Background: Medication nonadherence is a risk factor for poor clinical outcomes among cardiac patients. Using a randomized, controlled clinical trial, we developed and evaluated a low‐literacy picture‐ and icon‐based discharge medication education tool for teaching patients about their medications at the time of hospital discharge. Methods: We developed a prototype of a printable outpatient medication […]

Background: TGC, a first‐in‐class glycylcycline approved for treating complicated skin, skin structure, and intra‐abdominal infections, has an expanded spectrum of activity against gram‐positive, gram‐negative, anaerobic, and atypical bacteria, including some resistant strains. The primary objective of the study was to compare tigecycline (TGC) efficacy and safety with levofloxacin (LEV) in patients with community‐acquired pneumonia (CAP). […]

Background: Effective communication among providers and patients during the hospital discharge process is critical to patient care. Anticoagulation has proven to be an effective therapy for several medical conditions, but communication deficits regarding anticoagulation may lead to adverse patient outcomes following hospital discharge. The aim of this study was to evaluate the quality of information […]

Background: As the epidemic of obesity spreads throughout the United States, an increasing number of obese patients are seen in the intensive care unit. Management of these patients can be challenging; however, it is unclear how the presence of obesity affects patient care and outcome in the ICU. To address this question, we began a […]

Background: Although service changes between hospitalists are vulnerable transition points for patients, there are no data about how poor communication leads to patient harm. This qualitative study describes deficiencies in handoff communications with a focus on patient harm. Methods: Fourteen hospitalists on a nonteaching service at 1 academic institution were asked to complete anonymous surveys […]

Background: The 2007 ACC/AHA Perioperative Guideline groups elective hip arthroplasty with all other orthopedic procedures in a risk category of <5% of myocardial infarction (MI) or death within 1 year. Very little is known specifically about the incidence of MI following elective total hip arthroplasty (THA). Methods: The study was a population‐based retrospective cohort of […]

Background: At the end of 2006, the Institute of Healthcare Improvement (IHI) leadership announced the 5 Million Lives campaign to foster prevention of adverse events. The IHI global trigger tool (GTT) is the primary measurement tool used to determine degree of campaign success. There is a dearth of data regarding the actual utility of this […]

Background: Hospital‐based palliative medicine (PM) is becoming increasingly available. However, inpatient medical providers may underrecognize the value of PM interventions in their patients who do not have cancer, leading to delays in referral and decreased access to beneficial services for these patients. Methods: We evaluated data collected prospectively by the Palliative Medicine Program on all […]

Background: The incidence of postoperative Ileus (POI) varies by type of surgery and could have a significant impact on economic and humanistic outcomes. Limited data are available on the impact of POI on hospital length of stay in colectomy surgery patients. The main objective of this study was to assess the impact of POI on […]

Background: Syncope may be a harbinger of sudden death. Untreated patients with cardiogenic syncope can have a 6‐month mortality rate exceeding 10%. An accurate and cost‐effective test that focuses on risk stratification is required for initial triaging of patients with syncope. Brain‐type natriuretic peptide (BNP) is a natriuretic, diuretic, and vasodilator compound mainly synthesized in […]