Clinical engagement: a new concept or common sense all round?

2019 ◽  
Vol 43 (4) ◽  
pp. 392
Author(s):  
Stephen Bolsin ◽  
Jenny Carter ◽  
Aileen Kitson ◽  
Donna Walter ◽  
Stephen Roberts

Clinical engagement has supplemented clinical governance in healthcare to strengthen the contribution of medical professionals to the assessment of clinical outcomes for patients. Assessments of clinical engagement have, until now, been qualitative; this case study introduces the concept of quantitative assessment of clinical engagement by measuring the number of patients managed according to specialist society guidelines. Such an assessment engages all staff (medical, nursing, allied health and pharmacy) involved in patients receiving treatment according to such guidelines and provides an assessment of individual and organisational compliance with those guidelines. Clinical engagement is then quantified as the percentage of patients that have been documented to receive specialist society- or college-approved guideline-compliant treatment, relative to the total number who could receive such treatment, in any healthcare organisation. What is known about the topic? Clinical engagement has emerged in recent years as a virtue to be encouraged in healthcare organisations because of its association with improved patient outcomes and employee satisfaction. Assessments have relied on repeated staff surveys in order to gauge engagement. What does this paper add? This paper proposes a novel means of measuring clinical engagement in an organisational setting. The vision put forward is that adherence to clinical guidelines in an organisation measures clinician engagement across professional disciplines. What are the implications for practitioners? The implications are that organisations will contribute to measuring the adherence of specialty groups of clinicians to guidelines that the clinicians select and use the data for individual and organisational accreditation.


2021 ◽  
Vol 50 (Supplement_1) ◽  
pp. i12-i42
Author(s):  
C Abbott ◽  
K Bishop ◽  
F Hill ◽  
C Finlow ◽  
R Maraj

Abstract Introduction In September 2017 our frailty service was started within our medium sized DGH in North Wales. Working with our management team we secured a significant clinical resource including: We describe how resources, setting and staffing develop over a 2 year period in order to create a service which meets the needs of the local population. Method The service has been in a constant state of development since it has been in operation, utilising a PDSA model with regular meetings of clinical and managerial staff to analyse performance. Results With each new PDSA cycle the amount of patients reviewed has increased. With the move to AMU we increased the monthly number of patients reviewed from 29 to 172 patients reviewed, 97 of which were discharged directly from the unit. Conclusion Using QI methodology our Frailty Service has improved dramatically since its inception. We will continue to analyse how we work to improve patient outcomes and cost effectiveness.



Geriatrics ◽  
2021 ◽  
Vol 6 (1) ◽  
pp. 29
Author(s):  
Kristina Marie Kokorelias ◽  
Einat Danieli ◽  
Sheila Dunn ◽  
Sid Feldman ◽  
David Patrick Ryan ◽  
...  

The number of family caregivers to individuals with dementia is increasing. Family physicians are often the first point of access to the health care system for individuals with dementia and their caregivers. Caregivers are at an increased risk of developing negative physical, cognitive and affective health problems themselves. Caregivers also describe having unmet needs to help them sustain care in the community. Family physicians are in a unique position to help support caregivers and individuals with dementia, but often struggle with keeping up with best practice dementia service knowledge. The Dementia Wellness Questionnaire was designed to serve as a starting point for discussions between caregivers and family physicians by empowering caregivers to communicate their needs and concerns and to enhance family physicians’ access to specific dementia support information. The DWQ aims to alert physicians of caregiver and patient needs. This pilot study aimed to explore the experiences of physicians and caregivers of people using the Questionnaire in two family medicine clinics in Ontario, Canada. Interviews with physicians and caregivers collected data on their experiences using the DWQ following a 10-month data gathering period. Data was analyzed using content analysis. Results indicated that family physicians may have an improved efficacy in managing dementia by having dementia care case specific guidelines integrated within electronic medical records. By having time-efficient access to tailored supports, family physicians can better address the needs of the caregiver–patient dyad and help support family caregivers in their caregiving role. Caregivers expressed that the Questionnaire helped them remember concerns to bring up with physicians, in order to receive help in a more efficient manner.



Rheumatology ◽  
2021 ◽  
Vol 60 (Supplement_1) ◽  
Author(s):  
Alice Gottlieb ◽  
Frank Behrens ◽  
Peter Nash ◽  
Joseph F Merola ◽  
Pascale Pellet ◽  
...  

