{"title":"Birth-Centered Outcomes Research Engagement (B-CORE) in Medi-Cal: Community-Generated Recommendations to Decrease Maternal Mortality and Severe Maternal Morbidity.","authors":"Priya Batra, Gabriela Alvarado, Chloe E Bird","doi":"","DOIUrl":"","url":null,"abstract":"<p><p>California leads the nation with its relatively low rate of maternal deaths during pregnancy and the postpartum period. However, individuals insured via Medi-Cal suffer a disproportionate share of maternal deaths and severe complications at birth; within this group of publicly insured individuals, certain racial and/or ethnic groups have even higher rates of poor outcomes. The state can attribute part of its success in lowering rates of maternal mortality (MM) to the implementation of a data-driven statewide portfolio of quality improvement activities focused on the leading causes of maternal death. This quality improvement infrastructure has not previously been leveraged to respond in a focused way to the relatively large shares of MM and morbidity still seen in the Medi-Cal-insured population. B-CORE aimed to expand on existing statewide quality improvement efforts to effectively mitigate these adverse outcomes in Medi-Cal births by engaging Medi-Cal stakeholders.</p>","PeriodicalId":74637,"journal":{"name":"Rand health quarterly","volume":"11 1","pages":"2"},"PeriodicalIF":0.0,"publicationDate":"2023-12-20","publicationTypes":"Journal Article","fieldsOfStudy":null,"isOpenAccess":false,"openAccessPdf":"https://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pmc/articles/PMC10732240/pdf/","citationCount":null,"resultStr":null,"platform":"Semanticscholar","paperid":"139543260","PeriodicalName":null,"FirstCategoryId":null,"ListUrlMain":null,"RegionNum":0,"RegionCategory":"","ArticlePicture":[],"TitleCN":null,"AbstractTextCN":null,"PMCID":"OA","EPubDate":null,"PubModel":null,"JCR":null,"JCRName":null,"Score":null,"Total":0}
Kimberly A Hepner, Jessica L Sousa, Carol P Roth, Shreya S Huilgol, Chester Jean, Lucy B Schulson, Priya Gandhi, Nipher Malika, Charles C Engel
{"title":"Improving Pain Care for Service Members: Administrator, Provider, and Patient Perspectives on Treatment, Policies, and Opportunities for Change.","authors":"Kimberly A Hepner, Jessica L Sousa, Carol P Roth, Shreya S Huilgol, Chester Jean, Lucy B Schulson, Priya Gandhi, Nipher Malika, Charles C Engel","doi":"","DOIUrl":"","url":null,"abstract":"<p><p>Acute and chronic pain are common among service members, with musculoskeletal pain and injuries being the leading cause of nondeployability among active-duty service members. Given the significant implications for individual health and force readiness, providing high-quality pain care to service members is a priority of the Military Health System (MHS). Prior RAND research used administrative data to assess the quality and safety of pain care and opioid prescribing in the MHS, generated a set of quality measures that the MHS could adopt going forward, and identified strengths and opportunities for improvement in care provided to service members with pain conditions. In this study, authors document findings from interviews with MHS administrators, providers, and patients, providing valuable detail and context for those findings, along with on-the-ground perspectives on MHS pain care policies and guidance in practice. Staff and patients recommended prioritizing increases in treatment access and availability to improve pain care, and patients emphasized effective treatment and patient-centered care as the most important facilitators of high-quality pain care.</p>","PeriodicalId":74637,"journal":{"name":"Rand health quarterly","volume":"11 1","pages":"3"},"PeriodicalIF":0.0,"publicationDate":"2023-12-20","publicationTypes":"Journal Article","fieldsOfStudy":null,"isOpenAccess":false,"openAccessPdf":"https://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pmc/articles/PMC10732241/pdf/","citationCount":null,"resultStr":null,"platform":"Semanticscholar","paperid":"139543262","PeriodicalName":null,"FirstCategoryId":null,"ListUrlMain":null,"RegionNum":0,"RegionCategory":"","ArticlePicture":[],"TitleCN":null,"AbstractTextCN":null,"PMCID":"OA","EPubDate":null,"PubModel":null,"JCR":null,"JCRName":null,"Score":null,"Total":0}
