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“‘Hypos’ can strike twice” (HS2) is a pragmatic, leaflet-based referral intervention designed for administration by clinicians of the emergency medical services (EMS) to people they have attended and successfully treated for hypoglycaemia. Its main purpose is to encourage the recipient to engage with their general practitioner or diabetic nurse in order that improvements in medical management of their diabetes may be made, thereby reducing their risk of recurrent hypoglycaemia. Herein we build a de novo economic model for purposes of incremental analyses to compare, in 2018–19 prices, HS2 against standard care for recurrent hypoglycaemia in the fortnight following the initial attack from the perspective of the UK National Health Service (NHS). We found that per patient NHS costs incurred by people receiving the HS2 intervention over the fortnight following an initial hypoglycaemia average £49.79, and under standard care costs average £40.50. Target patient benefit assessed over that same period finds the probability of no recurrence of hypoglycaemia averaging 42.4% under HS2 and 39.4% under standard care, a 7.6% reduction in relative risk. We find that implementing HS2 will cost the NHS an additional £309.36 per episode of recurrent hypoglycaemia avoided. Contrary to the favourable support offered in Botan et al., we conclude that in its current form the HS2 intervention is not a cost-effective use of NHS resources when compared to standard NHS care in reducing the risk of hypoglycaemia recurring within a fortnight of an initial attack that was resolved at-scene by EMS ambulance clinicians.

We aimed to investigate community first responders' contribution to emergency care provision in terms of number, rate, type, and location of calls and characteristics of patients attended.We used a retrospective observational design analyzing routine data from electronic clinical records from 6 of 10 ambulance services in the United Kingdom during 2019. Descriptive statistics, including numbers and frequencies, were used to illustrate characteristics of incidents and patients that the community first responders attended first in both rural and urban areas.The data included 4.5 million incidents during 1 year. The community first responders first attended a higher proportion of calls in rural areas compared with those in urban areas (3.90% versus 1.48 %). In rural areas, the community first responders also first attended a higher percentage of the most urgent call categories, 1 and 2. The community first responders first attended more than 9% of the total number of category 1 calls and almost 5% of category 2 calls. The community first responders also attended a higher percentage of the total number of cardiorespiratory and neurological/endocrine conditions. They first attended 6.5% of the total number of neurological/endocrine conditions and 5.9% of the total number of cardiorespiratory conditions. Regarding arrival times in rural areas, the community first responders attended higher percentages (more than 6%) of the total number of calls that had arrival times of less than 7 minutes or more than 60 minutes.In the United Kingdom, community first responders contribute to the delivery of emergency medical services, particularly in rural areas and especially for more urgent calls. The work of community first responders has expanded from their original purpose-to attend to out-of-hospital cardiac arrests. The future development of community first responders' schemes should prioritize training for a range of conditions, and further research is needed to explore the contribution and potential future role of the community first responders from the perspective of service users, community first responders' schemes, ambulance services, and commissioners.

Background Hypoglycaemia is a potentially serious condition, characterised by lower-than-normal blood glucose levels, common in people with diabetes (PWD). It can be prevented and self-managed if expert support, such as education on lifestyle and treatment, is provided. Our aim was to conduct a process evaluation to investigate how ambulance staff and PWD perceived the “Hypos can strike twice” booklet-based ambulance clinician intervention, including acceptability, understandability, usefulness, positive or negative effects, and facilitators or barriers to implementation. Methods We used an explanatory sequential design with a self-administered questionnaire study followed by interviews of people with diabetes and ambulance staff. We followed the Medical Research Council framework for process evaluations of complex interventions to guide data collection and analysis. Following descriptive analysis (PWD and staff surveys), exploratory factor analysis was conducted to identify staff questionnaire subscales and multiple regression models were fitted to identify demographic predictors of overall and subscale scores. Results 113 ambulance staff members and 46 PWD completed the survey. We conducted interviews with four ambulance staff members and five PWD who had been attended by an ambulance for a hypoglycaemic event. Based on surveys and interviews, there were positive attitudes to the intervention from both ambulance staff and PWD. Although the intervention was not always implemented, most staff members and PWD found the booklet informative, easy to read and to use or explain. PWD who completed the survey reported that receiving the booklet reminded and/or encouraged them to test their blood glucose more often, adjust their diet, and have a discussion/check up with their diabetes consultant. Interviewed PWD felt that the booklet intervention would be more valuable to less experienced patients or those who cannot manage their diabetes well. Overall, participants felt that the intervention could be beneficial, but were uncertain about whether it might help prevent a second hypoglycaemic event and/or reduce the number of repeat ambulance attendances. Conclusions The ‘Hypos may strike twice’ intervention, which had demonstrable reductions in repeat attendances, was found to be feasible, acceptable to PWD and staff, prompting reported behaviour change and help-seeking from primary care. Trial registration Registered with ClinicalTrials.gov: NCT04243200 on 27 January 2020.

