Health Policy COE

Transportation Barriers in Prostate Cancer Care: Addressing Racial and Geographic Disparities - Quoc-Dien Trinh & Muhieddine Labban

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Muhieddine Labban and Quoc-Dien Trinh discuss transportation barriers in prostate cancer care in Massachusetts. Their work reveals significant transportation disparities affecting Black patients, who are three to four times more likely to use public transportation for healthcare visits and spend substantially more time commuting. Despite Massachusetts having the fifth-largest transportation system...

CISTO Trial Highlights Strategies to Boost Enrollment in Large Clinical Studies - Krupa Nathan & Angela Smith

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Ruchika Talwar speaks with Krupa Nathan and Angela Smith about a published paper discussing operational tactics and lessons learned from the CISTO trial, a large multi-institutional study comparing intravesical therapy and surgery for bladder cancer. The discussion highlights key strategies implemented to maximize patient enrollment across 38 clinical sites, particularly the success of CISTOquesti...

Frailty, Socioeconomics, and Specialist Access Drive Overactive Bladder Care Disparities - Ekene Enemchukwu

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Ruchika Talwar interviews Ekene Enemchukwu about her Medicare-based study examining disparities in overactive bladder (OAB) treatment, particularly focusing on the utilization of beta-3 agonists versus anticholinergic medications. The research reveals that while frail and older adults are more likely to receive beta-3 agonists, aligning with current guidelines to avoid anticholinergics due to deme...

European Continence Health Strategy - Philip Van Kerrebroeck

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Philip Van Kerrebroeck joins Diane Newman to present detailed findings from the European Association of Urology's continence health strategy initiative. The discussion outlines comprehensive research revealing that 55-60 million Europeans face continence health issues, with an economic burden of 69.1 billion euros in 2023, projected to exceed 100 billion by 2030 without policy changes. Dr. Van Ker...

European Continence Strategy Targets Escalating Costs and Inequalities in Incontinence Care - Philip van Kerrebroeck

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Diane Newman engages with Philip Van Kerrebroeck to discuss the European Association of Urology's "Urge to Act" initiative addressing continence health across Europe. Dr. Van Kerrebroeck explains how this project emerged from post-COVID concerns about non-oncological urological conditions and outlines the complex process of engaging with European Union authorities despite healthcare being primaril...

Early Palliative Care Boosts Quality of Life for Prostate Cancer Patients - Michael Rabow

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Michael Rabow joins Ruchika Talwar to discuss the benefits of early palliative care intervention in prostate cancer patients. Dr. Rabow highlights four key advantages: improved patient and caregiver satisfaction, better symptom management, enhanced care efficiency with reduced costs, and potential life prolongation. He references a landmark 2010 study showing nearly three months increased survival...

Understanding Time Toxicity: Impact of Treatment Time on Prostate Cancer Patients - Daniel Sentana Lledo

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Ruchika Talwar hosts Daniel Sentana Lledo to discuss the concept of time toxicity in prostate cancer treatment. Time toxicity measures the amount of time patients spend in the healthcare system and how it impacts their survival time gained from therapies. The conversation explores how even simple clinic visits for lab work or imaging can take around two hours, with additional time spent on transpo...

AUA Workforce Survey Reveals Gender Differences in Urology Practice Experiences - Andrew Harris

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Ruchika Talwar speaks with Andrew Harris about findings from the AUA Census regarding gender-based workplace experiences in urology. The discussion explores significant disparities between male and female urologists, including differences in negative differential treatment, work-life balance, and barriers to professional success. Dr. Harris highlights concerning trends showing increased burnout ra...

Research Reveals Benefits of At Home Urologic Treatment - Timothy Lyon

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Ruchika Talwar speaks with Timothy Lyon about a Urology Practice publication examining hospital-at-home care for urologic patients. The discussion explores Mayo's Advanced Care at Home program, which has enrolled over 3,000 patients across their clinical sites, with approximately 10% being urologic cases. Dr. Lyon describes how the program delivers hospital-level care in patients' homes, including...

CEASAR Study Highlights Quality of Life Outcomes in Prostate Cancer Treatment - Bashir Al Hussein Al Awamlh

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Ruchika Talwar speaks with Bashir Al Hussein Al Awamlh about quality of life considerations in prostate cancer treatment decision-making. The discussion focuses on the importance of shared decision-making and findings from the CEASAR study, which examines quality of life outcomes across different treatment modalities including surgery, radiation, and active surveillance. Dr. Al Hussein highlights...