Health Literacy–Informed Intervention Reduces Pediatric Caregiver Liquid Medication Dosing Errors

AHRQ Stats: Average Healthcare Expenditures Among Persons With High Expenses

Individuals in the top 1 percent of healthcare expenditure tier accounted for an average of $166,980 in expenditures in 2021, nearly $30,000 more than in 2019 or 2018. (Source: AHRQ Medical Expenditure Panel Survey Statistical Brief #556, Concentration of Healthcare Expenditures and Selected Characteristics of Persons With High Expenses, United States Civilian Noninstitutionalized Population, 2018-2021.)

Today's Headlines:

• Health Literacy–Informed Intervention Reduces Pediatric Caregiver Liquid Medication Dosing Errors.
• Telehealthcare Increased Administrative Burdens During COVID-19.
• Highlights From AHRQ’s Patient Safety Network.
• AHRQ Seeks Examples of Impact for Development of Impact Case Studies.
• New Research and Evidence From AHRQ.
• Upcoming AHRQ Webinars.
• AHRQ in the Professional Literature.

Health Literacy–Informed Intervention Reduces Pediatric Caregiver Liquid Medication Dosing Errors

Providing health literacy–informed tools and information to caregivers significantly reduced liquid medication dosing errors in children recently discharged from the hospital, according to an AHRQ-supported study in JAMA Network Open. Researchers tested a written, pictogram-based intervention that also included a dosing demonstration and structured teach-back and show-back methods with 151 caregivers in addition to standard counseling. They found that dosing errors dropped by half, from 54.2 percent in the standard counseling group to 30.4 percent in the intervention group. Researchers recommend that health literacy–informed communication tools be incorporated into the standard of care to facilitate safe pediatric hospital discharge to home. Access the abstract.

Telehealthcare Increased Administrative Burdens During COVID-19

As the usage of telehealthcare increased during the COVID-19 pandemic, so did the burden on primary care providers in their use of electronic health records (EHR), with upticks in documentation and chart review minutes, according to a new AHRQ-funded study in JAMA Network Open. In their analysis of 316 providers at MedStar Health, researchers uncovered significant variations in times devoted to EHRs based on levels of telehealthcare integration. Providers averaged 71.3 minutes of documentation time on zero-telemedicine days and 87.2 minutes on days with up to 10 percent telemedicine. Researchers concluded that on days with both in-person and telemedicine visits, providers were subject to 5 to 7 percent more EHR-based work. Study findings underscored the importance of understanding the implications of telemedicine on workload and workflow efficiency, researchers concluded. Access the article.

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:

• Diagnostic error in mental health: a review.
• Comparing hospital leadership and front-line workers' perceptions of patient safety culture: an unbalanced panel study.
• Pay-for-performance and patient safety in acute care: a systematic review.

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

AHRQ Seeks Examples of Impact for Development of Impact Case Studies

Has your organization used an AHRQ tool to improve patient care, make a culture change or save costs? The agency would like to learn more about your use of AHRQ resources to develop Impact Case Studies. Since 2004, the agency has developed more than 400 Impact Case Studies that illustrate AHRQ’s contributions to healthcare improvement. Available online and searchable via an interactive map, the Impact Case Studies help to tell the story of how AHRQ-funded research findings, data and tools have made an impact on the lives of millions of American patients. To help us share your impact story, send a short description of how and where AHRQ resources were used, along with your contact information, to ImpactCaseStudies@ahrq.hhs.gov.

New Research and Evidence From AHRQ

• Technical Brief: Long COVID Models of Care.

Upcoming AHRQ Webinars

• May 2, noon to 1:15 p.m. ET: Research Methods for Studying the Primary Care Workforce will feature three AHRQ grantees who developed methodologies to understand the optimal structure and composition of primary care teams and measure the impacts of adding nurse practitioners into primary care.
• May 8, 1 to 2 p.m. ET: Listening to the Voice of the Patient: Using Multiple Feedback Methods To Complement CAHPS Survey Data will highlight how patient-experience professionals use multiple patient feedback methods to complement AHRQ’s Consumer Assessment of Healthcare Providers and Systems (CAHPS®) data.
• May 23, 3:30 to 4:30 p.m. ET: Using AHRQ’s Surveys on Patient Safety Culture® Hospital Survey and Workplace Safety Item Set will highlight how the Indiana Hospital Association used AHRQ’s Surveys on Patient Safety Culture® (SOPS®) Hospital Survey and Workplace Safety Supplemental Item Set to assess patient safety culture and workplace safety.

AHRQ in the Professional Literature

Measurement of sleep in chronic traumatic brain injury: relationship between self-report and actigraphy. Morrow EL, Mattis-Roesch H, Walsh K, et al. J Head Trauma Rehabil 2023 Sep 12. [Epub ahead of print.] Access the abstract on PubMed®.

Health care utilization and expenditures in health professional shortage areas. McClellan CB. Med Care Res Rev 2024 Mar 14. [Epub ahead of print.] Access the abstract on PubMed®.

Funding learning health system research: challenges and strategies. Harrison MI, Borsky AE. Acad Med 2024 Feb 16. [Epub ahead of print.] Access the abstract on PubMed®.

Considering the environmental impact of practice-based research. Webel B, Villalobos G, Rockwell MS, et al. J Am Board Fam Med 2024 Mar 11;37(1):22-4. Access the abstract on PubMed®.

Disparities in racial, ethnic, and payer groups for pediatric safety events in US hospitals. Parikh K, Hall M, Tieder JS, et al. Pediatrics 2024 Mar;153(3):e2023063714. Access the abstract on PubMed®.

Public reporting and consumer demand in the home health sector. Li J. Med Care Res Rev 2024 Apr;81(2):122-32. Epub 2024 Jan 18. Access the abstract on PubMed®.

Changes in telemedicine use and ambulatory visit volumes at a multispecialty cardiovascular center during the COVID-19 pandemic. Kalwani NM, Osmanlliu E, Parameswaran V, et al. J Telemed Telecare 2024 Apr;30(3):543-8. Epub 2022 Feb 2. Access the abstract on PubMed®.

Role of community health workers in promoting health equity in pediatrics. Feinberg E, Eilenberg JS. Acad Pediatr 2024 Mar;24(2):199-200. Epub 2023 Sep 20. Access the abstract on PubMed®.