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To assess the impact and cost-effectiveness of two information-based provider reminder interventions designed to improve self-care management and outcomes of heart failure (HF) patients.Interview and agency administrative data on 628 home care patients with a primary diagnosis of HF.Patients were treated by nurses randomly assigned to usual care or one of two intervention groups. The basic intervention was an e-mail to the patient's nurse highlighting six HF-specific clinical recommendations. The augmented intervention supplemented the initial nurse reminder with additional clinician and patient resources.Patient interviews were conducted 45 days post admission to measure self-management behaviors, HF-specific outcomes (Kansas City Cardiomyopathy Questionnaire-KCCQ), health-related quality of life (EuroQoL), and service use.Both interventions improved the mean KCCQ summary score (15.3 and 12.9 percent, respectively) relative to usual care (por =.05). The basic intervention also yielded a higher EuroQoL score relative to usual care (por =.05). In addition, the interventions had a positive impact on medication knowledge, diet, and weight monitoring. The basic intervention was more cost-effective than the augmented intervention in improving clinical outcomes.This study demonstrates the positive impact of targeting evidence-based computer reminders to home health nurses to improve patient self-care behaviors, knowledge, and clinical outcomes. It also advances the field's limited understanding of the cost-effectiveness of selected strategies for translating research into practice.

The purpose of this randomized, controlled, home care intervention was to test the effectiveness of two nurse-targeted, e-mail-based interventions to increase home care nurses' adherence to pain assessment and management guidelines, and to improve patient outcomes. Nurses from a large urban non-profit home care organization were assigned to usual care or one of two interventions upon identification of an eligible cancer patient with pain. The basic intervention consisted of a patient-specific, one-time e-mail reminder highlighting six pain-specific clinical recommendations. The augmented intervention supplemented the initial e-mail reminder with provider prompts, patient education material, and clinical nurse specialist outreach. Over 300 nurses were randomized and outcomes of 673 of their patients were reviewed. Data collection involved clinical record abstraction of nurse care practices and patient interviews completed approximately 45 days after start of care. The intervention had limited effect on nurse-documented care practices but patient outcomes were positively influenced. Patients in the augmented group improved significantly over the control group in ratings of pain intensity at its worst, whereas patients in the basic group had better ratings of pain intensity on average. Other outcomes measures were also positively influenced but did not reach statistical significance. Our findings suggest that although reminders have some role in improving cancer pain management, a more intensive approach is needed for a generalized nursing workforce with limited recent exposure to state-of-the-art pain management practices.

The clinical assessment of drug-taking behaviors in medically ill patients with pain is complex and may be hindered by the lack of empirically derived information about such behaviors in particularly medically ill populations. To investigate issues surrounding the assessment of these behaviors, we piloted a questionnaire based on the observations of specialists in pain management and substance abuse. This preliminary questionnaire evaluated medication use, present and past drug abuse, patients' beliefs about the risk of addiction in the context of pain treatment, and aberrant drug-taking attitudes and behaviors. This instrument was piloted in a mixed group of cancer patients (N = 52) and a group of women with HIV/AIDS (N = 111). Reports of past drug use and abuse were more frequent than present reports in both groups. Current aberrant drug-related behaviors were seldom reported, but attitude items revealed that patients would consider engaging in aberrant behaviors, or would possibly excuse them in others, if pain or symptom management were inadequate. Aberrant behaviors and attitudes were endorsed more frequently by the women with HIV/AIDS than by the cancer patients. Patients greatly overestimated the risk of addiction in pain treatment. We discuss the significance of these findings and the need for cautious interpretation given the limitations of the methodology. This early experience suggests that both cancer and HIV/AIDS patients appear to respond in a forthcoming fashion to drug-taking behavior questions and describe attitudes and behaviors that may be highly relevant to the diagnosis and understanding management of substance use among patients with medical illness.