{"title":"Letter from the Editor.","authors":"","doi":"","DOIUrl":"","url":null,"abstract":"","PeriodicalId":74637,"journal":{"name":"Rand health quarterly","volume":"11 1","pages":"letter"},"PeriodicalIF":0.0,"publicationDate":"2023-12-20","publicationTypes":"Journal Article","fieldsOfStudy":null,"isOpenAccess":false,"openAccessPdf":"https://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pmc/articles/PMC10732238/pdf/","citationCount":null,"resultStr":null,"platform":"Semanticscholar","paperid":"139543452","PeriodicalName":null,"FirstCategoryId":null,"ListUrlMain":null,"RegionNum":0,"RegionCategory":"","ArticlePicture":[],"TitleCN":null,"AbstractTextCN":null,"PMCID":"OA","EPubDate":null,"PubModel":null,"JCR":null,"JCRName":null,"Score":null,"Total":0}
Rajeev Ramchand, Sangeeta C Ahluwalia, Mary Avriette, Gary Cecchine, Monika Cooper, Christy Foran, Daniel Hicks, Natasha Lander, Sarita D Lee
{"title":"Syndromic Surveillance 2.0: Emerging Global Surveillance Strategies for Infectious Disease Epidemics.","authors":"Rajeev Ramchand, Sangeeta C Ahluwalia, Mary Avriette, Gary Cecchine, Monika Cooper, Christy Foran, Daniel Hicks, Natasha Lander, Sarita D Lee","doi":"","DOIUrl":"","url":null,"abstract":"<p><p>The U.S. Army has a long history of preventing, detecting, and treating infectious diseases. Like other organizations and agencies involved in public health, the Army is increasingly interested in syndromic surveillance strategies-those designed to identify outbreaks before clinical data are available. Researchers use various methods to identify surveillance strategies across the globe, investigate these strategies' benefits and limitations, and recommend actions to aid the Army in their efforts to detect emerging epidemics and pandemics.</p>","PeriodicalId":74637,"journal":{"name":"Rand health quarterly","volume":"11 1","pages":"8"},"PeriodicalIF":0.0,"publicationDate":"2023-12-20","publicationTypes":"Journal Article","fieldsOfStudy":null,"isOpenAccess":false,"openAccessPdf":"https://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pmc/articles/PMC10732242/pdf/","citationCount":null,"resultStr":null,"platform":"Semanticscholar","paperid":"139543457","PeriodicalName":null,"FirstCategoryId":null,"ListUrlMain":null,"RegionNum":0,"RegionCategory":"","ArticlePicture":[],"TitleCN":null,"AbstractTextCN":null,"PMCID":"OA","EPubDate":null,"PubModel":null,"JCR":null,"JCRName":null,"Score":null,"Total":0}
Dana Schultz, Susan L Lovejoy, Kayla M Williams, Kerry Lindquist, Teague Ruder
{"title":"A Needs Assessment of Women Veterans in Western Pennsylvania: Final Report to Adagio Health.","authors":"Dana Schultz, Susan L Lovejoy, Kayla M Williams, Kerry Lindquist, Teague Ruder","doi":"","DOIUrl":"","url":null,"abstract":"<p><p>Women make up an increasingly large share of the U.S. veteran population, and their numbers continue to grow while the overall number of veterans is on the decline. Yet programs designed to support veterans' health and well-being have largely focused on men. Women's military experiences and postservice needs often differ from those of men, and women veterans also differ in significant ways from their nonveteran counterparts. Few studies have explored these variations, and this has translated to potentially missed opportunities to improve support for women during and after their transition from military to civilian life. Adagio Health, a provider of health, wellness, and nutrition services based in Western Pennsylvania, has taken steps to improve care for women veterans in its service area. To identify opportunities to further expand and enhance Adagio Health's efforts to support women veterans' health and wellness, the authors quantitatively and qualitatively assessed the needs of women veterans in the Adagio Health service area. The assessment provides a clearer picture of this often-underserved population, available services and resources, gaps in support, barriers to access, and areas to prioritize to provide the best support possible for the health and well-being of women who served. With the approaches recommended in this assessment, Adagio Health can continue increasing its capacities and capabilities for supporting its women veteran patients and making progress toward its goal of advancing their health and well-being.