Associations of U.S. hospital closure (2007-2018) with area socioeconomic disadvantage and racial/ethnic composition

PURPOSE

To examine whether hospital closure is associated with high levels of area socioeconomic disadvantage and racial/ethnic minority composition.

METHODS

Pooled cross-sectional analysis (2007-2018) of 6467 U.S. hospitals from the American Hospital Association's Annual Survey, comparing hospital population characteristics of closed hospitals to all remaining open hospitals. We used multilevel mixed-effects logistic regression models to assess closure as a function of population characteristics, including area deprivation index ([ADI], a composite measure of socioeconomic disadvantage), racial/ethnic composition, and rural classification, nesting hospitals within hospital service areas (HSAs) and hospital referral regions. Secondary analyses examined public or private hospital type.

RESULTS

Overall, 326 (5.0%) of 6467 U.S. hospitals closed during the study period. In multivariable models, hospitals in HSAs with a higher burden of socioeconomic disadvantage (per 10% above median ADI ZIP codes, AOR 1.05; 95% CI, 1.01-1.09) and Black Non-Hispanic composition (highest quartile, AOR 4.03; 95% CI, 2.62-6.21) had higher odds of closure. We did not observe disparities in closure by Hispanic/Latino composition or rurality. Disparities persisted for Black Non-Hispanic communities, even among HSAs with the lowest burden of disadvantage.

CONCLUSIONS

Disproportionate hospital closure in communities with higher socioeconomic disadvantage and Black racial composition raises concerns about unequal loss of healthcare resources in the U.S.

Primary Care Patients' Perspectives on Health Care Screening for Firearms in a Diverse, Urban Area: A Qualitative Study

Importance

Firearm violence is increasingly recognized as a public health issue, but whether physicians should intervene remains politically contested.

Objective

To explore self-described patient perspectives about the appropriateness and acceptability of health care screening for firearms.

Design, Setting, and Participants

This qualitative study recruited 50 adult patients from a primary care clinic in Chicago, Illinois, from June 7, 2019, to January 11, 2021, to participate in 1 of 12 one-time qualitative focus groups. Focus group discussions were facilitated using an in-depth, semistructured guide, transcribed verbatim from audio recordings, and analyzed for major themes using a pragmatic approach to basic thematic analysis, which is commonly used in implementation science, between December 12, 2019, and November 29, 2022.

Main Outcomes and Measures

Patient perspectives of health care screening for firearms were evaluated to examine complexities of a practice change goal.

Results

Participants were a median age of 60.0 (IQR, 50.5-66.5) years and predominantly female (37 [74%]; male, 11 [22%]; nonbinary, 1 [2%]; transgender, 1 [2%]) and non-Hispanic Black (42 [84%]; non-Hispanic Asian or Pacific Islander, 2 [4%]; non-Hispanic White, 5 [10%]). Two-thirds (32 [64%]) of participants thought that health care screening for firearms was at least sometimes appropriate, recognizing clear benefits, for instance, among patients at risk for suicide. However, few (2 [4%]) had ever discussed firearms with a physician or other health care professional. Even among those who recognized benefits, several barriers to acceptability were described, especially related to bias, stigma, and increased risk for criminal legal involvement. Other major themes included insufficient time to address firearms during health care visits and doubts about a clinician's ability to intervene. Facilitators to acceptability included screening strategies that were patient centered, sensitive to racial bias, clinically efficient, and accompanied by tangible resources.

Conclusions and Relevance

Incorporating these findings and emergent themes into clinical practice may guide efforts to make firearm screening more acceptable for patients from historically marginalized communities.

Advancing health equity through social care interventions

OBJECTIVE

To use evidence on addressing racism in social care intervention research to create a framework for advancing health equity for all populations with marginalized social identities (e.g., race, gender, and sexual orientation). Such groups have disproportionate social needs (e.g., food insecurity) and negative social determinants of health (SDOH; e.g., poverty). We recommend how the Agency for Healthcare Research and Quality (AHRQ) could advance health equity for marginalized populations through social care research and care delivery.

DATA SOURCES AND STUDY SETTING

This commentary is informed by a literature review of social care interventions that were affiliated with healthcare systems; input from health equity researchers, policymakers, and community leaders attending the AHRQ Health Equity Summit; and consensus of the authors.

PRINCIPAL FINDINGS

We recommend that AHRQ: (1) create an ecosystem that values research on SDOH and the effectiveness and implementation of social care interventions in the healthcare sector; (2) work with other federal agencies to (a) develop position statements with actionable recommendations about racism and other systems that perpetuate marginalization based on social identity and (b) develop aligned, complementary approaches to research and care delivery that address social marginalization; (3) advance both inclusive care delivery and inclusive research teams; (4) advance understanding of racism as a social determinant of health and effective strategies to mitigate its adverse impact on health; (5) advance the creation and scaling of effective strategies for addressing SDOH in healthcare systems, particularly in co-creation with community partners; and (6) require social care intervention researchers to use methods that advance our understanding of social health equity.

