Nurse phone calls aim to curb hospital overuse in High-Risk patients
NCT ID NCT04415515
First seen Jun 25, 2026 · Last updated Jun 27, 2026 · Updated 1 time
Summary
This quality improvement study tested whether expanding a nurse-led phone support program to commercially insured members flagged as high-risk could lower hospital admissions and costs. Over 592,000 members were included, but the study was terminated early, so firm conclusions are limited. The approach involved nurses reviewing medications, health risks, and care gaps, and connecting members to additional resources.
What this could mean
Our plain-language read of the trial. This is informational only, not medical advice or a prediction.
- Active substance
- RN case management (phone-based)
- What this could lead to
- If successful, this could show that proactive nurse phone support helps high-risk patients avoid unnecessary hospital stays and emergency visits.
- What could go wrong
- The study was terminated early, so results are limited. It only included commercially insured members, so findings may not apply to other groups.
This is an AI summary of the original study and may miss details. Read our disclaimer.
Study facts
What this study's own registry entry says, in plain language.
- Phase
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Not a phased trial
Phase numbers describe drug development. The registry uses this when they do not apply, as it does for trials of devices, procedures or behaviour changes, and for observational studies.
- Participants
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592,023 people
The number who actually took part.
- Started
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Oct 2015
- Finished
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Dec 2023
- Lead sponsor
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Other sponsor
The registry's catch-all category, for sponsors it does not file as a company, a government agency, or a research network.
Who can take part
This study's own entry requirements. Only the study team can say for certain whether you qualify.
- Ages
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18 years and older
- Sex
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Anyone
- Healthy volunteers
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Not accepted
This study is not open to healthy volunteers. The entry requirements below say who it is open to.
Show the full entry requirements Hide the full entry requirements
Copied word for word from the study's registry entry, so the wording is the study team's rather than ours.
Inclusion Criteria: * UnitedHealthcare commercial Fully Insured members; all states; 18+ years old; actively enrolled in the health plan as of randomization identified via proprietary administrative algorithm as being at high risk for persistent super utilizer status. Exclusion Criteria: * : pregnant women, individuals prescribed medications for infertility, members with evidence of dementing disorders, members indicated as "do not contact " for program outreach, and Members in the following products and plans: * legacy UHC ASO groups (populations for which UHC provides administrative services only), * legacy Oxford health plan members (all members receive the SCC program), * legacy PacifiCare members, * legacy River Valley/NHP members, and * Public Sector clients * the PHS 2.0 intervention (a small population within Fully Insured) * assignment to a clinically activated Accountable Care Organization (ACO)
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Conditions
The condition(s) this trial relates to.
As listed by the trial registrant
The condition terms exactly as the trial's registrant entered them.
Contacts and locations
Locations
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UnitedHealthcare
Minnetonka, Minnesota, 55343, United States