Standardizing Medication Reconciliation in a Pediatric Emergency Department.

Background: Medication errors are common during transitions of care, such as discharge from the emergency department (ED) or urgent care (UC). The Joint Commission has identified medication reconciliation as a key safety practice. Our aim was to increase the percentage of patients with completed medication reconciliation at discharge from our pediatric ED and 4 UCs from 25% to 75% in 12 months.

Methadone Inpatient and Discharge Prescribing Patterns for Pain at an Academic Health System.

Background: Methadone is effective for the treatment of chronic pain, but its unique pharmacology requires additional considerations with dosing and monitoring.

Objective: The study objective was to evaluate methadone prescribing for pain and subsequent monitoring.

Methods: This retrospective chart review at a single center reviewed patients who received methadone over a two-year period.

Objective cancer-related variables are not associated with depressive symptoms in women treated for early-stage breast cancer.

Purpose: Women with breast cancer are thought to be vulnerable to depression for reasons associated with impact of diagnosis, treatment, and metabolic/endocrine changes. While the literature shows that most of these women do not become clinically depressed, 15% to 30% report elevated depressive symptoms that may be clinically important. The purpose was to identify and determine the relative importance of predictors of depressive symptoms in women treated for early-stage breast cancer.

Plasma carotenoids and recurrence-free survival in women with a history of breast cancer.

Purpose: Previous studies suggest that diet may affect recurrence or survival rates in women who have been diagnosed with breast cancer. The purpose of this study was to examine the relationship between plasma carotenoid concentration, as a biomarker of vegetable and fruit intake, and risk for a new breast cancer event in a cohort of women with a history of early-stage breast cancer.

Methods: Participants were 1,551 women previously treated for breast cancer who were randomly assigned to the control arm of a diet intervention trial between March 1995 and November 2000.