The Self-assessment for Modification of Anti-Racism Tool (SMART): Addressing Structural Racism in Community Behavioral Health

Equity in action: a scoping review and meta-framework for embedding equity in quality improvement

BACKGROUND

There are increasing efforts to include equity in all quality improvement (QI) initiatives. A comprehensive framework to embed equity in QI has been lacking, which acts as a barrier to the QI community from taking action to reduce healthcare inequities.

OBJECTIVES

The objectives of this scoping review were to: (1) map and summarise available equity frameworks for QI and (2) create a 'meta-framework' for QI leaders and practitioners, with engagement of people with lived experience of health inequities.

METHODS

Articles were identified with searches of four databases (MEDLINE, Embase, PsycInfo and CINAHL) and review of reference lists from included articles. Articles that reported how equity can be meaningfully integrated into QI were included. A qualitative inductive thematic analysis and community member engagement and consultation were completed to clarify recommended strategies for embedding equity in QI.

RESULTS

The search strategy yielded 2776 unique articles, with 40 meeting the inclusion criteria. A meta-framework for embedding equity in QI was created that has two enablers: broadening theoretic underpinnings and organisational culture, structures and leadership. The meta-framework also has six domains: (1) engage with people with lived experience of health inequities; (2) define the equity problem and aim; (3) diversify and train the QI team; (4) examine broader root causes; (5) intervene to reduce inequities; and (6) measure impacts on equity. The community member consultation identified key facilitators and common pitfalls in involving community members in QI.

CONCLUSION

This meta-framework is a comprehensive resource to integrate equity into all aspects of QI practice. Further study of its implementation is recommended. Revisions to QI guidelines and training curricula are also needed to drive and sustain the embedding of equity in QI.

A Systematic Review of Organizational Assessments Related to Racism and Equity

This systematic review aimed to assess the following questions: (1) what organizational assessments exist for measuring racism and equity? (2) How are these assessments meant to be completed? (3) What constructs are typically assessed for in these measures? (4) What are the psychometric properties of these measures? Assessments were located by searching PubMed/MEDLINE (including non-MEDLINE and pre-MEDLINE), Scopus, CINAHL Plus with Full Text, PsycInfo, SocIndex, Dissertations & Theses Global, and the Trip Database through June 27, 2022. Cited and citing references of included assessments were also screened. In total, 21 organizational assessments assessing equity, racial equity, health equity, racism, and cultural competency were located. The setting for completion, who was meant to complete the assessment, and whether re-evaluation was needed were frequently not described in assessments. The ten question types most commonly assessed for in organizational assessments, in order of frequency, were community partnership, engagement, and accountability; cultural competency and norms; education and training; values and mission; communication; hiring, retention, and promotion; resources and funding; service provision; leadership and shared decision-making; and policies. Just one assessment assessed any form of reliability and validity. Although there has been substantial growth over the last decade in assessments that measure racism and equity, results indicate a need for more empirically developed and tested assessments to ensure reliability and validity and a more prescriptive structure and process for the administration of the assessment.

Examining Anti-Racism Efforts in Psychiatry Residency Programs

High-profile instances of police and citizen brutality against Black people in the United States in 2020 spurred increased attention to longstanding racial injustice, leading to widespread adoption of anti-racism concepts, discussions, and efforts. Due to the relative infancy of anti-racism agendas on an organizational level, effective anti-racism strategies and best practices are still being developed. The author-a Black psychiatry resident-aims to contribute to the anti-racism efforts and discourse happening nationally within medicine and psychiatry. A personal account is given reviewing challenges and successes from recent anti-racism efforts on the organizational level of a psychiatry residency program.

Patient and Hospital Characteristics Associated With Delayed Diagnosis of Appendicitis

Importance

Racial disparities in timely diagnosis and treatment of surgical conditions exist; however, it is poorly understood whether there are hospital structural measures or patient-level characteristics that modify this phenomenon.

