Interactive Maps Provide New Data on Neonatal Abstinence Syndrome Hospitalizations

AHRQ Stats: Cost Differences for Pediatric Hospital Care

The average cost of a pediatric hospital stay for a complicated birth in 2016 was higher when the expected payer was Medicaid ($9,700 per stay) as compared with private insurance ($8,300 per stay). (Source: AHRQ, Healthcare Cost and Utilization Project Statistical Brief #250: Costs of Pediatric Hospital Stays, 2016.) 

Today's Headlines:

• Interactive Maps Provide New Data on Neonatal Abstinence Syndrome Hospitalizations .
• New Statistical Briefs Show Impacts of Influenza.
• Study Identifies Tactics for Reaching and Retaining Low-Income Minority Children for Health Studies.
• Highlights From AHRQ’s Patient Safety Network.
• AHRQ Offers Free Program To Help Hospitals Enhance Recovery of General Emergency and Colorectal Surgery Patients.
• AHRQ in the Professional Literature.

Interactive Maps Provide New Data on Neonatal Abstinence Syndrome Hospitalizations

The national rate of babies born with neonatal abstinence syndrome (NAS) in 2016 was 7.0 per 1,000 newborn hospitalizations, according to data recently added to AHRQ's online Fast Stats. The rate increased every year since 2008, when 2.9 babies per 1,000 were afflicted with the condition. Part of AHRQ’s Healthcare Cost and Utilization Project, Fast Stats is an interactive resource that provides national and state-specific information on trends in inpatient utilization, costs and mortality. The new data show that NAS rates increased in nearly all 45 states that provided data, as well as in the District of Columbia. The data represent approximately 90 percent of U.S. births in 2016. NAS-related hospitalization rates are presented overall as well as by sex, expected payer, community-level income and patient location. The number of NAS newborn hospitalizations, median hospitalization cost and median length of stay are also presented. 

New Statistical Briefs Show Impacts of Influenza

Rates of influenza-related hospitalizations and emergency department visits in 2015-16 were highest for patients living in low-income areas, particularly among children under 5, according to a new report from AHRQ. The analysis shows the cost of flu-related inpatient stays was approximately $3,000 more for patients from higher-income communities. The report from AHRQ’s Healthcare Cost and Utilization Project (HCUP) also shows that in-hospital mortality rates for flu-related stays was as high as 8.7 percent among patients with cancer and 6.4 percent among patients with heart or cerebrovascular disease, both rates being significantly higher than for people with these conditions but without a flu diagnosis. An additional analysis from AHRQ’s Medical Expenditure Panel Survey (MEPS) shows that an average of approximately 8.8 million people in the U.S. noninstitutionalized population were treated for flu each year in 2016 and 2017. On average, approximately $5.2 billion was spent per year on treatment associated with flu. Access the HCUP brief, the MEPS brief , and an infographic. 

Study Identifies Tactics for Reaching and Retaining Low-Income Minority Children for Health Studies

Posting fliers and attending community events are the most successful ways to recruit black and Latino families into health studies, but it is important to use many different strategies—especially those that build trust and relationships—to find participants and keep them involved, according to an AHRQ-funded study in Pilot and Feasibility Studies. Researchers recruited black and Latino children, ages 9 to 12 years, and their parents/guardians from East Harlem and Harlem, N.Y., for the study, which focused on a Web-based tool that teaches children to eat healthful foods. The 89 parent/child teams completed surveys and interviews at the study’s start, midpoint, end and three months after the study’s end. Researchers found that low-income minority individuals will participate in studies that take place over time despite barriers ranging from distrust of research to lack of transportation. Access the abstract.

Highlights From AHRQ’s Patient Safety Network

AHRQ’s Patient Safety Network (PSNet) highlights journal articles, books and tools related to patient safety. Articles featured this week include:

• Influence of Burnout on Patient Safety: Systematic Review and Meta-Analysis.
• Diagnostic errors in the neonatal intensive care unit: State of the science and new directions.
• Automation of the I-PASS Tool to Improve Transitions of Care.

Review additional new publications in PSNet’s current issue or access recent cases and commentaries in AHRQ’s WebM&M (Morbidity and Mortality Rounds on the Web). 

AHRQ Offers Free Program To Help Hospitals Enhance Recovery of General Emergency and Colorectal Surgery Patients

Enrollment is open for hospitals to participate in an AHRQ-funded project to improve patient outcomes after general emergency surgery or colorectal surgery. The latest cohort of AHRQ’s Safety Program for Improving Surgical Care and Recovery begins March 1, 2020, and continues for 12 months. Participants will implement a program using evidence-based enhanced recovery pathways in addition to receiving coaching and training from experts in the field. Other available resources will include guidance on multimodal pain management to reduce opioid use. Register for informational webinars on Nov. 14 at 1 p.m. ET or Nov. 22 at 2 p.m. ET. The safety initiative is funded and guided by AHRQ and led by the Johns Hopkins Armstrong Institute for Patient Safety and Quality, in collaboration with the American College of Surgeons.

AHRQ in the Professional Literature

Challenges optimizing the after visit summary. Federman A, Sarzynski E, Brach C, et al. Int J Med Inform 2018 Dec;120:14-19. Epub 2018 Sep 15. Access the abstract on PubMed®.

Mixed messages to consumers from Medicare: Hospital Compare grades versus value-based payment penalty. Meddings J, Smith SN, Hofer TP, et al. Am J Manag Care 2018 Dec 1;24(12):e399-e403. Access the abstract on PubMed®.

CE: original research: advance care planning: an exploration of the beliefs, self-efficacy, education, and practices of RNs and LPNs. Ludwick R, Baughman KR, Jarjoura D, et al. Am J Nurs 2018 Dec;118(12):26-32. Access the abstract on PubMed®.

Cohort study of risk factors for 30-day readmission after abdominal aortic aneurysm repair. Bath J, Smith JB, Kruse RL, et al. Vasa 2019 May;48(3):251-61. Epub 2018 Dec 12. Access the abstract on PubMed®.

Patient safety after implementation of a coproduced family centered communication programme: multicenter before and after intervention study. Khan A, Spector ND, Baird JD, et al. BMJ 2018 Dec 5;363:k4764. Access the abstract on PubMed®.

International priorities for home care education, research, practice, and management: Qualitative content analysis. Jarrín OF, Pouladi FA, Madigan EA. Nurse Educ Today 2019 Feb;73:83-7. Epub 2018 Dec 7. Access the abstract on PubMed®.

Use of computerized provider order entry events for postoperative complication surveillance. Bucher BT, Ferraro JP, Finlayson SRG, et al. JAMA Surg 2019 Apr 1;154(4):311-8. Access the abstract on PubMed®.

Analyzing the heterogeneity of labor and delivery units: a quantitative analysis of space and design. Austin N, Kristensen-Cabrera A, Sherman J, et al. PLoS One 2018 Dec 26;13(12):e0209339. eCollection 2018. Access the abstract on PubMed®.