The overarching goal of my program of research is to improve the care of trauma patients. Trauma disproportionately affects the young and healthy, consuming over $US400 billion annually in direct medical costs and lost productivity. Regionalization, the transfer of moderately to severely injured patients to high level, academic trauma centers, improves outcomes. The American College of Surgeons - Committee on Trauma (ACS-COT) has attempted to improve regionalization by targeting known determinants of behavior: knowledge, attitudes, and organizational constraints. However, physician adherence to the ACS-COT's guidelines for the triage of trauma patients remains less than 60%. Current behavioral science literature suggests that other important determinants of decision making exist, including intuitive judgments (heuristics). The influence of heuristics on trauma triage decision making is unknown. An analysis of physician decision making in trauma triage that uses the insights and methodology of basic behavioral and social sciences research may allow the identification of additional determinants of non-adherence. By providing an explanation for the discrepancy that exists between the ACS-COT's efforts to change physician behavior and current practice patterns, this project holds the potential to alter the current paradigm of quality improvement in trauma. To achieve the goals of this research plan and to establish myself as a leading researcher in health services research related to trauma, I require further training in the following areas: 1) the theoretical constructs underlying physician decisio making;2) the methodological tools necessary to conduct rigorous, sophisticated research in physician decision making, and 3) the management and leadership skills necessary to transition into an independent investigator. Under the guidance of my mentors, I have devised the didactic and research plan described in the following pages. Together, they will provide the necessary knowledge and skills to conduct cutting-edge, multi-disciplinary research that translates insights from behavioral science into an applied strategy to modify physician adherence to national trauma triage guidelines. The proposed research involves three inter-related studies.
Aim 1 will refine a tool, developed in preliminary work, to study physician triage decisions under experimental conditions.
Aim 2 will differentiate between the influence of faulty heuristics and knowledge deficits on physician triage decisions.
Aim 3 will develop a novel intervention that targets either heuristics or knowledge deficits to help physicians make better triage decisions. These experiments set the stage for future work to test the effectiveness of the intervention in an R01-funded multi-center observational trial. I believe this investment in my career development will contribute to a new understanding of physician decision making in trauma, may improve the care provided to trauma patients, and has the potential to catalyze a change in our approach to quality improvement in health care.

Public Health Relevance

Between 30 to 70% of patients with moderate to severe injuries receive care at non-trauma hospitals (under- triage), despite evidence that they benefit from treatment at specialty centers. Best practice quality improvement efforts have not successfully reduced the rate of under-triage. Use of insights from basic behavioral science to explain and to change physician triage decision making could improve the care provided to trauma patients.

Agency
National Institute of Health (NIH)
Institute
National Institute of General Medical Sciences (NIGMS)
Type
Mentored Patient-Oriented Research Career Development Award (K23)
Project #
5K23GM101292-03
Application #
8665996
Study Section
Surgery, Anesthesiology and Trauma Study Section (SAT)
Program Officer
Somers, Scott D
Project Start
2012-06-01
Project End
2015-05-31
Budget Start
2014-06-01
Budget End
2015-05-31
Support Year
3
Fiscal Year
2014
Total Cost
Indirect Cost
Name
University of Pittsburgh
Department
Internal Medicine/Medicine
Type
Schools of Medicine
DUNS #
City
Pittsburgh
State
PA
Country
United States
Zip Code
15213
Mohan, Deepika; Rosengart, Matthew R; Fischhoff, Baruch et al. (2017) Using incentives to recruit physicians into behavioral trials: lessons learned from four studies. BMC Res Notes 10:776
Elliott, Andrea M; Alexander, Stewart C; Mescher, Craig A et al. (2016) Differences in Physicians' Verbal and Nonverbal Communication With Black and White Patients at the End of Life. J Pain Symptom Manage 51:1-8
Lu, Annie; Mohan, Deepika; Alexander, Stewart C et al. (2015) The Language of End-of-Life Decision Making: A Simulation Study. J Palliat Med 18:740-6
Mohan, Deepika; Barnato, Amber E; Rosengart, Matthew R et al. (2015) Triage patterns for medicare patients presenting to nontrauma hospitals with moderate or severe injuries. Ann Surg 261:383-9
Barnato, Amber E; Mohan, Deepika; Lane, Rondall K et al. (2014) Advance care planning norms may contribute to hospital variation in end-of-life ICU use: a simulation study. Med Decis Making 34:473-84
Mohan, Deepika; Angus, Derek C; Ricketts, Daniel et al. (2014) Assessing the validity of using serious game technology to analyze physician decision making. PLoS One 9:e105445
Mohan, Deepika; Fischhoff, Baruch; Farris, Coreen et al. (2014) Validating a vignette-based instrument to study physician decision making in trauma triage. Med Decis Making 34:242-52
Uy, Jamie; White, Douglas B; Mohan, Deepika et al. (2013) Physicians' decision-making roles for an acutely unstable critically and terminally ill patient. Crit Care Med 41:1511-7
Mohan, Deepika; Barnato, Amber E; Rosengart, Matthew R et al. (2013) Trauma triage in the emergency departments of nontrauma centers: an analysis of individual physician caseload on triage patterns. J Trauma Acute Care Surg 74:1541-7