Background: When people with Limited English Proficiency (LEP) access the US healthcare system, a disparity is created, leading to worse outcomes and lower quality of care.1-5 In-person interpreters are essential in circumventing these disparities, yet pitfalls to collaboration between providers and interpreters persist.6-9 This study’s goal was to assess barriers and identify opportunities for intervention [...]

Background: Current data indicate that racial and ethnic minorities bear a disproportionate burden of COVID-19 infection and mortality (1-4). Consequently, communities with a higher proportion of minorities are expected to have a higher burden of infection and mortality, however, this hypothesis has not been tested. Therefore, we estimated the disparities across US counties in the [...]

Background: The US has a heavy burden of deaths from opioid overdoses, and New Mexico is not excepted from this. Treatment options for opioid use disorder (OUD) are buprenorphine/naloxone (“Suboxone”), methadone, naltrexone, counseling, and/or behavioral therapy. Long-acting oral opioids like Suboxone, are the most effective methods for treating opioid withdrawal and OUD. They are often [...]

Background: Disparities in health outcomes that differ by racial or ethnic group, religion, socioeconomic status, gender, age, mental health, ability, sexual orientation or gender identity, geographic location, or other characteristics historically linked to discrimination or exclusion demonstrate that equitable care in the United States is a goal that has not been achieved. Treating all patients [...]

Background: Hospital-associated disability (HAD) is the new loss of ability to complete one or more activities of daily living without assistance after hospital discharge and occurs in 31% of hospitalized patients. HAD and low mobility during hospitalization are associated with higher risk of readmission, permanent disability, new institutionalization, and death. Physical therapy (PT) is invaluable [...]

Background: Increasing evidence points towards incarceration causing poor health, with one study estimating that every year in prison is associated with a two-year reduction in life expectancy (1). Cervical cancer is the most common cancer among incarcerated females (2,3). No study has yet examined whether this increased rate of cervical cancer diagnosis persists after release. [...]

Background: In hospitalized patients with anemia the AABB recommends that transfusion of red blood cells occur when a patient’s hemoglobin (Hb) drops below a restrictive transfusion threshold, either at 7 or 8g/dL. These recommendations are the result of a growing body of clinical trial evidence showing that transfusion at estrictive Hb thresholds is safe, compared [...]

Background: Black patients have been shown to have worse physical function, higher likelihood of developing mobility limitations and higher rates of mobility loss and functional decline. Despite these functional disadvantages, Black patients are less likely to receive acute and post-acute rehabilitation services. These disparities have been described in community-dwelling, ambulatory, and surgical populations, and social [...]

Background: Patients with Limited English Proficiency (LEP) face multiple barriers to care and are at risk for worse health outcomes compared to similar patients with English Proficiency (EP). In sepsis, a common diagnosis and major cause of mortality in the US, the association of LEP with health outcomes has not been widely explored. We aimed [...]

Background: Advance care planning (ACP) informs future medical decision-making, particularly for hospitalized patients with older age or serious illness. The majority of end-of-life conversations are led by hospitalists in the inpatient setting. Despite the importance of ACP in end-of-life care, health disparities exist, with racial and ethnic minorities less likely to have advanced directives and [...]