Best practice alert and cost transparency information for high cost oncology medications.

2018 ◽  
Vol 36 (30_suppl) ◽  
pp. 323-323
Author(s):  
Pelin Cinar ◽  
Tracy Lin ◽  
Kevin Rodondi

323 Background: Oncology medication cost is often absent from therapy decision process until issues arise with payer denial resulting in potential patient financial toxicity. To incorporate cost, Best Practice Alert (BPA) and Cost Transparency Information (CTI) for high cost oncology medication (HCOM) were implemented into prescribing platform as care coordination tools. Methods: Ten HCOM were identified in gastrointestinal (GI) and breast oncology groups for which BPA and CTI were developed. Over a 6 month period, HCOM prescriptions triggered BPAs to alert providers and to place automated referrals to social work (SW). CTI – with drug costs and comparable treatment plan(s) – were posted in prescribing platform. Descriptive analyses examined differences in total payment to hospital and patients out-of-pocket payments (OPP) between treatment plans. Pre- and post-intervention surveys evaluated oncologists’ perception and behavior toward treatment cost. Results: The analysis included 162 patients and 1406 medication claims. In the GI group, BPAs effectively identified treatments incurring higher mean total payment (diff = 46733, p < 0.001) and higher mean OPP (diff = 115, p < 0.001). For the breast group, the impact was mixed. BPAs identified treatments with higher total payment at the 90% quantile (p < 0.001) and higher mean total payment (diff = 72612, p < 0.001), but there was no statistically significant difference in OPP between treatments. Pre-intervention survey (n = 26, 50% response rate) indicated 46% of oncologists rarely discuss medication cost with patients and 35% rarely refer patients to SW. Only 4% of oncologists strongly agreed that they could easily acquire cost information. Post-intervention survey highlighted that CTI improved oncologists’ awareness of medication costs, but BPA exerted no substantial influence on provider behaviors. Conclusions: BPA intervention effectively highlighted treatment cost and accurately identified patients at risk for financial toxicity. The lack of statistically significant difference in oncologists’ behavior and perception may be due to a small sample size. Comments from providers suggest that BPA combined with OPP would be more useful in reducing financial toxicity.

2020 ◽  
Vol 38 (15_suppl) ◽  
pp. e24197-e24197
Author(s):  
Lauren M. Hamel ◽  
David W. Dougherty ◽  
Theresa A. Hastert ◽  
Erlene Kuizon Seymour ◽  
Seongho Kim ◽  
...  

e24197 Background: Financial toxicity, the burden of treatment cost, affects 30-50% of people with cancer in the United States. Although experts recommend patients and oncologists discuss treatment cost to identify patients who need assistance, cost discussions occur in fewer than half of cancer treatment discussions. We pilot-tested the feasibility and efficacy of the Discussions of Cost (DISCO) App, a patient communication intervention designed to improve cost discussions and other financial toxicity-related outcomes during and following oncology treatment consultations. The DISCO App provides an individualized list of cost-related questions patients can ask their oncologist, specific to a patient’s economic situation. Methods: While waiting to see their oncologist, newly diagnosed patients with breast or lung cancer (n=32) used the DISCO App on an iPad. Clinic visits were videorecorded and patients completed pre- and post-intervention measures of self-efficacy for managing treatment costs, self-efficacy for interacting with oncologists, cost-related distress, and perceptions of the DISCO App. A trained coder observed the recordings to determine the presence of a cost discussion, the cost-related topic, and any emergent factors. Results: Findings showed increases in patients’ self-efficacy for managing treatment costs (p=.02) and interacting with oncologists (p=.001). Cost-related distress decreased but not significantly (p=.20). Patients reported the DISCO App was understandable (M=4.5 out of 5), useful as they talked with their oncologist (M=4.0), and 84% of patients reported needing less than 15 minutes to use the DISCO App. Most (94%) interactions were videorecorded (in two cases technical difficulties prevented videos from being collected); all (100%) of the videorecorded interactions included a cost discussion. The most frequently discussed topics were: insurance, time off from work, and financial navigation. Frequently, the oncologist asked the patient for his/her question list and discussed/answered the questions. Conclusions: Findings suggest the DISCO App is feasible to implement in the clinic and effective in improving patient-oncologist cost discussions and financial toxicity-related outcomes. Patient acceptance of the DISCO App and oncologist engagement suggested the intervention prompted cost discussions. Next steps include conducting a longitudinal randomized controlled trial to determine the effectiveness of the DISCO App on financial toxicity, and other outcomes. Clinical trial information: NCT03676920 .


