miércoles, 15 de marzo de 2017

HCUP Quarterly eNews, Spring 2017, Issue 50

HCUP Quarterly eNews, Spring 2017, Issue 50

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Spring 2017Issue #50

Missed the last e-News? Read it on the HCUP-US Web site

News and Announcements

Now Accepting Nominations for HCUP’s 2016 Outstanding Article of the Year Award

Nominations are now being accepted for HCUP’s Outstanding Article of the Year Award, which will recognize up to two researchers published in peer-reviewed journals in 2016 who used HCUP databases to explore and address health care research topics and issues.

The chosen recipients will receive certificates and present posters of their work during AcademyHealth’s 2017 Annual Research Meeting.

The nomination period closes Friday, March 17, 2017, at 11:59 p.m. EDT. For complete information, please visit the HCUP User Support (HCUP-US) Web site at https://www.hcup-us.ahrq.gov/news/awards.jsp. For questions, please contact HCUP@ahrq.gov

Learn About HCUP at April 19 and 26 Webinars—Registration Required

Webinars introducing researchers to HCUP will be held on April 19 and 26. On April 19, Overview of the HCUP Databases will cover an introduction to the HCUP family of databases. On April 26, Overview of the HCUP Products and Tools will cover the use of HCUP software tools and supplemental files to facilitate and augment research.

The webinars are open to the public. Each requires separate advance registration, which will open on April 10. Additional details on the webinars are posted on the HCUP Workshops and Webinars page.

HCUPnet is Being Redesigned!

In December 2016, the Agency for Healthcare Research and Quality (AHRQ) launched a new, redesigned HCUPnet. The new site is equipped with a modernized look, a simplified process for querying data, fewer clicks to reach information, and overall, more flexibility in making changes to the content and display of results.

Currently, the newly redesigned site allows users to query inpatient stays (including readmissions), emergency department visits, ambulatory surgery services, and community-level statistics. The option to query by individual ICD-9-CM codes is being added as well. Queries on specific diagnoses and procedures are also possible by such classifications as the Clinical Classifications Software (CCS), Major Diagnostic Category (MDC), and Diagnosis Related Group (DRG). The option to query by Hospital Service Line was added recently. Further information on these classifications is available in the HCUPnet Glossary of Terms.

AHRQ is in the process of transferring all functionality to the new site, but for query functions that are not yet available users can refer to the archive site, which will remain available until March 31, 2017.

For questions or comments related to the redesign of HCUPnet, please contact HCUP@ahrq.gov.

Now Available: The 2014 Nationwide Emergency Department Sample (NEDS)

The 2014 Nationwide Emergency Department Sample (NEDS) is now available. The NEDS is the largest all-payer emergency department database in the United States and contains information about geographic, hospital, patient, and visit characteristics.

The NEDS enables analyses of emergency department utilization patterns and yields information that supports public health professionals, administrators, policymakers, and clinicians as they make decisions regarding this critical source of care.

Select aggregated statistics from the 2014 NEDS can be accessed via HCUPnet. For example, HCUPnet shows that there were approximately 138 million emergency department visits in 2014, 14.1 percent of which resulted in a hospital admission.

The 2014 NEDS is available for purchase through the HCUP Central Distributor.Click to edit this placeholder text.

Databases and Products

Recently Released: Additional 2014 State Databases

Since December 2016, the following 2014 State databases have been released:

State Inpatient Databases (SID) ○ 2014: South Carolina
State Ambulatory Surgery and Services Databases (SASD) ○ 2014: New York and South Carolina
State Emergency Department Databases (SEDD) ○ 2014: New York and South Carolina

In addition, the 2014 Nationwide Emergency Department Sample (NEDS) has been released.

Complete listings of available databases by year can be found in the Database Catalog on the HCUP-US Web site. Databases can be purchased online through the HCUP Central Distributor, and aggregated national and selected State statistics can be accessed via HCUPnet.

For database purchasing questions, please contact the HCUP Central Distributor.

Publications Spotlights

New HCUP Statistical Briefs Posted on HCUP-US

Since December 2016, the following HCUP Statistical Briefs have been released:

#220 Emergency Department Visits Related to Suicidal Ideation, 2006–2013
#221 Characteristics of Emergency Department Visits for Super-Utilizers by Payer, 2014

To access these and other Statistical Briefs, please visit the Statistical Briefs page on the HCUP-US Web site.

New HCUP Methods Series Report Now Available

Since December 2016, the following Methods Series Report has been released:

Method Series Report #2017-01: Calculating Nationwide Readmissions Database (NRD) Variances presents detailed information on the calculation of simple statistics, including variances, from the Nationwide Readmissions Database (NRD).

This report and other HCUP reports can be found on the HCUP Reports page.

Publications Using HCUP Data

Chalmers N, Grover J, Compton R. After Medicaid expansion in Kentucky, use of hospital emergency departments for dental conditions increased. Health Aff (Millwood). 2016;35(12):2268-76.