</p>","PeriodicalId":74637,"journal":{"name":"Rand health quarterly","volume":"10 4","pages":"7"},"PeriodicalIF":0.0,"publicationDate":"2023-09-01","publicationTypes":"Journal Article","fieldsOfStudy":null,"isOpenAccess":false,"openAccessPdf":"https://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pmc/articles/PMC10501824/pdf/","citationCount":null,"resultStr":null,"platform":"Semanticscholar","paperid":"10311488","PeriodicalName":null,"FirstCategoryId":null,"ListUrlMain":null,"RegionNum":0,"RegionCategory":"","ArticlePicture":[],"TitleCN":null,"AbstractTextCN":null,"PMCID":"OA","EPubDate":null,"PubModel":null,"JCR":null,"JCRName":null,"Score":null,"Total":0}
Kristie L Gore, Christine Chen, Ning Fu, Jody Larkin, Aneesa Motala, Susanne Hempel
{"title":"Interventions for People Who Have Attempted Suicide and Their Family Members: A Systematic Review.","authors":"Kristie L Gore, Christine Chen, Ning Fu, Jody Larkin, Aneesa Motala, Susanne Hempel","doi":"","DOIUrl":"","url":null,"abstract":"<p><p>Following a suicide attempt, components of aftercare can include efforts to reduce suicidal behavior (i.e., suicide, attempt, or ideation) of a person who has attempted suicide and facilitate the psychosocial adjustment of the patient and their family members. The purpose of this systematic review and meta-analysis of key outcomes was to synthesize the existing evidence on interventions for people who have attempted suicide and their family members. The authors found that aftercare interventions show a statistically significant reduction in further suicide attempts for intervention participants. Studies also reported a reduction in suicide deaths, depression, and hopelessness, but the results are based on limited quality of evidence. The uptake of interventions and treatment retention varied widely by aftercare intervention. The authors could not explore the effects of the intervention target (e.g., participants who attempted suicide versus family members or both) or populations because of the homogeneity of the sample and the lack of studies measuring family member responses. The identified studies did not meaningfully address the effects of interventions on family members because these were rarely included in existing research studies.</p>","PeriodicalId":74637,"journal":{"name":"Rand health quarterly","volume":"10 4","pages":"5"},"PeriodicalIF":0.0,"publicationDate":"2023-09-01","publicationTypes":"Journal Article","fieldsOfStudy":null,"isOpenAccess":false,"openAccessPdf":"https://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pmc/articles/PMC10501827/pdf/","citationCount":null,"resultStr":null,"platform":"Semanticscholar","paperid":"10289839","PeriodicalName":null,"FirstCategoryId":null,"ListUrlMain":null,"RegionNum":0,"RegionCategory":"","ArticlePicture":[],"TitleCN":null,"AbstractTextCN":null,"PMCID":"OA","EPubDate":null,"PubModel":null,"JCR":null,"JCRName":null,"Score":null,"Total":0}
{"title":"Toward a Unified Multiscale Computational Model of the Human Body's Immediate Responses to Blast-Related Trauma: Proceedings and Expert Findings from a U.S. Department of Defense International State-of-the-Science Meeting.","authors":"Samantha McBirney, Emily Hoch","doi":"","DOIUrl":"","url":null,"abstract":"<p><p>The topic of the tenth U.S. Department of Defense International State-of-the-Science Meeting on Blast Injury Research was \"Toward a Unified Multiscale Computational Model of the Human Body's Immediate Responses to Blast-Related Trauma.\" The meeting was held August 16-17, 2022, at the RAND Corporation office in Arlington, Virginia, and more than 60 scientists, clinicians, and military leaders provided scientific overviews, presentations, and posters describing new and emerging science in the field. Before the meeting, a conference planning committee consulted on the literature review and research questions and served as a peer review panel for submitted abstracts. Five leading scientists and clinicians in related fields were invited to serve on an expert panel, lead working groups, and develop overall recommendations. These conference proceedings summarize the meeting and present key findings.