CONCLUSIONS

AHRQ, as a federal agency, could help advance health equity using a range of strategies, including using the agency's levers to ensure AHRQ stakeholders examine and address the unique experiences of socially marginalized populations in SDOH and social care intervention research.

Preconception care utilization: Self-report versus claims-based measures among women with Medicaid

The objective of this study is to compare self-reported preconception care utilization (PCU) among Medicaid-covered births to Medicaid claims. We identified all Medicaid-covered births to women ages 15-45 in 26 states in the year 2012 among the Pregnancy Risk Assessment and Monitoring System (PRAMS) survey and Medicaid Analytic eXtract (MAX) claims data, and identified preconception services in the latter using diagnosis codes published by Health and Human Services' Office of Population Affairs. We fit mixed-effects logistic regression models for the probability of PCU on sociodemographic factors (age, race, and ethnicity) and clinical diagnoses (depression, diabetes, or hypertension), separately for each dataset. Among 652,929 women delivering in MAX, 28.1% received at least one claims-based preconception service while an estimated 23.6% (95% CI 22.1-25.3) of PRAMS respondents reported receiving preconception care. Adjusting for age, chronic diseases, and state, PCU rates in both MAX and PRAMS were higher for non-Hispanic Black versus non-Hispanic White women (OR 1.51, 95% CI 1.49-1.54 and OR 2.05, 95% CI 1.60-2.62, respectively). Adjusting for differences in age, race and ethnicity, and state, PCU rates were higher for patients with diabetes (OR 1.34, 95% CI 1.29-1.40 and OR 1.82, 95% CI 1.16-2.85) or hypertension (OR 1.22, 95% CI 1.18-1.27 and OR 1.85, 95% CI 1.41-2.44). While Hispanic and Asian women were also more likely to report PCU than their non-Hispanic White counterparts (OR 2.07, 95% CI 1.53-2.80 and OR 3.37, 95% CI 2.28-4.98), they were less likely to have received it (OR 0.74, 95% CI 0.73-0.75 and OR 0.65, 95% CI 0.63-0.67). In conclusion, comparing self-report to claims measures of PCU, we found similar trends in the differences between non-Hispanic Black and White women, and between those with vs. without diabetes and hypertension. However, the two data sources differed in trends in other racial/ethnic groups (differences between Hispanic vs. non-Hispanic White women, and between Asian vs. non-Hispanic White women), and in those with vs. without depression. This suggests that while Medicaid claims can be a useful tool for studying preconception care, they may miss certain types of care among some sub-groups of the population or be subject to reporting differences that are hard to surmise. Both data sets have potential benefits and drawbacks as research tools.

The Growing Role of Technology in the Care of Older Adults With Diabetes

The integration of technologies such as continuous glucose monitors, insulin pumps, and smart pens into diabetes management has the potential to support the transformation of health care services that provide a higher quality of diabetes care, lower costs and administrative burdens, and greater empowerment for people with diabetes and their caregivers. Among people with diabetes, older adults are a distinct subpopulation in terms of their clinical heterogeneity, care priorities, and technology integration. The scientific evidence and clinical experience with these technologies among older adults are growing but are still modest. In this review, we describe the current knowledge regarding the impact of technology in older adults with diabetes, identify major barriers to the use of existing and emerging technologies, describe areas of care that could be optimized by technology, and identify areas for future research to fulfill the potential promise of evidence-based technology integrated into care for this important population.

Telementoring With Project ECHO: A New Era in Diabetes-Related Continuing Education for Primary Care to Address Health Disparities

Project ECHO® is a telementoring workforce development model that targets under-resourced communities lacking access to specialty care. The model builds virtual communities of practice, including specialists and community primary care professionals (PCPs) to combat clinical inertia and health disparities. While the ECHO model has gained global recognition, implementation of the model related to diabetes is lagging compared to other specialty conditions. This review highlights diabetes-endocrine (ENDO)-focused ECHOs using data reported in the ECHO Institute's centralized data repository (iECHO) and the learning collaborative for diabetes ECHOs. It also describes the implementation of diabetes ECHOs and their evaluation. Learner and patient-centered outcomes related to diabetes ECHOs are reviewed. Program implementation and evaluations have demonstrated utility of the ECHO model for diabetes programs to (1) address unmet needs of diabetes care in the primary care setting, (2) improve knowledge and confidence in managing complex diabetes and change provider prescribing habits, (3) improve patient outcomes, and (4) address diabetes quality improvement practices in primary care. More studies with broader collaboration among sites are needed to evaluate the model related to diabetes, especially applied to addressing therapeutic inertia, adoption of diabetes technology, and reducing health disparities.

A Physician's Sense of Responsibility to Address Disparities: Does It Relate to Reported Behaviors About Screening for and Addressing Social Needs?

PURPOSE

It is widely accepted that negative social determinants of health (e.g., poverty) are underlying drivers of poor health and health disparities. There is overwhelming support among physicians to screen for patient-level social needs, but only a minority of clinicians actually do so. The authors explored potential associations between physician beliefs about health disparities and behaviors to screen and address social needs among patients.

