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Between 11% to 40% of adults in the United States experience chronic pain, and primary care physicians may feel ill-equipped to effectively and safely care for patients with chronic pain, addiction or both. Researchers from Tufts University conducted a study to evaluate the effectiveness of an interdisciplinary consultation service that supports primary care physicians who care for patients experiencing chronic pain and addiction. The goal was to identify new and effective strategies that clinics can use to support PCPs.
From that interdisciplinary consultation service, the researchers collected and thematically analyzed 66 referral questions and 14 interviews with PCPs to better understand the types of support physicians would find most beneficial.
Greater Presence of Family Physicians, Midwives May Be Key Component to Decreasing Cesarean Delivery Rates
Surgical cesarean births can expose new mothers to a range of health complications, including infection, blood clots and hemorrhage. As part of Healthy People 2020 and other maternal health objectives, the state of California exerted pressure to reduce cesarean deliveries, and statewide organizations established quality initiatives in partnership with those goals. In this study, researchers from Stanford University and the University of Chicago examined unit culture and provider mix differences on hospital and delivery units to identify characteristics of units that successfully reduced their cesarean delivery rates. The mixed-methods study surveyed and interviewed labor and delivery teams from 37 California hospitals that were participating sites in the California Maternal Quality Care Collaborative s Supporting Vaginal Birth initiative. Respondents at successful hospitals inc