The characteristics and impact of pain were evaluated in a prospective cross-sectional survey of 438 ambulatory AIDS patients recruited from health care facilities in New York City. More than 60% of the patients reported ‘frequent or persistent pain’ during the 2 wks preceding the study. Patients with pain reported an average of 2.5 different pains. On the 0–10 numerical scale of the Brief Pain Inventory (BPI), mean pain intensity ‘on average’ was 5.4 (SD = 2.2; range = 0–10), and mean pain ‘at its worst’ was 7.4 (SD = 2.0; range = 1–10). The pain-related functional interference index (sum of the seven item BPI subscale) was 42.6 (SD = 17.2; range = 0–70). Demographic variables were not associated with the presence of pain, but the number of current HIV-related symptoms, treatment for HIV-related infections, and the absence of antiretroviral medications were significantly associated with the presence of pain. Female gender, non-Caucasian race, and number of HIV-related physical symptoms were significantly associated with pain intensity. Presence of pain and increasing pain intensity were significantly associated with greater impairment in functional ability (Karnofsky Performance Status, BPI functional interference index) and physical symptom distress (Memorial Symptom Assessment Scale). Results demonstrate high levels of pain and pain-related functional impairment among patients with AIDS. The presence and intensity of pain are associated with more advanced HIV disease and pain intensity is also associated with demographic factors (gender, race).

Pain is highly prevalent in individuals with HIV disease, yet is often overlooked as a symptom requiring clinical intervention. We evaluated the adequacy of analgesic management for pain and identified predictors of pain undertreatment in a sample of 366 ambulatory AIDS patients using a prospective cross-sectional survey design. Two hundred and twenty-six of the 366 ambulatory AIDS patients surveyed reported “persistent or frequent” pain over the 2 week period prior to the survey. Adequacy of analgesic therapy was assessed using the Pain Management Index (PMI - a measure derived from the Brief Pain Inventory) and the type and frequency of analgesic medications prescribed for pain. Results indicated that nearly 85% of patients were classified as receiving inadequate analgesic therapy based on the PMI. Less than 8% of the 110 patients who reported “severe” pain were prescribed a “strong” opioid (e.g., morphine), as suggested by published guidelines. Adjuvant analgesic drugs (e.g., antidepressant medications) were prescribed in only 10% of the patients. Women, less educated patients, and patients who reported injection drug use as their HIV transmission risk factor were most likely to have received inadequate analgesic therapy. These results demonstrate the alarming degree of undertreatment of pain in ambulatory patients with AIDS, and indicates the need to improve the management of AIDS-related pain in this underserved population. Future research should elucidate the factors that impede adequate pain management in order to overcome obstacles to adequate treatment.

Marco daCosta DiBonaventura1, Ryne Paulose-Ram2, Jun Su3, Margaret McDonald2, Kelly H Zou2, Jan-Samuel Wagner1, Hemal Shah31Health Sciences Practice, Kantar Health, New York, NY, USA; 2Pfizer, Inc, New York, NY, USA; 3Boehringer Ingelheim Pharmaceuticals, Inc, Ridgefield, CT, USAObjective: To examine quality of life, work productivity, and health care resource use among employed adults ages 40–64 years with chronic obstructive pulmonary disease (COPD) in the United States.Methods: Data from the 2009 National Health and Wellness Survey were used. All employed adults ages 40–64 years with or without a self-reported diagnosis of COPD were included in the study. Impact on quality of life (using the mental and physical component summary scores and health utilities from the Short Form-12v2), work productivity and activity impairment (using the Work Productivity and Activity Impairment questionnaire), and resource use were analyzed using regression modeling.Results: There were 1112 employed adults with COPD versus 18,912 employed adults without COPD. After adjusting for demographics and patient characteristics, adults with COPD reported significantly lower mean levels of mental component summary (46.8 vs 48.5), physical component summary (45.6 vs 49.2), and health utilities (0.71 vs 0.75) than adults without COPD. Workers with COPD reported significantly greater presenteeism (18.9% vs 14.3%), overall work impairment (20.5% vs 16.3%), and impairment in daily activities (23.5% vs 17.9%) than adults without COPD. Employed adults with COPD also reported more mean emergency room visits (0.21 vs 0.12) and more mean hospitalizations (0.10 vs 0.06) in the previous 6 months than employed adults without COPD. All of the above differences were significant at two-sided P < 0.05.Conclusion: After adjusting for various confounders, employed adults with COPD reported significantly lower quality of life and work productivity, and increased health care resource utilization than employed adults without COPD. These results highlight the substantial impact and burden of COPD in the United States workforce.Keywords: chronic obstructive pulmonary disease, quality of life, work productivity, activities of daily living, health care resource use