Objective

To assess whether patient race and ethnicity are associated with delayed appendicitis diagnosis and postoperative 30-day hospital use and whether there are patient- or systems-level factors that modify this association.

Design, Setting, and Participants

This population-based, retrospective cohort study used data from the Healthcare Cost and Utilization Project's state inpatient and emergency department (ED) databases from 4 states (Florida, Maryland, New York, and Wisconsin) for patients aged 18 to 64 years who underwent appendectomy from January 7, 2016, to December 1, 2017. Data were analyzed from January 1, 2016, to December 31, 2017.

Exposure

Delayed diagnosis of appendicitis, defined as an initial ED presentation with an abdominal diagnosis other than appendicitis followed by re-presentation within a week for appendectomy.

Main Outcomes and Measures

A mixed-effects multivariable Poisson regression model was used to estimate the association of delayed diagnosis of appendicitis with race and ethnicity while controlling for patient and hospital variables. A second mixed-effects multivariable Poisson regression model quantified the association of delayed diagnosis of appendicitis with postoperative 30-day hospital use.

Results

Of 80 312 patients who received an appendectomy during the study period (median age, 38 years [IQR, 27-50 years]; 50.8% female), 2013 (2.5%) experienced delayed diagnosis. In the entire cohort, 2.9% of patients were Asian or Pacific Islander, 18.8% were Hispanic, 10.9% were non-Hispanic Black, 60.8% were non-Hispanic White, and 6.6% were other race and ethnicity; most were privately insured (60.2%). Non-Hispanic Black patients had a 1.41 (95% CI, 1.21-1.63) times higher adjusted rate of delayed diagnosis compared with non-Hispanic White patients. Patients at hospitals with a more than 50% Black or Hispanic population had a 0.73 (95% CI, 0.59-0.91) decreased adjusted rate of delayed appendicitis diagnosis compared with hospitals with a less than 25% Black or Hispanic population. Conversely, patients at hospitals with more than 50% of discharges of Medicaid patients had a 3.51 (95% CI, 1.69-7.28) higher adjusted rate of delayed diagnosis compared with hospitals with less than 10% of discharges of Medicaid patients. Additional factors associated with delayed diagnosis included female sex, higher levels of patient comorbidity, and living in a low-income zip code. Delayed diagnosis was associated with a 1.38 (95% CI, 1.36-1.61) increased adjusted rate of postoperative 30-day hospital use.

Conclusions and Relevance

In this cohort study, non-Hispanic Black patients had higher rates of delayed appendicitis diagnosis and 30-day hospital use than White patients. Patients presenting to hospitals with a greater than 50% Black and Hispanic population were less likely to experience delayed diagnosis, suggesting that seeking care at a hospital that serves a diverse patient population may help mitigate the increased rate of delayed diagnosis observed for non-Hispanic Black patients.

Cops, Clinicians, or Both? Collaborative Approaches to Responding to Behavioral Health Emergencies

How a community responds to behavioral health emergencies is both a public health issue and social justice issue. Individuals experiencing a behavioral health crisis often receive inadequate care in emergency departments (EDs), boarding for hours or days while waiting for treatment. Such crises also account for a quarter of police shootings and >2 million jail bookings per year. Racism and implicit bias magnify these problems for people of color. Growing support for reform provides an unprecedented opportunity for meaningful change, but solutions to this complex issue will require comprehensive systemic approaches. As communities grapple with behavioral health emergencies, the question is not just whether law enforcement should respond to behavioral health emergencies but how to reduce unnecessary law enforcement contact and, if law enforcement is responding, when, how, and with what support. This policy article reviews best practices for law enforcement crisis responses, outlines the components of a comprehensive continuum-of-crisis care model that provides alternatives to law enforcement involvement and ED use, and offers strategies for collaboration and alignment between law enforcement and clinicians toward common goals. Finally, policy considerations regarding stakeholder engagement, financing, data management, legal statutes, and health equity are presented to assist communities interested in taking steps to build these needed solutions.