The Effect of Wettability on Confinement-Induced Phase Behavior and Storage of Alkane in Nanoporous Media.

The impact of wettability on the confined phase behavior of fluids is paramount for various applications, such as gas storage, carbon dioxide sequestration, and water purification. However, the understanding of the fluid-solid intermolecular interactions in confined systems is still limited and requires further investigation. This work investigates the effect of hydrophilic and hydrophobic nanoporous materials on the adsorption and desorption isotherms of -butane.

Food Insecurity Among LGBQ+ Veterans.

Importance: Food insecurity is associated with numerous adverse health outcomes. Little is known about the prevalence of and risks for food insecurity among veterans identifying as lesbian, gay, bisexual, queer, and similar (LGBQ+), a population facing unique social barriers and medical comorbidities.

Objective: To examine food insecurity and potential risk factors among LGBQ+ veterans.

Trends in and Predictors of Patient Pharmacogenomic Test Uptake in a National Healthcare System.

Purpose: Better understanding patient uptake of pharmacogenomic (PGx) testing may inform its implementation and maximize the benefits that such testing can confer. This study examined patient and provider factors associated with PGx test ordering in a national healthcare system where panel-based testing was implemented as part of routine care.

Methods: We used a retrospective matched cohort design and data from the Veterans Health Administration Corporate Data Warehouse.

Analgesic regimens administered to older adults receiving skilled nursing facility care following hip fracture: a proof-of-concept federated analysis.

Background: Although a majority of patients in the U.S. receive post-acute care in skilled nursing facilities (SNFs) following hip fracture, large-sample observational studies of analgesic prescribing and use in SNFs have not been possible due to limitations in available data sources.

Clinician and Practice Characteristics Associated With Support of Office-Based Methadone: Findings From a National Survey.

Background: Alternative models for methadone delivery outside of federal and state-regulated opioid treatment programs may improve access. We determined factors associated with clinician support for continuing office-based methadone.

Methods: We used data from the electronic Opioid Use Disorder Provider COVID-19 Survey conducted among X-waivered clinicians who were providing outpatient, longitudinal treatment of opioid use disorder (OUD) from July 2020 to August 2020.

Nursing Home Staff With Children: Unique Needs Among Single and Partnered Parents.

Background And Objectives: Nursing home (NH) staff job dissatisfaction and turnover are associated with lower care quality. However, little is known about the impact of being single on workplace experiences. Guided by the Job Demands-Control-Support Model, we compared job satisfaction, turnover intention, and psychological distress for single and partnered parents working in NHs.

Co-designing a blueprint for spreading person-centered, Whole Health care to HIV specialty care settings: a mixed methods protocol.

Background: Since 2013, the Veterans Health Administration (VHA) has advanced a person-centered, Whole Health (WH) System of Care, a shift from a disease-oriented system to one that prioritizes "what matters most" to patients in their lives. Whole Health is predicated on patient-provider interactions marked by a multi-level understanding of health and trusted relationships that promote well-being. Presently, WH implementation has been focused largely in primary care settings, yet the goal is to effect a system-wide transformation of care so that Veterans receive WH across VHA clinical settings, including specialty care.

Social Disadvantage and Disparities in Chronic Liver Disease: A Systematic Review.

Introduction: Social determinants of health (SDOH) may impact chronic liver disease (CLD) outcomes but are not clearly understood. We conducted a systematic review to describe the associations of SDOH with mortality, hospitalizations, and readmissions among patients with CLD.

Methods: This review was registered (PROSPERO ID: CRD42022346654) and identified articles through MEDLINE, Embase, Cochrane Library, and Scopus databases.

Differing needs for Advance Care Planning in the Veterans Health Administration: use of latent class analysis to identify subgroups to enhance Advance Care Planning via Group Visits for veterans.

Background: Advance Care Planning via Group Visits (ACP-GV) is a patient-centered intervention facilitated by a clinician using a group modality to promote healthcare decision-making among veterans. Participants in the group document a "Next Step" to use in planning for their future care needs. The next step may include documentation of preferences in an advance directive, discussing plans with family, or anything else to fulfill their ACP needs.

Supplemental Oxygen Use, Outcomes, and Spending in Patients With COPD in the Medicare Competitive Bidding Program.