2020 ◽  
Vol 7 (Supplement_1) ◽  
pp. S65-S65
Author(s):  
Ross Pineda ◽  
Meganne Kanatani ◽  
Jaime Deville

Abstract Background Methicillin-resistant Staphylococcus aureus (MRSA) remains a significant pathogen in patients with respiratory infections. Guidelines recommend empiric MRSA coverage in patients at increased risk, resulting in substantial vancomycin use. Recent literature highlights the use of MRSA nasal assays as a rapid screening tool for MRSA pneumonia, demonstrating high negative predictive values and allowing for shorter empiric coverage. We aimed to evaluate the impact of MRSA nasal screening review by the antimicrobial stewardship program (ASP) on vancomycin utilization for respiratory infections. Methods This was a retrospective, quasi-experimental, pre-post intervention study. The intervention saw the addition of an MRSA screening review tool into the ASP electronic record, highlighting patients on vancomycin (actively or recently administered) with a negative MRSA screening. Vancomycin days of therapy (DOT) was collected for all orders indicated for a respiratory infection in the two weeks following a negative screening. Additional outcomes include vancomycin total dose and DOT per 1,000 patient days. Outcomes were compared via independent samples t-tests. Results 1,110 MRSA screenings resulted across 2 months, of which the majority were excluded for either not having vancomycin ordered, or for having vancomycin ordered for a non-respiratory indication, leaving 37 and 35 evaluable screenings in the pre- and post-intervention groups, respectively. Regarding vancomycin DOT, we did not identify a significant difference between pre- and post-intervention groups with respective means of 2.45 (SD=1.52) and 2.14 (SD=1.12) (p=0.35). We identified a total 8.78 vancomycin DOT per 1,000 patient days in the pre-intervention group versus 6.69 in the post-intervention group. Conclusion ASP-guided review of MRSA screenings was associated with a nonsignificant decrease in mean vancomycin DOT and lower total DOT per 1,000 patient days for respiratory infections following a negative screen. Given the recent implementation of our intervention, our analysis covered a small sample size, highlighting the need for continued data collection. MRSA screenings are not always fully or immediately utilized in our institution, demonstrating room to de-escalate MRSA-targeted antibiotics. Disclosures All Authors: No reported disclosures


Children ◽  
2020 ◽  
Vol 8 (1) ◽  
pp. 7
Author(s):  
Hortensia Gimeno ◽  
Jessica Farber ◽  
Jessica Thornton ◽  
Helene Polatajko

Aims. The Performance Quality Rating Scale (PQRS) is an observational measure that captures performance at the level of activity and participation. Developed for use with the Cognitive Orientation to daily Occupational Performance (CO-OP), it is a highly individualized approach to measurement. CO-OP is currently being studied in childhood-onset hyperkinetic movement disorders (HMD) and deep brain stimulation. The purpose of this study was to compare two different approaches to rating performance, generic (PQRS-G) and individualized (PQRS-I), for children with childhood-onset hyperkinetic movement disorders (HMD) including dystonia. Method. Videotaped activity performances, pre and post intervention were independently scored by two blind raters using PQRS-G PQRS-I. Results were examined to determine if the measures identified differences in e performance on goals chosen by the participants and on change scores after intervention. Dependent t-tests were used to compare performance and change scores. Results. The two approaches to rating both have moderate correlations (all data: 0.764; baseline: 0.677; post-intervention: 0.725) and yielded some different results in capturing performance. There was a significant difference in scores at pre-intervention between the two approaches to rating, even though post-intervention score mean difference was not significantly different. The PQRS-I had a wider score range, capturing wider performance differences, and greater change between baseline and post-intervention performances for children and young people with dystonic movement. Conclusions. Best practice in rehabilitation requires the use of outcome measures that optimally captures performance and performance change for children and young people with dystonic movement. When working with clients with severe motor-performance deficits, PQRS-I appears to be the better approach to capturing performance and performance changes.


2021 ◽  
Vol 8 (Supplement_1) ◽  
pp. S140-S140
Author(s):  
Justine Abella Ross ◽  
Bernard Tegtmeier ◽  
Deron Johnson ◽  
Deepa Nanayakkara ◽  
Alfredo Puing ◽  
...  

