Coaching People with Cardiovascular Disease to Close Their "Treatment Gaps" Reduces Hospital Utilization, Saves Lives, and Delivers Net Cost Savings Over 10 Years.

Background: Disease management programs are an essential tool in the fight against rising prevalence and costs associated with cardiovascular disease (CVD). However, there is a lack of evidence on the long-term impact of these programs on clinical outcomes, healthcare utilization, and cost. This study presents a long-term follow up of clinical, healthcare utilization and cost, and mortality consequences of The COACH Program, a 6-month telephone delivered CVD prevention program.

Long guidewire peripheral intravenous catheters in emergency departments for management of difficult intravenous access: A multicenter, pragmatic, randomized controlled trial.

Background: A quarter of patients who present to emergency departments (EDs) have difficult intravenous access (DIVA), making it challenging for clinicians to successfully place a peripheral intravenous catheter (PIVC). Some literature suggests that guidewire PIVC improves first-insertion success rate.

Aim: The aim was to determine the clinical and cost-effectiveness of a novel long PIVC (5.

Informal care and financial stress: Longitudinal evidence from Australia.

The number of people providing informal care has increased considerably in the last years while, at the same time, about one in four Australians have financial stress problems. This study uses rich longitudinal data from the Household, Income and Labour Dynamics in Australia (HILDA) survey to estimate the effect of informal care on financial stress. To establish causality, we exploit a fixed effect-instrumental variable approach to address omitted variable bias and reverse causality problems.

Cost Effectiveness of Strategies to Manage Atrial Fibrillation in Middle- and High-Income Countries: A Systematic Review.

Background: Atrial fibrillation (AF) remains the most common form of cardiac arrhythmia. Management of AF aims to reduce the risk of stroke, heart failure and premature mortality via rate or rhythm control. This study aimed to review the literature on the cost effectiveness of treatment strategies to manage AF among adults living in low-, middle- and high-income countries.

Saving children's lives through interventions: a quasi-experimental analysis of GAVI.

This study evaluates the impact of the Global Alliance for Vaccines and Immunization (GAVI) on children's health outcomes in developing countries. Using a difference-in-differences identification strategy, we find that GAVI has reduced neonatal, infant and under-five mortality rates. The impact of GAVI on children's health outcomes is larger in countries with lower per capita income.

Counting the cost of premature mortality with progressively worse aortic stenosis in Australia: a clinical cohort study.

Background: Aortic stenosis is the most common cardiac valve disorder requiring clinical management. However, there is little evidence on the societal cost of progressive aortic stenosis. We sought to quantify the societal burden of premature mortality associated with progressively worse aortic stenosis.

Testing for selection bias and moral hazard in private health insurance: Evidence from a mixed public-private health system.

Separating selection bias from moral hazard in private health insurance (PHI) markets has been a challenging task. We estimate selection bias and moral hazard in Australia's mixed public-private health system, where PHI premiums are community-rated rather than risk-rated. Using longitudinal cohort data, with fine-grained measures for medical services predominantly funded by PHI providers, we find consistent and robust estimates of advantageous selection among hospitalized cardiovascular disease (CVD) patients.

A baseline profile of the Queensland Cardiac Record Linkage Cohort (QCard) study.

Background: Cardiovascular disease (CVD) is one of the leading causes of death in Australia. Longitudinal record linkage studies have the potency to influence clinical decision making to improve cardiac health. This paper describes the baseline characteristics of the Queensland Cardiac Record Linkage Cohort study (QCard).

Benchmarking hospital safety and identifying determinants of hospital-acquired complication: the case of Queensland cardiac linkage longitudinal cohort.

Background: Hospital-acquired complications (HACs) are costly and associated with adverse health outcomes, although they can be avoided. Administrative linkage health data have become more accessible and can be used to monitor and reduce HAC.

Aims: This study aims to use linkage administrative data to benchmark the safety performance of hospitals and estimate the feasible magnitude that HAC can be reduced.

