Influences on hospital admission for asthma in south Asian and white adults: qualitative interview study

ObjectiveTo explore reasons for increased risk of hospital admission among south Asian patients with asthma.DesignQualitative interview study using modified critical incident technique and framework analysis.SettingNewham, east London, a deprived area with a large mixed south Asian population.Participants58 south Asian and white adults with asthma (49 admitted to hospital with asthma, 9 not admitted); 17 general practitioners; 5 accident and emergency doctors; 2 out of hours general practitioners; 1 asthma specialist nurse.ResultsSouth Asian and white patients admitted to hospital coped differently with asthma. South Asians described less confidence in controlling their asthma, were unfamiliar with the concept of preventive medication, and often expressed less confidence in their general practitioner. South Asians managed asthma exacerbations with family advocacy, without systematic changes in prophylaxis, and without systemic corticosteroids. Patients describing difficulty accessing primary care during asthma exacerbations were registered with practices with weak strategies for asthma care and were often south Asian. Patients with easy access described care suggesting partnerships with their general practitioner, had better confidence to control asthma, and were registered with practices with well developed asthma strategies that included policies for avoiding hospital admission.ConclusionsThe different ways of coping with asthma exacerbations and accessing care may partly explain the increased risk of hospital admission in south Asian patients. Interventions that increase confidence to control asthma, confidence in the general practitioner, understanding of preventive treatment, and use of systemic corticosteroids in exacerbations may reduce hospital admissions. Development of more sophisticated asthma strategies by practices with better access and partnerships with patients may also achieve this.

What is already known on this topic

South Asian patients with asthma are at increased risk of hospital admission with asthma compared with white patientsNo consistent differences in severity or prevalence of asthma, prescribed drugs, or asthma education have been described, and interventions to reduce admission rates in Asian patients have met with variable success

What this study adds

Compared with white patients, south Asian patients admitted to hospital with asthma had less confidence to control asthma, were unfamiliar with the concept of preventive medication, and had less confidence in their general practitionersSouth Asian patients managed asthma attacks through family advocacy and without systematic changes in prophylaxis and without systemic corticosteroidsPatients reporting difficulty in accessing primary care during attacks were often south Asian     

Which Medication Is the Patient Taking at Admission to the Emergency Ward? Still Unclear Despite the Swedish Prescribed Drug Register

Introduction

Correct information on patients’ medication is crucial for diagnosis and treatment in the Emergency Department. The aim of this study was to investigate the concordance between the admission chart and two other records of the patient’s medication.

Methods

This cohort study includes data on 168 patients over 18 years admitted to the Emergency Ward between September 1 and 30, 2008. The record kept by the general practitioner and the patient record of dispensed drugs in the Swedish Prescribed Drug Register were compared to the admission chart record.

Results

Drug record discrepancies of potential clinical significance between the admission chart record and the Swedish Prescribed Drug Register or general practitioner record were present in 79 and 82 percent, respectively. For 63 percent of the studied patients the admission chart record did not include all drugs registered in the Swedish Prescribed Drug Register. For 62 percent the admission chart record did not include all drugs registered in the general practitioner record. In addition, for 32 percent of the patients the admission chart record included drugs not registered in the Swedish Prescribed Drug Register and for 52 percent the admission chart record included drugs not found in the general practitioner record. The most discordant drug classes were cardiovascular and CNS-active drugs. Clinically significant drug record discrepancies were more frequent in older patients with multiple medication and caregivers.

Conclusion

The apparent absence of an accurate record of the patient’s drugs at admission to the Emergency Ward constitutes a potential patient safety hazard. The available sources in Sweden, containing information on the drugs a particular patient is taking, do not seem to be up to date. These results highlight the importance of an accurate list of currently used drugs that follows the patient and can be accessed upon acute admission to the hospital.     

