Browsing by Subject "Veterans Health Administration"

Now showing 1 - 7 of 7
  • Thumbnail Image
    Item
    The accuracy and completeness for receipt of colorectal cancer care using Veterans Health Administration administrative data.
    (BMC, 2016) Sherer, Eric A.; Fisher, Deborah A.; Barnd, Jeffrey; Jackson, George L.; Provenzale, Dawn; Haggstrom, David A.; Department of Medicine, IU School of Medicine
    The National Comprehensive Cancer Network and the American Society of Clinical Oncology have established guidelines for the treatment and surveillance of colorectal cancer (CRC), respectively. Considering these guidelines, an accurate and efficient method is needed to measure receipt of care.
  • Thumbnail Image
    Item
    Challenges with Delivering Gender-Specific and Comprehensive Primary Care to Women Veterans
    (Elsevier, 2015-01) Bergman, Alicia A.; Frankel, Richard M.; Hamilton, Alison B.; Yano, Elizabeth M.; Department of Medicine, IU School of Medicine
    Background The growing presence of women veterans in Veterans Administration (VA) settings has prompted the need for greater attention to clinical proficiency related to women's health (WH) primary care needs. Instead of making appointments for multiple visits or referring patients to a WH clinic or alternate site for gender-specific care, a comprehensive primary care model now allows for women veteran patients be seen by primary care providers (PCPs) who have WH training/experience and can see patients for both primary and WH care in the context of a single visit. However, little is currently known about the barriers and facilitators WH-PCPs face in using this approach to incorporate gender-specific services into women veterans' primary care services. Methods We conducted qualitative in-depth interviews with 22 WH-PCPs at one Midwestern VA Medical Center. All participants were members of one of four outpatient primary care clinics within the main medical center, one off-site satellite clinic, or two off-site community-based outpatient clinics. Results Inductive thematic analysis identified six themes: 1) Time constraints, 2) importance of staff support, 3) necessity of sufficient space and equipment/supplies, 4) perceptions of discomfort among patients with trauma histories, 5) lack of education/training, and 6) challenges with scheduling/logistics. Conclusion Although adequate staff was a key facilitator, the findings suggest that there may be barriers that undermine the ability of VA WH-PCPs to provide high-quality, comprehensive primary and gender-specific care. The nature of these barriers is multifactorial and multilevel in nature, and may therefore require special policy and practice action.
  • Thumbnail Image
    Item
    Characteristics of Veterans with non-VA encounters enrolled in a trial of standards-based, interoperable event notification and care coordination
    (American Board of Family Medicine, 2021) Kartje, Rebecca; Dixon, Brian E.; Schwartzkopf, Ashley L.; Guerrero, Vivian; Judon, Kimberly M.; Yi, Joanne C.; Boockvar, Kenneth; Epidemiology, School of Public Health
    Introduction: Understanding how veterans use Veterans Affairs (VA) for primary care and non-VA for acute care can help policy makers predict future health care resource use. We aimed to describe characteristics of veterans enrolled in a multisite clinical trial of non-VA acute event notifications and care coordination and to identify patient factors associated with non-VA acute care. Methods: Characteristics of 565 veterans enrolled in a prospective cluster randomized trial at the Bronx and Indianapolis VA Medical Centers were obtained by interview and chart review. Results: Veterans' mean age was 75.8 years old, 98.3% were male, and 39.2% self-identified as a minority race; 81.2% reported receiving the majority of care at the VA. There were 197 (34.9%) veterans for whom a non-VA acute care alert was received. Patient characteristics significantly associated with greater odds of a non-VA alert included older age (OR = 1.05; 95% CI, 1.04-1.05); majority of care received is non-VA (OR = 1.83; 95% CI, 1.06-3.15); private insurance (OR = 1.39; 95% CI, 1.19-1.62); and higher income (OR = 4.01; 95% CI, 2.68-5.98). Conclusions: We identified several patient-level factors associated with non-VA acute care that can inform the design of VA services and policies for veterans with non-VA acute care encounters and reintegration back into the VA system.
