National Healthcare Quality and Disparities Report
Latest available findings on quality of and access to health care
Data
- Data Infographics
- Data Visualizations
- Data Tools
- Data Innovations
- All-Payer Claims Database
- Healthcare Cost and Utilization Project (HCUP)
- Medical Expenditure Panel Survey (MEPS)
- AHRQ Quality Indicator Tools for Data Analytics
- State Snapshots
- United States Health Information Knowledgebase (USHIK)
- Data Sources Available from AHRQ
Search All Research Studies
AHRQ Research Studies Date
Topics
- Asthma (1)
- Autism (1)
- Behavioral Health (1)
- Cancer (1)
- Caregiving (3)
- Children/Adolescents (2)
- Chronic Conditions (1)
- Clinician-Patient Communication (6)
- Communication (4)
- Comparative Effectiveness (1)
- Critical Care (2)
- Dementia (1)
- Depression (1)
- Diabetes (1)
- Diagnostic Safety and Quality (1)
- Disparities (1)
- Education: Continuing Medical Education (1)
- Education: Patient and Caregiver (10)
- Elderly (2)
- Electronic Health Records (EHRs) (11)
- Healthcare Cost and Utilization Project (HCUP) (1)
- Health Information Technology (HIT) (15)
- Health Insurance (1)
- Health Literacy (2)
- Health Promotion (1)
- Health Services Research (HSR) (1)
- Hospitalization (2)
- Hospitals (1)
- Infectious Diseases (1)
- Inpatient Care (3)
- Low-Income (1)
- Maternal Care (1)
- Medical Errors (1)
- Medication (1)
- Nursing Homes (2)
- Outcomes (1)
- Patient-Centered Healthcare (3)
- Patient Adherence/Compliance (1)
- Patient and Family Engagement (8)
- Patient Experience (4)
- Patient Safety (3)
- Prevention (1)
- Primary Care (2)
- Provider (1)
- Provider: Health Personnel (1)
- Provider: Pharmacist (1)
- Public Health (1)
- Public Reporting (1)
- Quality of Care (1)
- Racial and Ethnic Minorities (3)
- Risk (1)
- Shared Decision Making (2)
- Social Determinants of Health (1)
- Social Media (3)
- Surgery (1)
- System Design (1)
- Tools & Toolkits (4)
- Uninsured (1)
- Urban Health (1)
- Vaccination (2)
- (-) Web-Based (37)
- Women (1)
- Workforce (1)
AHRQ Research Studies
Sign up: AHRQ Research Studies Email updates
Research Studies is a compilation of published research articles funded by AHRQ or authored by AHRQ researchers.
Results
1 to 25 of 37 Research Studies DisplayedQuintana Y, Crotty B, Fahy D
Information sharing across generations and environments (InfoSAGE): study design and methodology protocol.
This open prospective cohort study aimed to assess a novel, Internet based, family-centric communication and collaboration platform created to address the information needs of elders and their informal caregivers in a community setting. It used a mixed methods approach, utilizing qualitative survey data along with website usage analytic data.
AHRQ-funded; HS021495.
Citation: Quintana Y, Crotty B, Fahy D .
Information sharing across generations and environments (InfoSAGE): study design and methodology protocol.
BMC Med Inform Decis Mak 2018 Nov 20;18(1):105. doi: 10.1186/s12911-018-0697-4.
.
BMC Med Inform Decis Mak 2018 Nov 20;18(1):105. doi: 10.1186/s12911-018-0697-4.
.
Keywords: Caregiving, Communication, Shared Decision Making, Elderly, Health Information Technology (HIT), Patient-Centered Healthcare, Clinician-Patient Communication, Web-Based
Millenson ML, Baldwin JL, Zipperer L
Beyond Dr. Google: the evidence on consumer-facing digital tools for diagnosis.
Direct-to-consumer (DTC), interactive, diagnostic apps with information personalization capabilities beyond those of static search engines are rapidly proliferating. Little is known about the state of the evidence on the performance of these apps or the methods used to evaluate them. In this paper, the authors conducted a scoping review of the peer-reviewed and gray literature for the period January 1, 2014-June 30, 2017 to examine the current evidence base on DTC, interactive diagnostic apps.