Fatal opioid overdoses during and shortly after hospital admissions in England: A case-crossover study

BackgroundHospital patients who use illicit opioids such as heroin may use drugs during an admission or leave the hospital in order to use drugs. There have been reports of patients found dead from drug poisoning on the hospital premises or shortly after leaving the hospital. This study examines whether hospital admission and discharge are associated with increased risk of opioid-related death.Methods and findingsWe conducted a case-crossover study of opioid-related deaths in England. Our study included 13,609 deaths between January 1, 2010 and December 31, 2019 among individuals aged 18 to 64. For each death, we sampled 5 control days from the period 730 to 28 days before death. We used data from the national Hospital Episode Statistics database to determine the time proximity of deaths and control days to hospital admissions. We estimated the association between hospital admission and opioid-related death using conditional logistic regression, with a reference category of time neither admitted to the hospital nor within 14 days of discharge. A total of 236/13,609 deaths (1.7%) occurred following drug use while admitted to the hospital. The risk during hospital admissions was similar or lower than periods neither admitted to the hospital nor recently discharged, with odds ratios 1.03 (95% CI 0.87 to 1.21; p = 0.75) for the first 14 days of an admission and 0.41 (95% CI 0.30 to 0.56; p < 0.001) for days 15 onwards. 1,088/13,609 deaths (8.0%) occurred in the 14 days after discharge. The risk of opioid-related death increased in this period, with odds ratios of 4.39 (95% CI 3.75 to 5.14; p < 0.001) on days 1 to 2 after discharge and 2.09 (95% CI 1.92 to 2.28; p < 0.001) on days 3 to 14. 11,629/13,609 deaths (85.5%) did not occur close to a hospital admission, and the remaining 656/13,609 deaths (4.8%) occurred in hospital following admission due to drug poisoning. Risk was greater for patients discharged from psychiatric admissions, those who left the hospital against medical advice, and those leaving the hospital after admissions of 7 days or more. The main limitation of the method is that it does not control for time-varying health or drug use within individuals; therefore, hospital admissions coinciding with high-risk periods may in part explain the results.ConclusionsDischarge from the hospital is associated with an acute increase in the risk of opioid-related death, and 1 in 14 opioid-related deaths in England happens in the 2 weeks after the hospital discharge. This supports interventions that prevent early discharge and improve linkage with community drug treatment and harm reduction services.

In a case-crossover study, Dan Lewer and coauthors investigate factors associated with fatal opioid overdoses during and shortly after hospital admissions in England.     

Adherence to Pharmacotherapy and Medication-Related Beliefs in Patients with Hypertension in Lima,Peru

Objective

To characterize adherence to pharmacological medication and beliefs towards medication in a group of patients with hypertension in a large national hospital.

Materials and Methods

Cross-sectional survey among patients with hypertension attending the outpatient clinic of a large national hospital. Exposure of interest was the patient''s beliefs towards general medication and antihypertensive drugs, i.e. beliefs of harm, overuse, necessity and concern, measured using the Beliefs about Medication questionnaire. Main outcome was adherence measured using the Morisky Medication Adherence Scale-8. Multivariate analysis was conducted using Poisson distribution logistic regression, prevalence ratios and 95% confidence intervals were calculated.

Results

Data from 115 participants, 67% females and mean age 62.7 years were analyzed. Low adherence was found in 57.4%. Highest scores were on the ideas of necessity and one of the most rated statements was “physicians would prescribe less medication if they spent more time with patients”. Beliefs of harm about medications and concerns about antihypertensive drugs were higher in the low adherence group (p<0.01). Those who scored higher on ideas of harm were 52% less likely of being high adherents (PR 0.48; 95% CI 0.25–0.93) and those with higher scores on concerns were 41% less likely of being high adherents (PR 0.59; 95% CI 0.39–0.91). Patients whose ideas of necessity outweighed their concerns were more likely to be adherent (PR 2.65; 95% CI 1.21–5.81).

Conclusions

Low adherence to antihypertensive medication is common. High scores on ideas of harm, concern and a high necessity-concern differential were predictors of medication adherence.     

