Ohio Health Policy Review 11/22/2009

In response to a Columbus Dispatch investigation into domestic violence in Ohio, Gov. Ted Strickland announced that he favors a series of recommendations aimed at strengthening Ohio laws aimed a punishing domestic abusers (Source: “Strickland vows to punish domestic abusers,” Columbus Dispatch, Nov. 20, 2009).

This week the Dispatch published a series of articles after a four-month investigation into domestic violence in Ohio.

Senate President Bill M. Harris, R-Ashland, and Democratic House Speaker Armond Budish of Beachwood both announced that they, too, would support measures aimed at reducing domestic violence.

Through support from the HealthPath Foundation of Ohio, the Health Policy Institute of Ohio has continued work on its Family Violence Prevention Initiative — noting that it is an issue with significant implications for the health of individuals and families. HPIO is undertaking a second phase of research and analysis of family violence prevention, building on the work started with its 2007 white paper Improving Family Violence Prevention. In early 2010 HPIO will be releasing profiles of family violence in all 88 Ohio counties and will be sharing its findings at a series of regional forums.

The March of Dimes released its latest Premature Birth Report Card this week and Ohio was given an F, ranking 33rd among the 50 states plus the District of Columbia and Puerto Rico (Source: “March of Dimes report card gives Ohio a grade of 'F' for its preterm birthrate,” Cleveland Plain Dealer, Nov. 17, 2009).

In the organization’s second annual Report Card, Ohio was one of just two states to see their preterm birthrate drop, from 13 percent last year to 13.3 percent on this year's report card. The nation, as a whole, was given a grade of D.

The Report Card is based on data from the National Center for Health Statistics, which lags a couple of years behind. One reason for optimism for Ohio is that that means the birth rate does not reflect the work of the Ohio Perinatal Quality Collaborative, which formed in 2007 and includes the state’s 20 largest birthing hospitals. One of the primary goals of the OPQC is to reduce medically unnecessary preterm births at 36, 37 and 38 weeks gestation.

Researchers at Cincinnati Children’s Hospital Medical Center say that doctors who used a Web-based “global bulletin board” to share information on treatments saw dramatic increases in patient outcomes (Source: “Health 'bulletin board' shows promise,” Cincinnati Enquirer, Nov. 13, 2009).

The study focuses on a program called “ImproveCareNow,” which involved a group of pediatric gastroenterologists sharing information on new treatments and their effectiveness on patients with Crohn’s disease and ulcerative colitis. Over a 27-month period, participating doctors saw the percentage of patients in remission increase by 20 percent.

The program's success earned Cincinnati Children's a five-year, $8.3 million grant from the National Institutes of Health that will expand on the original concept and bring patients and their families into the network.

A new report from the Institute of Medicine found that a reduction in heart problems was found in cities fairly quickly after a smoking ban was instituted (Source: “Smoking Bans Reduce Heart Attacks and Disease,” New York Times, Oct. 16, 2009).

The federally funded IOM study also found that exposure to even low or fleeting levels of secondhand smoke could increase the risk of coronary heart disease and heart attacks.

“Even a small amount of exposure to secondhand smoke can increase blood clotting, constrict blood vessels and can cause a heart attack,” said Dr. Neal L. Benowitz, a professor of medicine, psychiatry and biopharmaceutical sciences at the University of California, San Francisco, and a member of the panel.

“Smoking bans need to be put in place as quickly as possible,” Dr. Benowitz added. “The longer we wait, the more disease we are accepting.”