AHRQ-funded; HS022087.
Citation: Millenson ML, Baldwin JL, Zipperer L .
Beyond Dr. Google: the evidence on consumer-facing digital tools for diagnosis.
Diagnosis 2018 Sep 25;5(3):95-105. doi: 10.1515/dx-2018-0009..
Keywords: Diagnostic Safety and Quality, Education: Patient and Caregiver, Health Information Technology (HIT), Web-Based
Walker DM, Hefner JL, Sieck CJ
Framework for evaluating and implementing inpatient portals: a multi-stakeholder perspective.
Inpatient portals are emerging as an important tool to support patient care and are increasingly being adopted in hospitals. However, best practices concerning the implementation, use, and impact of these portals are poorly understood. To improve evaluation and implementation efforts, this paper develops a logic model that can help researchers and hospital managers in deploying and assessing the impact of inpatient portals.
AHRQ-funded; HS024349; HS024091.
Citation: Walker DM, Hefner JL, Sieck CJ .
Framework for evaluating and implementing inpatient portals: a multi-stakeholder perspective.
J Med Syst 2018 Jul 16;42(9):158. doi: 10.1007/s10916-018-1009-3..
Keywords: Electronic Health Records (EHRs), Health Services Research (HSR), Hospitals, Web-Based
Daley MF, Narwaney KJ, Shoup JA
Addressing parents' vaccine concerns: a randomized trial of a social media intervention.
Successful strategies are needed to address parental vaccine hesitancy, a significant public health issue. The study objective was to assess whether an Internet-based platform with vaccine information and interactive social media components improved parents' vaccine-related attitudes. The authors concluded that among vaccine-hesitant parents, an Internet-based intervention improved parents' attitudes about vaccines.
AHRQ-funded; HS021492.
Citation: Daley MF, Narwaney KJ, Shoup JA .
Addressing parents' vaccine concerns: a randomized trial of a social media intervention.
Am J Prev Med 2018 Jul;55(1):44-54. doi: 10.1016/j.amepre.2018.04.010..
Keywords: Caregiving, Patient Safety, Social Media, Vaccination, Web-Based
Bush RA, Richardson AC, Cardona-Grau D
Patient portal usage in pediatric urology: is it meaningful use for everyone?
This study examined pediatric urology patient portal enrollment and activation patterns at a tertiary pediatric hospital in Southern California by race/ethnicity, preferred language, gender, and residential region. The study concluded that primary language and socioeconomic factors may be significant barriers to portal adoption. Patient education to reduce these barriers may increase portal acceptance and increase meaningfulness to the portal for patients/parents and providers.
AHRQ-funded; HS022404.
Citation: Bush RA, Richardson AC, Cardona-Grau D .
Patient portal usage in pediatric urology: is it meaningful use for everyone?
Urol Pract 2018 Jul;5(4):279-85. doi: 10.1016/j.urpr.2017.05.002..
Keywords: Education: Patient and Caregiver, Electronic Health Records (EHRs), Health Information Technology (HIT), Patient and Family Engagement, Web-Based
Nystrom DT, Singh H, Baldwin J
Methods for patient-centered interface design of test result display in online portals.
However, current patient portals are not designed in a patient-centered way and little is known on how best to harness patients' information needs to inform user-centered interface design of portals. The researchers designed a patient-facing laboratory test result interface prototype based on requirement elicitation research and used a mixed-methods approach to evaluate this interface.
AHRQ-funded; HS023602.
Citation: Nystrom DT, Singh H, Baldwin J .
Methods for patient-centered interface design of test result display in online portals.
eGEMS 2018 Jun 26;6(1):15. doi: 10.5334/egems.255..
Keywords: Electronic Health Records (EHRs), Patient-Centered Healthcare, System Design, Web-Based
Grossman LV, Choi SW, Collins S
Implementation of acute care patient portals: recommendations on utility and use from six early adopters.