Abstract Background In patients (pts) with cancer, the risk of Pneumocystis jirovecii pneumonia (PJP) is a function of dose and duration of corticosteroids (CS), underlying immunodeficiency, and immunosuppressive drugs. Trimethoprim/sulfamethoxazole (TMP/SMX) and atovaquone (ATO) are effective prophylaxis (ppx) agents against PJP. Guidelines recommend PJP ppx for pts on &gt; 20 mg /day of prednisone or its equivalent for ≥ 1 month. A best practice alert (BPA) to identify pts receiving CS may assist with improving PJP ppx prescribing in cancer pts. Methods PJP BPA was created to identify pts on CS (excluding hydrocortisone) with no active prescription for TMP/SMX or ATO ppx in EMR. Dapsone and pentamidine excluded since not preferred agents at our institution. PJP case: positive PJP polymerase chain reaction (PCR) from bronchoalveolar lavage (BAL) &gt; 84 copies or positive PJP direct fluorescent antibody (DFA) or cytology with clinical and radiographic suspicion. PJP PCR from BAL &lt; 84 copies/ml with negative DFA and cytology excluded. Preventable PJP (P-PJP): pts after CS &gt; = 30 days without PJP ppx. Non-preventable PJP (NP-PJP) : pts after CS &lt; 30 consecutive days, or on PJP ppx (non-compliance, failure), or day +1 to +30 post hematopoietic cell transplant (HCT). Pre-intervention (pre-i) PJP pts 3/1/2018 to 7/31/19 (17 months), post-intervention (post-i) PJP pts 8/1/19 to 2/1/20 (18 months) evaluated to assess BPA impact on PJP inpatient (inpt) admissions. Results In the post-i, the BPA fired 3,588 times in 1,302 pts. Pre-i: 20 P-PJP, 13 NP-PJP out of 33 pts. Post-i: 6 P-PJP, 25 NP-PJP out of 31 pts. The BPA fired in 4/31 PJP pts in the post-i period: 2/6 of P-PJP, 2/25 NP-PJP. The number of P-PJP decreased from 20 to 6 in the post-i period (p=0.0097). Conclusion Implementation of a decision support tool significantly decreased the number of P-PJP. The BPA was limited by identifying pts after CS were prescribed after the initial visit leading to periods of CS use without ppx and inability to calculate CS dosing and length of prescription. BPA provided passive education in the outpatient setting and future opportunities include refining the EMR to better identify pts at risk for developing PJP. Disclosures All Authors: No reported disclosures


2016 ◽  
Vol 34 (7_suppl) ◽  
pp. 57-57
Author(s):  
Ryan Buck ◽  
Kelley Wachsberg ◽  
Charlotta Weaver ◽  
Lyndsey Dombrowski ◽  
Madeleine Ma ◽  
...  

57 Background: Recent evidence supports a restrictive transfusion strategy in the majority of hospitalized patients, though transfusion practices for oncology patients remain highly variable. We evaluated whether use of a best practice alert for solid tumor oncology inpatients would result in more restrictive transfusion practices and impact patient outcomes. Methods: We conducted a retrospective, historical control analysis at a large academic hospital in Chicago, IL. We compared transfusion utilization among solid tumor oncology patients before and after implementation of a transfusion alert. Patients with active bleeding, hematologic malignancies and those undergoing surgical procedures were excluded. A best practice alert with clinical decision support encouraging use of a restrictive transfusion strategy (Hgb < 7 g/dL) was implemented 6/14 with phase-in completed by 9/14. We abstracted PRE intervention medical records of patients hospitalized from 5/1/13 to 4/30/14 and POST intervention records from 9/1/14 to 8/31/15. Readmission rates, incidence of ICU transfer and inpatient mortality were also compared using multiple linear regression. Outcomes were adjusted for age, gender, race, BMI, smoking status and Charlson comorbidity index. Results: 1296 total patients were included in the analysis (PRE, n = 685; POST, n = 611). There were no differences in age, gender, BMI or Charlson comorbidity index among cohorts, although the PRE cohort included more Caucasians (60.2% vs. 46.8%, p < 0.0001) and smokers (6.0% vs. 2.5%, p = 0.002). Packed red blood cells transfused per 100 patient-days were significantly lower in the POST-intervention cohort (3.8 vs. 6.4, p = 0.01). The POST-intervention cohort also had fewer 30-day emergency department visits (3.3% vs. 5.1%, p = 0.03). There were no significant differences in rates of 30-day readmission (34.6 % vs. 37.3%, p = 0.19), ICU transfer (0.5% vs. 1.1%, p = 0.08) or inpatient mortality (1.7% vs. 1.8%, p = 0.96). Conclusions: Implementation of a best practice alert among solid tumor oncology patients effectively reduced utilization of packed red blood cells without affecting patient outcomes.