Weather Trumps Festivity? More Cardiovascular Disease Events Occur in Winter than in December Holidays in Queensland, Australia.

Cardiovascular disease (CVD) is the leading cause of hospitalisations and deaths in Australia. This study estimates the excess CVD hospitalisations and deaths across seasons and during the December holidays in Queensland, Australia. The study uses retrospective, longitudinal, population-based cohort data from Queensland, Australia from January 2010 to December 2015.

Can Administrative Health Data Improve the Gold Standard? Evidence from a Model of the Progression of Myocardial Infarction.

: Myocardial infarction (MI), remains one of the leading causes of death and disability globally but publications on the progression of MI using data from the real world are limited. Multistate models have been widely used to estimate transition rates between disease states to evaluate the cost-effectiveness of healthcare interventions. We apply a Bayesian multistate hidden Markov model to investigate the progression of MI using a longitudinal dataset from Queensland, Australia.

Hospital frailty risk score and adverse health outcomes: evidence from longitudinal record linkage cardiac data.

Background: Despite recent evidence on the effect of frailty on health outcomes among those with heart failure, there is a dearth of knowledge on measuring frailty using administrative health data on a wide range of cardiovascular diseases (CVD).

Methods: We conducted a retrospective record-linkage cohort study of patients with diverse CVD in Queensland, Australia. We investigated the relationship between the risk of frailty, defined using the hospital frailty risk score (HFRS), and 30-day mortality, 30-day unplanned readmission, non-home discharge, length of hospital stay (LOS) at an emergency department and inpatient units and costs of hospitalisation.

A time and cost analysis of speech pathology paediatric feeding services delivered in-person versus via telepractice.

Introduction: Telepractice models of care have the potential to reduce the time and financial burdens that consumers may experience accessing healthcare services. The current study aimed to conduct a time and financial cost analysis of paediatric feeding appointments accessed via telepractice (using videoconferencing) compared to an in-person model.

Methods: Parents of 44 children with paediatric feeding disorders (PFDs) residing in a metropolitan area completed three questionnaires relating to (a) demographics, (b) time and cost for in-person care and (c) time and cost for telepractice.

Excess mortality at Christmas due to cardiovascular disease in the HUNT study prospective population-based cohort in Norway.

Background: Although it is known that winter inclusive of the Christmas holiday period is associated with an increased risk of dying compared to other times of the year, very few studies have specifically examined this phenomenon within a population cohort subject to baseline profiling and prospective follow-up. In such a cohort, we sought to determine the specific characteristics of mortality occuring during the Christmas holidays.

Methods: Baseline profiling and outcome data were derived from a prospective population-based cohort with longitudinal follow-up in Central Norway - the Trøndelag Health (HUNT) Study.

Rising unemployment reduces the demand for healthcare services among people with cardiovascular disease: an Australian cohort study.

Cardiovascular diseases (CVDs) remain a global health challenge due to number of deaths and use of healthcare services related to the condition. Although a plethora of studies have shown the impact of unemployment on health outcomes, evidence on the unemployment effects on the demand for expensive cardiac healthcare services is rare. This study exploits longitudinal cohort dataset to examine the impact of variations in local level unemployment rate on the demand for healthcare services among working aged people with CVD in Australia.

Lifetime Costs of Hospitalised Cardiovascular Disease in Australia: An Incidence-Based Estimate.

Objectives: To estimate the incidence-based, lifetime costs of health care and productivity losses associated with cardiovascular disease (CVD) using hospital admission data from Queensland, Australia.

Methods: Retrospective analysis of data on CVD health care use sourced from Queensland Hospital Admitted Patient Data Collection (QHAPDC), Emergency Department Data Collection (EDDC), Medicare Benefits Schedule (MBS) and the Pharmaceutical Benefits Scheme (PBS). Costs were estimated from the societal perspective.

Investigation of current models of care for genetic heart disease in Australia: A national clinical audit.