METHOD

The authors used 2016 data from the American Medical Association Physician Masterfile database to identify a purposeful sample of U.S. physicians (n = 1,002); data obtained in 2017 were analyzed. Chi-squared tests of proportions and binomial regression analyses were employed to investigate associations between the belief that it is a physician's responsibility to address health disparities and perceptions of physician behaviors to screen for and address social needs, accounting for physician, clinical practice, and patient characteristics.

RESULTS

Of 188 respondents, respondents who felt that physicians have a responsibility to address health disparities were more likely than their peers (who did not feel that physicians have such a responsibility) to report that a physician on their health care team would screen for social needs that were psychosocial (e.g., safety, social support) (45.5% vs 29.6%, P = .03) and material (e.g., food, housing) (33.0% vs 13.6%, P < .0001). They were also more likely to report that a physician on their health care team would address both psychosocial needs (48.1% vs 30.9%, P = .02) and material needs (21.4% vs 9.9%, P = .04). With the exception of screening for psychosocial needs, these associations persisted in adjusted models.

CONCLUSIONS

Engaging physicians to screen for and address social needs should couple efforts to expand infrastructure with educational efforts about professionalism and health disparities, especially underlying drivers such as structural racism and the social determinants of health.

"Everything in One Place": Stakeholder Perceptions of Integrated Medical and Social Care for Diabetes Patients in Western Maryland

BACKGROUND

Patients with type 2 diabetes frequently have both medical- and health-related social needs that must be addressed for optimal disease management. Growing evidence suggests that intersectoral partnerships between health systems and community-based organizations may effectively support improved health outcomes for patients with diabetes.

OBJECTIVE

The purpose of this study was to describe stakeholders' perceptions of the implementation factors associated with a diabetes management program, an intervention involving coordinated clinical and social services supports to address both medical- and health-related social needs. This intervention delivers proactive care alongside community partnerships, and leverages innovative financing mechanisms.

DESIGN

Qualitative study with semi-structured interviews.

PARTICIPANTS

Study participants included adults (18 years or older) who were patients with diabetes and essential staff (e.g., members of a diabetes care team, health care administrators) and leaders of community-based organizations.

APPROACH

We used the Consolidated Framework for Implementation Research (CFIR) to develop a semi-structured interview guide designed to elicit perspectives from patients and essential staff on their experiences within an outpatient center to support patients with chronic conditions (the CCR) as a part of an intervention to improve care for patients with diabetes.

KEY RESULTS

Interviews illuminated three key takeaways: (1) team-based care held an important role in promoting accountability across stakeholders motivating patient engagement and positive perceptions, (2) mission-driven alignment across the health care and community sectors was needed to synergize a broad range of efforts, and (3) global payment models allowing for flexible resource allocation can invaluably support the appropriate care being directed where it is needed the most whether medical or social services.

CONCLUSIONS

The views and experiences of patient and essential staff stakeholder groups reported here thematically according to CFIR domains may inform the development of other chronic disease interventions that address medical- and health-related social needs in additional settings.

Racial Health Equity and Social Needs Interventions: A Review of a Scoping Review

IMPORTANCE

Social needs interventions aim to improve health outcomes and mitigate inequities by addressing health-related social needs, such as lack of transportation or food insecurity. However, it is not clear whether these studies are reducing racial or ethnic inequities.

OBJECTIVE

To understand how studies of interventions addressing social needs among multiracial or multiethnic populations conceptualize and analyze differential intervention outcomes by race or ethnicity.

EVIDENCE REVIEW

Sources included a scoping review of systematic searches of PubMed and the Cochrane Library from January 1, 1995, through November 29, 2021, expert suggestions, and hand searches of key citations. Eligible studies evaluated interventions addressing social needs; reported behavioral, health, or utilization outcomes or harms; and were conducted in multiracial or multiethnic populations. Two reviewers independently assessed titles, abstracts, and full text for inclusion. The team developed a framework to assess whether the study was "conceptually thoughtful" for understanding root causes of racial health inequities (ie, noted that race or ethnicity are markers of exposure to racism) and whether analyses were "analytically informative" for advancing racial health equity research (ie, examined differential intervention impacts by race or ethnicity).

FINDINGS

Of 152 studies conducted in multiracial or multiethnic populations, 44 studies included race or ethnicity in their analyses; of these, only 4 (9%) were conceptually thoughtful. Twenty-one studies (14%) were analytically informative. Seven of 21 analytically informative studies reported differences in outcomes by race or ethnicity, whereas 14 found no differences. Among the 7 that found differential outcomes, 4 found the interventions were associated with improved outcomes for minoritized racial or ethnic populations or reduced inequities between minoritized and White populations. No studies were powered to detect differences.

CONCLUSIONS AND RELEVANCE

In this review of a scoping review, studies of social needs interventions in multiracial or multiethnic populations were rarely conceptually thoughtful for understanding root causes of racial health inequities and infrequently conducted informative analyses on intervention effectiveness by race or ethnicity. Future work should use a theoretically sound conceptualization of how race (as a proxy for racism) affects social drivers of health and use this understanding to ensure social needs interventions benefit minoritized racial and ethnic groups facing social and structural barriers to health.

