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
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 4 of 4 Research Studies DisplayedLevinson Z, Cantor J, Williams MV
The association of strained ICU capacity with hospital patient racial and ethnic composition and federal relief during the COVID-19 pandemic.
Investigators sought to identify the association between strained intensive care unit (ICU) capacity during the COVID-19 pandemic and hospital racial and ethnic patient composition, federal pandemic relief, and other hospital characteristics. They found that hospitals with large Black patient shares experienced greater strain during the pandemic. These hospitals received more federal relief; however, funding was not targeted overall toward hospitals with high ICU occupancy rates.
AHRQ-funded; HS024067.
Citation: Levinson Z, Cantor J, Williams MV .
The association of strained ICU capacity with hospital patient racial and ethnic composition and federal relief during the COVID-19 pandemic.
Health Serv Res 2022 Dec;57(Suppl 2):279-90. doi: 10.1111/1475-6773.14028..
Keywords: COVID-19, Intensive Care Unit (ICU), Critical Care, Racial and Ethnic Minorities, Hospitals
Hegland TA, Owens PL, Selden TM
AHRQ Author: Hegland TA, Owens PL, Selden TM
New evidence on geographic disparities in United States hospital capacity.
The purpose of this study was to describe hospital capacity across the United States. The researchers combined American Hospital Association Survey, Hospital Compare, and American Community Survey data with the 2017 near-census of U.S. hospital inpatient discharges from the Healthcare Cost and Utilization Project (HCUP). The study found that 0.11 more beds per 1000 population were supplied to zip codes where Non-Hispanic individuals live than zip codes where non-Hispanic White individuals live. However, the hospitals supplying this capacity have 0.36 fewer staff per bed and perform worse on many care quality measures. Zip codes in the most urban parts of America have the least hospital capacity (2.11 beds per 1000 persons) from across the rural-urban continuum. While more rural areas have higher capacity levels, urban areas have advantages in staff and capital per bed. The researchers did not find systematic differences in care quality between rural and urban areas. The study concluded that lower hospital care quality and resource intensity plays a key role in racial, ethnic, and income disparities in hospital care related outcomes.
AHRQ-authored.
Citation: Hegland TA, Owens PL, Selden TM .
New evidence on geographic disparities in United States hospital capacity.
Health Serv Res 2022 Oct;57(5):1006-19. doi: 10.1111/1475-6773.14010..
Keywords: Healthcare Cost and Utilization Project (HCUP), Disparities, Hospitals, Quality of Care, Racial and Ethnic Minorities
Gomez SL, Lichtensztajn DY, Parikh P
Hospital practices in the collection of patient race, ethnicity, and language data: a statewide survey, California, 2011.
The authors reported on a sruvey of general acute care hospitals in California to elucidate practices regarding collection and auditing of patient race, ethnicity, and primary spoken language (REL). They found that the majority of hospitals used standardized forms for collection, and 75% audited patient information for completeness. They concluded that California hospitals are collecting information on patient REL as mandated, but variation in data collection exists, and hospitals may benefit from standardized data collection and auditing practices.
AHRQ-funded; HS019963.
Citation: Gomez SL, Lichtensztajn DY, Parikh P .
Hospital practices in the collection of patient race, ethnicity, and language data: a statewide survey, California, 2011.
J Health Care Poor Underserved 2014 Aug;25(3):1384-96. doi: 10.1353/hpu.2014.0126.
.
.
Keywords: Data, Hospitals, Racial and Ethnic Minorities, Social Determinants of Health
Dimick J, Ruhter J, Sarrazin MV
Black patients more likely than whites to undergo surgery at low-quality hospitals in segregated regions.
The authors assessed the extent to which living in racially segregated areas and living in geographic proximity to low-quality hospitals contribute to the disparity of black patients undergoing surgery at lower-quality hospitals more frequently than whites. Using Medicare data, they found that black patients tended to live closer to higher-quality hospitals than white patients but were more likely to receive surgery at low-quality hospitals. To address these disparities, care navigators and public reporting of comparative quality could steer patients and their referring physicians to higher-quality hospitals, while quality improvement efforts could focus on improving outcomes for high-risk surgery at hospitals that disproportionately serve black patients.
AHRQ-funded; HS017765.
Citation: Dimick J, Ruhter J, Sarrazin MV .
Black patients more likely than whites to undergo surgery at low-quality hospitals in segregated regions.
Health Aff 2013 Jun;32(6):1046-53. doi: 10.1377/hlthaff.2011.1365.
.
.
Keywords: Disparities, Quality of Care, Hospitals, Racial and Ethnic Minorities, Surgery