</p>","PeriodicalId":74637,"journal":{"name":"Rand health quarterly","volume":"10 4","pages":"11"},"PeriodicalIF":0.0,"publicationDate":"2023-09-01","publicationTypes":"Journal Article","fieldsOfStudy":null,"isOpenAccess":false,"openAccessPdf":"https://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pmc/articles/PMC10501818/pdf/","citationCount":null,"resultStr":null,"platform":"Semanticscholar","paperid":"10290827","PeriodicalName":null,"FirstCategoryId":null,"ListUrlMain":null,"RegionNum":0,"RegionCategory":"","ArticlePicture":[],"TitleCN":null,"AbstractTextCN":null,"PMCID":"OA","EPubDate":null,"PubModel":null,"JCR":null,"JCRName":null,"Score":null,"Total":0}
Cortney Weinbaum, Omair Khan, Teresa D Thomas, Bradley D Stein
{"title":"Neurodiversity and National Security: How to Tackle National Security Challenges with a Wider Range of Cognitive Talents.","authors":"Cortney Weinbaum, Omair Khan, Teresa D Thomas, Bradley D Stein","doi":"","DOIUrl":"","url":null,"abstract":"<p><p>National security organizations need highly skilled and intellectually creative individuals who are eager to apply their talents to address the nation's most pressing challenges. In public and private discussions, officials and experts addressed the need for <i>neurodiversity</i> in the national security community. They described missions that are too important and too difficult to be left to those who use their brains only in <i>typical</i> ways. <i>Neurodivergent</i> is an umbrella term that covers a variety of cognitive diagnoses, including (but not exclusive to) autism spectrum disorder, attention deficit disorder (ADD) and attention-deficit/hyperactivity disorder (ADHD), dyslexia, dyscalculia, and Tourette's syndrome. Neurodivergent individuals are already part of the national security workforce. The purpose of this study is to understand the benefits that people with neurodivergence bring to national security; the challenges in recruiting, working with, and managing a neurodiverse workforce; and the barriers in national security workplaces that prevent agencies from realizing the full benefits of neurodiversity. To carry out this research, the authors conducted a review of primary, secondary, and commercial literature; they conducted semistructured interviews and held discussions with government officials, researchers and advocates for the interests of neurodivergent populations, and representatives from large organizations that have neurodiversity employment programs; and they synthesized findings from across these tasks to describe the complex landscape for neurodiversity in large organizations in general and in national security specifically.</p>","PeriodicalId":74637,"journal":{"name":"Rand health quarterly","volume":"10 4","pages":"9"},"PeriodicalIF":0.0,"publicationDate":"2023-09-01","publicationTypes":"Journal Article","fieldsOfStudy":null,"isOpenAccess":false,"openAccessPdf":"https://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pmc/articles/PMC10501819/pdf/","citationCount":null,"resultStr":null,"platform":"Semanticscholar","paperid":"10290826","PeriodicalName":null,"FirstCategoryId":null,"ListUrlMain":null,"RegionNum":0,"RegionCategory":"","ArticlePicture":[],"TitleCN":null,"AbstractTextCN":null,"PMCID":"OA","EPubDate":null,"PubModel":null,"JCR":null,"JCRName":null,"Score":null,"Total":0}
Julia Rollison, Joachim O Hero, Katie Feistel, Armenda Bialas, Owen Hall, Rosemary Li, Sarah Weilant, Jody Larkin, Coreen Farris, Kristie L Gore
{"title":"Psychological Harms and Treatment of Sexual Assault and Sexual Harassment in Adults: Systematic and Scoping Reviews to Inform Improved Care for Military Populations.","authors":"Julia Rollison, Joachim O Hero, Katie Feistel, Armenda Bialas, Owen Hall, Rosemary Li, Sarah Weilant, Jody Larkin, Coreen Farris, Kristie L Gore","doi":"","DOIUrl":"","url":null,"abstract":"<p><p>Victims of sexual assault and sexual harassment often experience a variety of psychological outcomes and mental health symptoms related to posttraumatic stress disorder (PTSD), depression, anxiety, substance abuse, suicidal ideation, and self-harm. Sexual trauma also might affect careers. Despite a need to address these harms, some service members have reported that connecting to health