Cultivating Anti-Racism Allies in Academic Medicine

Racial microaggressions, racially based remarks, or actions that negatively impact marginalized physicians of color (Black, Latino/a/x, and American Indian/Alaskan Natives) often go unaddressed. This article provides four strategies for how individuals and institutions can engage in anti-racism allyship: (1) be an upstander during microaggressions, (2) be a sponsor and advocate for physicians of color, (3) acknowledge academic titles and accomplishments, and (4) challenge the idea of a "standard fit" for academic faculty and research. Skills in academic allyship should be taught to all physicians throughout the educational continuum to mitigate feelings of isolation that racialized minority physicians frequently experience.

Improvisational and Standup Comedy, Graphic Medicine, and Theatre of the Oppressed to Teach Advancing Health Equity

Ninety-minute virtual workshops that used improvisational comedy, standup comedy, graphic medicine, and Theatre of the Oppressed were implemented in 2020 within a required health equity course at the University of Chicago Pritzker School of Medicine to train 90 first-year medical students in advancing health equity. Learning objectives were to (1) deepen understanding of diverse human experiences by developing relationship skills, such as empathy, active listening, engagement, and observation; (2) recognize how diverse patients perceive students and how students perceive them to gain insight into one's identity and how intersectional systems of oppression can stigmatize and marginalize different identities; and (3) engage in free, frank, fearless, and safe conversations about structural racism, colonialism, White and other social privileges, and systemic factors that lead to health inequities. With a 61% (109/180 [90 students × 2 workshops per student]) survey response rate, 72% of respondents thought workshops were very good or excellent, and 83% agreed or strongly agreed they would recommend workshops to others. Key recommendations are to (1) incorporate experiential storytelling and discussion; (2) define clear learning goals for each workshop, map exercises to these goals, and explain their relevance to students; and (3) create a safe, courageous, brave space for exploration and discussion. For health equity, transformation happens as students share their perspectives of curriculum content from their intersectional identities, experiences, and varied privileges; are challenged by others' perspectives; and attempt to understand how others can experience the same content differently. The arts create a powerful form of sharing beyond routine conversations or discussions, which is critical for honest dialogue on difficult topics, such as racism, homophobia, and White privilege and other social privileges. Educators should enable students to have the space, time, and courage to share their true perspectives and engage in authentic discussions that may be uncomfortable but transformative.

Errors in Converting Principles to Protocols: Where the Bioethics of U.S. Covid-19 Vaccine Allocation Went Wrong

For much of 2021, allocating the scarce supply of Covid-19 vaccines was the world's most pressing bioethical challenge, and similar challenges may recur for novel therapies and future vaccines. In the United States, the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention's Advisory Committee on Immunization Practices (ACIP) identified three fundamental ethical principles to guide the process: maximize benefits, promote justice, and mitigate health inequities. We argue that critical components of the recommended protocol were internally inconsistent with these principles. Specifically, the ACIP violated its principles by recommending overly broad health care worker priority in phase 1a, using being at least seventy-five years of age as the only criterion to identify individuals at high risk of death from Covid-19 during phase 1b, failing to recommend place-based vaccine distribution, and implicitly endorsing first-come, first-served allocation. More rigorous empirical work and the development of a complete ethical framework that recognizes trade-offs between principles may have prevented these mistakes and saved lives.

Association of Zip Code Vaccination Rate With COVID-19 Mortality in Chicago, Illinois

Importance

There has been large geographic inequity in vaccination coverage across Chicago, Illinois, with higher vaccination rates in zip codes with residents who predominantly have high incomes and are White.

Objective

To determine the association between inequitable zip code-level vaccination coverage and COVID-19 mortality in Chicago.

Design, Setting, and Participants

This retrospective cohort study used Chicago Department of Public Health vaccination and mortality data and Cook County Medical Examiner mortality data from March 1, 2020, through November 6, 2021, to assess the association of COVID-19 mortality with zip code-level vaccination rates. Data were analyzed from June 1, 2021, to April 13, 2022.

Exposures

Zip code-level first-dose vaccination rates before the Alpha and Delta waves of COVID-19.

Main Outcomes and Measures

The primary outcome was deaths from COVID-19 during the Alpha and Delta waves. The association of a marginal increase in zip code-level vaccination rate with weekly mortality rates was estimated with a mixed-effects Poisson regression model, and the total number of preventable deaths in the least vaccinated quartile of zip codes was estimated with a linear difference-in-difference design.