Background and Objectives Partnerships between health care and social service organizations may contribute to lower health care use and spending. Such partnerships are increasing, including Area Agencies on Aging (AAAs) working and contracting with health care organizations. Nevertheless, knowledge about how AAAs establish and manage successful collaborations is limited. We sought to understand how AAAs establish and manage partnerships with health care organizations. Research Design and Methods We conducted an explanatory sequential mixed-methods study using a positive deviance approach. We used national-level data to identify AAAs with multiple health care partners serving areas with low utilization of nursing homes by residents with low-care needs (n = 9) and AAAs with few health care partners and high utilization for comparison (n = 3). We conducted in-depth interviews with key informants from these 12 AAAs and their partner organizations (total n = 130). A 5-person multidisciplinary team used the constant comparative method of analysis, supported by Atlas.ti software. Results Highly partnered AAAs were characterized by 3 distinctive features of organizational culture: (a) attention to external environments, (b) openness to innovation and change, and (c) risk-taking to learn, improve, and grow. AAAs and partners describe a broad set of organizational strategies and partnership development tactics, depending on their local contexts. These features were underdeveloped in AAAs with few health care partnerships. Discussion and Implications While federal and state policies can create more favorable environments for AAA–health care partnerships, AAAs can also work internally to foster an organizational culture that allows them to thrive in dynamic and challenging environments.

Background: Active Steps, guided by the Behaviour Change Wheel, was developed to support inactive adults with lung conditions. Aim: To conduct a mixed-methods process evaluation of Active Steps. Methods: Active Steps comprised of 1:1 telephone health coaching, printed and digital resources for 12 months to increase physical activity. Implementation data (reach, dose and fidelity) were collected and summarised. Paired t tests were used to assess changes (mean, 95% CI) in mechanisms of impact (Capability, Opportunity, Motivation-Behaviour and Sport England self-efficacy scales) at 12 months. Interviews were completed with service users (n=10), service withdrawals (n=8) and British Lung Foundation (BLF) staff (n=10) and analysed thematically. Results: Of those screened (n=553), 30% (n=166) were eligible for the service and consented for the evaluation. Service users were mostly Female (71%), White (95%), with COPD (67%). 88% (n=883) of intervention calls were completed. The number and duration of intervention calls (mean±SD) were 6 (±4) and 31 minutes (±7) respectively. There were statistically significant (p Conclusion: Active Steps was delivered as intended to support physical activity, but further consideration of staff workload and integration with local services may improve implementation.

AIMS We aimed to investigate the effect of an intervention in which ambulance personnel provided advice supported by a booklet-'Hypos can strike twice'-issued following a hypoglycaemic event to prevent future ambulance attendances. METHODS We used a non-randomised stepped wedge-controlled design. The intervention was introduced at different times (steps) in different areas (clusters) of operation within East Midlands Ambulance Service NHS Trust (EMAS). During the first step (T0), no clusters were exposed to the intervention, and during the last step (T3), all clusters were exposed. Data were analysed using a general linear mixed model (GLMM) and an interrupted-time series analysis (ITSA). RESULTS The study included 4825 patients (mean age 65.42 years, SD 19.42; 2,166 females) experiencing hypoglycaemic events attended by EMAS. GLMM indicated a reduction in the number of unsuccessful attendances (i.e., attendance followed by a repeat attendance) in the final step of the intervention when compared to the first (odds ratio OR: 0.50, 95%CI: 0.33-0.76, p = 0.001). ITSA indicated a significant decrease in repeat ambulance attendances for hypoglycaemia-relative to the pre-intervention trend (p = 0.008). Furthermore, the hypoglycaemia care bundle was delivered in 66% of attendances during the intervention period, demonstrating a significant level of practice change (p