This paper provides recommendations on how to most effectively implement advanced features of acute care patient portals, including: (1) patient-provider communication, (2) care plan information, (3) clinical data viewing, (4) patient education, (5) patient safety, (6) caregiver access, and (7) hospital amenities. One specific recommendation was that stakeholders in acute care patient portals should consider the benefits and challenges of generic and structured electronic care team messaging.
AHRQ-funded; HS021816; HS023613; HS023535; HS024349.
Citation: Grossman LV, Choi SW, Collins S .
Implementation of acute care patient portals: recommendations on utility and use from six early adopters.
J Am Med Inform Assoc 2018 Apr;25(4):370-79. doi: 10.1093/jamia/ocx074.
.
.
Keywords: Critical Care, Electronic Health Records (EHRs), Patient Safety, Clinician-Patient Communication, Web-Based
Giardina TD, Baldwin J, Nystrom DT
Patient perceptions of receiving test results via online portals: a mixed-methods study.
The researchers conducted a mixed-methods study to explore patients' experiences and preferences when accessing their test results via online portals. They found that nearly two-thirds (63 percent) did not receive any explanatory information or test result interpretation at the time they received the result. Patients experienced negative emotions often with abnormal results, but sometimes even with normal results.
AHRQ-funded; HS023602; HS022087.
Citation: Giardina TD, Baldwin J, Nystrom DT .
Patient perceptions of receiving test results via online portals: a mixed-methods study.
J Am Med Inform Assoc 2018 Apr;25(4):440-46. doi: 10.1093/jamia/ocx140.
.
.
Keywords: Electronic Health Records (EHRs), Patient Experience, Patient and Family Engagement, Clinician-Patient Communication, Web-Based
Shah MP, Lopman BA, Tate JE
AHRQ Author: Steiner CA
Use of Internet search data to monitor rotavirus vaccine impact in the United States, United Kingdom, and Mexico.
In this study, researchers aimed to study the correlation between internet query searches (IQS) for "rotavirus" and rotavirus disease activity in the United States, United Kingdom, and Mexico before and after introduction of rotavirus vaccine. They found positive correlation between the rotavirus IQS and laboratory reports in the United States and United Kingdom and between the rotavirus IQS and acute gastroenteritis hospitalizations in the United States and Mexico for all correlations.
AHRQ-authored.
Citation: Shah MP, Lopman BA, Tate JE .
Use of Internet search data to monitor rotavirus vaccine impact in the United States, United Kingdom, and Mexico.
J Pediatric Infect Dis Soc 2018 Feb 19;7(1):56-63. doi: 10.1093/jpids/pix004.
.
.
Keywords: Healthcare Cost and Utilization Project (HCUP), Vaccination, Web-Based
Harris VC, Links AR, Hong P
Consulting Dr. Google: quality of online resources about tympanostomy tube placement.
The authors of this study evaluate the quality of leading Internet resources describing tympanostomy tube (TT) placement. They concluded that Internet resources about TT placement varied in quality pertaining to health literacy, principles of shared decision making, and consistency with practice guidelines.
AHRQ-funded; HS022932.
Citation: Harris VC, Links AR, Hong P .
Consulting Dr. Google: quality of online resources about tympanostomy tube placement.
Laryngoscope 2018 Feb;128(2):496-501. doi: 10.1002/lary.26824..
Keywords: Children/Adolescents, Education: Patient and Caregiver, Health Information Technology (HIT), Health Literacy, Web-Based
Yen PY, Walker DM, Smith JMG
Usability evaluation of a commercial inpatient portal.
The authors aimed to understand how users interact with, learn to use, and communicate with their providers through an inpatient portal. They found that participants frequently made operational errors in navigation and assuming non-existent functionalities; participants' learning styles varied, with age as a potential factor that influenced how they learned MyChart Bedside; and participants preferred to message providers individually and wanted feedback on status. They concluded that, for inpatient portals to be effective in promoting patient engagement, it remains critical for technology developers and hospital administrators to understand how users interact with this technology and the resources that may be necessary to support its use.
AHRQ-funded; HS024091.
Citation: Yen PY, Walker DM, Smith JMG .