Background: This sub-study of the Australian Genomics Cardiovascular Genetic Disorders Flagship sought to conduct the first nation-wide audit in Australia to establish the current practices across cardiac genetics clinics.

Method: An audit of records of patients with a suspected genetic heart disease (cardiomyopathy, primary arrhythmia, autosomal dominant congenital heart disease) who had a cardiac genetics consultation between 1st January 2016 and 31 July 2018 and were offered a diagnostic genetic test.

Results: This audit included 536 records at multidisciplinary cardiac genetics clinics from 11 public tertiary hospitals across five Australian states.

Global mapping of interventions to improve the quality of life of patients with cardiovascular diseases during 1990-2018.

Background: Cardiovascular diseases (CVDs) have been the global health problems that cause a substantial burden for the patients and the society. Assessing the Quality of Life (QOL) of CVD patients is critical in the effectiveness evaluation of CVD treatments as well as in determining potential areas for enhancing health outcomes. Through the adoption of a combination of bibliometric approach and content analysis, publications trend and the common topics regarding interventions to improve QOL of CVD patients were searched and characterized to inform priority setting and policy development.

"It Takes a Whole Day, Even Though It's a One-Hour Appointment!" Factors Impacting Access to Pediatric Feeding Services.

Feeding disorders can have a significant impact on children and their families. Access to supportive multidisciplinary care is central to improving outcomes; however, there are numerous factors that can impact service access. Using a mixed methods design, the current study examined parents' experiences and satisfaction with accessing a state-wide government-funded tertiary pediatric feeding clinic in Australia.

Development of frailty measurement tools using administrative health data: A systematic review.

Objectives: Frailty is an increasingly common health condition and is seen more often due to the ageing population. This study reviews the evidence on the development and validation of these automated frailty measurement tools.

Design: Six databases: PubMed, EMBASE, MEDLINE, CINAHL, Scopus, and Web of Science were electronically searched.

Impacts of air pollution on health: evidence from longitudinal cohort data of patients with cardiovascular diseases.

This study uses longitudinal cohort data to estimate the impacts of air pollution on health outcomes among people first hospitalised with heart diseases. Despite the generally low level of pollution in Australia, we find that acute exposure to pollution increases readmissions to hospitals within 3-12 months after discharge and is more evident among those suffering from heart failure. We further show that chronic exposure to air pollution increases the risk of death within 72 months, hospital admissions and general practitioner (GP) visits.

Characterizing Obesity Interventions and Treatment for Children and Youths During 1991-2018.

Overweight and obesity have become a serious health problem globally due to its significant role in increased morbidity and mortality. The treatments for this health issue are various such as lifestyle modifications, pharmacological therapies, and surgery. However, little is known about the productivity, workflow, topics, and landscape research of all the papers mentioning the intervention and treatment for children with obesity.

Malaria infection among children under-five: the use of large-scale interventions in Ghana.

Background: Despite the significant investments to control malaria infection rates over the past years, infection rates remain significant in sub-Saharan Africa. This study investigates the association with use of large-scale malaria interventions such as: Indoor Residual Spraying (IRS), Insecticide Treated bed-Nets (ITN), and Behaviour Change Communication (BCC) strategies, and the prevalence of malaria among children under-five in Ghana.

Methods: Cross-sectional data on 2, 449 children aged 6 to 59 months who were tested for malaria, through Rapid Diagnostic Test (RDT), are drawn from the recent wave of the Ghana Demographic and Health Surveys (GDHS 2014).

Effect of insecticide-treated bed net usage on under-five mortality in northern Ghana.

Background: Although under-five mortality rate seems to be declining in Ghana, the northern part of the country has higher levels of under-five mortality vis-à-vis the national rates. This research examines the correlates of the high under-five mortality among children in the northern part of Ghana, with emphasis on the usage of insecticide-treated bed net (ITN), as recommended by the World Health Organization.

Methods: A total of 3,839 under-five children sourced from the Ghana Demographic and Health Survey--was used for this study.