[Federal Register Volume 82, Number 16 (Thursday, January 26, 2017)]
[Notices]
[Pages 8563-8564]
From the Federal Register Online via the Government Publishing Office [www.gpo.gov]
[FR Doc No: 2017-01752]


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DEPARTMENT OF VETERANS AFFAIRS

[OMB Control No. 2900-NEW]


Proposed Information Collection Activity: (PACT: Veteran's Health 
and Well-Being)

AGENCY: Veterans Health Administration, Department of Veterans Affairs.

ACTION: Notice.

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SUMMARY: The Veterans Health Administration (VHA) is announcing an 
opportunity for public comment on the proposed collection of certain 
information by the agency. Under the Paperwork Reduction Act (PRA) of 
1995, Federal agencies are required to publish notice in the Federal 
Register concerning each proposed collection of information, including 
this new collection, and allow 60 days for public comment in response 
to the notice. This notice solicits comments on information needed to 
identify areas for improvement in clinical training programs.

DATES: Written comments and recommendations on the proposed collection 
of information should be received on or before March 27, 2017.

ADDRESSES: Submit written comments on the collection of information 
through the Federal Docket Management System (FDMS) at 
www.Regulations.gov; or to Brian McCarthy, Office of Regulatory and 
Administrative Affairs, Veterans Health Administration (10B4), 
Department of Veterans Affairs, 810 Vermont Avenue NW., Washington, DC 
20420 or email: [email protected]. Please refer to ``OMB Control 
No. 2900-NEW'' in any correspondence. During the comment period, 
comments may be viewed online through FDMS.

FOR FURTHER INFORMATION CONTACT: Brian McCarthy at (202) 461-6345.

SUPPLEMENTARY INFORMATION: Under the PRA of 1995 (Pub. L. 104-13; 44 
U.S.C. 3501-3521), Federal agencies must obtain approval from OMB for 
each collection of information they conduct or sponsor. This request 
for comment is being made pursuant to Section 3506(c)(2)(A) of the PRA.
    With respect to the following collection of information, VHA 
invites comments on: (1) Whether the proposed collection of information 
is necessary for the proper performance of VHA's functions, including 
whether the information will have practical utility; (2) the accuracy 
of VHA's estimate of the burden of the proposed collection of 
information; (3) ways to enhance the quality, utility, and clarity of 
the information to be collected; and (4) ways to minimize the burden of 
the collection of information on respondents, including through the use 
of automated collection techniques or the use of other forms of 
information technology.
    Titles:
    1. PACT: Veteran's Health and Well-Being.
    2. OMB Control Number: 2900-NEW.
    Type of Review: New collection.
    Abstracts: The purpose of the study, which is funded by the PACT 
Demonstration Lab Coordinating Center,

[[Page 8564]]

is to conduct a survey of Veterans to capture novel predictors of 
hospital admission and identify clusters of complex patients based on 
survey- and claims-based covariates. This study provides the first 
empirical application of the Cycle of Complexity conceptual model that 
the study team developed and recently published, which postulates that 
patient complexity represents more than having multiple chronic 
conditions. It is critical to evaluate whether complexity defined on 
the basis of survey-based and claims-based covariates is more 
predictive than diagnosis of multiple chronic conditions based on 
claims data alone.
    The proposed patient survey is designed to measure a broad range of 
self-reported patient factors that increase Veterans' risk for being 
admitted to hospital, including life stressors, perceived locus of 
control, grit, resilience, functional status, social support and 
loneliness, sleep problems, symptoms, food insecurity, and patient 
activation. This survey will help us understand, for the first time, 
the extent to which self-reported factors can markedly improve 
prediction of patient risk for hospital admission, which may help the 
PACT Demonstration Lab Coordinating Center Intelligence improve its 
risk prediction models. This project may also identify patient-reported 
outcomes (PROs) that can be effectively integrated into routine VA 
clinical practice, as the VA begins to explore inclusion of PROs into 
the VA electronic health record. We are requesting approval to conduct 
this survey to a nationally representative sample of 10,000 patients 
who obtain primary care in VA because there are no extant VA surveys 
that capture the range of patient factors that we propose to collect, 
which are not available in VA administrative databases. If we did not 
capture these patient factors, our risk prediction analysis might be 
incorrect or biased.
    Affected Public: Individuals or households.
    Estimated Annual Burden:
    PACT: Veteran's Health and Well-Being Survey--2500.
    Estimated Average Burden per Respondent:
    PACT: Veteran's Health and Well-Being Survey--30 minutes.
    Frequency of Response: Annually.
    Estimated Annual Responses:
    PACT: Veteran's Health and Well-Being Survey--5,000.

    By direction of the Secretary:
Cynthia Harvey-Pryor,
Program Specialist, Office of Privacy and Records Management, 
Department of Veterans Affairs.
[FR Doc. 2017-01752 Filed 1-25-17; 8:45 am]
 BILLING CODE 8320-01-P