National Healthcare Quality and Disparities Report
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- Cancer (1)
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AHRQ Research Studies
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Research Studies is a compilation of published research articles funded by AHRQ or authored by AHRQ researchers.
Results
1 to 12 of 12 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
Burris HH, Passarella M, Handley SC
Black-white disparities in maternal in-hospital mortality according to teaching and black-serving hospital status.
This study’s objective was to determine whether black-white disparities in maternal in-hospital mortality during delivery vary across hospital types (black-serving vs non-black and teaching vs non-teaching) and whether overall maternal mortality differs across hospital types. The authors performed a population-based, retrospective cohort study of 5,679,044 deliveries among black (14.2%) and white patients (85.8%) in 3 states (California, Missouri, and Pennsylvania) from 1995 to 2009. Examination of black-white disparities found that after risk adjustment, black patients had significantly greater risk of death and that the disparity was similar within each of the hospital types. At teaching hospitals, mortality was similar in black-serving and nonblack-serving hospitals. Among non-teaching hospitals, mortality was significantly higher in black-serving vs nonblack-serving hospitals. Over half (53%) of black patients delivered in nonteaching black-serving hospitals compared with just 19% of white patients.
AHRQ-funded; HS018661.
Citation: Burris HH, Passarella M, Handley SC .
Black-white disparities in maternal in-hospital mortality according to teaching and black-serving hospital status.
Am J Obstet Gynecol 2021 Jul;225(1):83.e1-83.e9. doi: 10.1016/j.ajog.2021.01.004..
Keywords: Maternal Care, Pregnancy, Mortality, Women, Racial and Ethnic Minorities, Disparities, Hospitals
Marin JR, Rodean J, Hall M
Racial and ethnic differences in emergency department diagnostic imaging at US children's hospitals, 2016-2019.
Researchers evaluated racial and ethnic differences in the performance of common ED imaging studies and examined patterns across diagnoses. In this study, which evaluated visits by nonhospitalized patients younger than 18 years in 44 US children's hospital EDs, they found that non-Hispanic Black and Hispanic children were less likely to receive diagnostic imaging during ED visits compared with non-Hispanic White children. They recommended further investigation to understand and mitigate these potential disparities in health care delivery and to evaluate the effect of these differential imaging patterns on patient outcomes.
AHRQ-funded; HS026006.
Citation: Marin JR, Rodean J, Hall M .
Racial and ethnic differences in emergency department diagnostic imaging at US children's hospitals, 2016-2019.
JAMA Netw Open 2021 Jan 4(1):e2033710. doi: 10.1001/jamanetworkopen.2020.33710..
Keywords: Children/Adolescents, Hospitals, Emergency Department, Imaging, Racial and Ethnic Minorities, Disparities, Diagnostic Safety and Quality
Shannon EM, Schnipper JL, Mueller SK
Identifying racial/ethnic disparities in interhospital transfer: an observational study.
Interhospital transfer (IHT) is often performed to provide patients with specialized care. Racial/ethnic disparities in IHT have been suggested but are not well-characterized. The purpose of this study was to evaluate the association between race/ethnicity and IHT. The investigators found that Black and Hispanic patients had lower odds of IHT, largely explained by a higher likelihood of being hospitalized at urban teaching hospitals. Racial/ethnic disparities in transfer were demonstrated at community hospitals, in certain geographic regions and among patients with specific diseases.
AHRQ-funded; HS023331.
Citation: Shannon EM, Schnipper JL, Mueller SK .
Identifying racial/ethnic disparities in interhospital transfer: an observational study.
J Gen Intern Med 2020 Oct;35(10):2939-46. doi: 10.1007/s11606-020-06046-z..
Keywords: Racial and Ethnic Minorities, Disparities, Transitions of Care, Hospitals, Care Coordination
Kaplan CM, Thompson MP, Waters TM
How have 30-day readmission penalties affected racial disparities in readmissions?: an analysis from 2007 to 2014 in five US states.
The purpose of this study was to examine changes in Black-White disparities in 30-day readmissions for acute myocardial infarction (AMI), congestive heart failure (CHF), or pneumonia following the passage and implementation of the Hospital Readmission Reduction Program (HRRP), and to compare disparities across safety-net and non-safety-net hospitals. Prior to the passage of HRRP, Black and White readmission rates and disparities in readmissions were decreasing, with largest reductions at safety-net hospitals. Findings showed that improvements in readmissions have not reversed following the implementation of HRRP. In contrast, disparities continue to persist at non-safety-net hospitals.
