Research Activities

December 2007, No. 328

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Contents

About Research Activities

Feature Story

Common medications provide equal blood pressure control

Child/Adolescent Health

Over 5 million eligible children remain uninsured, despite SCHIP enrollment gains
Many underinsured U.S. children are not getting needed vaccines due to the current vaccine financing system
Family-centered, high quality primary care is linked to fewer nonurgent emergency department visits by children
Parents and children are mostly passive during pediatric visits
Treatments for pediatric Crohn's disease cases vary widely in North America

Patient Safety and Quality

Full disclosure of medical errors to patients is becoming more and more transparent
Many errors by medical residents are caused by teamwork breakdowns and lack of supervision
Hospital CEOs need more research relevant to the challenges they face in the health care system
Pilot study suggests that after-hours telephone medical consultations may pose risks to patient safety

Acute Care/Hospitalization

Women leaving the hospital against medical advice after delivering a baby should be targeted for more services
Studies suggest ways to improve the hospital discharge process to reduce postdischarge adverse events and rehospitalizations
Interns taught teamwork during neonatal resuscitation training may be better able to resuscitate newborns

Elderly/Long-term Care

Many seniors will pay double the monthly copay for angiotensin receptor blockers under the Medicare Part D drug plan compared with their previous plans
Prescribing antidepressants for elderly persons should not be affected by concern about drug-related pneumonia risk
A pharmacy alert system plus physician-pharmacist collaboration can reduce inappropriate drug prescribing among elderly outpatients

Chronic Disease

Use of simple clinical information systems can improve outcomes of patients with diabetes
Primary care practices face competing demands, not clinical inertia, in providing quality care to patients with diabetes
Severe food insecurity among low-income adults is linked to an increased rate of diabetes
Adults with food allergies tend to have more severe asthma

Primary Care Research

Colorectal cancer screening can be improved at primary care practices
Doctors should advise Latino families about the safety, low cost, and dental health benefits of drinking tap water

Outcomes/Effectiveness Research

Both invasive and noninvasive strategies can reduce the cardiac risks of noncardiac surgery
Patients with HIV who share treatment decisions with their doctor have better outcomes

Emergency Medicine

Studies explore the challenges and complexities faced by paramedics performing out-of-hospital endotracheal intubation

Mental/Emotional Health

Despite their robust physical health and general optimism, a host of issues trouble young adults with depression

Agency News and Notes

New AHRQ tools help pharmacies better serve patients with limited health literacy
AHRQ report recommends use of existing call centers to expand communications in public health emergencies

Announcements

AHRQ releases a new DVD about designing hospitals for safety and quality

Research Briefs

Research Briefs

AHRQ Publication No. 08-0009
Current as of December 2007

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Internet Citation:

Research Activities Newsletter. December 2007, No. 328. AHRQ Publication No. 08-0009. Agency for Healthcare Research and Quality, Rockville, MD. http://www.ahrq.gov/research/dec07/

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