Results

The study population was 2 686 355 Chicago residents in 52 zip codes (median [IQR] age 34 [32-38] years; 1 378 658 [51%] women; 773 938 Hispanic residents [29%]; 783 916 non-Hispanic Black residents [29%]; 894 555 non-Hispanic White residents [33%]). Among residents in the least vaccinated quartile, 80% were non-Hispanic Black, compared with 8% of residents identifying as non-Hispanic Black in the most vaccinated quartile (P < .001). After controlling for age distribution and recovery from COVID-19, a 10-percentage point increase in zip code-level vaccination 6 weeks before the peak of the Alpha wave was associated with a 39% lower relative risk of death from COVID-19 (incidence rate ratio [IRR], 0.61 [95% CI, 0.52-0.72]). A 10-percentage point increase in zip code vaccination rate 6 weeks before the peak of the Delta wave was associated with a 24% lower relative risk of death (IRR, 0.76 [95% CI, 0.66-0.87]). The difference-in-difference estimate was that 119 Alpha wave deaths (72% [95% CI, 63%-81%]) and 108 Delta wave deaths (75% [95% CI, 66%-84%]) might have been prevented in the least vaccinated quartile of zip codes if it had had the vaccination coverage of the most vaccinated quartile.

Conclusions and Relevance

These findings suggest that low zip code-level vaccination rates in Chicago were associated with more deaths during the Alpha and Delta waves of COVID-19 and that inequitable vaccination coverage exacerbated existing racial and ethnic disparities in COVID-19 deaths.

Why Add "Abolition" to the National Academies of Sciences, Engineering, and Medicine's Social Care Framework?

Abundant evidence demonstrates that enduring, endemic racism plays an important role in determining patient health. This commentary reviews a patient case about disease self-management and subsequent health outcomes that are shaped by social and economic circumstances. We analyze the case using a framework for social care developed in 2019 by the National Academies of Sciences, Engineering, and Medicine (NASEM). We then propose that the NASEM framework be adapted by adding the category abolition, which could make the other social care practices transformative for historically marginalized populations.

Negative Patient Descriptors: Documenting Racial Bias In The Electronic Health Record

Little is known about how racism and bias may be communicated in the medical record. This study used machine learning to analyze electronic health records (EHRs) from an urban academic medical center and to investigate whether providers' use of negative patient descriptors varied by patient race or ethnicity. We analyzed a sample of 40,113 history and physical notes (January 2019-October 2020) from 18,459 patients for sentences containing a negative descriptor (for example, resistant or noncompliant) of the patient or the patient's behavior. We used mixed effects logistic regression to determine the odds of finding at least one negative descriptor as a function of the patient's race or ethnicity, controlling for sociodemographic and health characteristics. Compared with White patients, Black patients had 2.54 times the odds of having at least one negative descriptor in the history and physical notes. Our findings raise concerns about stigmatizing language in the EHR and its potential to exacerbate racial and ethnic health care disparities.

Eliminating Explicit and Implicit Biases in Health Care: Evidence and Research Needs

Health care providers hold negative explicit and implicit biases against marginalized groups of people such as racial and ethnic minoritized populations. These biases permeate the health care system and affect patients via patient–clinician communication, clinical decision making, and institutionalized practices. Addressing bias remains a fundamental professional responsibility of those accountable for the health and wellness of our populations. Current interventions include instruction on the existence and harmful role of bias in perpetuating health disparities, as well as skills training for the management of bias. These interventions can raise awareness of provider bias and engage health care providers in establishing egalitarian goals for care delivery, but these changes are not sustained, and the interventions have not demonstrated change in behavior in the clinical or learning environment. Unfortunately, the efficacy of these interventions may be hampered by health care providers’ work and learning environments, which are rife with discriminatory practices that sustain the very biases US health care professions are seeking to diminish. We offer a conceptual model demonstrating that provider-level implicit bias interventions should be accompanied by interventions that systemically change structures inside and outside the health care system if the country is to succeed in influencing biases and reducing health inequities.

Fair Allocation of Scarce Therapies for COVID-19

The US Food and Drug Administration (FDA) has issued emergency use authorizations (EUAs) for monoclonal antibodies (mAbs) for nonhospitalized patients with mild or moderate coronavirus disease 2019 (COVID-19) disease and for individuals exposed to COVID-19 as postexposure prophylaxis. EUAs for oral antiviral drugs have also been issued. Due to increased demand because of the Delta variant, the federal government resumed control over the supply and asked states to ration doses. As future variants (eg, the Omicron variant) emerge, further rationing may be required. We identify relevant ethical principles (ie, benefiting people and preventing harm, equal concern, and mitigating health inequities) and priority groups for access to therapies based on an integrated approach to population health and medical factors (eg, urgently scarce healthcare workers, persons in disadvantaged communities hard hit by COVID-19). Using priority categories to allocate scarce therapies effectively operationalizes important ethical values. This strategy is preferable to the current approach of categorical exclusion or inclusion rules based on vaccination, immunocompromise status, or older age, or the ad hoc consideration of clinical risk factors.

