AHRQ Awards $45 Million in Grants To Expand Access to Care for People With Long COVID

AHRQ Stats: Trends in Severe Maternal Morbidity Between 2012 and 2019

Severe maternal morbidity rates in the United States increased 15 percent from 69.5 events per every 10,000 deliveries in 2012 to 79.7 per every 10,000 deliveries in 2019. Among 20 indicators of severe maternal morbidity, acute kidney failure had the greatest increase, from 6.4 instances per every 10,000 deliveries in 2012 to 15.3 in 2019. (Source: JAMA Network Open, Trends in Severe Maternal Morbidity in the US Across the Transition from ICD-10-CM/PCS from 2012-2019.) 

Today's Headlines:

• AHRQ Awards $45 Million in Grants To Expand Access to Care for People With Long COVID.
• People With Disabilities Designated as Health Disparity Population.
• AHRQ Views Blog Posts on Consumer Experience, Hispanic Heritage Month.
• New Challenge Competition Aimed at Advancing Equitable Uptake of Preventive Services.
• HHS Lauds 50th Anniversary of Rehabilitation Act.
• AHRQ Grantee Protects Patients From Drug-Drug Medication Errors.
• Highlights From AHRQ’s Patient Safety Network.
• AHRQ in the Professional Literature.

AHRQ Awards $45 Million in Grants To Expand Access to Care for People With Long COVID

New grant awards from AHRQ will provide nine clinics up to $45 million over five years to implement and evaluate models for delivering comprehensive, coordinated, person-centered care to people with Long COVID. The investments are aimed at supporting underserved, rural, vulnerable and minority populations that are disproportionately impacted by the condition. The initiative is part of the Biden-Harris administration's whole-government effort to accelerate scientific progress and provide individuals with Long COVID support and services. The AHRQ-funded Long COVID clinics will enhance services for adult, pediatric and priority populations through strategies such as expanding in-person and virtual visit capacity; establishing new satellite clinics; adding dedicated care coordination, social services and language interpretive staff; and integrating behavioral and rehabilitation support programs. Access more information and the press release.

People With Disabilities Designated as Health Disparity Population

In consultation with AHRQ Director Robert Otto Valdez, Ph.D., M.H.S.A, the National Institute on Minority Health and Health Disparities (NIMHD) has designated people with disabilities as a health disparity population. The decision was made after consideration of a report (PDF, 662 KB) delivered by an NIMHD advisory council, input from the disability community and a review of the science and evidence. The designation is one of several steps taken by the National Institutes of Health (NIH) to address health disparities faced by people with disabilities and ensure their representation in NIH research. Access the press release and a statement from Eliseo J. Pérez-Stable, M.D., director of NIMHD, and Director Valdez.

AHRQ Views Blog Posts on Consumer Experience, Hispanic Heritage Month

• Advancing the Impact of Consumer Experience of Care Measurement: What’s Next? Members of AHRQ’s National Advisory Council explore the current state of the science of consumer experience measurement. While noting the seminal work done by AHRQ’s Consumer Assessment of Healthcare Providers and Systems (CAHPS®) program, Komal Bajaj, M.D., M.S.-H.P.Ed., and Elizabeth Mort, M.D., M.P.H., note that rapid changes in healthcare delivery provide many opportunities for patients to contribute to the design and evaluation of care programs. They suggest several principles that may be embraced while seeking to learn more about patients’ perspectives on care and outcomes.
• During National Hispanic Heritage Month, AHRQ Salutes Promotores de Salud. In recognition of National Hispanic Heritage Month, Sept. 15 to Oct. 15, AHRQ Director Robert Otto Valdez, Ph.D., M.H.S.A., recognizes the important role played by promotores de salud. These volunteers—literally, “health promoters”— provide a support network to advance health education, follow-up care, and case management in hundreds of communities nationwide. Dr. Valdez also highlights several AHRQ resources available to enhance communication and engagement with patients and families, including resources for promotores de salud and Información en español.