Background Racial and ethnic disparities persist in stroke occurrence, recurrence, morbidity and mortality. Uncontrolled hypertension (HTN) is the most important modifiable risk factor for stroke risk. Home health care organizations care for many patients with uncontrolled HTN and history of stroke; however, recurrent stroke prevention has not been a home care priority. We are conducting a randomized controlled trial (RCT) to compare the effectiveness, relative to usual home care (UHC), of two Community Transitions Interventions (CTIs). The CTIs aim to reduce recurrent stroke risk among post-stroke patients via home-based transitional care focused on better HTN management. Methods/Design This 3-arm trial will randomly assign 495 black and Hispanic post-stroke home care patients with uncontrolled systolic blood pressure (SBP) to one of three arms: UHC, UHC complemented by nurse practitioner-delivered transitional care (UHC + NP) or UHC complemented by an NP plus health coach (UHC + NP + HC). Both intervention arms emphasize: 1) linking patients to continuous, responsive preventive and primary care, 2) increasing patients’/caregivers’ ability to manage a culturally and individually tailored BP reduction plan, and 3) facilitating the patient’s reintegration into the community after home health care discharge. The primary hypothesis is that both NP-only and NP + HC transitional care will be more effective than UHC alone in achieving a SBP reduction. The primary outcome is change in SPB at 3 and 12 months. The study also will examine cost-effectiveness, quality of life and moderators (for example, race/ethnicity) and mediators (for example, changes in health behaviors) that may affect treatment outcomes. All outcome data are collected by staff blinded to group assignment. Discussion This study targets care gaps affecting a particularly vulnerable black/Hispanic population characterized by persistent stroke disparities. It focuses on care transitions, a juncture when patients are particularly susceptible to adverse events. The CTI is innovative in adapting for stroke patients an established transitional care model shown to be effective for HF patients, pairing the professional NP with a HC, implementing a culturally tailored intervention, and placing primary emphasis on longer-term risk factor reduction and community reintegration rather than shorter-term transitional care outcomes. Trial registration ClinicalTrials.gov NCT01918891; Registered 5 August 2013.

Background Although osteoarthritis (OA) often affects older persons, it has a profound effect on individuals actively employed. Despite reports of reduced productivity among workers with OA, data are limited regarding the impact of OA among workers. The objective of this study was to evaluate the impact of self-rated OA severity on quality of life, healthcare resource utilization, productivity and costs in an employed population relative to employed individuals without OA. Methods This cross-sectional analysis used data derived from the 2009 National Health and Wellness Survey (NHWS). Multivariable analyses characterized outcomes and costs (direct medical costs and indirect) among workers (full-time, part-time, or self-employed) ≥ 20 years of age who were diagnosed with OA and who self-rated their OA severity as mild, moderate, or severe relative to workers without OA. Evaluated outcomes included productivity, assessed using the Work Productivity and Impairment (WPAI) scale; health-related quality of life, using the SF-12v2 Health Survey; and healthcare resource utilization. Results 4,876 workers reported being diagnosed with OA (45.0% mild, 45.9% moderate, and 9.1% severe); 34,896 workers comprised the non-OA comparator cohort. There was a greater proportion of females in the OA cohort (55.5% vs 45.6%; P < 0.0001) and more individuals in the 40-64 year and ≥ 65 year age ranges (P < 0.0001). As OA severity increased, workers reported more frequent pain, poorer quality of life, greater use of specific healthcare resources (hospitalizations) and reduced productivity. All outcomes indicated a significantly greater burden among workers with OA relative to those without OA (P < 0.0001). Estimated total annual costs per worker were $9,801 for mild OA, $14,761 for moderate OA, $22,111 for severe OA compared with $7,901 for workers without OA (P < 0.0001). Conclusions Workers with OA were characterized by significant disease and economic burdens relative to workers without OA that substantially increased with greater self-rated OA severity. Greater levels of OA severity were associated with reductions in quality of life and productivity, and increases in healthcare resource utilization and costs.