Articles: pandemics.
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The objective was to identify the highest quality global emergency medicine (GEM) research published in 2022. The top articles are compiled in a comprehensive list of all the year's GEM articles and narrative summaries are performed on those included. ⋯ The waning of the COVID-19 pandemic has not affected the continued growth in GEM literature. Articles related to prehospital care, mental health and resilience among patients and health care workers, streamlining pediatric infectious disease care, and disaster preparedness were featured in this year's review. The continued lack of EMD studies despite the global growth of GEM highlights a need for more scholarly dissemination of best practices.
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Palliative medicine · Jan 2024
ReviewPatient and families' perspectives on telepalliative care: A systematic integrative review.
Telepalliative care is increasingly used in palliative care, but has yet to be examined from a patient and family perspective. A synthesis of evidence may provide knowledge on how to plan and provide telepalliative care that caters specifically to patients and families' needs. ⋯ Enhanced access to care and convenience, as attributes of telepalliative care, are highly valued. Patients and families have varying needs during the illness trajectory that may be addressed by early integration of telepalliative care based on models of care that are flexible and combine synchronous and asynchronous solutions. Further research should examine telepalliative care in a post-pandemic context, use of models of care and identify meaningful outcome measures from patient and family perspectives for evaluation of telepalliative care.
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Comparative Study
Retrospective Cohort Study Comparing the Clinical Profile and Outcomes of Critically Ill Pregnant Patients in Kuwait During the COVID-19 Pandemic Waves.
COVID-19 is an infectious disease caused by severe acute respiratory syndrome coronavirus-2 (SARS-CoV-2 virus). This virus evolved into several variants, each with different severity. There are surges in the number of infected patients, commonly described as "waves." In Kuwait, three waves occurred. Our study describes and compares the clinical presentation and outcomes of critically ill pregnant patients infected with different variants. ⋯ In Kuwait, the number of admissions and the rate of maternal complications, morbidity, and mortality increased with successive waves.
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The COVID-19 pandemic exacerbated access barriers for patients with opioid use disorder. Telehealth presents an opportunity to improve access, treatment quality, and patient outcomes. ⋯ Our findings suggest that telehealth-initiated buprenorphine treatment is associated with reduced opioid overdose rate and improved patient engagement. Our findings strengthen the case for extending telehealth exemptions and prescribing flexibilities for treatment.
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Understanding how the COVID-19 pandemic affected cardiovascular disease (CVD) risk monitoring in primary care may inform new approaches for addressing modifiable CVD risks. This study examined how pandemic-driven changes in primary care delivery affected CVD risk management processes. ⋯ After pandemic onset, appointment completion rates were higher, time to appointment was shorter, HbA1c documentation increased, and BP documentation decreased. Future research should explore the advantages of using VC for CVD risk management while continuing to monitor for unintended consequences.