Medicine and Health Sciences Commons^™

Is There Less Opioid Abuse In States Where Marijuana Has Been Decriminalized, Either For Medicinal Or Recreational Use? A Clin-Iq, Aaron M. Wendelboe, Richard Mathew, Tana Chongsuwat, Elizabeth Rainwater, Mark A. Wendelboe, Elizabeth Wickersham Md, Ann F. Chou

Journal of Patient-Centered Research and Reviews

Opioid use, abuse, and associated mortality have reached an epidemic level. In some states, cannabis is being used to treat chronic pain. To examine the hypothesis that medical marijuana legislation may reduce adverse opioid-related outcomes if patients substitute cannabis for opioids for pain management, we conducted a clinical inquiry (Clin-IQ). We searched Ovid MEDLINE, Ovid MEDLINE In-Process, and Embase for studies using the search terms marijuana, cannabis, legal, marijuana smoking, medical marijuana, opioid-related disorders, cannabis use, medical cannabis, legal aspect, and opiate addiction. We included population-based articles published from January 1, 2012, through December 5, 2018, that assessed the relationship …

I Live Alone But Don't Feel Alone: Social Isolation And Loneliness From The Patient Perspective, Julia Bedard-Thomas, Christian Gausvik, Jonathan Wessels, Saundra Regan, Keesha Goodnow, Anna Goroncy

Journal of Patient-Centered Research and Reviews

A growing homebound population may be at risk for social isolation and loneliness. Health-related social needs play a contributing role in these conditions. Research shows social isolation and loneliness are drivers of health outcomes. This pilot feasibility study seeks to explore patient-centered insight into perceptions of social isolation and loneliness in a homebound population. Eight participants were recruited from a home-based primary care practice within a family medicine residency program. One 30-minute semi-structured interview was completed in participants’ homes. The interview focused on loneliness and social isolation, using the 6-item De Jong Gerveld loneliness scale. Three qualitative analysts open-coded transcriptions …

A Letter To My Departed Niece, * Anonymous *

Journal of Patient-Centered Research and Reviews

The following piece was written in the weeks following the death of the author’s niece. It is an attempt to explore how we as a society handle health crises differently for medical versus mental health diagnoses.

Medically Tailored Meals As A Prescription For Treatment Of Food-Insecure Type 2 Diabetics, Leslie J. Rabaut

Journal of Patient-Centered Research and Reviews

Type 2 diabetes mellitus is an immense burden to the health of our population and to our current health care system, and the weight of this burden is only projected to multiply in coming years. A nutritious diet is an indispensable aspect of diabetes treatment, and the lack of access to food engenders poor disease-state control, which correlates with increased health care utilization. Interventions aimed at improving access to food through medically tailored meals (MTMs) have demonstrated effectiveness in improving the health of food-insecure type 2 diabetic patients and reducing health care costs. Further studies are necessary to increase the …

Variation And Change Over Time In Promis-29 Survey Results Among Primary Care Patients With Type 2 Diabetes, Juell Homco, Kristin Rodriguez, David R. Bardach, Elizabeth A. Hahn, Suzanne Morton, Daren Anderson, David Kendrick, Sarah Hudson Scholle

Journal of Patient-Centered Research and Reviews

Purpose: We sought to describe results of patient-reported outcome measures implemented among primary care patients with diabetes and explore factors associated with changes in scores over time.

Methods: Two organizations serving diverse patient populations collected the PROMIS-29 survey at baseline and 3-month follow-up for patients with type 2 diabetes. Bayesian regression analysis was used to examine the relationship between patient characteristics and changes in PROMIS-29 scores. Exploratory analyses assessed relationships between goal-setting and changes in scores.

Results: The study population reported substantially more problems with physical functioning (mean: 42.5 at Site 1 and 38.9 at Site 2) and pain interference …

Utilization Of Acupuncture Services In The Emergency Department Setting: A Quality Improvement Study, John R. Burns, Jessica J. F. Kram, Vashir Xiong, Jeanne M. Stark Casadont, Tiffany A. Mullen, Nancy Conway, Dennis J. Baumgardner

Journal of Patient-Centered Research and Reviews

Purpose: Patients often present to the emergency department (ED) for pain. As opioid fatalities rise, alternative treatments are warranted for pain management. Acupuncture, a nonpharmacological treatment involving the insertion of needles into skin or tissue at specific points within the body, may help to decrease acute pain. Our study aimed to assess the utilization and impact of acupuncture in the ED for acute pain management.

Methods: We conducted a retrospective analysis of purposefully collected quality improvement data. Patients who were ≥18 years old and who presented to the ED at an urban medical center in Wisconsin during 2017 were offered …