Impact of harm reduction care in HIV clinical settings on stigma and health outcomes for people with HIV who use drugs: study protocol for a mixed-methods, multisite, observational study.

Introduction: Our previous pilot work suggests relational harm reduction strengthens relationships between people with HIV (PWH) who use drugs and their healthcare providers and improves HIV health outcomes. However, there is limited research examining ways that structural (eg, strategies like syringe service programmes) and/or relational (patient-provider relationship) harm reduction approaches in HIV clinical settings can mitigate experiences of stigma, affect patient-provider relationships and improve outcomes for PWH who use drugs. Our mixed methods, multisite, observational study aims to fill this knowledge gap and develop an intervention to operationalise harm reduction care for PWH who use drugs in HIV clinical settings.

A scoping review of US insurers' use of patient-reported outcomes.

Objectives: To complete a scoping review of US health insurers' use of health-related quality of life (HRQOL) patient-reported outcome measures (PROMs).

Study Design: Literature review.

Methods: A literature search was constructed for articles that contained an insurer-related term and an HRQOL-related term between 1999 and 2019 using the MEDLINE, Embase, Web of Science, Cochrane Database of Systematic Reviews, EconLit, and Business Source Complete databases.

Professional agency vs consumer directed care workers: Outcomes in managed care.

Direct care workers are a major part of the long-term services and supports (LTSS) needed to address the health of individuals and accounted for $112 billion in United States spending in 2015. Direct care workers are hired within professional agency models (PAMs) or consumer-directed models (CDMs) where workers (including family) are contracted by the individual to obtain services. We sought to identify differences in cost and utilisation outcomes between PAM and CDM participants.

Predicting Unplanned Health Care Utilization and Cost: Comparing Patient-reported Outcomes Measurement Information System and Claims.

Objectives: There is little literature describing if and how payers are utilizing patient-reported outcomes to predict future costs. This study assessed if Patient-reported Outcomes Measurement Information System (PROMIS) domain scores, collected in routine practice at neurology clinics, improved payer predictive models for unplanned care utilization and cost.

Study Design: Retrospective cohort analysis of private Health Plan-insured patients with visits at 18 Health Plan-affiliated neurology clinics.

Disparities in Chronic Health Outcomes and Health Behaviors Between Lesbian and Heterosexual Adult Women in Pittsburgh: A Longitudinal Study.

Compared to heterosexual women, lesbian women experience higher rates of many chronic diseases, including depression, obesity, hypertension, and diabetes. Lesbian women report higher rates of risky health behaviors such as hazardous drinking and cigarette smoking. However, little longitudinal research has been done to examine changes in disparities between lesbian and heterosexual adult women.