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Today’s Headlines:

• New Guideline Illuminates Path for Managing Genitourinary Syndrome of Menopause.
• Study Identifies Medication Safety Risks for Older Adults After Discharge.
• Charting the Future of Integrated Behavioral Health: Perspectives From the Field.
• Virginia Health System Improves Care With Surveys on Patient Safety Culture.
• Register for Other Upcoming Webinars.
• ´óÏóÊÓƵStats: Highest Per-User Spending on Opioids.  
• New Research and Evidence.
• ´óÏóÊÓƵin the Professional Literature.

New Guideline Illuminates Path for Managing Genitourinary Syndrome of Menopause

The American Urological Association has unveiled a new clinical practice guideline for managing genitourinary syndrome of menopause, a condition affecting numerous postmenopausal women. This comprehensive guide was informed by an funded by the Patient-Centered Outcomes Research Institute and offers evidence-based recommendations to improve patient care. At the heart of this new guideline is an emphasis on shared decision making between clinicians and patients. It advocates for screening at-risk individuals through focused history taking and recommends local low-dose vaginal estrogen as a primary treatment option. The guideline also endorses alternative treatments such as vaginal DHEA, ospemifene, vaginal moisturizers, and lubricants, while cautioning against the use of energy-based therapies. Importantly, the guideline addresses safety concerns, clarifying that local low-dose vaginal estrogen is not associated with increased endometrial cancer risk. It also offers valuable advice on managing genitourinary syndrome of menopause in breast cancer survivors, which highlights the need for multidisciplinary approaches. For more, read the  of the guideline in The Journal of Urology.

Study Identifies Medication Safety Risks for Older Adults After Discharge

An AHRQ-funded study in BMJ Quality & Safety identified factors that put older adults at risk for medication problems after leaving the hospital. Researchers developed 13 indicators to assess aspects of the medication management process, including tasks for patients to manage medicines during the transition home, capacity to perform the tasks, and medicine use practices at home. Among 376 patients aged 65 and older, more than half were prescribed more than 10 medicines, and nearly all experienced changes to their regimens due to their hospital stays. Over 80 percent of the patients managed medicines without a caregiver, and more than 40 percent felt unsure about managing medicines. High task demands and low capacities were linked to feeling overwhelmed and experiencing discrepancies between medicines taken at home and those in the health record. The study identified task and capacity indicators that could be assessed before discharge to improve safety and patient experience during the transition from hospital to home. Access the .

Charting the Future of Integrated Behavioral Health: Perspectives From the Field

Join Jürgen Unützer, M.D., M.A., M.P.H., and Virna Little, Psy.D.—two of the nation’s leading experts in behavioral health integration—on August 6 from 3:30 to 5 p.m. ET for an engaging session on the future of integrated care. Dr. Unützer, chair of psychiatry and behavioral sciences at the University of Washington and director of the Garvey Institute for Brain Health Solutions, will share insights from his decades of clinical, research, and policy leadership experience. Dr. Little, cofounder of Concert Health and cofounder and Chief Operating Officer of Zero Overdose, is a national expert in integrated care, the Collaborative Care model, and suicide prevention. She will draw on lessons learned from implementing and scaling integrated care and suicide prevention efforts across diverse healthcare settings. The session will feature a dynamic panel discussion moderated by the ´óÏóÊÓƵAcademy and conclude with audience questions. now.

Virginia Health System Improves Care With Surveys on Patient Safety Culture 

Riverside Health System, based in Newport News, VA, has been using the ´óÏóÊÓƵSurveys on Patient Safety Culture® (SOPS®) for nearly a decade, administering surveys annually to all team members. As a result of the data collected from the surveys, changes have been implemented to improve patient safety at Riverside Walter Reed Hospital in Gloucester, VA, including a new tool for handling hospital handoffs. Safety culture survey responses in all categories also improved.

SOPS surveys can be used in hospitals, medical offices, nursing homes, community pharmacies, and ambulatory surgery centers to ask healthcare providers and other staff about their organizational culture’s support for patient safety. Results of the surveys can then be used to improve areas that affect patient safety. SOPS survey questions are related to teamwork, staffing, response to error, communication, and handoffs and information exchange, among others.

An important goal for the most recent Riverside Walter Reed Hospital survey was to assess patient safety culture to improve hospital handoffs, which are critical times to share vital patient information. A handoff is a standardized method to transfer information, authority, and responsibility during transitions in patient care, including nursing shift changes and patient transfers to other hospital units or facilities. Based on survey results, the hospital team developed, tested and hardwired a new handoff tool into standard daily work processes. Staff feedback has been positive about the handoff tool improving patient care.

A new ´óÏóÊÓƵimpact story has all the details.

Register for Upcoming Webinars

• July 17, 12:30–2 p.m. ET: .
• August 6, 3:30–5 p.m. ET: .

´óÏóÊÓƵStats: Highest Per-User Spending on Opioids

Annual average spending was $282 per patient for outpatient opioid medications containing oxycodone and $234 for medications containing morphine in 2021 and 2022. Oxycodone also accounted for the highest average cost per fill at $99. (Source: ´óÏóÊÓƵMedical Expenditure Panel Survey Statistical Brief #559, .)

New Research and Evidence

• Systematic Review (draft open for comment through July 30): .
• Systematic Review (draft open for comment through July 17): .
• Systematic Review (draft open for comment through July 25): .
• Systematic Review (draft open for comment through August 7): .

´óÏóÊÓƵin the Professional Literature

Low resource, high impact: just-in-time training toolkit in response to a public health crisis. Owen NS, Johnson CT, Hader C, et al. Clin Simul Nurs 2024 Dec:97:101629. Epub 2024 Nov 5. Access the on PubMed®.

Online public response to emergency department diagnostic error report: a qualitative study. Sanford TJ, Kaul P, McCarthy DM. Acad Emerg Med 2025 Mar;32(3):300-8. Epub 2024 Nov 12. Access the on PubMed®.

The health and economic burden of employee burnout to U.S. employers. Martinez MF, O’Shea KJ, Kern MC, et al. Am J Prev Med 2025 Apr;68(4):645-55. Epub 2025 Feb 27. Access the on PubMed®.

Quantifying the diagnostic utility of baseline testing in concussion management: an analysis of collegiate athletes from the NCAA-DoD CARE Consortium dataset. Pandey HS, Lahijanian B, Schmidt JD, et al. Am J Sports Med 2025 Jan;53(1):181-91. Access the on PubMed®.

Trends in end-of-life care and satisfaction among veterans undergoing surgery. Dualeh SHA, Anderson MS, Abrahamse P, et al. Ann Surg 2025 Apr;281(4):682-8. Epub 2024 Feb 23. Access the on PubMed®.

Ambulatory medication change workflows’ effect on communication to pharmacies. Pitts SI, Thomas B, Yang Y, et al. Appl Clin Inform 2025 Mar;16(2):472-6. Epub 2025 May 21. Access the on PubMed®.

Prevalence, severity and predictors of hand eczema in patients treated for atopic dermatitis: a cross-sectional observational study. Silverberg JI, Samynathan A, Thyssen JP. Arch Dermatol Res 2025 Mar 29;317(1):652. Access the on PubMed®.

Rheum for improvement? Delayed diagnosis of juvenile idiopathic arthritis: a narrative review. Costello A, Rasooly I, Weiss P. Arthritis Care Res 2025 Mar;77(3):283-90. Epub 2024 Oct 15. Access the on PubMed®.