Browsing by Author "Crocker, Alysha"
Now showing 1 - 2 of 2
Results Per Page
Sort Options
- ItemOpen AccessClostridium difficile infection incidence and mortality in Alberta(2017) Crocker, Alysha; Henderson, Elizabeth; Henderson, Elizabeth; Smith, Stephanie; Barkema, Herman; Chandran, Uma; Kim, Joseph; Vicker, DavidClostridium difficile infection (CDI) is the leading cause of hospital-acquired diarrhea. It causes significant morbidity and mortality, manifesting in life threatening conditions such as pseudomembranous colitis. This study determined the incidence of CDI in Alberta, investigated risk factors associated with mortality amongst Alberta CDI patients, and investigated the inter-rater reliability between the Death Attribution Rules for Patients Infected by C. difficile (DARPIC) algorithm and IPC physicians. Incidence of CDI in Alberta hospitals, continuing care facilities, and the community provided a comprehensive understanding of CDI in Alberta. Although CDI is predominantly a nosocomial infection, 47% of the CDI cases identified in this study occurred in the community. Risk factors for mortality amongst hospitalized CDI patients were increasing age and comorbidity count, liver disease, and metastatic solid tumour. Attributing death to CDI is difficult and opinions vary by clinicians, to accurately and consistently report attributable CDI mortality a standardized approach is necessary.
- ItemOpen AccessHealthcare utilization and adverse outcomes stratified by sex, age and long-term care residency using the Alberta COVID-19 Analytics and Research Database (ACARD): a population-based descriptive study(2023-05-19) Rennert-May, Elissa; Crocker, Alysha; D’Souza, Adam G.; Zhang, Zuying; Chew, Derek; Beall, Reed; Vickers, David M.; Leal, JenineAbstract Background Understanding the epidemiology of Coronavirus Disease of 2019 (COVID-19) in a local context is valuable for both future pandemic preparedness and potential increases in COVID-19 case volume, particularly due to variant strains. Methods Our work allowed us to complete a population-based study on patients who tested positive for COVID-19 in Alberta from March 1, 2020 to December 15, 2021. We completed a multi-centre, retrospective population-based descriptive study using secondary data sources in Alberta, Canada. We identified all adult patients (≥ 18 years of age) tested and subsequently positive for COVID-19 (including only the first incident case of COVID-19) on a laboratory test. We determined positive COVID-19 tests, gender, age, comorbidities, residency in a long-term care (LTC) facility, time to hospitalization, length of stay (LOS) in hospital, and mortality. Patients were followed for 60 days from a COVID-19 positive test. Results Between March 1, 2020 and December 15, 2021, 255,037 adults were identified with COVID-19 in Alberta. Most confirmed cases occurred among those less than 60 years of age (84.3%); however, most deaths (89.3%) occurred among those older than 60 years. Overall hospitalization rate among those who tested positive was 5.9%. Being a resident of LTC was associated with substantial mortality of 24.6% within 60 days of a positive COVID-19 test. The most common comorbidity among those with COVID-19 was depression. Across all patients 17.3% of males and 18.6% of females had an unplanned ambulatory visit subsequent to their positive COVID-19 test. Conclusions COVID-19 is associated with extensive healthcare utilization. Residents of LTC were substantially impacted during the COVID-19 pandemic with high associated mortality. Further work should be done to better understand the economic burden associated with related healthcare utilization following a COVID-19 infection to inform healthcare system resource allocation, planning, and forecasting.