Usability evaluation of a commercial inpatient portal.
Int J Med Inform 2018 Feb;110:10-18. doi: 10.1016/j.ijmedinf.2017.11.007.
.
.
Keywords: Electronic Health Records (EHRs), Health Information Technology (HIT), Inpatient Care, Patient and Family Engagement, Web-Based
Ali SB, Romero J, Morrison K
Focus section health it usability: applying a task-technology fit model to adapt an electronic patient portal for patient work.
Although electronic patient portals are offered by most health care organizations, poor usability and poor fit to patient needs may pose barriers to adoption. In this study, the investigators collaborated with an academic hospital to conduct iterative user evaluation of a newly deployed portal designed to deliver inpatient data upon hospital discharge.
AHRQ-funded; HS021531.
Citation: Ali SB, Romero J, Morrison K .
Focus section health it usability: applying a task-technology fit model to adapt an electronic patient portal for patient work.
Appl Clin Inform 2018 Jan;9(1):174-84. doi: 10.1055/s-0038-1632396..
Keywords: Electronic Health Records (EHRs), Health Information Technology (HIT), Health Information Technology (HIT), Web-Based
Walker DM, Menser T, Yen PY
Optimizing the user experience: identifying opportunities to improve use of an inpatient portal.
This study aimed to evaluate the user experience associated with an inpatient portal. The authors concluded that inpatient portals may be an effective tool to improve the patient experience in the hospital and making this technology available to inpatients may help to foster ongoing use of technology across the care continuum. However, deriving the benefits from the technology requires appropriate support. The investigators identified multiple opportunities for hospital management to intervene.
AHRQ-funded; HS024091; HS024349.
Citation: Walker DM, Menser T, Yen PY .
Optimizing the user experience: identifying opportunities to improve use of an inpatient portal.
Appl Clin Inform 2018 Jan;9(1):105-13. doi: 10.1055/s-0037-1621732..
Keywords: Health Information Technology (HIT), Inpatient Care, Patient Experience, Web-Based
Smith MA, Bednarz L, Nordby PA
Increasing consumer engagement by tailoring a public reporting website on the quality of diabetes care: a qualitative study.
The goal of this study was to determine if tailoring quality reports to persons with diabetes mellitus and co-occurring chronic conditions would increase user engagement with a website that publicly reports the quality of diabetes care. It concluded that tailoring can be used to improve public reporting sites for individuals with chronic conditions, ultimately allowing consumers to make more informed health care decisions.
AHRQ-funded; HS021899.
Citation: Smith MA, Bednarz L, Nordby PA .
Increasing consumer engagement by tailoring a public reporting website on the quality of diabetes care: a qualitative study.
J Med Internet Res 2016 Dec 21;18(12):e332. doi: 10.2196/jmir.6555.
.
.
Keywords: Chronic Conditions, Shared Decision Making, Diabetes, Patient and Family Engagement, Web-Based
Gaugler JE, Reese M, Tanler R
Care to Plan: an online tool that offers tailored support to dementia caregivers.
This study developed and tested the feasibility of "Care to Plan" (CtP), an online resource for dementia caregivers (e.g., relatives or unpaid nonrelatives) that generates tailored support recommendations. It concluded that, based on the integrated qualitative and quantitative data, CtP was simple and easy to understand. The streamlined visual layout facilitated utility and the individualized recommendations could meet the needs of users.
AHRQ-funded; HS20948; HS22445.
Citation: Gaugler JE, Reese M, Tanler R .
Care to Plan: an online tool that offers tailored support to dementia caregivers.
Gerontologist 2016 Dec;56(6):1161-74. doi: 10.1093/geront/gnv150.
.
.
Keywords: Caregiving, Dementia, Elderly, Web-Based, Tools & Toolkits
Bjarnadottir RI, Millery M, Fleck E
Correlates of online health information-seeking behaviors in a low-income Hispanic community.
The authors explored the correlates of online health information-seeking behaviors among Hispanic residents of a low-income urban neighborhood. They found that age and Spanish as preferred language were negatively associated with online health information-seeking, whereas education and health literacy were positively associated. They concluded that their findings have implications for designing online health information resources and interventions appropriate for the populations they are likely to reach.