Abstract Background/Aims  Psoriatic arthritis (PsA) is a heterogeneous disease comprising musculoskeletal and dermatological manifestations, especially plaque psoriasis. Secukinumab, an interleukin17A inhibitor, provided significantly greater PASI75/100 responses in two head-to-head trials versus etanercept or ustekinumab, a tumour necrosis factor inhibitor (TNFi), in patients with moderate-to-severe plaque psoriasis. The EXCEED study (NCT02745080) investigated whether secukinumab was superior to adalimumab, another TNFi, as monotherapy in biologic-naive active PsA patients with active plaque psoriasis (defined as having ≥1 psoriatic plaque of ≥ 2 cm diameter, nail changes consistent with psoriasis or documented history of plaque psoriasis). Here we report the pre-specified skin outcomes from the EXCEED study in the subset of patients with ≥3% body surface area (BSA) affected with psoriasis at baseline. Methods  In this head-to-head, Phase 3b, randomised, double-blind, active-controlled, multicentre, parallel-group trial, patients were randomised to receive subcutaneous secukinumab 300 mg at baseline and Weeks 1-4, followed by dosing every 4 weeks until Week 48, or subcutaneous adalimumab 40 mg at baseline followed by the same dosing every 2 weeks until Week 50. The primary endpoint was superiority of secukinumab versus adalimumab on ACR20 response at Week 52. Pre-specified outcomes included the proportion of patients achieving a combined ACR50 and PASI100 response, PASI100 response, and absolute PASI score ≤3. Missing data were handled using multiple imputation. Results  Overall, 853 patients were randomised to receive secukinumab (n = 426) or adalimumab (n = 427). At baseline, 215 and 202 patients had at least 3% BSA affected with psoriasis in the secukinumab and adalimumab groups, respectively. At Week 52, more patients achieved simultaneous improvement in ACR50 and PASI100 response with secukinumab versus adalimumab (30.7% versus 19.2%, respectively; P = 0.0087). Greater efficacy was demonstrated for secukinumab versus adalimumab for PASI100 responses and for the proportion of patients achieving absolute PASI score ≤3 (Table 1). Conclusion  In this pre-specified analysis, secukinumab provided higher responses compared with adalimumab in achievement of combined improvement in joint and skin disease (combined ACR50 and PASI100 response) and in skin-specific endpoints (PASI100 and absolute PASI score ≤3) at Week 52. P189 Table 1:Skin-specific outcomes at Week 52Endpoints, % responseSEC 300 mg (N = 215)ADA 40 mg (N = 202)P value (unadjusted)PASI10046300.0007Combined ACR50 and PASI10031190.0087Absolute PASI score ≤379650.0015P value vs ADA; unadjusted P values are presented. Multiple imputation was used for handling missing data. ADA, adalimumab; ACR, American College of Rheumatology; N, number of patients in the psoriasis subset; PASI, Psoriasis Area and Severity Index; SEC, secukinumab. Disclosure  A. Gottlieb: Grants/research support; A.G. has received research support, consultation fees or speaker honoraria from Pfizer, AbbVie, BMS, Lilly, MSD, Novartis, Roche, Sanofi, Sandoz, Nordic, Celltrion and UCB. F. Behrens: Consultancies; F.B. is a consultant for Pfizer, AbbVie, Sanofi, Lilly, Novartis, Genzyme, Boehringer Ingelheim, Janssen, MSD, Celgene, Roche and Chugai. Grants/research support; F.B. has received grant/research support from Pfizer, Janssen, Chugai, Celgene, Lilly and Roche. P. Nash: Consultancies; P.N. is a consultant for AbbVie, Bristol Myers Squibb, Celgene, Eli Lilly, Gilead, Janssen, MSD, Novartis, Pfizer Inc., Roche, Sanofi and UCB. Member of speakers’ bureau; for AbbVie, Bristol Myers Squibb, Celgene, Eli Lilly, Gilead, Janssen, MSD, Novartis, Pfizer Inc., Roche, Sanofi and UCB. Grants/research support; P.N. has received research support from AbbVie, Bristol Myers Squibb, Celgene, Eli Lilly and Company, Gilead, Janssen, MSD, Novartis, Pfizer Inc, Roche, Sanofi and UCB. J. Merola: Consultancies; J.F.M. is a consultant for Merck, AbbVie, Dermavant, Eli Lilly, Novartis, Janssen, UCB Pharma, Celgene, Sanofi, Regeneron, Arena, Sun Pharma, Biogen, Pfizer, EMD Sorono, Avotres and LEO Pharma. P. Pellet: Corporate appointments; P.P. is an employee of Novartis. Shareholder/stock ownership; P.P. is a shareholder of Novartis. L. Pricop: Corporate appointments; L.P. is an employee of Novartis. Shareholder/stock ownership; L.P. is a shareholder of Novartis. I. McInnes: Consultancies; I.M. is a consultant for AbbVie, Bristol Myers Squibb, Celgene, Eli Lilly and Company, Gilead, Janssen, Novartis, Pfizer and UCB. Grants/research support; I.M. has received grant/research support from Bristol Myers Squibb, Celgene, Eli Lilly and Company, Janssen and UCB.



