More Than Health Care Services: North Carolina's Focus on Improving Whole-person Health and Patient Experience.

North Carolina's transformation to Medicaid managed care is projected to improve health outcomes for the state's Medicaid population and elevate patient experience by integrating the social determinants of health into the state's care model and aligning state, provider, and health plan goals. This will increase access to timely, localized care services for members.

Postdischarge engagement decreased hospital readmissions in Medicaid populations.

Objectives: To investigate the effect of managed care organization (MCO)-implemented postdischarge engagement, supported by other broadly focused interventions, on 30-day hospital readmissions in 6 at-risk Medicaid populations.

Study Design: Prospective cohort study.

Methods: One-year follow-up analysis of member claims data was performed following an intervention period from January 1, 2014, to December 31, 2014.

Multifaceted interventions improve medication adherence and reduce acute hospitalization rates in medicaid patients prescribed asthma controllers.

Objective: To measure the effectiveness of managed care-led interventions in Medicaid subjects with asthma on medication adherence and acute hospitalization in Pennsylvania.

Methods: A total of 3589 members (age range, 5-64 years) served by two Pennsylvania-based Medicaid managed care plans (southeastern Pennsylvania [SEPA] and Lehigh-Capital/New West Pennsylvania [LCNWPA]) with low adherence rates (proportion of days covered [PDC]; 20%-67%) for asthma controller prescription fills in 2012 were guided through a care continuum by a comprehensive asthma strategy, consisting of adherence-improvement interventions (grouped as general intervention [GI] or personalized intervention [PI] for higher-risk subjects). Medication adherence and acute hospitalization rates (emergency department [ED] and inpatient [IP]) were compared at baseline versus one-year post-intervention using paired t-test or signed-rank tests.

Assessment of Environmental Contamination with Pathogenic Bacteria at a Hospital Laundry Facility.

Little is known about exposure to pathogenic bacteria among industrial laundry workers who work with soiled clinical linen. To study worker exposures, an assessment of surface contamination was performed at an industrial laundry facility serving hospitals in Seattle, WA, USA. Surface swab samples (n = 240) from the environment were collected during four site visits at 3-month intervals.

Transmission of MDR MRSA between primates, their environment and personnel at a United States primate centre.

Objectives: MDR MRSA isolates cultured from primates, their facility and primate personnel from the Washington National Primate Research Center were characterized to determine whether they were epidemiologically related to each other and if they represented common local human-associated MRSA strains.

Methods: Human and primate nasal and composite environmental samples were collected, enriched and selected on medium supplemented with oxacillin and polymyxin B. Isolates were biochemically verified as Staphylococcus aureus and screened for the mecA gene.

Collaborative DTM reduces hospitalization and healthcare costs in patients with diabetes treated with polypharmacy.

Objectives: To evaluate the effects of a collaborative pharmacy benefits manager (PBM)/ health plan-administered drug therapy management (DTM) program on healthcare utilization and costs in patients with diabetes treated with polypharmacy.

Study Design: Retrospective quasi-experimental design with comparison group.

Methods: This DTM program was a collaborative effort between the PBM, PerformRx, and the care management departments of Keystone First (KF) and AmeriHealth Caritas Pennsylvania (ACP) care management departments, targeting patients with diabetes using >15 medications.