  • Thumbnail Image
    Item
    Colonoscopy and Colorectal Cancer Mortality in the Veterans Affairs Health Care System: A Case–Control Study
    (ACP, 2018-04) Kahi, Charles J.; Pohl, Heiko; Myers, Laura J.; Mobarek, Dalia; Robertson, Douglas J.; Imperiale, Thomas F.; Medicine, School of Medicine
    Background: Colonoscopy is widely used in the Veterans Affairs (VA) health care system for colorectal cancer (CRC) prevention, but its effect on CRC mortality is unknown. Objective: To determine whether colonoscopy is associated with decreased CRC mortality in veterans and whether its effect differs by anatomical location of CRC. Design: Case–control study. Setting: VA–Medicare administrative data. Participants: Case patients were veterans aged 52 years or older who were diagnosed with CRC between 2002 and 2008 and died of the disease by the end of 2010. Case patients were matched to 4 control patients without prior CRC on the basis of age, sex, and facility. Conditional logistic regression was performed to calculate odds ratios (ORs) for exposure to colonoscopy, with adjustment for race, Charlson Comorbidity Index score, selected chronic conditions, nonsteroidal anti-inflammatory drug use, and family history of CRC. Measurements: Exposure to colonoscopy was determined from 1997 to 6 months before CRC diagnosis in case patients and to a corresponding date in control patients. Subgroup analysis was performed for patients who had undergone screening colonoscopy. Results: A total of 4964 case patients and 19 856 control patients were identified. Case patients were significantly less likely to have undergone any colonoscopy (OR, 0.39 [95% CI, 0.35 to 0.43]). Colonoscopy was associated with reduced mortality for left-sided cancer (OR, 0.28 [CI, 0.24 to 0.32]) and right-sided cancer (OR, 0.54 [CI, 0.47 to 0.63]). The results were similar for patients who had undergone screening colonoscopy (overall OR, 0.30 [CI, 0.24 to 0.38]). Sensitivity analyses that varied the interval between CRC diagnosis and colonoscopy exposure did not affect the primary findings. Limitation: Unmeasured confounding. Conclusion: In this study using national VA–Medicare data, colonoscopy was associated with significant reductions in CRC mortality among veterans and was associated with greater benefit for left-sided cancer than right-sided cancer.
  • Thumbnail Image
    Item
    Multi-tiered external facilitation: the role of feedback loops and tailored interventions in supporting change in a stepped-wedge implementation trial
    (BMC, 2021-07-27) Penney, Lauren S.; Damush, Teresa M.; Rattray, Nicholas A.; Miech, Edward J.; Baird, Sean A.; Homoya, Barbara J.; Myers, Laura J.; Bravata, Dawn M.; Medicine, School of Medicine
    Background: Facilitation is a complex, relational implementation strategy that guides change processes. Facilitators engage in multiple activities and tailor efforts to local contexts. How this work is coordinated and shared among multiple, external actors and the contextual factors that prompt and moderate facilitators to tailor activities have not been well-described. Methods: We conducted a mixed methods evaluation of a trial to improve the quality of transient ischemic attack care. Six sites in the Veterans Health Administration received external facilitation (EF) before and during a 1-year active implementation period. We examined how EF was employed and activated. Data analysis included prospective logs of facilitator correspondence with sites (160 site-directed episodes), stakeholder interviews (a total of 78 interviews, involving 42 unique individuals), and collaborative call debriefs (n=22) spanning implementation stages. Logs were descriptively analyzed across facilitators, sites, time periods, and activity types. Interview transcripts were coded for content related to EF and themes were identified. Debriefs were reviewed to identify instances of and utilization of EF during site critical junctures. Results: Multi-tiered EF was supported by two groups (site-facing quality improvement [QI] facilitators and the implementation support team) that were connected by feedback loops. Each site received an average of 24 episodes of site-directed EF; most of the EF was delivered by the QI nurse. For each site, site-directed EF frequently involved networking (45%), preparation and planning (44%), process monitoring (44%), and/or education (36%). EF less commonly involved audit and feedback (20%), brainstorming solutions (16%), and/or stakeholder engagement (5%). However, site-directed EF varied widely across sites and time periods in terms of these facilitation types. Site participants recognized the responsiveness of the QI nurse and valued her problem-solving, feedback, and accountability support. External facilitators used monitoring and dialogue to intervene by facilitating redirection during challenging periods of uncertainty about project direction and feasibility for sites. External facilitators, in collaboration with the implementation support team, successfully used strategies tailored to diverse local contexts, including networking, providing data, and brainstorming solutions. Conclusions: Multi-tiered facilitation capitalizing on emergent feedback loops allowed for tailored, site-directed facilitation. Critical juncture cases illustrate the complexity of EF and the need to often try multiple strategies in combination to facilitate implementation progress.