2020 ◽  
Vol 38 (29_suppl) ◽  
pp. 1-1
Author(s):  
Lauren M. Hamel ◽  
David W. Dougherty ◽  
Theresa A. Hastert ◽  
Erlene Kuizon Seymour ◽  
Seongho Kim ◽  
...  

1 Background: Financial toxicity, the burden of treatment cost, affects 30-50% of people with cancer in the US. Although experts recommend patients and oncologists discuss treatment cost to identify patients who need assistance, cost discussions occur in fewer than half of cancer treatment discussions. We pilot-tested the feasibility and efficacy of the Discussions of Cost (DISCO) App, a patient communication intervention designed to improve cost discussions and other financial toxicity-related outcomes during and following oncology treatment consultations. The DISCO App provides an individualized list of cost-related questions patients can ask their oncologist, specific to a patient’s economic situation. Methods: While waiting to see their oncologist, newly diagnosed patients with breast or lung cancer (n=32) used the DISCO App on an iPad. Clinic visits were videorecorded and patients completed pre- and post-intervention measures of self-efficacy for managing treatment costs, self-efficacy for interacting with oncologists, cost-related distress, and perceptions of the DISCO App. A trained coder observed the recordings to determine the presence of a cost discussion, the cost-related topic, and any emergent factors. Results: Findings showed increases in patients’ self-efficacy for managing treatment costs (p=.02) and interacting with oncologists (p=.001). Cost-related distress decreased but not significantly (p=.20). Patients reported the DISCO App was understandable (M=4.5 out of 5), useful as they talked with their oncologist (M=4.0), and 84% of patients reported needing less than 15 minutes to use the DISCO App. Most (94%) interactions were videorecorded (in two cases technical difficulties prevented videos from being collected); all (100%) of the videorecorded interactions included a cost discussion. The most frequently discussed topics were: insurance, time off from work, and financial navigation. Frequently, the oncologist asked the patient for his/her question list and discussed/answered the questions. Conclusions: Findings suggest the DISCO App is feasible to implement in the clinic and effective in improving patient-oncologist cost discussions and financial toxicity-related outcomes. Patient acceptance of the DISCO App and oncologist engagement suggested the intervention prompted cost discussions. Next steps include conducting a longitudinal randomized controlled trial to determine the effectiveness of the DISCO App on financial toxicity, and other outcomes. Clinical trial information: NCT03676920 .


2019 ◽  
Vol 6 (Supplement_2) ◽  
pp. S813-S814
Author(s):  
Jacqueline Bork ◽  
Kimberly C Claeys ◽  
J Kristie Johnson ◽  
Jennifer Jones ◽  
Uzoamaka Obiekwe ◽  
...  

Abstract Background Antibiotic stewardship and infection control programs rely on C. difficile infection (CDI) test results to measure CDI incidence in the hospital setting. C. difficile carriage is common and distinguishing infection from colonization is difficult with the highly sensitive nucleic acid amplification testing (NAAT) commonly used. Current guidelines recommend a multi-step algorithm for testing. The impact on patient outcomes and CDI metrics are largely unknown. Methods This was a pre-post study at the University of Maryland Medical Center, evaluating the impact of a CDI testing strategy (introduced October 2018) that simultaneously reported NAAT and confirmatory enzyme immunoassay (EIA) when used with existing best practice alerts for appropriate testing. Pre-intervention (November 2017–September 2018) and post intervention (October 2018–March 2019) periods were compared for mean CDI incidence (CDI per 10,000 admissions) defined by: (1) positive NAAT, (2) reported CDI (last positive test), and (3) treated CDI (receiving oral vancomycin). Both community and hospital-onset cases were included. The NAAT CDI incidence was used as the pre-intervention comparison for all 3 measures. In addition, oral vancomycin days of therapy (DOT) per 1,000 patient-days (PD) was compared. Pre–post comparisons of mean CDI incidence and mean DOT rates were done using Student t-test. Results There were 3,237 samples tested (2,269 pre and 968 post-intervention) with 376 NAAT positive (262 pre and 114 post-intervention). Of the 99 tests with reflex EIA, there were 74 discordant tests (NAAT +/EIA -) with 35 (47%) treated for CDI. Mean NAAT CDI incidence pre-intervention was 54 per 10,000 admissions. Post-intervention mean CDI incidence decreased as follows: 45 NAAT CDI per 10,000 admissions (P = 0.13), 15 reported CDI per 1000 admissions (P < 0.0001), and 28 treated CDI per 10,000 admissions (P = 0.0007). Oral vancomycin DOT per 1,000 PD decreased from 16 to 9 (P = 0.0002). Conclusion C. difficile NAAT testing with confirmatory EIA, in combination with best practice alert, decreased reported and treated cases of CDI, which may distinguish infection vs. colonization and avoid unnecessary treatment, beyond that achieved with alerts that improve appropriate patient selection for testing. Disclosures All authors: No reported disclosures.


