Care 2003 Dec; 12 Suppl 2:ii17-23. [Cites AHRQ's Consumer Assessment of Health Plans Survey (CAHPS®).]

Marx DA, Slonim AD. Assessing patient safety risk before the injury occurs: an introduction to sociotechnical probabilistic risk modeling in health care. Qual Saf Health Care 2003 Dec; 12 Suppl 2:ii33-38. [Cites AHRQ-funded articles by Cullen et al., Jt Comm J Qual Improv, 1995, and Bates et al., JAMA, 1995.]

Resar RK, Rozich JD, Classen D. Methodology and rationale for the measurement of harm with trigger tools. Qual Saf Health Care 2003 Dec; 12 Suppl 2:ii39-45. [Cites several AHRQ-funded articles on adverse drug events.]

Report on Medical Guidelines and Outcomes Research
Rollins G. Researchers call for new, independent federal agency to address health care quality and cost. Rep Med Guidelines Outcomes Res 2003 Dec 12; 14(24):7-9. [Reviews article by Schoenbaum et al. in the November-December issue of Health Affairs discussing pros and cons of establishing a new agency for guideline development independent of AHRQ and citing relatively low amounts spent on health care quality improvement through AHRQ.]

Wall Street Journal
Landro L. Six prescriptions to ease rationing in U.S. health care. Wall Street J 2003 Dec 22, A1, A10. [Cites remarks from the Commonwealth Fund that the budget of AHRQ is "grossly insufficient".]

Middleton O. HHS healthcare reports find quality lapses, disparities. Wall Street J 2003 Dec 22. [Announces release of AHRQ's National Healthcare Quality Report and National Healthcare Disparities Report; quotes remarks by AHRQ Director Carolyn Clancy.]

Wysocki B. Bush's health-care reports are too optimistic, critics say. Wall Street J 2003 Dec 23; A4. [Cites criticism levied at AHRQ's National Healthcare Quality Report and National Healthcare Disparities Report; quotes remarks by AHRQ Director Carolyn Clancy.]

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

American Family Physician
Epling J, Ewigman B, Ebell MH. Clinical inquiries from the Family Practice Inquiries Network. Am Fam Physician 2003 Dec 15; 68(12):2340-2. [Lists AHRQ, National Guideline Clearinghouse™ and USPSTF Web sites among "Required Databases for Answering Clinical Inquiries."]

Dismuke SE. The growing mandate for clinical preventive medicine. Am Fam Physician 2003 Dec 15; 68(12):2348-50. [Cites Guide to Clinical Preventive Services, 1996; cites A Step-by-Step Guide to Delivering Clinical Preventive Services: A Systems Approach; cites Guide to Delivering Clinical Preventive Services; cites USPSTF recommendations on screening for prostate cancer as published in Ann Intern Med, 2002; cites AHRQ-authored article by Woolf and Atkins (researcher in AHRQ's Center for Outcomes and Evidence), Am J Prev Med, 2001.]

U.S. Preventive Services Task Force. Routine vitamin supplementation to prevent cancer and cardiovascular disease: recommendations and rationale. Am Fam Physician 2003 Dec 15; 68(12):2422-4. [Summarizes USPSTF recommendations on routine vitamin supplementation to prevent cancer and cardiovascular disease.]

Morantz C, Torrey B. Recommendations on cervical cancer screening. Am Fam Physician 2003 Dec 15; 68(12):2459. [Notes that new recommendations on cervical cancer screening from the American College of Obstetricians and Gynecologists "differ slightly" from revised USPSTF recommendations.]

Annals of Internal Medicine
Imperiale TF, Wagner DR, Lin CY, et al. Using risk for advanced proximal colonic neoplasia to tailor endoscopic screening for colorectal cancer. Ann Intern Med 2003 Dec 16, 139(12):959-65. [Cites AHRQ-funded article by Pignone et al., Ann Intern Med, 2002.]

Winawer Sj. Screening sigmoidoscopy: can the road to colonoscopy be less traveled? Ann Intern Med 2003 Dec 16, 139(12):1034-5. [Cites USPSTF recommendations on screening for colorectal cancer as published in Ann Intern Med, 2002; comments on article by Imperiale et al.]