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New Challenge Competition Aimed at Advancing Equitable Uptake of Preventive Services

A new AHRQ challenge competition will award $440,000 to prize winners who create data visualizations to identify inequities in the receipt of preventive services, better understand underlying factors and develop novel approaches to address health equity in clinical preventative services. Proposals are encouraged from teams partnering with health systems in in medically underserved areas/populations. In the first phase, competitors will describe the research team, the data visualization(s), possible drivers of disparities and potential interventions to address care gaps. The second phase requires competitors to develop and deploy the visualization and intervention(s) across a participating health system. The first-place winner will receive $150,000. Access more information.

HHS Lauds 50th Anniversary of Rehabilitation Act

AHRQ Director Robert Otto Valdez, Ph.D., M.H.S.A., joined HHS Secretary Xavier Becerra and other Department officials in marking the passage of the Rehabilitation Act of 1973, a turning point in civil rights history for people with disabilities that also paved the way for the Americans with Disabilities Act. Director Valdez emphasized the agency’s commitment to “following the principles of the Rehabilitation Act to ensure that healthcare is equitably available so that every individual may access the healthcare they need or want.” Access the HHS statement.

AHRQ Grantee Protects Patients From Drug-Drug Medication Errors

AHRQ grantee Daniel C. Malone, Ph.D., is helping to make care safer by increasing understanding of drug-drug interactions and developing tools that alert physicians and patients to potentially risky drug combinations. A professor of pharmacotherapy at the University of Utah’s Skaggs College of Pharmacy, Dr. Malone established a framework for collecting and disseminating information on drug-drug interactions. He also worked to optimize digital tools, such as drug-drug interaction alerts and shared decision-making resources. These efforts are helping to protect patients from preventable medication errors. Access Dr. Malone’s profile and the profiles of other AHRQ grantees.

Highlights From AHRQ’s Patient Safety Network

AHRQ’s Patient Safety Network (PSNet) highlights journal articles, books and tools related to patient safety. Articles featured this week include:

• Ten years later, alarm fatigue is still a safety concern.
• Preventing potential patient harm through clinical content interventions during oncology clinical trial implementation.
• Pharmacy e-prescription dispensing before and after CancelRx implementation.

Review additional new publications in PSNet’s current issue or access recent cases and commentaries in AHRQ’s WebM&M (Morbidity and Mortality Rounds on the Web).

AHRQ in the Professional Literature

Postdischarge noninvasive telemonitoring and nurse telephone coaching improve outcomes in heart failure patients with high burden of comorbidity. Kimchi A, Aronow HU, Ni YM, et al. J Card Fail 2023 May;29(5):774-83. Epub 2022 Dec 13. Access the abstract on PubMed®.

Family safety reporting in medically complex children: parent, staff, and leader perspectives. Khan A, Baird J, Kelly MM, et al. Pediatrics 2022 Jun;149(6). Access the abstract on PubMed®.

Family safety reporting in hospitalized children with medical complexity. Mercer AN, Mauskar S, Baird J, et al. Pediatrics 2022 Aug 1;150(2). Access the abstract on PubMed®.

Parent experiences with the process of sharing inpatient safety concerns for children with medical complexity: a qualitative analysis. Kieren MQ, Kelly MM, Garcia MA, et al. Acad Pediatr 2023 Jun 9. [Epub ahead of print.] Access the abstract on PubMed®.

Home healthcare patients with distinct psychological, cognitive, and behavioral symptom profiles and at-risk subgroup for hospitalization and emergency department visits using latent class analysis. Min SH, Song J, Evans L, et al. Clin Nurs Res 2023 Sep;32(7):1021-30. Epub 2023 Jun 22. Access the abstract on PubMed®.

Disparities in geospatial patterns of cancer care within urban counties and structural inequities in access to oncology care. McGee-Avila JK, Richmond J, Henry KA, et al. Health Serv Res 2023 Aug;58(Suppl 2):152-64. Epub 2023 May 19. Access the abstract on PubMed®.

A novel, evidence-based, comprehensive clinical decision support system improves outcomes for patients with traumatic rib fractures. Jones EK, Ninkovic I, Bahr M, et al. J Trauma Acute Care Surg 2023 Aug 1;95(2):161-71. Epub 2023 Apr 4. Access the abstract on PubMed®.

Rural-urban differences in health care unaffordability during the postpartum period. MacDougall H, Hanson S, Interrante JD, et al. Med Care 2023 Sep;61(9):595-600. Epub 2023 Aug 10. Access the abstract on PubMed®.