Publications

Provider burnout remains a serious problem facing medical training programs and has been shown to affect more than half of internal medicine residents. In addition to broader efforts to revamp a health care system that contributes to this epidemic, exposure to the medical humanities offers potential to promote engagement, resilience, and restoration of meaning in residents' daily lives. We aim to create a reproducible, evidence-based workshop utilizing artful thinking routines to prepare trainees to combat burnout with reflection, perspective-taking, and community-building. A single, 4-hour workshop for senior internal medicine residents, centered on visual artistic analysis, was offered in June 2017 at the Philadelphia Museum of Art. Pre- and post-workshop burnout metrics and survey evaluation data were analyzed using a mixed-methods approach. Workshop participation was offered to 29 internal medicine residents, of whom 17 (59%) participated. All survey respondents (n=13) rated the workshop as excellent and would recommend it to colleagues. Moderate decreases in the observed frequencies of both high emotional exhaustion scores (64.7% before the workshop to 55.5% following the workshop) and high depersonalization scores (70.6% before the workshop to 55.5% following the workshop) were observed. While results are preliminary in nature, the workshop was received favorably and demonstrated modest decreases in emotional exhaustion and depersonalization. We are encouraged to explore and repeat this workshop with modifications to identify its optimal position in the broader landscape of emerging wellness curricula.

OBJECTIVES

The aim of this study was to examine the association between dual-antiplatelet therapy (DAPT) cessation and cardiovascular risk after percutaneous coronary intervention in relation to age.

BACKGROUND

Examination of outcomes by age after percutaneous coronary intervention is relevant given the aging population.

METHODS

Two-year clinical outcomes, incidence, and effect of DAPT cessation on outcomes were compared by ages ≤55, 56 to 74, and ≥75 years from the PARIS (Patterns of Non-Adherence to Antiplatelet Regimens in Stented Patients) registry. DAPT cessation included physician-recommended discontinuation, interruption for surgery, and disruption (from noncompliance or bleeding). Clinical endpoints were major adverse cardiac events (MACE) (a composite of cardiac death, definite or probable stent thrombosis, spontaneous myocardial infarction, or clinically indicated target lesion revascularization), a secondary restrictive definition of MACE (MACE2) excluding target lesion revascularization, and bleeding.

RESULTS

A total of 1,192 patients (24%) were ≤55 years, 2,869 (57%) were 56 to 74 years, and 957 (19%) were ≥75 years of age. Patients ≥75 years of age had higher DAPT cessation rates and increased risk for MACE2, death, cardiac death, and bleeding compared with younger patients. Discontinuation and interruption were not associated with increased cardiovascular risk across age groups, whereas disruption was associated with increased risk for MACE and MACE2 in younger patients but not in patients ≥75 years of age (p for trend <0.05).

CONCLUSIONS

Nonadherence and outcomes vary by age, with patients ≥75 years having the highest DAPT cessation rates. We observed no association between outcomes and DAPT cessation in patients ≥75 years, whereas discontinuation was associated with lower MACE rates and disruption with increased MACE rates in patients <75 years.