Association Of Neighborhood Disadvantage With Racial Disparities In COVID-19 Positivity In Chicago

Racial health inequities exemplified during the COVID-19 crisis have awakened a sense of urgency among public health and policy experts to examine contributing factors. One potential factor includes the socioeconomic disadvantage of racially segregated neighborhoods. This study quantified associations of neighborhood socioeconomic disadvantage in Chicago, Illinois, as measured by the Area Deprivation Index (ADI), with racial disparities in COVID-19 positivity. A retrospective cohort included 16,684 patients tested for COVID-19 at an academic medical center and five community-based testing sites during Chicago's "first wave" (March 12, 2020-June 25, 2020). Patients living in Black majority neighborhoods had two times higher odds of COVID-19 positivity relative to those in White majority neighborhoods. The ADI accounted for 20 percent of the racial disparity; however, COVID-19 positivity remained substantially higher at every decile of the ADI in Black relative to White neighborhoods. The remaining disparities (80 percent) suggest a large, cumulative effect of other structural disadvantages in urban communities of color.

Population Health Innovations and Payment to Address Social Needs Among Patients and Communities With Diabetes

Policy Points Population health efforts to improve diabetes care and outcomes should identify social needs, support social needs referrals and coordination, and partner health care organizations with community social service agencies and resources. Current payment mechanisms for health care services do not adequately support critical up-front investments in infrastructure to address medical and social needs, nor provide sufficient incentives to make addressing social needs a priority. Alternative payment models and value-based payment should provide up-front funding for personnel and infrastructure to address social needs and should incentivize care that addresses social needs and outcomes sensitive to social risk.

CONTEXT

Increasingly, health care organizations are implementing interventions to improve outcomes for patients with complex health and social needs, including diabetes, through cross-sector partnerships with nonmedical organizations. However, fee-for-service and many value-based payment systems constrain options to implement models of care that address social and medical needs in an integrated fashion. We present experiences of eight grantee organizations from the Bridging the Gap: Reducing Disparities in Diabetes Care initiative to improve diabetes outcomes by transforming primary care and addressing social needs within evolving payment models.

METHODS

Analysis of eight grantees through site visits, technical assistance calls, grant applications, and publicly available data from US census data (2017) and from Health Resources and Services Administration Uniform Data System Resources data (2018). Organizations represent a range of payment models, health care settings, market factors, geographies, populations, and community resources.

FINDINGS

Grantees are implementing strategies to address medical and social needs through augmented staffing models to support high-risk patients with diabetes (e.g., community health workers, behavioral health specialists), information technology innovations (e.g., software for social needs referrals), and system-wide protocols to identify high-risk populations with gaps in care. Sites identify and address social needs (e.g., food insecurity, housing), invest in human capital to support social needs referrals and coordination (e.g., embedding social service employees in clinics), and work with organizations to connect to community resources. Sites encounter challenges accessing flexible up-front funding to support infrastructure for interventions. Value-based payment mechanisms usually reward clinical performance metrics rather than measures of population health or social needs interventions.

CONCLUSIONS

Federal, state, and private payers should support critical infrastructure to address social needs and incentivize care that addresses social needs and outcomes sensitive to social risk. Population health strategies that address medical and social needs for populations living with diabetes will need to be tailored to a range of health care organizations, geographies, populations, community partners, and market factors. Payment models should support and incentivize these strategies for sustainability.

Accuracy of the Sequential Organ Failure Assessment Score for In-Hospital Mortality by Race and Relevance to Crisis Standards of Care

IMPORTANCE

Crisis Standards of Care (CSC) are guidelines for rationing health care resources during public health emergencies. The CSC adopted by US states ration intensive care unit (ICU) admission using the Sequential Organ Failure Assessment (SOFA) score, which is used to compare expected in-hospital mortality among eligible patients. However, it is unknown if Black and White patients with equivalent SOFA scores have equivalent in-hospital mortality.

OBJECTIVE

To investigate whether reliance on SOFA is associated with bias against Black patients in CSC.

DESIGN, SETTING, AND PARTICIPANTS

This cohort study was conducted using data from the eICU Collaborative Research Database of patients admitted to 233 US ICUs in 2014 to 2015. Included individuals were Black and White adult patients in the ICU, who were followed up to hospital discharge. Data were analyzed from May 2020 through April 2021.

EXPOSURE

SOFA scores at ICU admission.

MAIN OUTCOMES AND MEASURES

Hierarchical logistic regression with hospital fixed effects was used to measure the interaction between race and SOFA as a factor associated with in-hospital mortality, as well as the odds of death among Black and White patients with equivalent priority for resource allocation according to the SOFA-based ranking rules of 3 statewide CSC (denoted A, B, and C) under shortage conditions that were severe (ie, only patients with the highest priority would be eligible for allocation), intermediate (ie, patients in the highest 2 tiers would be eligible for allocation), or low (ie, only patients with the lowest priority would be at risk of exclusion).

