A Cluster Randomized Trial of Adding Peer Specialists To Intensive Case Management Teams in the Veterans Health Administration

Use of Peer Specialists (PSs)—individuals with serious mental illness who use their experiences to help others with serious mental illness—is increasing. However, their impact on patient outcomes has not been demonstrated definitively. This cluster randomized, controlled trial within the Veterans Health Administration compared patients served by three intensive case management teams that each deployed two PSs for one year, to the patients of three similar teams without PSs (Usual Care). All patients (PS group=149, Usual Care=133) had substantial psychiatric inpatient histories and a primary Axis 1 psychiatric disorder. Before and after the year PSs worked, patients were surveyed on their recovery, quality of life, activation (health self-management efficacy), interpersonal relations, and symptoms. Patients in the PS group improved significantly more (z=2.00, df=1, p=0.05) than those receiving Usual Care on activation. There were no other significant differences. PSs helped patients become more active in treatment, which can promote recovery

Brief motivational enhancement intervention to prevent or reduce postpartum alcohol use: a single-blinded, randomized controlled effectiveness trial

AIMS: The aim of this study is to assess the effect of brief motivational enhancement intervention postpartum alcohol use. DESIGN: This study is a single-blinded, randomized controlled effectiveness trial in which pregnant women were assigned to receive usual care or up to 5 face-to-face brief motivational enhancement sessions lasting 10-30 minutes each and occurring at study enrollment, 4 and 8 weeks after enrollment, 32 weeks of gestation, and 6 weeks postpartum. SETTING: The setting is in a large, urban, obstetrics clinic. PARTICIPANTS: Participants were women who were \u3e/= 18 years old,gestation, and consumed alcohol during pregnancy. Of 3438 women screened, 330 eligible women were assigned to usual care (n = 165) or intervention (n=165). Due to missing data, we analyzed 125 in the intervention group and 126 in the usual care group. MEASUREMENTS: The measurements were the proportion of women with any alcohol use and the number of drinks per day, reported via follow-up telephone interviews at 4 and 8 weeks after enrollment, 32 weeks of gestation, and 6 weeks, 6 months, and 12 months postpartum. FINDINGS: In random effects models adjusted for confounders, the intervention group was less likely to use any alcohol (odds ratio 0.50; 95% confidence interval [CI], 0.23-1.09; P=0.08) and consumed fewer drinks per day (coefficient -0.11; 95% CI -0.23-0.01; P=0.07) than, the usual care group in the postpartum period but these differences were non-significant. Missing data during the prenatal period prevented us from modeling prenatal alcohol use. CONCLUSIONS: Brief motivational enhancement intervention delivered in an obstetrical outpatient setting did not conclusively decrease alcohol use during the postpartum period

Residents' perceptions of a night float system

Background. A Night Float (NF) system has been implemented by many institutions to address increasing concerns about residents' work hours. The purpose of our study was to examine the perceptions of residents towards a NF system. Methods. A 115-item questionnaire was developed to assess residents' perceptions of the NF rotation as compared with a regular call month. The categories included patient care, education, medical errors, and overall satisfaction. Internal Medicine housestaff (post-graduate years 1-3) from three hospital settings at the University of Pittsburgh completed the questionnaire. Results. The response rate was 90% (n = 149). Of these, 74 had completed the NF rotation. The housestaff felt that the quality of patient care was improved because of NF (41% agreed and 18% disagreed). A majority also felt that better care was provided by a rested physician in spite of being less familiar with the patient (46% agreed and 21% disagreed). Most felt that there was less emphasis on education (65%) and more emphasis on service (52%) during NF. Overall, the residents felt more rested during their call months (83%) and strongly supported the 80-hour workweek requirement (77%). Conclusion. Housestaff felt that the overall quality of patient care was improved by a NF system. The perceived improved quality of care by a rested physician coupled with a perceived decrease in the emphasis on education may have significant implications in housestaff training. © 2009 Jasti et al; licensee BioMed Central Ltd

Black–White Differences in Severity of Coronary Artery Disease Among Individuals with Acute Coronary Syndromes

OBJECTIVE: To determine whether the extent of coronary obstructive disease is similar among black and white patients with acute coronary syndromes. DESIGN: Retrospective chart review. PATIENTS: We used administrative discharge data to identify white and black male patients, 30 years of age or older, who were discharged between October 1, 1989 and September 30, 1995 from 1 of 6 Department of Veterans Affairs (VA) hospitals with a primary diagnosis of acute myocardial infarction (AMI) or unstable angina (UnA) and who underwent coronary angiography during the admission. We excluded patients if they did not meet standard clinical criteria for AMI or UnA or if they had had prior percutaneous transluminal coronary angioplasty or coronary artery bypass grafting. MEASUREMENTS AND MAIN RESULTS: Physician reviewers classified the degree of coronary obstruction from blinded coronary angiography reports. Obstruction was considered significant if there was at least 50% obstruction of the left main coronary artery, or if there was 70% obstruction in 1 of the 3 major epicardial vessels or their main branches. Of the 628 eligible patients, 300 (48%) had AMI. Among patients with AMI, blacks were more likely than whites to have no significant coronary obstructions (28/145, or 19%, vs 10/155 or 7%, P = .001). Similarly, among patients with UnA, 33% (56/168) of blacks but just 17% (27/160) of whites had no significant stenoses (P = .012). There were no racial differences in severity of coronary disease among veterans with at least 1 significant obstruction. Racial differences in coronary obstructions remained after correcting for coronary disease risk factors and characteristics of the AMI. CONCLUSIONS: Black veterans who present with acute coronary insufficiency are less likely than whites to have significant coronary obstruction. Current understanding of coronary disease does not provide an explanation for these differences

Psychiatric outcomes following medical and surgical abortion

BACKGROUND: Hypercortisolaemia is associated with certain depressive disorders. Mifepristone has possible antidepressant properties related to its anti-glucocorticoid activity. To explore the possible mood effects of mifepristone, we examined the mood outcomes after surgical and medical (mifepristone-misoprostol) abortion. The objectives were to determine post-abortion depression risk, evaluate risk factors for post-abortion depression and to explore the relationship between cortisol and depression. METHODS: We enrolled 47 surgical and 31 medical abortion patients. Women were assessed pre-abortion and 1 month post-abortion with the Edinburgh Postnatal Depression Scale (EPDS) and salivary cortisol levels. RESULTS: Pre-abortion, 36% (17/47) of surgical and 35% (11/31) of medical patients had high depression risk (EPDS \u3e or = 10; (chi(2) = 0.31, df = 1, P = 0.58). At follow-up, 17% (7/42) of surgical and 21% (5/24) of medical patients had an EPDS \u3e or = 10 (chi(2) = 0.18, df = 1, P = 0.67). The decline post-abortion in the women with EPDS \u3e or = 10 was significant (P = 0.01). Women with past psychiatric history (Fisher\u27s exact P = 0.05) or anxiety disorders (Fisher\u27s exact P = 0.005) had elevated risk for post-abortion depression. Change in cortisol levels was not correlated with change in EPDS (r = 0.10, P = 0.28). CONCLUSIONS: Most patients experienced post-abortion mood improvement. Mifepristone did not offer additional antidepressant effects. The lack of correlation between cortisol and depression could represent hypersuppression of the hypothalamic-pituitary-adrenal (HPA) axis or insufficient mifepristone dose to alter HPA axis activity