This study uses the 2010–2014 Kentucky State Emergency Department Database (SEDD)and the HCUP Cost-to-Charge Ratio (CCR) Files to investigate utilization patterns of hospital emergency departments in the State of Kentucky for the treatment of dental conditions following the expansion of Medicaid. The article abstract is available via PubMed.

Panaich S, Arora S, Patel N, et al. Etiologies and predictors of 30-day readmission and in-hospital mortality during primary and readmission after transcatheter aortic valve implantation. Am J Cardiol. 2016;118(11):1705-11.

This study uses the 2013 Nationwide Readmissions Database (NRD) to determine the etiologies and predictors of readmission after transcatheter aortic valve implantation (TAVI). The article abstract is available via PubMed.

To read additional recently published articles featuring HCUP data, please visit the Research Spotlights page on the HCUP-US Web site.

HCUP Q&A

Question:

I am new to using HCUP data, and I am wondering what resources on HCUP-US would be helpful for my analysis. In particular, I am interested in the following:

Where can I find general information about HCUP databases?
I am interested in purchasing various State databases, but can’t figure out which States and years are available. Can you direct me to this information?
How can I determine whether the data elements that I need for my study are available for a particular State?
Is there any additional State-specific information available that might be helpful?
What additional resources are available to help me with methodological questions?
I am interested in additional years of data. How can I find out when they become available?

Answers:

Where can I find general information about HCUP databases?

Information about HCUP’s databases are available in the Databases section of the HCUP-US Web site. From this location, users can navigate to the specific nationwide or State database in which they are interested and obtain general information, which can be found in the introductory document for the specific database, as well as file specifications, summary statistics, and data element descriptions. Additional information regarding HCUP databases is available in the HCUP Overview Course, which also highlights the various tools and products that can be used in conjunction with HCUP data.

I am interested in purchasing various State databases, but can't figure out which States and years are available. Can you direct me to this information?

Users can find information on which States participate in the nationwide databases or the availability of State databases by State and data year on the Central Distributor: Availability of HCUP Databases page of the HCUP-US Web site. This section is updated regularly as HCUP databases are released.

This information is additionally available through the HCUP Central Distributor, more specifically in the Database Catalog, which also provides information on the year-by-year pricing of HCUP databases.

How can I determine whether the data elements that I need for my study are available for a particular State?

From the main Databases section described above, users can navigate to specific database pages for the three HCUP State databases (State Inpatient Databases [SID], State Ambulatory Surgery and Services Databases [SASD], and State Emergency Department Databases [SEDD]). Within each separate section for the SID, SASD, and SEDD is a subsection dedicated to data elements. Under this subsection, there is a link titled “Availability of Data Elements by Year,” which provides information on the availability of HCUP data elements by State for a specific year. The links for the SID, SASD, and SEDD are listed below:

Is there any additional State-specific information available that might be helpful?

HCUP provides additional State-specific information within the File Composition Notes, which are intended to assist users in better understanding the composition of the HCUP State databases. The File Composition Notes provide information about the source of the original data files, the types of hospitals included in those files, the records excluded during HCUP processing (if applicable), and other pertinent information. The specific links for the SID, SASD, and SEDD are listed below:

In addition, HCUP provides some State-specific information within the descriptions for various HCUP data elements. For example, users interested in an analysis by expected payer will find State-specific information, such as the mapping of values, within the description for the HCUP variables primary expected payer, uniform (PAY1); secondary expected payer, uniform (PAY2); and tertiary expected payer, uniform (PAY3). The specific links for the Description of Data Elements on the SID, SASD, and SEDD are listed below:

What additional resources are available to help me with methodological questions?

The HCUP Methods Series Reports feature a broad array of methodological information on the HCUP databases and software tools. These reports are released regularly, either as updates to previous topics or as separate, stand-alone topics. Topics include such areas as the calculation of costs, studying patients transferred between hospitals, the identification of observation services in HCUP databases, and sources of data for population statistics that can be used as denominators to calculate population-based statistics.

In addition to the HCUP Methods Series Reports, HCUP offers the Online Tutorial Series, which includes interactive courses on technical methods for conducting research with HCUP databases.

I am interested in additional years of data. How can I find out when they become available?

If you are signed up on our HCUP Mailing List, you will be notified when databases, tools, and other HCUP products are released. You can register at https://subscriptions.ahrq.gov/accounts/USAHRQ/subscriber/new.

Please be sure to select the “What’s New at HCUP User Support” list to receive updates on product releases, events, and training. You also can check the HCUP Database and Product Release Calendar and the HCUP-US Web site for updates.

For additional information on HCUP databases, tools, and reports as well as general information about HCUP, please visit the Frequently Asked Questions on the HCUP-US Web site. Additionally, you may register for the upcoming HCUP Webinars on April 19 and April 26. Webinar information is available in the HCUP Events section of this newsletter. For other HCUP questions, please contact HCUP User Support.