International Journal for Quality in Health Care
Saturno PJ, Medina F, Valera F, et al. Validity and reliability of guidelines for neck pain treatment in primary health care. A nationwide empirical analysis in Spain. Int J Qual Health Care 2003 Dec; 15(6):487-93. [Cites Guide to Clinical Preventive Services: An Assessment of the Effectiveness of 169 Interventions, 1989.]

Journal of Family Practice
Campos-Outcalt D. Sexually transmitted disease: easier screening tests, single-dose therapies. J Fam Pract 2003 Dec; 52(12):965-9. [Cites USPSTF guideline, Screening: Chlamydia Infection.]

Montano CB, Ashton AK, D'Mello DA, et al. A 4-step program for the diagnosis and management of depression. J Fam Pract 2003 Dec; Suppl: S9-18. [Cites recommendations from USPSTF guideline, Screening for Depression, 2002.]

Wiseman PM. Should we screen for ovarian cancer? J Fam Pract 2003 Dec; 52(12):981-4. [Cites Guide to Clinical Preventive Services, 1996.]

Report on Medical Guidelines and Outcomes Research
Government task force recommends obesity screening. Rep Med Guidelines Outcomes Res 2003 Dec 12; 14(24):3. [Summarizes USPSTF recommendations for obesity screening.]

Evidence-based Practice Centers-Related Articles

American Family Physician
Epling J. Is fluoxetine an effective therapy for weight loss in obese patients? Am Fam Physician 2003 Dec 15; 68(12):2437-8. [Cites AHRQ preparation of "health technology assessment on the topic of pharmacologic therapy for obesity."]

International Journal for Quality in Health Care
Mainz J. Developing evidence-based clinical indicators: a state of the art methods primer. Int J Qual Health Care 2003 Dec; 15(Suppl 1):i5-11. [Cites AHRQ Publication No. 95-0046, March 1995, and AHRQ Evidence Report/Technology Assessment, Systems to Rate the Strength of Scientific Evidence, 2002.]

Frankel A, Gandhi TK, Bates DW. Improving patient safety across a large integrated health care delivery system. Int J Qual Health Care 2003 Dec; 15(Suppl 1):i31-40. [Cites AHRQ Evidence Report/Technology Assessment, Making Health Care Safer: A Critical Analysis of Patient Safety Practices, 2001, and several AHRQ-funded articles on medical errors and adverse events.]

Journal of Family Practice
Watson LC, Pignone MP. Screening accuracy for late-life depression in primary care: a systematic review. J Fam Pract 2003 Dec; 52(12):956-64. [Supported by Contract No. 290-97-0011 with the Research Triangle Institute-University of North Carolina at Chapel Hill Evidence-based Practice Center on behalf of the USPSTF.]

Quality and Safety in Health Care
Hasenfeld R, Shekelle PG. Is the methodological quality of guidelines declining in the U.S.? Comparison of the quality of U.S. Agency for Health Care Policy and Research (AHCPR) guidelines with those published subsequently. Qual Saf Health Care 2003 Dec; 12(6):428-34. [Supported by Contract No. 290-97-0001 with Southern California Evidence-based Practice Center.]

President's Advisory Commission on Consumer Protection and Quality in the Health Care Industry/Quality Inter-agency Coordination (QuIC) Task Force-Related Articles

International Journal for Quality in Health Care
Mainz J. Developing evidence-based clinical indicators: a state of the art methods primer. Int J Qual Health Care 2003 Dec; 15(6):523-30. [Cites Commission's final report, Better Health Care for All Americans, 2000.]

Research by Others Using AHRQ Data or Products

American Journal of Managed Care
Venus PJ, Rector TS, Shah MM. Insights into problems obtaining care believed necessary as measured by the Medicaid Consumer Assessment of Health Plans Survey (CAHPS®). Am J Manag Care 2003 Dec; 9(12):797-803. [Uses CAHPS® data.]

Current as of December 2003