Real-World Evidence from the Integrative Medicine Primary Care Trial (IMPACT): Assessing Patient-Reported Outcomes at Baseline and 12-Month Follow-Up.

Purpose: The University of Arizona Integrative Health Center (UAIHC) was an innovative membership-supported integrative medicine (IM) adult primary care clinic in Phoenix, Arizona. UAIHC delivered healthcare using an integrative medicine model that combined conventional and complementary medical treatments, including nutrition, mind-body medicine, acupuncture, manual medicine, health coaching, educational classes, and groups. Results from pre-post evaluation of patient-reported outcomes on several standardized measures are presented here.

Integrative medicine primary care: assessing the practice model through patients' experiences.

Background: The University of Arizona Integrative Health Center (UAIHC) was an innovative integrative medicine (IM) adult primary care clinic in Phoenix, Arizona. UAIHC used a hybrid payment model to deliver comprehensive healthcare that includes conventional and complementary medical treatments.

Methods: Fidelity measures were collected to evaluate how well the IM care delivery process matched ideals for IM.

Accepting Medication Therapy Management Recommendations to Add ACEIs or ARBs in Diabetes Care.

Background: National guidelines and initiatives have promoted the use of angiotensin-converting enzyme inhibitors (ACEIs) and angiotensin receptor blockers (ARBs) for patients with diabetes. The University of Arizona Medication Management Center (UA-MMC) is contracted by Medicare health plans, pharmacy benefit managers (PBMs), and multiple commercial health insurance plans to provide medication therapy management (MTM) services for plan members. As part of the MTM program, recommendations have been made for those patients who may benefit from the addition of an ACEI/ARB.

IMPACT--Integrative Medicine PrimAry Care Trial: protocol for a comparative effectiveness study of the clinical and cost outcomes of an integrative primary care clinic model.

Background: Integrative medicine (IM) is a patient-centered, healing-oriented clinical paradigm that explicitly includes all appropriate therapeutic approaches whether they originate in conventional or complementary medicine (CM). While there is some evidence for the clinical and cost-effectiveness of IM practice models, the existing evidence base for IM depends largely on studies of individual CM therapies. This may in part be due to the methodological challenges inherent in evaluating a complex intervention (i.

When a whole practice model is the intervention: developing fidelity evaluation components using program theory-driven science for an integrative medicine primary care clinic.

Integrative medicine (IM) is a clinical paradigm of whole person healthcare that combines appropriate conventional and complementary medicine (CM) treatments. Studies of integrative healthcare systems and theory-driven evaluations of IM practice models need to be undertaken. Two health services research methods can strengthen the validity of IM healthcare studies, practice theory, and fidelity evaluation.

Evaluation of risk factors and health outcomes among persons with asthma.

Objective: To examine risk factors associated with healthcare utilization in Arizona Medicaid patients with asthma.

Methods: Data were obtained from Arizona Medicaid between 1/1/2002 and 12/31/2003. Inclusion criteria consisted of persons with an asthma diagnosis (ICD9-CM 493.

Gender and age differences in medications dispensed from a national chain drugstore.

Objectives: Our objective was to compare sex and age differences in the medications dispensed in pharmacies from a large national drugstore chain.

Methods: Using a list for the 200 most commonly prescribed medicines, we assessed prescriptions dispensed by a large national chain drug store over 1 year (2002-2003). The analysis used U.

Prescribers' knowledge of and sources of information for potential drug-drug interactions: a postal survey of US prescribers.

Background: Given the high prevalence of medication use in the US, the risk of drug-drug interactions (DDIs) and potential for patient harm is of concern. Despite the rise in technologies to identify potential DDIs, the ability of physicians and other prescribers to recognize potential DDIs is essential to reduce their occurrence. The objectives of this study were to assess prescribers' ability to recognize potential clinically significant DDIs and to examine the sources of information they use to identify potential DDIs and prescribers' opinions on the usefulness of various DDI information sources.

Pharmacist workload and pharmacy characteristics associated with the dispensing of potentially clinically important drug-drug interactions.

Background: Drug-drug interactions (DDIs) are preventable medical errors, yet exposure to DDIs continues despite systems that are designed to prevent such exposures. The purpose of this study was to examine pharmacy characteristics that may be associated with dispensed potential DDIs.

Methods: This study combined survey data from community pharmacies in 18 metropolitan statistical areas with pharmacy claims submitted to 4 pharmacy benefit managers (PBMs) over a 3-month period from January 1, 2003 to March 31, 2003.

Workload and availability of technology in metropolitan community pharmacies.

Objective: To assess workload characteristics and the presence of prescription processing technologies within metropolitan community pharmacies in the United States.

Design: Cross-sectional postal survey.

Setting: 18 metropolitan statistical areas (MSAs) in the United States.

Community pharmacy managers' perception of computerized drug-drug interaction alerts.

Objective: To examine community pharmacists' attitudes toward computerized drug-drug interaction (DDI) alerts and identify factors associated with more favorable perceptions of these alerts.

Design: Cross-sectional postal survey.

Setting: 18 metropolitan statistical areas (MSAs) in the United States.