Stronger relationships among service providers in the health care and social service sectors may contribute to positive outcomes such as lower health care use and spending. Such partnerships have grown in recent years, including Area Agencies on Aging (AAAs) contracting with health care organizations, and their impact on health care utilization has been demonstrated. Nevertheless, knowledge about how AAAs establish and manage successful collaborations is limited. This study was designed to understand how AAAs in regions with low levels of avoidable health care utilization develop and sustain partnerships with health care organizations. We conducted an explanatory sequential mixed-methods, positive deviance study. In the quantitative phase, we identified 8 AAAs with multiple health care partners serving areas with little utilization of nursing homes by residents with low-care needs, and 3 with few partners and high utilization for comparison. In the qualitative phase, we identified key informants within AAAs and their partners for in-depth interviews (total n = 123). We used the constant comparative method of analysis to identify 5 factors that characterized partnerships in the highly-partnered, low-utilization sites: 1) Regional context (e.g., breadth of health care provider market, cross-sectoral coalitions), 2) AAA human resource assets (e.g., community expertise, business acumen), 3) AAA organizational culture (e.g., visionary leadership, risk taking), 4) Interdependence among organizations (e.g., mutual benefit, alignment), and 5) Interpersonal dynamics (e.g., trust, relationships). The importance of these regional, organizational, and relational factors suggests that AAA business acumen is necessary but not sufficient to build and sustain robust cross-sectoral partnerships.

BackgroundCommunity First Responders (CFRs) are volunteers dispatched by Emergency Medical Services (EMS) to potentially life-threatening emergencies to provide care until the ambulance staff arrive. Previous qualitative research described CFRs’ role, perceptions, and motivations, but quantitative evidence on their contribution to rural healthcare provision is lacking. We aimed to investigate the number, types, and location of calls (rural or urban), and characteristics of patients attended.MethodsWe used a retrospective observational design analysing routine data from six of ten ambulance services in England during 2019. Descriptive statistics were used to directly compare incidents where CFRs attended first with attendances from ambulance staff. A multiple logistic regression model was used to identify the main predictors of CFR attendance.ResultsThe data included 4.5 million incidents over one year. CFRs attended first a significantly higher proportion of calls in rural areas compared to urban areas (3.90% vs 1.48%, pConclusionsCFRs play an important role in EMS delivery, supporting the work of ambulance services, especially in rural areas. The work of CFRs has expanded from its original purpose to attend out-of-hospital cardiac arrest to more types of emergencies. Future development of CFR schemes should prioritise training for a range of conditions, and access to more deprived and ethnically diverse areas.

BackgroundCommunity first responders (CFRs) are volunteers delivering emergency medical assistance and maintaining a patient’s condition until an ambulance arrives. Previous research has highlighted the CFR role and relationships, motivations, practice and perceptions, and need for mental health support. However, factors influencing CFR practise in the field are a relatively underexplored area. We aimed to explore the factors embedded in CFR implementation processes that either facilitated or hindered CFRs’ activities and practice in the UK.MethodIn a qualitative study, we conducted interviews with CFRs and CFR leads, paramedics and ambulance clinicians, commissioners, patients and relatives across six English ambulance service regions. Thematic analysis, supported by NVivo, enabled the identification codes and themes.ResultOverall, 47 participants were interviewed including CFR leads (15), CFRs (21), ambulance staff (4), and commissioners (2) from six ambulance services with patients and relatives (5) from the same regions. The findings revealed multi-layered factors influencing effective CFR functioning at three levels, namely individual, institutional, and societal. CFRs’ local expertise helped them to navigate operational challenges. Use of a personal vehicle and navigation software aided CFRs’ ability to respond promptly. Continuing training improved CFRs’ skills. CFR functioning was facilitated by positive relationships with ambulance crews. Identification and recognition by patients were important and aided by wearing uniforms. Community support was a facilitator for CFR activities in rural areas. In contrast, limited communication in remote regions, long waits for an ambulance, and reliance on community donations impeded CFRs’ care function. Volunteer shortages and lack of access to a blue light while using trusts’ car hindered CFRs’ ability to respond quickly. Negative relationships with ambulance crews also hampered CFRs’ involvement.ConclusionThis study highlights factors associated with effective CFR functioning and the requirement for supportive institutional and societal contexts for CFRs to assist patients in medical emergencies.

