Background: Point of Care Ultrasound (POCUS) has been used to improve diagnostic accuracy and provide earlier and more focused treatment intervention. Although hospital-based clinicians are prime candidates for utilizing this skill, very few regularly integrate POCUS into their clinical practice after completing a training course. This study sought out to identify the facilitators and barriers [...]

Background: In 2021 there were over 80,000 opioid overdose deaths. Studies show that inpatient hospitalizations are a vital moment in treating patients with opioid use disorder (OUD). Initiation of opioid agonist therapy (OAT: buprenorphine or methadone) is associated with a profound mortality benefit, with some studies suggesting a number needed to treat of less than [...]

Background: The VA, like many health care systems, seeks to meet the needs of a rapidly growing older adult population. The transition from hospital to post-hospital care – particularly in older adults- is increasingly common, but unfortunately is high-risk and low-value. Further, 85% of older adults choosing a skilled nursing facility had a higher-quality facility [...]

Background: Interhospital transfer (IHT) is intended to improve access to specialized therapies, maintain continuity of care, or care concordant with patients’ wishes; however, it is correlated with higher costs, longer length of stay, and greater mortality for many patients, even after illness severity adjustment (1-5). A better understanding of frontline providers’ reasons to accept transfer [...]

Background: Functional health literacy includes the ability to receive information, comprehend its meaning, and put it into action. Patients’ health literacy level has been found to be a stronger correlate of health status than education level and other sociodemographic variables. Individuals with below basic/basic health literacy utilize the healthcare system more often and spend more [...]

Background: Anti-Black racism is embedded in American healthcare, (1) with roots in the structure and curriculum of medical education. (2) Dismantling racism in health care demands that medical education promote racial justice at all levels, from pre-clinical curriculum to clinical training and beyond. (3) However, there are significant barriers to teaching anti-racism content in the [...]

Background: Racial minorities are underrepresented in cancer-related clinical trials. One commonly recognized contributor to this is medical mistrust. Methods: This study used data from the 2020 National Cancer Institute’s Health Information National Trends Survey (HINTS), a cross-sectional, nationally representative sample of 3865 participants. We sought to determine the prevalence of medical mistrust and its impact [...]

Background: Hyperthyroidism is a recognized risk factor for atrial fibrillation(AFib). Consequently, current recommendations include screening patients with new onset AFib for thyroid dysfunction by analyzing TSH, T3, and T4 levels. However, the yield of routine testing of patients hospitalized with Afib is less certain. In this study, we evaluated the testing and prevalence of thyroid [...]

Background: Ischemic stroke (IS) is a cerebrovascular disease with high incidence and mortality. White matter repair plays an important role in the long-term recovery of neurological function after cerebral ischemia. Neuroprotective microglial responses can promote white matter repair and protect ischemic brain tissue. The aim of this study was to investigate whether hypoxic post-conditioning (HPC) [...]

Background: Over-testing leads to inflated direct and indirect costs of care. Re-ordering tests prior to a given recommended interval, whether secondary to a lack of awareness of information in the patient’s chart or a lack of knowledge of the given recommended interval, most often increases costs without benefiting patients. Best Practice Advisory (BPA) pop-ups and [...]