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
- (-) Access to Care (5)
- Behavioral Health (1)
- Children/Adolescents (1)
- COVID-19 (5)
- Emergency Department (1)
- Healthcare Cost and Utilization Project (HCUP) (1)
- Healthcare Costs (1)
- Healthcare Utilization (2)
- Hospitals (1)
- Infectious Diseases (1)
- Inpatient Care (1)
- Patient Experience (1)
- (-) Public Health (5)
- Surgery (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 5 of 5 Research Studies DisplayedCutler GJ, Bergmann KR, Doupnik SK
Pediatric mental health emergency department visits and access to Inpatient care: a crisis worsened by the COVID-19 pandemic.
The purpose of this study was to explore the author’s previous research findings on trends in pediatric emergency department (ED) visits for mental health (MH) vs non-mental health in light of more recent related data corresponding with the COVID-19 pandemic. The study found that recent research supports the dramatic increase in pediatric MH ED visits found in the author’s previous research and provides additional evidence that the increase has been driven by specific MH diagnoses. The researchers conclude that depressive disorders, self-harm behavior, and non-alcohol substance use disorders should be prioritized for the development of ED- and hospital-based strategies, and that EDs, hospitals, health systems, and the government urgently need to increase capacity for MH services and identify innovative solutions to improve access to high quality MH care for children.
AHRQ-funded; HS026385.
Citation: Cutler GJ, Bergmann KR, Doupnik SK .
Pediatric mental health emergency department visits and access to Inpatient care: a crisis worsened by the COVID-19 pandemic.
Acad Pediatr 2022 Aug;22(6):889-91. doi: 10.1016/j.acap.2022.03.015..
Keywords: Children/Adolescents, COVID-19, Behavioral Health, Emergency Department, Access to Care, Public Health, Inpatient Care
Fleming MD, Evans JL, Graham-Squire D
Association of shelter-in-place hotels with health services use among people experiencing homelessness during the COVID-19 pandemic.
During the COVID-19 pandemic, some jurisdictions utilized shelter-in-place (SIP) hotels to provide emergency shelter and support services to people experiencing homelessness (PEH) to reduce the risk of COVID-19 infection. The purpose of this study was to evaluate the association of SIP hotel placements with prior high acute health service use and compare health services use between PEH with prior high service use who did and did not receive a SIP hotel placement. The researchers assessed 25 SIP hotels in San Francisco, California from April 2020 to April 2021 and analyzed data from February 2021 to May 2022. Study participants included PEH who were among the top 10% high users of acute medical, mental health, and substance use services and who had 3 or more emergency department (ED) visits in the 9 months before the implementation of the SIP hotel program. The study reported that the mean number of ED visits decreased significantly in the high-user SIP group compared with high-user controls. The mean number of hospitalizations decreased significantly from 0.41 to 0.14 for SIP guests vs 0.27 to 0.22 for controls. Inpatient hospital days decreased significantly from a mean of 4.00 to 0.81 for SIP guests vs 2.27 to 1.85 for controls as did psychiatric emergency visits, from a mean of 0.03 to 0.01 visits for SIP guests vs no change in the control group. The researchers concluded that placement of PEH in SIP hotels was correlated with significantly reduced acute care use when compared with high acute care users with no SIP placement.
AHRQ-funded; HS027648.
Citation: Fleming MD, Evans JL, Graham-Squire D .
Association of shelter-in-place hotels with health services use among people experiencing homelessness during the COVID-19 pandemic.
JAMA Netw Open 2022 Jul;5(7):e2223891. doi: 10.1001/jamanetworkopen.2022.23891..
Keywords: COVID-19, Access to Care, Healthcare Utilization, Public Health
Johnson CL, Schwartz H, Greenberg A
Patient perceptions on barriers and facilitators to accessing low-acuity surgery during COVID-19 pandemic.
The onset of the COVID-19 pandemic led to the postponement of low-acuity surgical procedures in an effort to conserve resources and ensure patient safety. This study aimed to characterize patient-reported concerns about undergoing surgical procedures during the pandemic. The investigators concluded that eliciting patients' perspectives, adapting processes to address potential barriers, and effectively educating patients about institutional measures to minimize in-hospital transmission of COVID-19 should be integrated into surgical care.
AHRQ-funded; HS024532.
Citation: Johnson CL, Schwartz H, Greenberg A .
Patient perceptions on barriers and facilitators to accessing low-acuity surgery during COVID-19 pandemic.
J Surg Res 2021 Aug;264:30-36. doi: 10.1016/j.jss.2021.01.028..
Keywords: COVID-19, Surgery, Access to Care, Patient Experience, Public Health
Martin BI, Brodke DS, Wilson FA
The impact of halting elective admissions in anticipation of a demand surge due to the coronavirus pandemic (COVID-19).
This study’s objective was to estimate excess demand for hospital beds due to COVID-19 and the net financial impact of eliminating elective admissions to meet demand. An economic simulation was conducted combining epidemiological reports, the US Census, American Hospital Association Annual Survey, and the National Inpatient Sample. The base case used relied on a hospital admission rate reported by the CDC of 137.6 per 100,000, with the highest rates in people aged 65 year and older and 50-64 years. Elective admissions accounted for 20% of total hospital admissions, with an average rate of 30% unoccupied beds across hospitals. Hospitals that restricted elective care due to a COVID surge was only financial favorable if capacity was filled by a high proportion of COVID-19 cases among hospitals with low rates of elective admissions. There is a substantial financial risk to hospitals that restrict elective care.
AHRQ-funded; HS024714.
Citation: Martin BI, Brodke DS, Wilson FA .
The impact of halting elective admissions in anticipation of a demand surge due to the coronavirus pandemic (COVID-19).
Med Care 2021 Mar;59(3):213-19. doi: 10.1097/mlr.0000000000001496..
Keywords: Healthcare Cost and Utilization Project (HCUP), COVID-19, Hospitals, Healthcare Costs, Access to Care, Public Health
Anderson KE, McGinty EE, Presskreischer R
Reports of forgone medical care among US adults during the initial phase of the COVID-19 pandemic.
This survey measured the frequency of foregone medical care due to COVID-19 from March to mid-July 2020. Johns Hopkins created the COVID-19 Civic Life and Public Health Survey wave 1, with 1468 individuals completing the survey. The sample of respondents were 52% women, 63% non-Hispanic White, 12% Black, and 17% Hispanic. The mean age of respondents was 48 years. A total of 41% of respondents forwent medical care during the March to mid-July time period. Among the 1055 individuals who reported needing care, 52% reported forgoing care for any reason, 29% forwent care owing to fear of COVID-19 transmission, and 7% forwent care owing to financial concerns associated with the pandemic. Respondents lacking any health insurance were more likely to forgo care than respondents with Medicare or commercial insurance.
AHRQ-funded; HS000029.
Citation: Anderson KE, McGinty EE, Presskreischer R .
Reports of forgone medical care among US adults during the initial phase of the COVID-19 pandemic.
JAMA Netw Open 2021 Jan 4;4(1):e2034882. doi: 10.1001/jamanetworkopen.2020.34882..
Keywords: COVID-19, Access to Care, Healthcare Utilization, Public Health, Infectious Diseases