AHRQ Annual Conference to Webcast the Plenary Sessions

September 24, 2010

AHRQ News and Numbers

The proportion of Americans who were treated for diabetes and who took oral medications to treat their condition increased from 60 percent in 1997 to 77 percent in 2007—a 28 percent increase. During the same period, the proportion taking insulin to control their diabetes fell from 38 percent to 24 percent. [Source: Agency for Healthcare Research and Quality (AHRQ), MEPS Statistical Brief 293: Trends in Pharmaceutical Treatment of Diabetes: A Comparison of Utilization and Expenditures, 1997 to 2007 (PDF File, Plugin Software Help).

Today's Headlines

1. AHRQ annual conference to Webcast the plenary sessions
2. What's new at the AHRQ Health Care Innovations Exchange
3. Task Force seeks public comments screening for testicular cancer
4. AHRQ in the professional literature

1. AHRQ Annual Conference to Webcast the Plenary Sessions

AHRQ will be providing a Web cast of the plenary sessions at the AHRQ Annual Conference. The plenary sessions at the AHRQ Annual Conference will take place Monday, September 27 from 10:00-11:30 a.m. and Tuesday, September 28 from 10:00 am-11:30 a.m. Information can be found on the AHRQ Annual Conference Web site. Please note: the plenary Web cast is designed strictly for viewing and questions from viewers will be not be accepted. The Web casts will be archived on the AHRQ Web site soon after the meeting. We will provide this information in our next newsletter. Please share this information with others who might be interested in joining in the Web cast.

2. What's New at the AHRQ Health Care Innovations Exchange?

The AHRQ Health Care Innovations Exchange Web site features a new guide to help mobilize local community organizations to coordinate appropriate medical care and social services for at-risk individuals. Connecting Those at Risk to Care: A Guide to Building a Community "Hub," outlines a step-by-step process for community-based organizations and health care services to work together to improve the quality and coordination of medical care and social services for the most vulnerable groups, including African Americans, Hispanics, women and older adults. Identifying at-risk individual and connecting them to appropriate care can improve health outcomes and reduce health disparities. Select to access the guide. The AHRQ Health Care Innovations Exchange Web site features innovations and quality tools that focus on the implementation of evidence-based clinical practice guidelines. Has your organizations adopted an innovation described on the Health Care Innovations Exchange Web site? We would appreciate hearing from you at info@innovations.ahrq.gov.

3. Task Force Seeks Public Comments Screening for Testicular Cancer

The U.S. Preventive Services Task Force is inviting public comment on its draft recommendation statement on screening for testicular cancer. This draft recommendation is an update of the Task Force 2004 recommendation in asymptomatic adolescent and adult males. Select to provide comments. The deadline to provide comments is October 19.

4. AHRQ in the Professional Literature

We are providing the following hyperlinks to journal abstracts through PubMed® for your convenience. Unfortunately, some of you may not be able to access the abstracts because of firewalls or specific settings on your individual computer systems. If you are having problems, you should ask your technical support staff for possible remedies.

Yabroff KR, Saraiya M, Meissner HI, et al. Specialty differences in primary care physician reports of Papanicolaou test screening practices: a national survey, 2006 to 2007. Ann Intern Med 2009 Nov 3; 151(9):602-11. Select to access the abstract on PubMed.®

Herbstman BJ, Pincus HA. Measuring mental healthcare quality in the United States: a review of initiatives. Curr Opin Psychiatry 2009 Nov; 22(6):623-30. Select to access the abstract on PubMed.®

Chiu S, Redelmeier DA, Tolomiczenko G, et al. The health of homeless immigrants. J Epidemiol Community Health 2009 Nov; 63(11):943-8. Select to access the abstract on PubMed.®

MacHardy N, Miles PV, Massengill SF, et al. Management patterns of childhood-onset nephrotic syndrome. Pediatr Nephrol 2009 Nov; 24(11):2193-201. Select to access the abstract on PubMed.®

Kennedy KM, Raz N. Pattern of normal age-related regional differences in white matter microstructure is modified by vascular risk. Brain Res 2009 Nov 10; 1297:41-56. Select to access the abstract on PubMed.®

Garrido MM, Kane RL, Kaas M, et al. Perceived need for mental health care among community-dwelling older adults. J Gerontol B Psychol Sci Soc Sci 2009 Nov; 64(6):704-12. Select to access the abstract on PubMed.®

Contact Information

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