Updated breast cancer costs for women by disease stage and phase of care using population-based databases.

Background: This study assessed health care system costs and resource utilization for adult women with breast cancer in Ontario, Canada. The goal was to update costs by stage, age, and phase of care from a health care system perspective.

Data And Methods: A retrospective analysis was conducted using linked population-based administrative data.

Venous thromboembolism in critically ill adult patients with hematologic malignancy: a population-based cohort study.

Purpose: The aim of this study was to describe the incidence of venous thromboembolism (VTE) and major bleeding among hospitalized patients with hematologic malignancy, assessing its association with critical illness and other baseline characteristics.

Methods: We conducted a population-based cohort study of hospitalized adults with a new diagnosis of hematologic malignancy in Ontario, Canada, between 2006 and 2017. The primary outcome was VTE (pulmonary embolism or deep venous thrombosis).

Improving communicative access and patient experience in acute stroke care: An implementation journey.

Introduction: Patient experience for people with aphasia/families in acute care is frequently reported as negative, with communication barriers contributing to adverse events and significant long-term physical and psychosocial sequelae. Although the effectiveness of providing supported communication training and resources for health care providers in the stroke system is well documented, there is less evidence of implementation strategies for sustainable system change. This paper describes an implementation process targeting two specific areas: 1) improving Stroke Team communication with patients with aphasia, and 2) helping the Stroke Team provide support to families.

Specialty Palliative Care and Symptom Severity and Control in Adolescents and Young Adults With Cancer.

Importance: Adolescents and young adults (AYAs) with cancer experience substantial symptom burden. Specialty palliative care (SPC) is recommended but often not involved or involved late.

Objectives: To determine whether patient-reported symptom severity was associated with subsequent SPC involvement and whether SPC was associated with symptom improvement in AYAs with cancer.

Early Career Outcomes of Embedded Research Fellows: An Analysis of the Health System Impact Fellowship Program.

Background: This descriptive study reports the early career outcomes of postdoctoral fellows who completed a novel embedded fellowship training program, the Canadian Institutes of Health Research (CIHR) Health System Impact (HSI) Fellowship. The program was designed to support impact-oriented career paths of doctoral graduates, build research capacity within health system organizations, and help to advance learning health systems in Canada.

Methods: Employment of fellowship alumni upon completion of the program were tracked using internet searches of publicly accessible online sources and complemented with program survey data.

Informing Canada's Health System Response to COVID-19: Priorities for Health Services and Policy Research.

To inform Canada's research response to COVID-19, the Canadian Institutes of Health Research's Institute of Health Services and Policy Research (IHSPR) conducted a rapid-cycle priority identification process. Seven COVID-19 priorities for health services and policy research were identified: system adaptation and organization of care; resource allocation decision-making and ethics; rapid synthesis and comparative policy analysis of the COVID-19 response and outcomes; healthcare workforce; virtual care; long-term consequences of the pandemic; and public and patient engagement. Three additional cross-cutting themes were identified: supporting the health of Indigenous Peoples and vulnerable populations, data and digital infrastructure, and learning health systems and knowledge platforms.

Pre-injury health status and excess mortality in persons with traumatic brain injury: A decade-long historical cohort study.

An increasing number of patients are able to survive traumatic brain injuries (TBIs) with advanced resuscitation. However, the role of their pre-injury health status in mortality in the following years is not known. Here, we followed 77,088 consecutive patients (59% male) who survived the TBI event in Ontario, Canada for more than a decade, and examined the relationships between their pre-injury health status and mortality rates in excess to the expected mortality calculated using sex- and age-specific life tables.