Implicit biases and stigma can negatively impact health care provided to patients with substance use disorders such as alcohol use disorder (AUD). This narrative review concluded that patients with AUD are frequently undiagnosed and not appropriately referred for treatment or treated. The authors cite barriers to effective care for patients with AUD, including poor integration and coordination between medical care and behavioral health care in the United States.

Recently, several mobile health care applications have been developed and marketed directly to nonclinician consumers. Researchers reviewed the literature regarding direct-to-consumer diagnostic applications. They found wide variation in the safety of these applications and suggest that further research is needed to thoroughly assess their effectiveness.

Patient safety in the ambulatory setting is gaining traction as a focus of research and improvement efforts. Discussing the methods and results of an AHRQ Technical Brief, this commentary summarizes expert opinion on the report to propose recommendations for a research strategy on ambulatory patient safety. The authors outline patient safety practices relevant to the ambulatory setting and suggest activities to advance improvement efforts in outpatient care, such as measure development and use of health information technologies.

This commentary describes a multidisciplinary initiative that engaged hospital staff, librarians, and community leaders in developing patient safety awareness programs for patients and families in rural Iowa.