  • Thumbnail Image
    Item
    Paper Persistence and Computer-based Workarounds with the Electronic Health Record in Primary Care
    (2011-09) Saleem, Jason J.; Flanagan, Mindy; Militello, Laura G.; Arbuckle, Nicole; Russ, Alissa L.; Burgo-Black, A. Lucile; Doebbeling, Bradley N.
    With the United States national goal and incentive program to transition from paper to electronic health records (EHRs), healthcare organizations are increasingly implementing EHRs and other related health information technology (IT). However, in institutions which have long adopted these computerized systems, such as the Veterans Health Administration, healthcare workers continue to rely on paper to complete their work. Furthermore, insufficient EHR design also results in computer-based workarounds. Using direct observation with opportunistic interviewing, we investigated the use of paper- and computer-based workarounds to the EHR with a multi-site study of 54 healthcare workers, including primary care providers, nurses, and other healthcare staff. Our analysis revealed several paper- and computer-based workarounds to the VA’s EHR. These workarounds, including clinician-designed information tools, provide evidence for how to enhance the design of the EHR to better support the needs of clinicians.
  • Thumbnail Image
    Item
    Seeding Structures for a Community of Practice Focused on Transient Ischemic Attack (TIA): Implementing Across Disciplines and Waves
    (Springer, 2021-02) Penney, Lauren S.; Homoya, Barbara J.; Damush, Teresa M.; Rattray, Nicholas A.; Miech, Edward J.; Myers, Laura J.; Baird, Sean; Cheatham, Ariel; Bravata, Dawn M.; Medicine, School of Medicine
    Background: The Community of Practice (CoP) model represents one approach to address knowledge management to support effective implementation of best practices. Objective: We sought to identify CoP developmental strategies within the context of a national quality improvement project focused on improving the quality for patients receiving acute transient ischemic attack (TIA) care. Design: Stepped wedge trial. Participants: Multidisciplinary staff at six Veterans Affairs medical facilities. Interventions: To encourage site implementation of a multi-component quality improvement intervention, the trial included strategies to improve the development of a CoP: site kickoff meetings, CoP conference calls, and an interactive website (the "Hub"). Approach: Mixed-methods evaluation included data collected through a CoP attendance log; semi-structured interviews with site participants at 6 months (n = 32) and 12 months (n = 30), and CoP call facilitators (n = 2); and 22 CoP call debriefings. Key results: The critical seeding structures that supported the cultivation of the CoP were the kickoffs which fostered relationships (key to the community element of CoPs) and provided the evidence base relevant to TIA care (key to the domain element of CoPs). The Hub provided the forum for sharing quality improvement plans and other tools which were further highlighted during the CoP calls (key to the practice element of CoPs). CoP calls were curated to create a positive context around participants' work by recognizing team successes. In addition to improving care at their local facilities, the community created a shared set of tools which built on their collective knowledge and could be shared within and outside the group. Conclusions: The PREVENT CoP advanced the mission of the learning healthcare system by successfully providing a forum for shared learning. The CoP was grown through seeding structures that included kickoffs, CoP calls, and the Hub. A CoP expands upon the learning collaborative implementation strategy as an effective implementation practice.