The COVID-19 pandemic required AAAs to pause essential services, serving as a catalyst for innovation. We examined such innovations as part of an explanatory mixed-methods, positive deviance study of AAA partnerships with health and social service organizations. We identified 8 AAAs with many partners serving areas with lower levels of health care use, and 3 AAAs with few partners serving areas with higher levels of health care use. We interviewed AAA and partners, (total = 123). Using the constant comparative method, we identified recurrent themes: 1) AAAs adapted to increased demand for services by developing new ways to deliver services, 2) the pandemic raised awareness of unmet needs such as social connection, 3) changes in delivery of services included embracing technology, and 4) AAAs and their partners identified resources to rapidly pivot services. AAAs and partners demonstrated resiliency to not only to sustain programs, but to innovate throughout the pandemic.

Background Diabetes, affecting 1 in 5 care home residents, may lead to ambulance call-outs and hospitalisation. We aimed to investigate the epidemiology of diabetes-related emergencies involving ambulance attendances to care home residents. Method Cross-sectional design investigating ambulance attendance to people presenting with diabetes-related emergencies in the East Midlands, UK, between 2012 and 2017. We analysed dispatch and ambulance clinical data with care home data, including call category, timing, location, care home type, clinical or physiological measures, treatments, conveyance (transport to hospital) and costs. Results Overall 2 19 722 (6.7% of 3.3 million) ambulances attended care homes over 6 years, with 12 080 (5.5%) to diabetes-related emergencies. Of 3152 care home patients categorised as having a ‘diabetic problem’, 1957 (62.1%) were conveyed to hospital, similar to that for community residents taking into account other factors. Factors associated with conveyance included reduced consciousness (OR 0.91, 95% CI 0.87–0.95), elevated heart (1.01, 1.01–1.02) or respiratory rate (1.08, 1.06–1.10), no treatment for hypoglycaemia (0.54, 0.34–0.86) or additional medical (but not psychiatric) problems. Ambulance costs were significantly lower when a patient was conveyed, by some £18 (95% CI £11.94–£24.12), but this would be outweighed by downstream hospital care costs. For a simulation in which all trusts’ mean NHS Reference Costs were used, conveyance was no longer significant in the cost model. Conclusion Conveyance following diabetes-related emergencies was as common for care home as for other community residents despite access to trained staff, and more likely with impaired consciousness, abnormal physiological measures or lack of treatment for hypoglycaemia. Conflict of interest None. Funding National institute for Health Research Collaboration for Leadership in Applied Health Research and Care East Midlands, UK.

BackgroundHypoglycaemia is a common complication of diabetes therapy needing prompt recognition and treatment. It often results in ambulance attendance incurring health services costs and patient morbidity. Patient education is important for maintaining glycaemic control and preventing recurrent hypoglycaemia. We aimed to investigate the effect of an intervention in which ambulance staff were trained to provide advice supported by a booklet – ‘Hypos can strike twice’- issued following a hypoglycaemic event to prevent future attendances.MethodsWe used a non-randomised stepped wedge-controlled design. The intervention was introduced at different times (steps) in different areas (clusters) of operation of East Midlands Ambulance Service NHS Trust (EMAS). During the first step (T0) no clusters were exposed to the intervention and during the last step (T3) all clusters were exposed. The main outcome was the number of unsuccessful ambulance attendances (i.e. attendances followed by a repeat attendance). Data were analysed using a general linear mixed model (GLMM) and an interrupted-time series analysis (ITSA).ResultsThe study included 4825 patients (mean age= 65.42, SD=19.42; 2166 females) experiencing hypoglycaemic events attended by EMAS. GLMM indicated a reduction in the number of unsuccessful attendances in the final step of the intervention when compared to the first (OR: 0.50, 95%CI: 0.33-0.76, p=0.001). ITSA indicated a significant decrease in repeat ambulance attendances for hypoglycaemia – relative to the pre-intervention trend (p=0.008). The hypoglycaemia care bundle (i.e. blood glucose recorded before and after treatment for hypoglycaemia) was delivered in 66% of attendances during the intervention period, demonstrating a significant level of practice change (χ2=30.16, pConclusionsThe ‘Hypos can strike twice’ intervention had a positive effect on reducing numbers of repeat attendances for hypoglycaemia and in achieving the care bundle. The study supports the use of informative booklets by ambulance clinicians to prevent future attendances for recurrent hypoglycaemic events.

