Patient Information Needs before Agreeing to Genetic Testing: Umbrella Review

To summarize systematic reviews that 1) identify information needs related to clinical, research, or direct-to-consumer genetic testing, 2) assess the efficacy of patient education or genetic counseling interventions for meeting genetic testing information needs and report those needs, and/or 3) report specific information that factors into patients’ decision-making about genetic testing delivered to patients/caregivers prior to deciding whether to undergo genetic testing (including hypothetical testing scenarios)

Evolution of a Mature Clinical Informationist Model

Achieving evidence-based practice will require new approaches to providing information during health care delivery and to integrating evidence and informatics at the point of care. To support evidence-based practice, Vanderbilt University Medical Center's Eskind Biomedical Library (EBL) introduced the role of clinical informationist, an information specialist with sufficient knowledge and insight to function as a true partner in the health care team. To further disseminate evidence-based knowledge, the Vanderbilt University Medical Center's (VUMC) electronic medical record system and pathway development processes integrate advanced information synthesis capabilities provided by clinical informationists. Combining clinical informationist expertise with informatics tools is an effective strategy for delivering the evidence needed to support patient care decisions

National Academy of Medicine Social and Behavioral Measures: Associations With Self-Reported Health.

IntroductionSocial and behavioral factors play important roles in physical and mental health; however, they are not routinely assessed in the healthcare system. A brief panel of measures of social and behavioral determinants of health (SBDs) were recommended in a National Academy of Medicine report for use in electronic health records. Initial testing of the panel established feasibility of use and robustness of the measures. This study evaluates their convergent and divergent validity in relation to self-reported physical and mental health and social desirability bias.MethodsAdults, aged ≥18 years, were recruited through Qualtrics online panel survey platform in 2015 (data analyzed in 2015-2016). Participants completed the (1) panel of SBD measures; (2) 12-Item Short Form Health Survey to assess associations with global physical and mental health; and (3) Marlowe-Crowne Social Desirability Scale short form to assess whether social desirability influenced associations between SBD measures and self-reported health.ResultsThe sample included 513 participants (mean age, 47.9 [SD=14.2] years; 65.5% female). Several SBD domain measures were associated with physical and mental health. Adjusting for age, poorer physical and mental health were observed among participants reporting higher levels of financial resource strain, stress, depression, physical inactivity, current tobacco use, and a positive score for intimate partner violence. These associations remained significant after adjustment for social desirability bias.ConclusionsSBD domains were associated with global measures of physical and mental health and were not impacted by social desirability bias. The panel of SBD measures should now be tested in clinical settings