Exploring Opportunities to Leverage Pharmacists in Rural Areas to Promote Administration of Human Papillomavirus Vaccine

Posted on by porhpsu

Abstract

Rural pharmacists have been identified as potential partners, along with health care providers, schools, and public health agencies, in administering and promoting the human papillomavirus (HPV) vaccine. We sought to understand the role of pharmacists in this work. We interviewed 11 pharmacists working at independently owned pharmacies in Iowa to explore their perspectives on HPV vaccine administration and promotion. Most pharmacists agreed that HPV vaccination was within their professional scope. They identified factors that facilitate vaccine administration (eg, accessibility of pharmacies). They also reported personal barriers (eg, lack of information, concerns about safety) and organizational barriers (eg, time and staff capacity). Future work should focus on alleviating barriers and building on strengths to improve vaccination rates and ultimately prevent HPV-related cancers.

Read the full report here

Report to Congress on Medicaid and CHIP

Posted on by porhpsu

March 13, 2020

This report presents the Commission’s analysis of three policy issues of interest
to Congress:
• Medicaid disproportionate share hospital (DSH) payments that support
the nation’s safety-net hospitals;
• state reporting on the quality of care provided to individuals with either
Medicaid or the State Children’s Health Insurance Program (CHIP), as
required under the Substance Use-Disorder Prevention that Promotes
Opioid Recovery and Treatment for Patients and Communities Act of
2018 (P.L. 115-271) and the Bipartisan Budget Act of 2018 (P.L. 115-
123); and
• the timeliness and quality of evaluations of Medicaid demonstrations.

Access the full report here.

Vital Signs: Colorectal Cancer Screening Test Use — United States, 2018

Posted on by porhpsu

From The Morbidity and Mortality Weekly Report

Summary

What is already known about this topic?

Screening for colorectal cancer (CRC), the second leading cause of cancer death among cancers affecting men and women, reduces incidence and mortality. The percentage of persons who report being up to date with CRC screening has increased, but not equally among all populations. Continue reading the full report

Agency Information Collection Activities: Proposed Collection; Request

Posted on by porhpsu

March 18, 2020

SUMMARY:

For the “Opioid Management in Older Adults” project, AHRQ is seeking to identify innovative approaches to managing opioid medications for chronic pain that are particularly relevant for older adults. Use of long-term opioid therapy in older adults can be especially problematic because of increased risks such as delirium, falls, and dementia.

Learn how to submit here.

Why Coronavirus Could Hit Rural Areas Harder

Posted on by lad3

Daily Yonder, March 24, 2020

By Transmission rates may be lower in rural areas, the percentage of cases resulting in death and other serious complications could be higher in rural than in urban areas.

As rates of coronavirus (COVID-19) infection and death continue to rise, it is important to consider how rural areas may be differentially affected. On the one hand, rural parts of the U.S. may be comparatively better off than urban places due to lower population density in rural areas. Lower population density reduces opportunities for virus spread. On the other hand, there are several features of rural populations and places that increase their risk of coronavirus-related mortality and other long-term health impacts.

These include the realities that rural populations are older and have higher rates of several chronic health conditions, and rural areas have a less robust health care infrastructure to deal with coronavirus cases. Rural economies may also be affected in different ways than their urban counterparts, which has implications for long-term rural population health outcomes.

Read more.

New from the RUPRI Center for Rural Health Policy Analysis: Confirmed COVID-19 Cases, Metropolitan and Nonmetropolitan Counties

Posted on by lad3

Fred Ullrich, BA; and Keith J. Mueller, PhD

 While the majority of confirmed COVID-19 cases in the United States are found in urban centers, rural areas are not free of cases. As of March 26, 2020, there were a total of 64,382 cases (data provided by USAFacts.org), with 2,180 of those cases (about 3.4 percent of the total number) reported in non-metropolitan counties. This RUPRI data brief shows the current nonmetropolitan and metropolitan spread of the disease, and the associated map shows how the disease has spread over time.

Click to download the brief: Confirmed COVID-19, Metropolitan and Nonmetropolitan Counties

Map:  http://ruprihealth.org/publications/other/COVID_map.gif

 

************************************************
RUPRI Center for Rural Health Policy Analysis
University of Iowa
College of Public Health
Department of Health Management and Policy
145 Riverside Drive, N200 – CPHB
Iowa City, IA 52242
Phone: (319) 384-3832
Fax: (319) 384-4371

Web site: www.public-health.uiowa.edu/rupri

Follow us on Twitter! @RUPRIhealth

Pennsylvania Population Estimates Released for Counties

Posted on by lad3

The U.S. Census Bureau released estimates of the total population as of July 1, 2019 at the county level. The data show that the fastest growing counties since 2010 are Cumberland (+7.6%), Lebanon (+6.1%), Lehigh (+5.6%), Centre (+5.4%), and Chester (+5.2%). Counties with the greatest percentage decreases were Cameron (-12.5%), Cambria (-9.4%), Venango (-7.9%), Susquehanna (-6.9%), and McKean (-6.5%).

By sheer numbers Philadelphia continued to add the most population this decade (+58,052). Philadelphia was followed by Montgomery (+31,075), Lancaster (+26,281), Chester (+25,856), and Lehigh (+19,643). Westmoreland County lost the most population so far this decade (-16,172). Westmoreland was followed by Cambria (-13,503), Erie (-10,856), Fayette (-7,327), and Allegheny (-7,258).

Want to take a closer look?  Find the data at: https://www.census.gov/data/datasets/time-series/demo/popest/2010s-counties-total.html

Brief Provided for EMS Agencies Published

Posted on by lad3

The national Flex Monitoring Team has released a new briefing paper on data sources to help rural EMS agencies and State Flex Programs monitor and improve rural EMS performance. Through our work with an expert panel and a review of EMS data collection efforts, we identified barriers to as well as opportunities for EMS agencies, State EMS offices, and State Flex Programs to improve the collection, reporting and use of EMS data.

This paper may be accessed via the link below or on the Flex Monitoring Team website.

Assessing the Effectiveness of CHWs

Posted on by lad3

Over the years, there have been many studies on the effectiveness of the community health worker (CHW) in improving health outcomes.  The Association of State and Territorial Health Officials and the National Association of Community Health Workers recently published a summary of the research from the past 50 years.  It focused on assessing effectiveness in improving health outcomes, reducing healthcare costs and bridging the gap in health disparities.

Read the summary.

Report on CAH Hospital Compare Measures Released

Posted on by lad3

The national Flex Monitoring Team (FMT) has released reports of Critical Access Hospital (CAH) performance and reporting rates on selected Hospital Compare measures, using data from 2018.

The Hospital Compare data in this report include several measures that are also measures for the Medicare Beneficiary Quality Improvement Project (MBQIP). Although the majority of CAHs report data on these measures to both Hospital Compare and MBQIP, the data in this report may differ from MBQIP reports because some CAHs only report data to one of these programs.

The national report may accessed here and state reports may be accessed via the links below. All FMT publications can also be found on the Flex website.