RESULTS

Among 111 885 ICU encounters representing 95 549 patients, there were 16 688 encounters with Black patients (14.9%) and 51 464 (46.0%) encounters with women and the mean (SD) age was 63.3 (16.9) years. The median (interquartile range) SOFA score was not statistically significantly different between Black and White patients (4 [2-6] for both groups; P = .19), but mortality was lower among Black individuals compared with White individuals with equivalent SOFA scores (odds ratio [OR], 0.98; 95% CI, 0.97-0.99; P < .001). This was associated with lower mortality among Black patients compared with White patients prioritized for resource allocation in 3 CSC under shortage conditions that were severe (system A: OR, 0.65; 95% CI, 0.58-0.74; P < .001; system B: OR, 0.70; 95% CI, 0.64-0.78; P < .001; system C: OR, 0.73; 95% CI, 0.67-0.80; P < .001), intermediate (system A: OR, 0.73; 95% CI, 0.67-0.80; P < .001; system B: OR, 0.83; 95% CI, 0.77-0.89; P < .001; system C: OR, 0.82; 95% CI, 0.77-0.89; P < .001), and low (system A: OR, 0.83; 95% CI, 0.77-0.89; P < .001; system C: OR, 0.86; 95% CI, 0.81-0.92; P < .001; not applicable for system B, which had fewer tiers). When SOFA-based ranking rules were adjusted for Black patients to simulate equitable allocation based on observed mortality, the proportion upgraded to higher priority ranged from 379 Black patient encounters (2.3%) in low shortage conditions to 2601 Black patient encounters (15.6%) in severe shortage conditions.

CONCLUSIONS AND RELEVANCE

This study found that SOFA scores were associated with overestimated mortality among Black patients compared with White patients, and this was associated with a structural disadvantage for Black patients in CSC allocation systems. These findings suggest that guidelines should be revised to correct this inequity and alternative methods should be developed for more equitable triage.

Addressing Mistrust About COVID-19 Vaccines Among Patients of Color

This commentary suggests specific strategies and language that clinicians can use to address mistrust of COVID-19 vaccines among racial and ethnic minorities.

COVID-19 Among African Americans: An Action Plan for Mitigating Disparities

As the COVID-19 pandemic has unfolded across the United States, troubling disparities in mortality have emerged between different racial groups, particularly African Americans and Whites. Media reports, a growing body of COVID-19-related literature, and long-standing knowledge of structural racism and its myriad effects on the African American community provide important lenses for understanding and addressing these disparities.However, troubling gaps in knowledge remain, as does a need to act. Using the best available evidence, we present risk- and place-based recommendations for how to effectively address these disparities in the areas of data collection, COVID-19 exposure and testing, health systems collaboration, human capital repurposing, and scarce resource allocation.Our recommendations are supported by an analysis of relevant bioethical principles and public health practices. Additionally, we provide information on the efforts of Chicago, Illinois' mayoral Racial Equity Rapid Response Team to reduce these disparities in a major urban US setting.

Practical Lessons for Teaching About Race and Racism: Successfully Leading Free, Frank, and Fearless Discussions

Successfully teaching about race and racism requires a careful balance of emotional safety and honest truth-telling. Creating such environments where all learners can thrive and grow together is a challenge, but a consistently doable one. This article describes 12 lessons learned within 4 main themes: ground rules; language and communication; concepts of social constructs, intersectionality, and bidirectional biases; and structural racism, solutions, and advocacy. The authors' recommendations for how to successfully teach health professions students about race and racism come from their collective experience of over 60 years of instruction, research, and practice. Proficiency in discussing race and addressing racism will become increasingly relevant as health care institutions strive to address the social needs of patients (e.g., food insecurity, housing instability) that contribute to poor health and are largely driven by structural inequities. Having interprofessional team-based care, with teams better able to understand and counteract their own biases, will be critical to addressing the social and structural determinants of health for marginalized patients. Recognizing that implicit biases about race impact both patients and health professions students from underrepresented racial/ethnic backgrounds is a critical step toward building robust curricula about race and health equity that will improve the learning environment for trainees and reduce health disparities.

Potential Unintended Consequences Of Recent Shared Decision Making Policy Initiatives

Shared decision making (SDM)-when clinicians and patients make medical decisions together-is moving swiftly from an ethical ideal toward widespread clinical implementation affecting millions of patients through recent policy initiatives. We argue that policy initiatives to promote SDM implementation in clinical practice carry the risk of several unintended negative consequences if limitations in defining and measuring SDM are not addressed. We urge policy makers to include prespecified definitions of desired outcomes, offer guidance on the tools used to measure SDM in the multitude of contexts in which it occurs, evaluate the impact of SDM policy initiatives over time, review that impact at regular intervals, and revise SDM measurement tools as needed.

Readmission drivers for children with medical complexity: Home nursing shortages cause health crises

OBJECTIVE

Children with medical technology dependence (MTD) are frequently readmitted to the hospital. However, due to their medical fragility, it is often difficult to untangle the root causes for readmissions to identify the most effective preventive approaches. We sought to explore environmental and family factors driving hospital readmissions for children with MTD.

DESIGN

Semi-structured, in-person interviews were conducted with state-wide care coordinators for children with MTD in Illinois with at least 1 year of experience. Interview topics related to children with MTD transitioning from hospital-to-home, essential supports for living in the community, and factors which influenced and prevented hospital readmission. The interview guide served as an initial codebook which was iteratively modified as themes emerged.

