Objective: To report on implementation of a Veterans Affairs (VA) network-wide, standardized, high-quality palliative care (PC) program using a Web-based PC Report Card for performance monitoring and improvement.
Intervention: The PC director and coordinator and facility directors established interdisciplinary teams at five acute care and three nursing home sites. Teams were trained together and subsequently met quarterly for ongoing training. Additionally, the PC director and coordinator developed and implemented a Web-based PC Report Card on the network Intranet for PC coordinator to report performance data monthly to the PC teams.
Results: The number of patients in the network who received PC consults more than doubled in the first 4 years of the PC program. The percentage of deaths with PC consultation prior to death increased from 23% in fiscal year (FY) 2002 to 57% in FY06. Over the same period, the average days between the initial PC consultation and patients' death across all sites increased from 23 days to 106 days.
Comment: All the sites established PC teams and the number of consultations showed a sustained increase over baseline in 2002. All sites improved on the key process measures captured by the Report Card.
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http://dx.doi.org/10.1089/jpm.2007.0026 | DOI Listing |
Alzheimers Dement
December 2024
Cleveland Clinic Lou Ruvo Center for Brain Health, Las Vegas, NV, USA.
Background: The Women's Alzheimer's Movement Prevention Center (WAMPC) at Cleveland Clinic evaluates women's risk factors for developing Alzheimer's disease and provides personalized recommendations for reducing risk. Previous research has established that up to 40% of Alzheimer's disease (AD) cases might be prevented when modifiable risk factors are addressed. To better understand individual risk profiles, a wealth of information is collected, including self-reported health conditions (both personal and familial), lifestyle factors (e.
View Article and Find Full Text PDFBackground: Positive findings from testing therapeutics in AD animal models are often not translated to effective treatments due to the poor methodological rigor and inadequate reporting practices of therapeutic efficacy studies. The Alzheimer's Disease Preclinical Efficacy Database (AlzPED), developed by the NIA, is a searchable and publicly available knowledgebase that prioritizes and promotes the use of rigorous methodology to ameliorate this translation gap. Through a checklist of experimental design elements - the Rigor Report Card - AlzPED highlights reporting recommendations and standards while providing a practical tool to help plan rigorous therapeutic studies in animals.
View Article and Find Full Text PDFAlzheimers Dement
December 2024
Penn Alzheimer's Disease Research Center, University of Pennsylvania, Philadelphia, PA, USA.
Background: Mobile, valid and engaging cognitive assessments are essential for detecting and tracking change in research participants and patients at risk for Alzheimer's Disease and Related Dementias (ADRDs). This pilot study aims to determine the feasibility and generalizability of an at-home, app-based cognitive assessment, the mobile cognitive app performance platform (mCAPP), to detect cognitive changes associated with aging and preclinical AD.
Method: mCAPP includes three gamified tasks (Figure 1): (1) a "concentration" memory task that includes learning and matching hidden card pairs with increasing memory load, pattern separation features (lure vs.
F S Rep
December 2024
Division of Reproductive Endocrinology and Infertility, Department of Obstetrics and Gynecology, University Hospitals Cleveland Medical Center, Beachwood, Ohio.
Objective: To characterize the frequency of diversity elements (DEs) in reproductive endocrinology and infertility (REI) fellowship websites and analyze these elements according to program characteristics.
Design: Forty-nine REI fellowship websites were assessed for 20 DEs that represent programmatic commitments to diversity, equity, and inclusion (DEI). Program websites were categorized by the number of discrete DEs featured: low (0-6); moderate (7-13); or high (14-20).
Behav Res Methods
January 2025
CIMeC, Center for Mind/Brain Sciences, The University of Trento, Trento, Italy.
Sighting dominance is an important behavioral property which has been difficult to measure quantitatively with high precision. We developed a measurement method that is grounded in a two-camera model that satisfies these aims. Using a simple alignment task, this method quantifies sighting ocular dominance during binocular viewing, identifying each eye's relative contribution to binocular vision.
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