AHRQ-funded; HS023783.
Citation: Kaplan CM, Thompson MP, Waters TM .
How have 30-day readmission penalties affected racial disparities in readmissions?: an analysis from 2007 to 2014 in five US states.
J Gen Intern Med 2019 Jun;34(6):878-83. doi: 10.1007/s11606-019-04841-x..
Keywords: Hospital Readmissions, Racial and Ethnic Minorities, Hospitals, Medicare, Payment
Toomey SL, Elliott MN, Zaslavsky AM
Improving response rates and representation of hard-to-reach groups in family experience surveys.
This study examined the use of an audio-enabled tablet to survey parents of children discharged from 4 units of a children’s hospital. Normal mail survey response rates are very low, especially for black, Latino, and low-income respondents. This survey was done day of discharge at the hospital and there was a response rate of 71.1% via tablet versus 16.3% for mail only. The Child Hospital Consumer Assessment of Healthcare Providers and Systems (HCAHPS) survey was used. Tablet response rates were highest with fathers, those more likely to have a high school education or less, less likely to be white, and more likely to be publicly insured. The results are promising for future surveys using tablet administration.
AHRQ-funded; HS020513; HS025299.
Citation: Toomey SL, Elliott MN, Zaslavsky AM .
Improving response rates and representation of hard-to-reach groups in family experience surveys.
Acad Pediatr 2019 May - Jun;19(4):446-53. doi: 10.1016/j.acap.2018.07.007..
Keywords: Caregiving, Children/Adolescents, Consumer Assessment of Healthcare Providers and Systems (CAHPS), Health Information Technology (HIT), Hospitals, Low-Income, Patient Experience, Quality of Care, Quality Improvement, Racial and Ethnic Minorities
Lee SJ, Grobe JE, Tiro JA
Assessing race and ethnicity data quality across cancer registries and EMRs in two hospitals.
The objective of this study was to characterize the quality of race/ethnicity data collection efforts. The authors assessed race and ethnicity data quality across cancer registries and electronic medical records in two hospitals. Their findings suggested that high-quality race/ethnicity data are attainable. Many of the "errors" in race/ethnicity data were caused by missing or "Unknown" data values.
AHRQ-funded; HS022418.
Citation: Lee SJ, Grobe JE, Tiro JA .
Assessing race and ethnicity data quality across cancer registries and EMRs in two hospitals.
J Am Med Inform Assoc 2016 May;23(3):627-34. doi: 10.1093/jamia/ocv156..
Keywords: Cancer, Data, Electronic Health Records (EHRs), Health Information Technology (HIT), Hospitals, Racial and Ethnic Minorities, Registries
Zingmond DS, Parikh P, Louie R
Improving hospital reporting of patient race and ethnicity--approaches to data auditing.
This study investigated new metrics to improve the reporting of patient race and ethnicity (R/E) by hospitals. It examined agreement between hospital reported R/E versus self-report among mothers delivering babies and a cancer cohort in California. It concluded that comparison between reported R/E and R/E estimates using zip code level data may be a reasonable first approach to evaluate and track hospital R/E reporting.
AHRQ-funded; HS019963.
Citation: Zingmond DS, Parikh P, Louie R .
Improving hospital reporting of patient race and ethnicity--approaches to data auditing.
Health Serv Res 2015 Aug;50 Suppl 1:1372-89. doi: 10.1111/1475-6773.12324..
Keywords: Racial and Ethnic Minorities, Hospitals, Hospital Discharge, Health Services Research (HSR), Registries, Quality Improvement, Quality of Care, Data
Shih T, Ryan AM, Gonzalez AA
Medicare's hospital readmissions reduction program in surgery may disproportionately affect minority-serving hospitals.
The authors aimed to project readmission penalties for hospitals performing cardiac surgery and examine how these penalties will affect minority-serving hospitals. They found that minority-serving hospitals would disproportionately bear the burden of readmission penalties if expanded to include cardiac surgery.
AHRQ-funded; HS018546.
Citation: Shih T, Ryan AM, Gonzalez AA .
Medicare's hospital readmissions reduction program in surgery may disproportionately affect minority-serving hospitals.
Ann Surg 2015 Jun;261(6):1027-31. doi: 10.1097/sla.0000000000000778.
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Keywords: Hospitals, Medicare, Racial and Ethnic Minorities, Hospital Readmissions, Surgery
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.
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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.
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Keywords: Disparities, Quality of Care, Hospitals, Racial and Ethnic Minorities, Surgery