AHRQ-funded; HS019853.
Citation: Bjarnadottir RI, Millery M, Fleck E .
Correlates of online health information-seeking behaviors in a low-income Hispanic community.
Inform Health Soc Care 2016 Dec;41(4):341-9. doi: 10.3109/17538157.2015.1064429.
.
.
Keywords: Education: Patient and Caregiver, Low-Income, Racial and Ethnic Minorities, Urban Health, Web-Based
Wang D, Luque AE
Evaluation of a statewide HIV-HCV-STD online clinical education program by healthcare providers - a comparison of nursing and other disciplines.
The authors evaluated the New York State HIV-HCV-STD Clinical Education Initiative (CEI) online education program and compared the self-reported measures by clinicians from different disciplines. They found that physicians and nurse practitioners were the most satisfied, while pharmacists and case/care managers recorded lower than average responses. They recommended that online education programs consider the unique needs by clinicians from specific disciplines.
AHRQ-funded; HS022057.
Citation: Wang D, Luque AE .
Evaluation of a statewide HIV-HCV-STD online clinical education program by healthcare providers - a comparison of nursing and other disciplines.
Stud Health Technol Inform 2016;225:267-71.
.
.
Keywords: Comparative Effectiveness, Education: Continuing Medical Education, Infectious Diseases, Provider, Web-Based
Furtado KS, Kaphingst KA, Perkins H
Health insurance information-seeking behaviors among the uninsured.
In order to better understand how to reach the uninsured and support their health insurance decision making, this study examined where the uninsured collect information about health insurance and the extent to which they trust those sources and media. Its findings suggest that strategies that pair health care professionals, lay health advisors, or community liaisons with the ubiquity of the Internet may be a strong approach for delivering quality health insurance information to the uninsured.
AHRQ-funded; HS020309.
Citation: Furtado KS, Kaphingst KA, Perkins H .
Health insurance information-seeking behaviors among the uninsured.
J Health Commun 2016;21(2):148-58. doi: 10.1080/10810730.2015.1039678.
.
.
Keywords: Uninsured, Health Insurance, Education: Patient and Caregiver, Web-Based
Laccetti AL, Chen B, Cai J
Increase in cancer center staff effort related to electronic patient portal use.
The authors examined patterns of use of electronic portals by clinic staff at a National Cancer Institute-designated comprehensive cancer center. They found that from 2011 to 2014, staff portal activity increased approximately 10-fold, and sixteen percent of all actions occurred outside clinic hours. They concluded that cancer center employee use of an electronic patient portal has increased markedly over time, particularly among nursing staff.
AHRQ-funded; HS022418.
Citation: Laccetti AL, Chen B, Cai J .
Increase in cancer center staff effort related to electronic patient portal use.
J Oncol Pract 2016 Dec;12(12):e981-e90. doi: 10.1200/jop.2016.011817.
.
.
Keywords: Cancer, Health Information Technology (HIT), Provider: Health Personnel, Web-Based, Workforce
Lyles CR, Allen JY, Poole D
"I want to keep the personal relationship with my doctor": Understanding barriers to portal use among African Americans and Latinos.
The investigators sought to understand specific barriers to portal use among African American and Latino patients at Kaiser Permanente, which has had a portal in place for over a decade. Their findings suggest that uniform adoption of portal use across diverse patient groups requires more usable, more personalized websites, which may be particularly important for reducing health care disparities.
AHRQ-funded; HS022408.
Citation: Lyles CR, Allen JY, Poole D .
"I want to keep the personal relationship with my doctor": Understanding barriers to portal use among African Americans and Latinos.
J Med Internet Res 2016 Oct 3;18(10):e263. doi: 10.2196/jmir.5910.
.
.
Keywords: Disparities, Electronic Health Records (EHRs), Clinician-Patient Communication, Racial and Ethnic Minorities, Web-Based
Mueller SK, Yoon C, Schnipper JL
Association of a web-based handoff tool with rates of medical errors.