Hospital Utilisation in Indigenous and Non-Indigenous Infants under 12 Months of Age in Western Australia,Prospective Population Based Data Linkage Study

BackgroundIndigenous infants (infants aged under 12 months) have the highest hospital admission and emergency department presentation risks in Australia. However, there have been no recent reports comparing hospital utilisation between Indigenous and non-Indigenous infants.MethodsOur primary objective was to use a large prospective population-based linked dataset to assess the risk of all-cause hospital admission and emergency department presentation in Indigenous compared to non-Indigenous infants in Western Australia (WA). Secondary objectives were to assess the effect of socio-economic status (Index of Relative Socio-Economic Disadvantage [IRSD]) on hospital utilisation and to understand the causes of hospital utilisation.FindingsThere were 3,382 (5.4%) Indigenous and 59,583 (94.6%) non-Indigenous live births in WA from 1 January 2010 to 31 December 2011. Indigenous infants had a greater risk of hospital admission (adjusted odds ratio [aOR] 1.90, 95% confidence interval [95% CI] 1.77–2.04, p = <0.001) and emergency department presentation (aOR 2.15, 95% CI 1.98–2.33, p = <0.001) compared to non-Indigenous infants. Fifty nine percent (59.0%) of admissions in Indigenous children were classified as preventable compared to 31.2% of admissions in non-Indigenous infants (aOR 2.12, 95% CI 1.88–2.39). The risk of hospital admission in the most disadvantaged (IRSD 1) infants in the total cohort (35.7%) was similar to the risk in the least disadvantaged (IRSD 5) infants (30.6%) (aOR 1.04, 95% CI 0.96–1.13, p = 0.356).InterpretationWA Indigenous infants have much higher hospital utilisation than non Indigenous infants. WA health services should prioritise Indigenous infants regardless of their socio economic status or where they live.     

中西药物联合应用的管理对消化内科患者临床用药合理性的影响

目的:研究药剂科积极参与下中西药联合使用对消化内科患者用药合理性的影响。方法:选取我院2014年1月至2015年12月收治且确诊为消化性疾病患者184例,通过随机数表法将患者平均分为对照组和实验组,对照组给予临床常规中西药联合治疗,观察并统计临床反应;实验组给予中西药联合治疗,由本院药剂科参与人员、临床医师联合管理。统计并分析两组疗效、用药合理性及不良反应。结果:对照组总有效率为82.60%,明显低于实验组的94.56%(X~2=5.944,p=0.015);对照组用药合理率为77.17%,明显低于实验组的89.13%(X~2=5.102,p=0.024);对照组不良反应合理率为61.96%,明显低于实验组的88.04%(X~2=18.026,p0.001)。结论:药剂科的积极参与提高了中西药联合使用对消化内科患者的疗效,也降低了不良反应的发生率。     

临床用药风险管理常见问题及应对措施

目的：对我院不安全用药行为进行监测与调查,分析临床用药问题中存在的风险因素,探讨医疗机构加强药品风险管理的措施,以减少临床用药的安全隐患。方法：采用调查问卷的方式,对我院部分科室就诊患者的用药情况进行问卷调查;应用“医院用药安全监测与评价”软件对我院医护人员在临床用药管理方面存在的风险因素进行评估,整理并分析调查结果。结果：在本次临床用药风险分析中,各因素所占比例为：医生：30.50%,药师：9.00%,护士：32.00%,患者：28.50%。了解临床用药各环节中存在的临床用药风险的医护人员占83.3%,但只有50.6% 的人员采取基本的防范措施。用药风险警示调查显示：PASS 警示有效率为57.5%;关联因素评价中人员因素的发生率最高55.16%;外界因素次之31.29%;药物因素发生率为26.95%。结论：医疗机构应当加强临床用药管理,识别、分析用药风险因素,强化合理用药意识及知识,努力构建临床用药风险控制系统,为医药护理人员及患者营造良好的医疗安全氛围,从而降低用药风险的发生,保障患者的用药安全。     

自动设别技术在医院药品供应和管理体系中的应用

?????? 运用医院电子化药品物流平台,贯穿整个医院药品物流供应过程,并结合运用条形码扫描自动识别技术来判别调配药品以及数量的准确性,同时客观记录人员绩效管理数据。盘点误差由使用前的0.24%,降至零;2011年度验收拒收药品共74次;专业技术人员配备由7名降至5名。整个电子化药品物流平台贯穿医院药品物流始终,能确保入院药品信息准确,杜绝调剂差错,有效提升人员绩效管理,真正发挥药师应有的专业特长,更好地为患者服务。