Importance: The Medicare Competitive Bidding Program (CBP), a policy that reduced durable medical equipment prices, was implemented starting in 2011. Legislation introduced in 2024 aims to remove supplemental oxygen from the CBP because of concerns that recent decreases in oxygen prescribing are due to lower prices set by the CBP, which may have decreased supply and, in turn, limited oxygen access for patients with chronic lung diseases. However, low-value prescribing of oxygen is also prevalent in practice, and decreased oxygen prescription rates may not have necessarily caused harm.

Severity and Number of Substances Used are Independently Associated with Antiretroviral Therapy Adherence Over Time among People with HIV in the Current Treatment Era.

Substance use is associated with decreased antiretroviral therapy (ART) adherence among people with HIV (PWH). Adherence plays a significant role in mediating the negative effects of substance use on HIV suppression and is a principal modifiable patient-level factor in improving HIV suppression and reducing ART drug resistance. Understanding substance use and ART adherence, particularly with rapidly changing substance use epidemiology and ART regimens, is vital to improving HIV care.

A Systematic Review of Social Support Instruments for Measurement-Based Care in Posttraumatic Stress Disorder.

Purpose: Social support is a treatment target for individuals with post-traumatic stress disorder (PTSD) but is not systematically assessed in clinical care. This review evaluated the quality of patient-reported social support instruments used in PTSD research to identify candidates for measurement-based care (MBC) with this population.

Method: A systematic review identified all validated measures of social support used in research with traumatized populations after 1990.

Associations Between Patient/Caregiver Trust in Clinicians and Experiences of Healthcare-Based Discrimination.

Background: Higher trust in healthcare providers has been linked to better health outcomes and satisfaction. Lower trust has been associated with healthcare-based discrimination.

Objective: Examine associations between experiences of healthcare discrimination and patients' and caregivers of pediatric patients' trust in providers, and identify factors associated with high trust, including prior experience of healthcare-based social screening.

Association of Race and Ethnicity with Genomic Testing at a Comprehensive Cancer Center in North Carolina.

Non-Hispanic Black patients diagnosed with prostate cancer between 2014 and 2019 and treated at a comprehensive cancer center were less likely to use tumor-specific genomic testing compared with non-Hispanic White patients. Disparities in the use of precision oncology technologies should be monitored and addressed to ensure equitable cancer care.

Prior infection protects against induced hepatic fibrosis.

Background: Schistosomiasis affects approximately 250 million people worldwide, with 200,000 deaths annually. It has been documented that the granulomatous response to () oviposition is the root cause of progressive liver fibrosis in chronic infection, in 20% of the patients, and can lead to liver cirrhosis and/or liver cancer. The influence of helminths coinfection on schistosomiasis-induced liver pathological alterations remains poorly understood.

Demographic, Social, Behavioral, and Clinical Characteristics Associated with Long-Term Opioid Therapy and Any Opioid Prescription in High-Risk VA Patients.

Background: Social risks (individual social and economic conditions) have been implicated as playing a major role in the opioid epidemic and may be more prevalent in the most medically vulnerable patients. However, the extent to which specific social risks and other patient factors are associated with opioid use among high-risk patients has not been comprehensively assessed.

Objective: To identify patient-reported and electronic health record (EHR)-derived demographic, social, behavioral/psychological, and clinical characteristics associated with opioid use in Veterans Affairs (VA) patients at high risk for hospitalization or death.

Initiation and Persistence of Antipsychotic Medications at Hospital Discharge Among Community-Dwelling Veterans With Dementia.

Objectives: Adults with dementia are frequently prescribed antipsychotic medications despite concerns that risks outweigh benefits. Understanding conditions where antipsychotics are initially prescribed, such as hospitalization, may offer insights into reducing inappropriate use.

Design, Setting, Participants: Retrospective cohort study of community-dwelling veterans with dementia aged ≥68 with VA hospitalizations in 2014, using Veterans Health Administration (VA) and Medicare data.

Differences in setting of initial dementia diagnosis among fee-for-service Medicare beneficiaries.

Background: Accurate and timely diagnosis of dementia is necessary to allow affected individuals to make informed decisions and access appropriate resources. When dementia goes undetected until a hospitalization or nursing home stay, this could reflect delayed diagnosis or misdiagnosis, and may reflect underlying disparities in healthcare access.

Methods: In this retrospective cohort study, we used 2012-2020 Medicare claims and other administrative data to examine variation in setting of dementia diagnosis among fee-for-service Medicare beneficiaries with an initial claims-based dementia diagnosis in 2016.