care or mental health services following sexual assault or sexual harassment can be difficult-in part because of a lack of leadership support. Given these persistent challenges, the Psychological Health Center of Excellence identified an urgent need to better understand research that is pertinent to sexual assault and sexual harassment during military service so that the U.S. Department of Defense and the military services can improve the health care response for service members. RAND researchers investigated and synthesized relevant research in three topic areas: (1) the effectiveness of psychotherapy treatments designed for adult victims of sexual assault or sexual harassment in military settings; (2) barriers faced by U.S. military members to accessing and remaining in mental health care settings; and (3) associations between sexual assault or sexual harassment and mental health conditions.</p>","PeriodicalId":74637,"journal":{"name":"Rand health quarterly","volume":"10 4","pages":"10"},"PeriodicalIF":0.0,"publicationDate":"2023-09-01","publicationTypes":"Journal Article","fieldsOfStudy":null,"isOpenAccess":false,"openAccessPdf":"https://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pmc/articles/PMC10501825/pdf/","citationCount":null,"resultStr":null,"platform":"Semanticscholar","paperid":"10360393","PeriodicalName":null,"FirstCategoryId":null,"ListUrlMain":null,"RegionNum":0,"RegionCategory":"","ArticlePicture":[],"TitleCN":null,"AbstractTextCN":null,"PMCID":"OA","EPubDate":null,"PubModel":null,"JCR":null,"JCRName":null,"Score":null,"Total":0}
Kristie L Gore, Samantha Cherney, Sarah Weilant, Justin Hummer, Linda Cottrell, Coreen Farris
{"title":"Considerations Around the Use of Intensive Outpatient Programs for Service Members Who Experienced Sexual Trauma in the U.S. Military.","authors":"Kristie L Gore, Samantha Cherney, Sarah Weilant, Justin Hummer, Linda Cottrell, Coreen Farris","doi":"","DOIUrl":"","url":null,"abstract":"<p><p>Section 702 of the fiscal year 2019 National Defense Authorization Act directed the U.S. Department of Defense (DoD) to conduct a pilot study to assess the feasibility and advisability of using intensive outpatient treatment programs to address posttraumatic stress disorder (PTSD) and associated mental health problems among service members who have experienced sexual harassment or sexual assault while in the military. RAND researchers conducted a programmatic review of four intensive outpatient programs (IOPs)-two in the private sector and two in DoD-to understand different program components available to active-duty service members who have suffered sexual trauma and other trauma. A review of policies to understand TRICARE authorization procedures and other regulations governing IOPs and an analysis of data from the 2014 RAND Military Workplace Study survey on the prevalence of sexual trauma among personnel with mental health conditions helped obtain contextual information to inform the Psychological Health Center of Excellence's response to Congress. The review identified evidence-based approaches that IOPs have successfully used in programs designed for military service members and barriers to using this type of care to treat members of the military community. While examining the IOP model of care, the research team identified knowledge gaps surrounding the experiences, treatment needs, and effectiveness of different treatment components and models of care for active-duty service members affected by the mental health consequences of sexual harassment and sexual assault in the military.</p>","PeriodicalId":74637,"journal":{"name":"Rand health quarterly","volume":"10 4","pages":"8"},"PeriodicalIF":0.0,"publicationDate":"2023-09-01","publicationTypes":"Journal Article","fieldsOfStudy":null,"isOpenAccess":false,"openAccessPdf":"https://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pmc/articles/PMC10501828/pdf/","citationCount":null,"resultStr":null,"platform":"Semanticscholar","paperid":"10290825","PeriodicalName":null,"FirstCategoryId":null,"ListUrlMain":null,"RegionNum":0,"RegionCategory":"","ArticlePicture":[],"TitleCN":null,"AbstractTextCN":null,"PMCID":"OA","EPubDate":null,"PubModel":null,"JCR":null,"JCRName":null,"Score":null,"Total":0}