Mourning the Loss of Deputy Director David Meyers, M.D.

AHRQ Stats

Access more data on this topic in the associated statistical brief, plus additional AHRQ data infographics.

Today's Headlines:

• Mourning the Loss of Deputy Director David Meyers, M.D..
• AHRQ releases TeamSTEPPS 3.0 Training Curriculum To Improve Safety.
• With Guidance From the Field, AHRQ Launches an Ambitious Strategy for Patient-Centered Outcomes Research.
• Hospital Deaths for Heart Conditions Increased While Hospitalizations Decreased During the First Year of COVID-19.
• Register Now for Upcoming AHRQ Webinars.
• Standardized Surveillance Definition May Help Reduce Infections From Home-Infusion Therapy.
• Highlights From AHRQ’s Patient Safety Network.
• AHRQ in the Professional Literature.

Mourning the Loss of Deputy Director David Meyers, M.D.

In a blog post, Director Robert Otto Valdez, M.D., M.H.S.A., pays tribute to David Meyers, M.D., a treasured colleague and friend who served as AHRQ’s deputy director until his death July 2. Dr. Meyers played numerous key roles during his nearly 20-year tenure at AHRQ, including serving as the agency’s first chief physician. He also established its Center for Evidence and Practice Improvement and served as the Acting Scientific Director for the U.S. Preventive Services Task Force. As Dr. Valdez noted, Dr. Meyers’ impact on the agency was immeasurable. Access the blog post.

AHRQ releases TeamSTEPPS 3.0 Training Curriculum To Improve Safety

AHRQ has updated its TeamSTEPPS® training program, an evidence-based resource designed to improve patient safety by optimizing the performance of healthcare teams. The update was conducted in consultation with experts in TeamSTEPPS and team training that included patients and family caregivers. It addresses changes in healthcare delivery and learning methods, and emphasizes patient engagement. The updated curriculum is designed for use by team members in different roles, including frontline care providers, administrators, patients and caregivers and trainers. It also allows for virtual training. Explore the TeamSTEPPS 3.0 curriculum.

With Guidance From the Field, AHRQ Launches an Ambitious Strategy for Patient-Centered Outcomes Research

AHRQ’s new strategic framework to guide investments in patient-centered outcomes research (PCOR) is the subject of a new blog post by agency Director Robert Otto Valdez, Ph.D., M.H.S.A., and Chief Implementation Officer Karin Verlaine Rhodes, M.D., M.S. Over 10 years, AHRQ expects to invest approximately $100 million per year on PCOR initiatives funded by the Patient-Centered Outcomes Research (PCOR) Trust Fund. The Strategic Framework (PDF, 2.4 MB), an important milestone in agency efforts to advance PCOR research and dissemination, is intended to ensure better health outcomes by keeping the needs of patients at the forefront, with a focus on underserved populations. Access the blog post.

Hospital Deaths for Heart Conditions Increased While Hospitalizations Decreased During the First Year of COVID-19

A new Data Spotlight (PDF, 1 MB) from AHRQ shows that hospital admissions for heart failure decreased by 15 percent from 2019 to 2020, while deaths from heart failure more than doubled. Racial and ethnic health disparities for heart disease persisted, with non-Hispanic Black people having the highest death rate. Access an AHRQ infographic and get more  information  in the 2022 National Healthcare Quality and Disparities Report and  AHRQ’s Data Query tool.

Register Now for Upcoming AHRQ Webinars

• July 19, 1 to 2 p.m. ET: Surveys on Patient Safety™ (SOPS®) Medical Office Survey: What You Need to Know will provide information on the Medical Office Survey, including a review of the SOPS Medical Office program, survey administration, database submission, latest database results and available resources.
• July 20, 2 to 3 p.m. ET: Software Developers Meeting on Common Formats will cover implementation of AHRQ’s Common Formats, which provide standardized definitions and formats to collect, aggregate and analyze uniformly structured information about patient safety events for local, regional and national learning. Topics will include ICD-11’s incorporation of patient safety concepts.
• Aug. 3, 1:30 to 2:45 p.m. ET: Qualitative Methods Used in AHRQ-Funded Primary Care Research. AHRQ’s National Center for Excellence in Primary Care Research will host AHRQ grantees' presentations on different qualitative methods used in their primary care research, the reasons methods were chosen, and the benefits and challenges of conducting study methods.

Standardized Surveillance Definition May Help Reduce Infections From Home-Infusion Therapy

An AHRQ-funded study published in Infection Control & Hospital Epidemiology found that a home-infusion central line-associated bloodstream infection (CLABSI) surveillance definition is valid, feasible and acceptable. No standardized CLABSI definition had been validated for patients on home infusion therapy. Researchers sought to track infection reduction efforts in home infusion therapy as well as implement and validate a standard definition for home-infusion CLABSIs. For this study, home health agencies implemented a home-infusion CLABSI surveillance definition using three approaches to secondary bloodstream infections: National Healthcare Safety Program (NHSN) criteria, modified NHSN criteria, and all home-infusion–onset bacteremia. Researchers found that overall, participants viewed the definition as a positive change and that it was generalizable and feasible. Participants also provided strategies for implementation. 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:

• What causes delays in diagnosing blood cancers? A rapid review of the evidence.
• Prevalence of potentially inappropriate medication prescribing in US nursing homes, 2013-2017.
• Time out: the impact of physician burnout on patient care quality and safety in perioperative medicine.

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 in the Professional Literature

Perspectives on non-prescription antibiotic use among Hispanic patients in the Houston metroplex. Laytner L, Chen P, Nash S, et al. J Am Board Fam Med 2023 May 8;36(3):390-404. Epub 2023 May 1. Access the abstract on PubMed®.

Influence of comorbid depression and diagnostic workup on diagnosis of physical illness: a randomized experiment. Isbell LM, Graber ML, Rovenpor DR, et al. Diagnosis 2023 Apr 27. [Epub ahead of print.] Access the abstract on PubMed®.

The impact of telehealth in sepsis care: a systematic review. Tu KJ, Wymore C, Tchangalova N, et al. J Telemed Telecare 2023 Apr 24:1357633X231170038. [Epub ahead of print.] Access the abstract on PubMed®.

Empirical evaluation of internal validation methods for prediction in large-scale clinical data with rare-event outcomes: a case study in suicide risk prediction. Coley RY, Liao Q, Simon N, et al. BMC Med Res Methodol 2023 Feb 1;23(1):33. Access the abstract on PubMed®.

Measuring quality STI care among adolescent female primary care patients in Philadelphia. Teixeira da Silva D, Makeneni S, Wall H, et al. Sex Transm Infect 2023 Jun;99(4):272-5. Epub 2023 Mar 3. Access the abstract on PubMed®.

Telemental health in emergency care settings: a qualitative analysis of considerations for sustainability and spread. Roddy MK, Chen P, Jeffery AD, et al. Acad Emerg Med 2023 Apr;30(4):368-78. Epub 2023 Mar 1. Access the abstract on PubMed®.

Disparities in advance care planning rates persist among emergency general surgery patients: current state and recommendations for improvement. Johnson CL, Colley A, Pierce L, et al. J Trauma Acute Care Surg 2023 Jun;94(6):863-9. Epub 2023 Feb 2. Access the abstract on PubMed®.

Satisfaction of older patients with emergency department care: psychometric properties and construct validity of the Consumer Emergency Care Satisfaction Scale. Hoonakker PLT, Carayon P, Brown RL, et al. J Nurs Care Qual 2023 Jul-Sep;38(3):256-63. Epub 2023 Feb 24. Access the abstract on PubMed®.