BackgroundDiabetes, which affects over 1 in 5 nursing or care home residents, may lead to diabetes-related emergencies with ambulance call-outs and hospitalisation. Our aim was to investigate the epidemiology of diabetes-related emergencies in care home residents which involved an ambulance attendance.MethodsWe used a cross-sectional design to investigate emergency ambulance attendances to people in nursing and residential care homes presenting with diabetes-related emergencies across the East Midlands between January 2012 and December 2017. We used clinical and dispatch data from East Midlands Ambulance Service NHS Trust (EMAS) and care home data from the Care Quality Commission, including call category, timing, location, place of residence, clinical or physiological status, treatments, outcome (conveyance) and costs in the analysis.ResultsOverall 219722 (6.7% of 3.3 million) attendances were to care home residents of which 12080 were for diabetes-related emergencies. Of 3152 care home patients categorised as having a ‘diabetic problem’ 1,957 (62.1%) were conveyed to hospital. This was not significantly different to the rate for other patients, taking into account other factors, despite access to trained staff in care homes. Statistically significant factors associated with conveyance included reduced consciousness level (OR 0.91, 95% CI 0.87–0.95), elevated heart (1.01, 1.01–1.02) or respiratory rate (1.08, 1.06–1.10), no treatment for hypoglycaemia (0.54, 0.34–0.86) or additional co-morbid medical (but not psychiatric) problems. Cost to EMAS was significantly lower when a patient was conveyed, by some £18 (95% CI £11.94–£24.12), but this would not outweigh downstream NHS costs arising from hospital care. For the simulation in which all trusts mean NHS Reference Costs were used, conveyance was no longer significant in the cost model.ConclusionConveyance to hospital was common for care home patients with diabetes-related emergencies and more likely when conscious level was impaired, certain physiological measures abnormal or treatment for hypoglycaemia was not given.

Background: Improving outcomes for patients with acute myocardial infarction (AMI) is a priority for hospitals, clinicians, and policymakers. Evidence suggests hospital organizational culture is linked to patient outcomes; however, few studies have attempted to change organizational culture in order to improve patient outcomes, and none have addressed mortality for patients with AMI. We seek to address these gaps through a novel longitudinal intervention study, Leadership Saves Lives (LSL). We hypothesize that we will observe: 1) positive shifts in key dimensions of hospital organizational culture associated with lower mortality rates for patients with AMI; 2) increased use of targeted evidence-based practices associated with lower mortality rates for patients with AMI; and 3) reduced in-hospital AMI mortality. Methodology and Results: We describe the methodology of LSL, a 3-year intervention study using a concurrent mixed methods design, guided by open systems theory and the AIDED model of diffusion, implemented in a national sample of 10 diverse U.S. hospitals and hospitals in their peer networks. Intervention hospital teams participate in: 1) annual convenings of the 10 hospitals; 2) semiannual workshops at each intervention hospital; and 3) a web-based learning community that includes a discussion board and a repository for resources and tools. We describe features of program design that allow us to promote and measure intervention fidelity, while also allowing for tailoring of the intervention to the unique local context in each hospital. We quantify changes in hospital practices, culture, and mortality through annual surveys of both intervention hospitals in their peer networks. In-person, in-depth interviews and selective observations of key interactions in care for patients with AMI allow us to describe the change process. The intervention began with an annual meting of the 10 intervention hospitals in June 2014. The first wave of survey data collection, hospital-specific workshops and qualitative data collection were completed between September and November 2014. Conclusions: LSL is novel in its use of a prospective longitudinal mixed methods approach in a diverse sample of hospitals, its focus on objective outcome measures of mortality, its attention to maintaining fidelity of the intervention across diverse hospital settings, and its examination of changes not only in the intervention hospitals but also in their peer hospital networks over time. This study adds to the methodological literature for the study of complex interventions to promote hospital organizational culture change, with direct impact on patients with AMI.