The researchers implemented a web-based handoff tool and training for health care professionals and evaluated the association of the tool with rates of medical errors in adult medical and surgical patients. They found that implementation of this tool was associated with a significant reduction in rates of medical errors, driven largely by a reduction in errors attributable to communication failure and errors that occurred during end-of-shift handoffs.
AHRQ-funded; HS023331.
Citation: Mueller SK, Yoon C, Schnipper JL .
Association of a web-based handoff tool with rates of medical errors.
JAMA Intern Med 2016 Sep;176(9):1400-2. doi: 10.1001/jamainternmed.2016.4258.
.
.
Keywords: Medical Errors, Patient Safety, Surgery, Tools & Toolkits, Web-Based
Bush RA, Stahmer AC, Connelly CD
Exploring perceptions and use of the electronic health record by parents of children with autism spectrum disorder: a qualitative study.
This study used structured interviews with nine parents to examine perceptions of electronic health records and related patient portals in the treatment of their children. The authors recommend further research to increase portal registration and integration in patient care.
AHRQ-funded; HS022404.
Citation: Bush RA, Stahmer AC, Connelly CD .
Exploring perceptions and use of the electronic health record by parents of children with autism spectrum disorder: a qualitative study.
Health Informatics J 2016 Sep;22(3):702-11. doi: 10.1177/1460458215581911.
.
.
Keywords: Autism, Electronic Health Records (EHRs), Web-Based, Patient Experience, Education: Patient and Caregiver
Menefee HK, Thompson MJ, Guterbock TM
Mechanisms of communicating health information through Facebook: implications for consumer health information technology design.
The authors aimed to characterize patients' use of communication mechanisms within Facebook for health information communication to provide insight into how consumer HIT solutions may be better designed to meet patients' communication needs and preferences. They found that participants consider multiple factors, including what information they intended to share, what they were trying to accomplish, attributes of technology, and attributes and communication practices of their social networks.
AHRQ-funded; HS022930.
Citation: Menefee HK, Thompson MJ, Guterbock TM .
Mechanisms of communicating health information through Facebook: implications for consumer health information technology design.
J Med Internet Res 2016 Aug 11;18(8):e218. doi: 10.2196/jmir.5949.
.
.
Keywords: Communication, Education: Patient and Caregiver, Health Information Technology (HIT), Social Media, Web-Based
Perez SL, Kravitz RL, Bell RA
Characterizing internet health information seeking strategies by socioeconomic status: a mixed methods approach.
The authors investigated how the Internet is used to obtain health-related information and how individuals with differing socioeconomic resources navigate it when presented with a health decision. Their findings suggest that individuals with different levels of socioeconomic status vary in the heuristics and search patterns they rely upon to direct their searches and that the influence and use of credible information in the process of making a decision is associated with education and prior experiences with healthcare services.
AHRQ-funded; HS022236.
Citation: Perez SL, Kravitz RL, Bell RA .
Characterizing internet health information seeking strategies by socioeconomic status: a mixed methods approach.
BMC Med Inform Decis Mak 2016 Aug 9;16:107. doi: 10.1186/s12911-016-0344-x.
.
.
Keywords: Education: Patient and Caregiver, Health Information Technology (HIT), Social Determinants of Health, Web-Based
Fiks AG, DuRivage N, Mayne SL
Adoption of a portal for the primary care management of pediatric asthma: a mixed-methods implementation study.
The researchers evaluated the feasibility of using a patient portal for pediatric asthma in primary care. Fewer than three percent of those families invited to enroll used the portal. The authors found that although use of the portal was associated with higher treatment engagement, their results suggested that achieving widespread portal adoption is unlikely in the short term.
AHRQ-funded; HS021645; HS022689.
Citation: Fiks AG, DuRivage N, Mayne SL .
Adoption of a portal for the primary care management of pediatric asthma: a mixed-methods implementation study.
J Med Internet Res 2016 Jun 29;18(6):e172. doi: 10.2196/jmir.5610.
.
.
Keywords: Web-Based, Primary Care, Children/Adolescents, Patient-Centered Healthcare, Asthma