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OSHPD Presentations at the American Public Health
Association 136th Annual Meeting,
San Diego, California
At the October 2008 annual meeting of the American Public Health Association, OSHPD staff delivered oral and poster presentations on the following current healthcare issues and trends.
The percentage of hospital patients with antibiotic resistant Staphylococcus infections has increased dramatically in California over the last decade. The presentation identifies the types of patients at highest risk for these infections.
The number of surgical procedures that are performed in an outpatient setting has increased since the 1980s, in response to improvements in medical technologies and the rising cost of inpatient care. What can be learned about the safety of outpatient procedures from OSHPD's new ambulatory surgery center data?
The timely and effective use of primary care can prevent the need for hospitalization. Hospital admissions that may be preventable are termed "ambulatory care sensitive conditions" (ACSC). Significant differences appear to exist among different populations in terms of their access to outpatient care, when viewed in terms of race, ethnicity and socioeconomic status. High resolution geographic analyses can help healthcare stakeholders understand the population factors that influence high and low ACSC rates.