AHRQ Grantee Profile: Barbara Yawn, MD., M.Sc.

AHRQ’s latest grantee profile features Barbara Yawn, M.D., M.Sc.,. who has focused on best practices for diagnosing and treating chronic conditions affecting women and rural residents, including coronary heart disease, postpartum depression, and asthma.

Dr.Yawn, Adjunct Professor, Department of Family and Community Health University of Minnesota was able to provide primary care clinicians with resources and techniques to tailor care delivery, improving patient outcomes. Her Asthma APGAR (Activities, Persistent symptoms, triGgers, Asthma medications, Response to therapy) tool helped to move research about asthma care into practice by providing targeted feedback to physicians and practices to guide asthma treatment. Unlike previous assessment instruments that provided only a score for the patient’s level of asthma control, Dr. Yawn’s tool also identified potential reasons for poor asthma control, such as exposure to certain triggers, and importantly, linked to a care algorithm to suggest next steps in care.

Select to access Dr. Yawn’s profile and profiles of other AHRQ grantees who have made major advances in health services research.