Author(s):  
Serhad Sarica ◽  
Binyang Song ◽  
Jianxi Luo ◽  
Kristin L. Wood

Abstract There are growing efforts to mine public and common-sense semantic network databases for engineering design ideation stimuli. However, there is still a lack of design ideation aids based on semantic network databases that are specialized in engineering or technology-based knowledge. In this study, we present a new methodology of using the Technology Semantic Network (TechNet) to stimulate idea generation in engineering design. The core of the methodology is to guide the inference of new technical concepts in the white space surrounding a focal design domain according to their semantic distance in the large TechNet, for potential syntheses into new design ideas. We demonstrate the effectiveness in general, and use strategies and ideation outcome implications of the methodology via a case study of flying car design idea generation.



Synthese ◽  
2021 ◽  
Author(s):  
László Kocsis ◽  
Adam Tamas Tuboly

AbstractOur main goal in this paper is to present and scrutinize Reichenbach’s own naturalism in our contemporary context, with special attention to competing versions of the concept. By exploring the idea of Reichenbach’s naturalism, we will argue that he defended a liberating, therapeutic form of naturalism, meaning that he took scientific philosophy (or philosophy of nature, Naturphilosophie) to be a possible cure for bad old habits and traditional ways of philosophy. For Reichenbach, naturalistic scientific philosophy was a well-established form of liberation. We do not intend to suggest that Reichenbach acted as an inventor of naturalism; nonetheless, invoking the term and the idea of ‘naturalism’ is more than a simple rhetorical strategy for rehabilitating Reichenbach as a forerunner of this field. We think that his ideas can make a valuable contribution to contemporary debates, and that he presents an interesting case among the other scientifically oriented proponents of his time. After presenting a short reconstruction of the meaning of naturalism—or, more appropriately, naturalisms—in order to be able to correctly situate Reichenbach within his own as well as a systematic context, we discuss Reichenbach’s naturalism against the background of his scientific philosophy, his views on the relation of common-sense knowledge to science, and his efforts at popularization. To delve deeper into this topic, we present a case study to show how Reichenbach argued that in both scientific and philosophical discussions (assuming their naturalistic continuity), it is necessary to move from the request and value of truth to probability. And, finally, we argue that the liberation of knowledge and nature was a socio-political program for Reichenbach, who talked about his own scientific philosophy as “a crusade.” By emphasizing this aspect of Reichenbach’s naturalism, we may be in a better position to situate him in the history of analytic philosophy in general, and in the yet-to-be-written narrative of the naturalistic movement in particular.



2012 ◽  
Vol 2012 ◽  
pp. 1-11 ◽  
Author(s):  
Sindolfo Miranda Filho ◽  
Julio Melo ◽  
Luiz Eduardo Leite ◽  
Guido Lemos

Context-aware systems are able to monitor and automatically adapt their operation accordingly to the execution context in which they are introduced. Component-based software engineering (CBSE) focuses on the development and reuse of self-contained software assets in order to achieve better productivity and quality. In order to store and retrieve components, CBSE employs component repository systems to provide components to the system developers. This paper presents an active component repository that is able to receive the current configuration from the context-aware system and compute the components and the new architecture that better fit the given context. Since the repository has a wide knowledge of available components, it can better decide which configuration is more suitable to the running system. The repository applies Fuzzy logic algorithm to evaluate the adequacy level of the components and GRASP algorithm to mount the new system architecture. In order to verify the feasibility of our approach, we use a digital TV middleware case study to achieve experimental results.



2020 ◽  
Vol 41 (Supplement_2) ◽  
Author(s):  
M Bossard ◽  
F Witassek ◽  
D Radovanovic ◽  
F Moccetti ◽  
P Erne ◽  
...  

