The Agency for Healthcare Research and Quality (AHRQ) announced July 16 the release of a new handbook, which the federal agency says provides practical steps for health care professionals to follow when integrating interactive preventive health records (IPHRs).
“An Interactive Preventive Care Record: A Handbook for Using Patient-Centered Personal Health Records to Promote Prevention” is based on lessons learned from implementation using electronic health records (EHRs) from three different vendors at 14 different practices.
In a randomized trial of IPHRs, researchers found that IPHR users were more likely to be up-to-date on all preventive services compared with non-users, especially in the areas of screening tests and immunizations. The study findings showed that an IPHR and similar systems could improve patient outcomes, such as the delivery of evidence-based preventive care.
Download the handbook.
July 26th, 2012
The controversy continues over the U.S. Preventative Services Task Force (USPSTF) November 2009 recommendations for breast cancer screening. Senator David Vitter (R-La.) sent a letter, dated May 12, to U.S. Department of Health and Human Services (HHS) Secretary Kathleen Sebelius requesting all agencies under HHS cease all promotion of the “impugned” recommendations.
(more…)
May 28th, 2010
An inventory of quality measures used for reporting, payment, or quality improvement by its agencies and operating divisions was recently announced by Health and Human Services (HHS).
The HHS measures inventory is available on the National Quality Measures Clearinghouse, an Agency for Healthcare Research and Quality (AHRQ), Web site. (more…)
December 2nd, 2008
Health and Human Services (HHS) has issued a final rule for Patient Safety Organizations (PSO) that will go into effect Jan. 19, 2009. The Agency for Healthcare Research and Quality (AHRQ) has already listed 15 PSOs.
The final rule addresses concerns regarding how providers may efficiently collect and analyze patient safety event information with privilege and confidentiality protections while complying with existing reporting requirements seeking similar information. (more…)
Although osteoporosis (low bone mass density or BMD) is considered primarily a problem for older women, a 60-year-old white man has a 25 percent lifetime risk of suffering a bone fracture due to osteoporosis, reports the Agency for Healthcare Research and Quality (AHRQ). Osteoporosis is typically without symptoms and is substantially under-diagnosed and undertreated among men in the United States. A new study reveals certain risk factors for osteoporosis among asymptomatic men can be used to identify those who should be screened for the problem. (more…)
October 13th, 2008