September 2008, No. 337
Contents
About Research Activities
Feature Story
Surgical errors cost nearly $1.5 billion annually
Patient Safety and Quality
Registered nurses are key to detecting, correcting, and preventing
medical errors during critical care
Use of voluntary reporting along with other strategies best
identifies adverse drug events affecting children
Women's Health
Pregnant Latinas who experience intimate partner violence are
more likely to be depressed or have PTSD
Women sexually abused by partners have worse health than
never abused women, even years after the abuse has stopped
Intimate partner violence affects the abused women as well as the
care use and costs of their children
Black women's choice of hospital to give birth contributes to
racial disparities in neonatal deaths
Women's perception of risk affects screening for colon cancer,
but not cervical or breast cancer
Women who receive food stamps are more likely to be
overweight and obese and to spend more on health care
Child/Adolescent Health
Overweight adolescents with type 2 diabetes underestimate their
weight problem, as do their parents
Black girls look at being overweight with different eyes
Task Force recommends screening for hearing loss in all newborns
Most children who enroll in SCHIP still have some type of health
insurance a year later
Elderly/Long-term Care
Fewer elderly persons are developing heart failure and those who
do are surviving longer
Incident reporting system helps gather information that can
reduce falls by nursing home residents
Improving health literacy in elderly patients may enhance health
status and reduce use of health care services
Racial disparities in care for the elderly persisted and even
worsened for some procedures in the late 1990s
Health Information Technology
Small hospitals owned by multihospital systems have higher
levels of electronic medical record adoption
Pharmaceutical Research
Patients' distrust of the drug industry's influence on doctors and
other beliefs may affect drug adherence
Direct-to-patient mailings increase adherence to beta-blocker
therapy after heart attack
Although most children and adolescents have been vaccinated
against hepatitis B virus, adults lag behind
Growth hormone builds muscle in athletes, but may not help
sports performance
Preventive Care
AHRQ and AARP team to help adults over 50 stay healthy
Men with certain risk factors for osteoporosis should be
screened for the condition
Use of prevention drugs after heart attacks declines steadily
after hospital discharge
Hypertension in the emergency department may signal undiagnosed
hypertension, not just pain or anxiety
Mental Health
Youth at highest risk of attempting suicide are severely
depressed and suffered a recent romantic breakup or assault
Emergency department clinicians rarely address depression
Ten-day lapse in antipsychotic drug use is associated with an
increased risk of hospitalization in patients with schizophrenia
Home Health Care
Report offers resources for home health care response during a
flu pandemic
The Balanced Budget Act of 1997 reduced the number of home
health aides
Dental Health
Having medical, not dental insurance, leads to dental
appointments
Untreated tooth decay remains a substantial problem for children
with public insurance coverage
Access to Care
Native Americans, nonurban residents, and people living in the
South travel further for specialized cancer care
Gaps in children's health insurance are linked to unmet health
care needs
Acute Care/Hospitalization
Estrogen levels predict life or death in critically ill patients
Reducing community contacts by half within 7 days may allow
for local control of a flu pandemic
HIV/AIDS Research
Studies reveal the impact of agency coordination and high
incarceration rates on sexually transmitted disease rates
Agency News and Notes
Hospitalizations soar for children with skin infections
Pneumonia is the most common reason for hospitalization
Thousands are struck down by summer heat and most are poor
Antidepressant prescriptions climb by 16 million
Announcements
New feature on AHRQ PSNet: Patient Safety Primers
Research Briefs
Research Briefs
Visit the AHRQ Patient Safety Network Web Site
AHRQ Publication No. 08-0073
Current as of September 2008
Internet Citation:
Research Activities Newsletter. September 2008, No. 337. AHRQ Publication No. 08-0073. Agency for Healthcare Research and Quality, Rockville, MD. http://www.ahrq.gov/research/sep08/