Abstract Introduction Limited information about the management and outcomes of patients with acute coronary syndromes (ACS) and moderate to severe renal failure (RF) is available owing to underrepresentation of this population in most studies. Methods We evaluated the use of guideline-recommended therapies and in-hospital outcomes of totally 49'191 ACS patients with normal-mild renal failure (RF) (defined as eGFR >45ml/min/m2) versus moderate-severe RF (eGFR <45ml/min/m2) enrolled in the prospective Acute Myocardial Infarction in Switzerland (AMIS) cohort between 2002 and 2019 according to 2-year periods. Results Overall, 3'478 (7.1%) patients had moderate-severe RF. They were older (65.2+12.9 versus 77.2+10.6 years) and had significantly more comorbidities (including heart failure, cerebrovascular and peripheral vascular disease). Moderate-severe RF patients received less frequently guideline-recommended drugs, including P2Y12 inhibitors, ACEI/ARBs and statins (p<0.0001). Between the first and last 2-year periods, the number of patients with moderate-severe RF and number of performed percutaneous coronary interventions (PCI) increased in this cohort (p-for-trend=0.001). At the same time, in-hospital mortality significantly decreased among ACS patients with and without RF (17.5% to 10.5% and 6.0% to 3.9%, respectively, p-for-trend=0.001 for both, see Figure). Similar trends were observed for other complications, namely cardiogenic shock and reinfarction. However, major bleedings increased significantly over time in patients with and without RF (p-for-trend=0.038 and <0.001, respectively). Conclusions Outcomes of ACS patients with moderate to severe RF improved over the last two decades. Even though the rate of PCI increased in ACS patients with moderate-severe RF, they were less likely to receive guideline-recommended therapies and still suffer a high in-hospitality mortality (>10%). With respect to the increasing burden of ACS patients with RF, our study implicates that more efforts should be undertaken to further improve outcomes of those patients. Funding Acknowledgement Type of funding source: None



Game Theory ◽  
2015 ◽  
Vol 2015 ◽  
pp. 1-12
Author(s):  
Lawrence Diffo Lambo ◽  
Pierre Wambo

The solidarity value is a variant of the well-known Shapley value in which some sense of solidarity between the players is implemented allowing the disabled to receive help from the fortunate ones. We investigate on how fairly solidarity expenses are shared. We discuss the unwanted side effect of someone paying undue solidarity contributions as far as reversing his condition from a privileged to a needy person. A deeper case study is conducted for two classes of TU games that we obtain by modeling two real world business contexts. Here, we trace all player to player transfers of funds that arise when solidarity actions are processed, and we answer the question of who settles the solidarity bills. Also, we obtain the threshold position of a player below which he gets solidarity help, but above which he instead pays out donation.



2021 ◽  
pp. 175045892095066
Author(s):  
Minna Kallioinen ◽  
Mika Valtonen ◽  
Marko Peltoniemi ◽  
Ville-Veikko Hynninen ◽  
Tuukka Saarikoski ◽  
...  

Since 2013, rotational thromboelastometry has been available in our hospital to assess coagulopathy. The aim of the study was to retrospectively evaluate the effect of thromboelastometry testing in cardiac surgery patients. Altogether 177 patients from 2012 and 177 patients from 2014 were included. In 2014, the thromboelastometry testing was performed on 56 patients. The mean blood drainage volume decreased and the number of patients receiving platelets decreased between 2012 and 2014. In addition, the use of fresh frozen plasma units decreased, and the use of prothrombin complex concentrate increased in 2014. When studied separately, the patients with a thromboelastometry testing received platelets, fresh frozen plasma, fibrinogen and prothrombin complex concentrate more often, but smaller amounts of red blood cells. In conclusion, after implementing the thromboelastometry testing to the practice, the blood products were given more cautiously overall. The use of thromboelastometry testing was associated with increased possibility to receive coagulation product transfusions. However, it appears that thromboelastometry testing was mostly used to assist in management of major bleeding.



2021 ◽  
Vol 30 (6) ◽  
pp. 435-442
Author(s):  
David C. Mohr ◽  
Lakshmana Swamy ◽  
Edwin S. Wong ◽  
Meredith Mealer ◽  
Marc Moss ◽  
...  

Background Critical care nurses have a burnout rate among the highest of any nursing field. Nurse burnout may impact care quality. Few studies have considered how temporal patterns may influence outcomes. Objective To test a longitudinal model of burnout clusters and associations with patient and clinician outcomes. Methods An observational study analyzed data from annual employee surveys and administrative data on patient outcomes at 111 Veterans Health Administration intensive care units from 2013 through 2017. Site-level burnout rates among critical care nurses were calculated from survey responses about emotional exhaustion and depersonalization. Latent trajectory analysis was applied to identify clusters of facilities with similar burnout patterns over 5 years. Regression analysis was used to analyze patient and employee outcomes by burnout cluster and organizational context measures. Outcomes of interest included patient outcomes (30-day standardized mortality rate and observed minus expected length of stay) for 2016 and 2017 and clinician outcomes (intention to leave and employee satisfaction) from 2013 through 2017. Results Longitudinal analysis revealed 3 burnout clusters among the 111 sites: low (n = 37), medium (n = 68), and high (n = 6) burnout. Compared with sites in the low-burnout cluster, those in the high-burnout cluster had longer patient stays, higher employee turnover intention, and lower employee satisfaction in bivariate models but not in multivariate models. Conclusions In this multiyear, multisite study, critical care nurse burnout was associated with key clinician and patient outcomes. Efforts to address burnout among nurses may improve patient and employee outcomes.



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