Episode 51: How Best Practices in Clinical Health Care are Made: Clinical Guidelines and Outcome Measures

05/04/22 • 40 min

This episode demystifies clinical medical care ‘best practices’ — clinical guidelines & outcome measures. These are regularly created, validated & updated, by expert teams and organizations. This rigorous, evidence-based process provides the USA with a quality and up to date clinical health care system. [261 characters].

Guest:

John L. Gore, M.D. Professor of Urology, Professor of Surgery, Health Services Researcher, University of Washington. Urologist, surgeon, clinician, researcher, educator and expert in clinical care guidelines and outcomes. Dr. Gore is the PI of a large pragmatic trial in bladder cancer, and a quality of care expert. He previously served as the American Urological Association (AUA) representative to the National Quality Forum, which endorses national health care performance measures, and has been on guidelines panels for the National Comprehensive Cancer Network (NCCN) for kidney cancer, and the AUA for bladder cancer.

Resources:

Avedis Donabedian — author of a classic core framework for evaluating the quality of medical care, laid out 50 years ago; the basis of our system today. This link is to a recent article about Donabedian and his work, and is helpful for understanding how and why outcome measures and clinical guidelines are needed and beneficial for quality health care.
American Urological Association (AUA) Guidelines for Urology Care — find current health care guidelines for prostate conditions, bladder cancer, erectile dysfunction, etc.
National Quality Forum (NQF)— nonprofit US organization that sets standards for quality health care, and provides other services that advance quality health care.
National Committee for Quality Assurance (NCQA)— nonprofit US organization that works to improve health care quality through the administration of evidence-based standards, measures, programs, and accreditation.
Agency for Health Care Research and Quality (AHRQ) — lead US Federal agency charged with improving the safety and quality of healthcare for all Americans. AHRQ develops the knowledge, tools, and data needed to improve the healthcare system and help consumers, healthcare professionals, and policymakers make informed health decisions

Podcast Webstie & Social Media:

Podcast Website: theoriginalguidetomenshealth.org

Facebook Page: https://www.facebook.com/theoriginalguidetomenshealth/
Twitter: https://twitter.com/guide2menshlth
LinkedIn: https://www.linkedin.com/company/the-original-guide-to-mens-health/

Guest:

Resources:

Avedis Donabedian — author of a classic core framework for evaluating the quality of medical care, laid out 50 years ago; the basis of our system today. This link is to a recent article about Donabedian and his work, and is helpful for understanding how and why outcome measures and clinical guidelines are needed and beneficial for quality health care.
American Urological Association (AUA) Guidelines for Urology Care — find current health care guidelines for prostate conditions, bladder cancer, erectile dysfunction, etc.
National Quality Forum (NQF)— nonprofit US organization that sets standards for quality health care, and provides other services that advance quality health care.
National Committee for Quality Assurance (NCQA)— nonprofit US organization that works to improve health care quality through the administration of evidence-based standards, measures, programs, and accreditation.
Agency for Health Care Research and Quality (AHRQ) — lead US Federal agency charged with improving the safety and quality of healthcare for all Americans. AHRQ develops the knowledge, tools, and data needed to improve the healthcare system and help consumers, healthcare professionals, and policymakers make informed health decisions

Podcast Webstie & Social Media:

Podcast Website: theoriginalguidetomenshealth.org

Facebook Page: https://www.facebook.com/theoriginalguidetomenshealth/
Twitter: https://twitter.com/guide2menshlth
LinkedIn: https://www.linkedin.com/company/the-original-guide-to-mens-health/

Previous Episode

Episode 50: Ear, Nose and Throat Health

The ear, nose and throat (ENT) have their own medical specialty, based on proximity and function. Guest Dr. Ian Humphries takes us through a range of basic ENT health issues, including chronic irritation of the sinuses, disordered smell, ringing ears, hearing loss, swallowing problems, vocal cord issues, and oral cancers. [274 characters].

Guest:

Ian M. Humphreys, D.O. Associate Professor of Otolaryngology - Head and Neck Surgery( ENT) at University of Washington School of Medicine. He is currently Director of the Division of Rhinology & Endoscopic Skull Base Surgery at the University of Washington Medical Center – Montlake. His research interests include cancers of the sinuses and skull base as well as fungal infections involving the sinuses. If patients want to learn more they can find us via this patient care link.

Resources:

American Academy of Otolaryngology - Head and Neck Surgery
1. A rich source of patient resources and information
2. To find an ear, nose and throat doctor

Social Media

Facebook Page: https://www.facebook.com/theoriginalguidetomenshealth/
Twitter: https://twitter.com/guide2menshlth
LinkedIn: https://www.linkedin.com/company/the-original-guide-to-mens-health

Next Episode

Episode 52: Hiking, Backpacking and Staying Safe in the Wilderness

Humans have a long history of two healthy and accessible activities: walking & hiking. But being in the wilderness is more than a walk in the park. In this episode, experts from WA and CO discuss hiking benefits, preparation, safety, and respect for nature. [214 characters].

Guests:

Lee Jacobsen, JD. Lee is a Seattle attorney and avid hiker and backpacker. He is a founder of the Washington Hikers and Climbers facebook group, an 8-years running FB hiking community of over 200,000 people in WA state.

Tim Durkin MD. Tim is a physician with board certification in both emergency and sports medicine, based in Colorado. Dr Durkin is the chief medical officer for Base Medical, a wilderness medicine education company, as well as medical director for the San Juan National Forest, SAR program coordinator for Colorado Highland Helicopters, and a responder with La Plata County SAR in Colorado. He is a former paramedic and Eagle Scout, with over 25 years of technical wilderness SAR experience. Dr Durkin practices emergency medicine at a rural hospital serving Native Americans, and occupational medicine for public safety agencies. Opinions expressed today by Dr Durkin are his own and not official positions of any of his employers or affiliates.

Resources:

Washington Trails Association—A nonprofit organization. “Washington Trails Association mobilizes hikers and everyone who loves the outdoors to explore, steward and champion trails and public lands.” Trail information is specific to Washington State, but there is much on their website that is useful to anyone—general hiking information and tips for hiking.

For example, see Trail Smarts, which has a lot of how to videos.

The Mountaineers— A nonprofit “outdoor community of 14,000 active members in the Pacific Northwest. Founded in 1906, getting people of all ages outside safely and responsibly for over 100 years.”

The Mountaineers has much to offer anyone no matter where they live:

The Mountaineers book publishing and information resources are useful to hikers worldwide, including maps and a range of books and guides that provide detail about hiking & climbing tools, techniques, skills and safety in the wilderness.

Base Medical — Their mission is “to empower a safe outdoor community through access to innovative and sustainable education.” They have some on-line training available. Our guest Dr. Tim Durkin is Chief Medical Office for this organization.
WHC - Washington Hikers and Climbers, public FB group “for Washington hikers, climbers, snowshoers, cross-country skiers, and other outdoor inclined residents of or visitors to the state.”
NWAC —“The Northwest Avalanche Center exists to increase avalanche awareness, reduce avalanche impacts, and equip the community with mountain weather and avalanche forecasts, education, and data.”
All Trails — An app based retail organization that aims to connect people with the outdoors; large resource of curated trails and detailed trail information with global coverage.
MeetUp Groups — There are thousands of walking and hiking meetup groups in the US and globally. A great way to meet like minded walkers/hikers and learn and explore together.
FB Groups — A great way to meet like minded walkers/hikers and learn and explore together.
REI — A cooperative retail organization that not only sells gear but also provides lots of information resources on line and in classes and group events for hiking, camping, and staying safe in the wilderness.