2020 ◽  
Vol 16 ◽  
Author(s):  
Diala Alawneh ◽  
Moustafa Younis ◽  
Majdi S. Hamarshi

Background: According to the Center for Disease Control and Prevention, diabetic ketoacidosis (DKA) hospitalization rates have been steadily increasing. Due to the increasing incidence and the economic impact associated with its morbidity and treatment, effective management is key. We aimed to streamline the management of DKA in our intensive care units (ICU) by implementing a Best-Practice Advisory (BPA) that notifies providers when DKA has resolved. Methods: A BPA was implemented on 9/15/2018. We conducted a retrospective review of patients admitted to the ICU with DKA a year before and after 9/15/2018. Adults (≥18 age) meeting DKA criteria on admission and treated with continuous insulin infusion (CII) were included. Pre-intervention group included patients admitted before BPA implementation and post-intervention group included patients admitted after. Summary and univariate analyses were performed. Results: A total of 282 patients were included; 162 (57%) pre-intervention and 120 (43%) post-intervention. Mean (±SD) age was 44 (±17) years. There was no significant difference in baseline characteristics such as age, sex, race, BMI, HbA1c, initial blood glucose, anion gap or bicarbonate concentration between both groups (p>0.05). Mean (±SD) total time on CII in hours was significantly lower in the post-intervention group 14.8 (±7.7) vs 17.5 (±14.3) p=0.041, 95% CI: 0.11-5.3. The incidence of hypoglycemia was lower in the post-intervention group n=4 (3%) vs 17 (10%), p=0.024. There was no significant difference in hypokalemia, mortality, LOS or ICU stay between both groups (p>0.05). Conclusions: The BPA introduced in our DKA management algorithm successfully reduced total time on insulin and the incidence of hypoglycemia.


2020 ◽  
Vol 4 (Supplement_1) ◽  
pp. 487-487
Author(s):  
Theresa Chrisman

Abstract Depression and lack of meaning in life (MIL) are common among residents of nursing homes (NHs) and contribute to a reduction in overall health and well-being. Life Story Book (LSB), a reminiscence intervention, is designed to provide a person with the opportunity to review their past and capture their life stories and photographs into a book. LSB has demonstrated positive outcomes for residents of NHs with dementia, yet little is known for residents without dementia. A switching replication design was used to examine the effects of LSB among 21 mentally alert residents from two NHs (NH-A and NH-B) in Houston, Texas. Participants in NH-A received three weeks of the LSB intervention, while NH-B received three weeks of care-as-usual; the intervention was then switched. The GDS-12R and the MIL questionnaire (MLQ) were used to measure depressive symptoms and MIL respectively. Participants from NH-A (n =11) and NH-B (n = 10) had a mean age of 75 years (SD =11.34); 81% female; 52% non-Hispanic white and 33% African American. Results from a one-way MANCOVA found no statistically significant difference on the GDS-12R and MLQ (F(3, 14) = 2.50, p = .102; Wilks’ Lambda = .652; η2 = .35). Further analyses comparing the pre-intervention and post-intervention scores for the entire sample (N =21) found a significant reduction in depressive symptoms (M = 2.67; SD = 2.52) and (M =1.67, SD = 2.29); (t (20) = 2.21, p = 0.039). The potential benefits of LSB for mentally alert residents of NHs warrants further research.


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