RESULTS

Fifteen care coordinators with on average 6.6 years of experience were interviewed. They described that lack of home nursing was one of the primary drivers of readmissions due to parental exhaustion and lack of medical expertize in the home. Unavoidable medical admissions, a lack of a plan for emergencies, and home environmental factors also contributed to readmissions.

CONCLUSION

Hospital readmission is an expected occurrence for children with MTD, yet still may be substantially reduced through consistent, quality home health nursing to bolster family capacity and allow for respite from constant caregiving. Improved incentives for the home health workforce to increase manpower would be ultimately offset by reduced hospitalizations for children with MTD. Additionally, more research is needed to understand which home nursing structures and skills optimally support families in the reality of manpower scarcity.

New research directions on disparities in obesity and type 2 diabetes

Obesity and type 2 diabetes disproportionately impact U.S. racial and ethnic minority communities and low-income populations. Improvements in implementing efficacious interventions to reduce the incidence of type 2 diabetes are underway (i.e., the National Diabetes Prevention Program), but challenges in effectively scaling-up successful interventions and reaching at-risk populations remain. In October 2017, the National Institutes of Health convened a workshop to understand how to (1) address socioeconomic and other environmental conditions that perpetuate disparities in the burden of obesity and type 2 diabetes; (2) design effective prevention and treatment strategies that are accessible, feasible, culturally relevant, and acceptable to diverse population groups; and (3) achieve sustainable health improvement approaches in communities with the greatest burden of these diseases. Common features of guiding frameworks to understand and address disparities and promote health equity were described. Promising research directions were identified in numerous areas, including study design, methodology, and core metrics; program implementation and scalability; the integration of medical care and social services; strategies to enhance patient empowerment; and understanding and addressing the impact of psychosocial stress on disease onset and progression in addition to factors that support resiliency and health.

mHealth Interventions for Disadvantaged and Vulnerable People with Type 2 Diabetes

BACKGROUND

Mobile- and Internet-delivered (collectively, digital) interventions are widely used by persons with diabetes (PWD) to assist with self-management and improve/maintain glycemic control (hemoglobin A1c [A1c]). However, evidence concerning the acceptance and benefits of such interventions among disadvantaged/vulnerable PWD is still quite limited.

PURPOSE OF REVIEW

We reviewed studies published from 2011-April 2019 evaluating the impact of diabetes self-management interventions delivered via mobile device and/or Internet on glycemic control of disadvantaged/vulnerable adults with type 2 diabetes (T2D). Included studies reported ≥ 50% of the sample having a low socioeconomic status and/or being a racial/ethnic minority, or living in a rural setting or low-/middle-income country (LMIC). We identified 21 studies evaluating a digital intervention among disadvantaged/vulnerable PWD.

RECENT FINDINGS

Although many digital interventions found within-group A1c improvements (16 of 21 studies), only seven of the seventeen studies with a control group found between-group differences in A1c. Three studies found reductions in emergency room (ER) visits and hospitalizations. We synthesize this information, and provide recommendations for increasing access, and improving the design and usability of such interventions. We also discuss the role of human support in digital delivery, issues related to study design, reporting, economic value, and available research in LMICs. There is evidence suggesting that digital interventions can improve diabetes control, healthcare utilization, and healthcare costs. More research is needed to substantiate these early findings, and many issues remain in order to optimize the impact of digital interventions on the health outcomes of disadvantaged/vulnerable persons with diabetes.

Social Isolation, Loneliness, And Violence Exposure In Urban Adults

Social isolation is a key predictor of mortality in the US and may be heightened in communities affected by violence. Qualitative studies have documented that people living in high-crime neighborhoods often report being confined to their homes because of safety concerns. However, few quantitative studies have empirically assessed relationships between violence exposure and social isolation. In 2018 we conducted hour-long, in-person surveys with 504 adults in Chicago, Illinois. Prior exposure to community violence was associated with a 3.3-point reduction (on a 100-point scale) in the frequency of interaction with network confidantes, a 7.3-point reduction in perceived social support from friends, and a 7.8-point increase in loneliness. At a time when public health and policy leaders are calling for solutions to the "epidemic of loneliness," identifying populations at higher risk because of violence could help target interventions and ensure equitable access to social and medical support.

Unmet Respite Needs of Children With Medical Technology Dependence

Children with medical technology dependency (MTD) require a medical device to compensate for a vital body function and substantial nursing care. As such, they require constant high-level supervision. Respite care provides caregivers with a temporary break, and is associated with reduced stress; however, there are often barriers. The study utilizes mixed methodology with the National Survey of Children with Special Health Care Needs (NS-CSHCN) and semistructured interviews with state-wide care coordinators to understand the gap for respite care services. Fifty-nine percent of parents who needed respite care received none. Parents of older children with MTD were more likely to report respite needs. Care coordinators described that home health shortages created barriers to respite care utilization, and the lack of respite care can lead to hospital readmission. Although respite care is a vital resource to support families of children with MTD, it is infrequently available, which can have severe consequences.