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 (1)
- Adverse Events (2)
- Blood Pressure (1)
- Cardiovascular Conditions (2)
- Clinician-Patient Communication (1)
- Community-Based Practice (1)
- Consumer Assessment of Healthcare Providers and Systems (CAHPS) (1)
- Diabetes (2)
- Education: Curriculum (1)
- Education: Patient and Caregiver (1)
- Electronic Health Records (EHRs) (3)
- Evidence-Based Practice (1)
- Healthcare-Associated Infections (HAIs) (1)
- Healthcare Delivery (4)
- Health Information Technology (HIT) (3)
- Health Insurance (1)
- Health Literacy (2)
- Hospital Discharge (1)
- Injuries and Wounds (1)
- Labor and Delivery (1)
- Medicare (1)
- Medication (2)
- Organizational Change (2)
- (-) Patient-Centered Healthcare (20)
- Patient-Centered Outcomes Research (2)
- Patient Adherence/Compliance (1)
- Patient and Family Engagement (3)
- Patient Experience (3)
- Patient Self-Management (2)
- Practice Improvement (2)
- Pregnancy (1)
- Primary Care (8)
- Primary Care: Models of Care (3)
- Provider (2)
- Provider: Clinician (1)
- Provider: Health Personnel (1)
- Provider: Nurse (1)
- Provider: Physician (1)
- Quality Improvement (1)
- Quality Measures (1)
- Quality of Care (3)
- Risk (1)
- Shared Decision Making (4)
- Surgery (2)
- Teams (2)
- Telehealth (1)
- Transitions of Care (1)
- Web-Based (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 20 of 20 Research Studies DisplayedHolcomb CN, Graham LA, Richman JS
The incremental risk of noncardiac surgery on adverse cardiac events following coronary stenting.
The investigators sought to determine the incremental risk of noncardiac surgery on myocardial infarction (MI) and coronary revascularization following coronary stenting. They found that the incremental risk of noncardiac surgery on adverse cardiac events among post-stent patients is highest in the initial 6 months following stent implantation and stabilizes at 1.0% after 6 months.
AHRQ-funded; HS013852.
Citation: Holcomb CN, Graham LA, Richman JS .
The incremental risk of noncardiac surgery on adverse cardiac events following coronary stenting.
J Am Coll Cardiol 2014 Dec 30;64(25):2730-9. doi: 10.1016/j.jacc.2014.09.072.
.
.
Keywords: Adverse Events, Cardiovascular Conditions, Patient-Centered Healthcare, Risk, Surgery
Van der Wees PJ, Friedberg MW, Guzman EA
Comparing the implementation of team approaches for improving diabetes care in community health centers.
The researchers sought to clarify implementation processes and experiences of integrating office-based medical assistant (MA) panel management and community health worker (CHW) community-based management into routine care for diabetic patients. They found that CHW and MA responsibilities converged over time to focus on health coaching of diabetic patients, with the MA health coaches experiencing difficulty in allocating dedicated time due to other responsibilities. Time constraints also limited the personal introduction of patients to health coaches by clinicians. Participants highlighted the importance of a supportive team climate and proactive leadership as important enablers for MAs and CHWs to implement their health coaching responsibilities. This study suggests that a flexible approach to implementing health coaching is more important than fidelity to rigid models that do not allow for variable allocation of responsibilities across team members.
AHRQ-funded; HS020120.
Citation: Van der Wees PJ, Friedberg MW, Guzman EA .
Comparing the implementation of team approaches for improving diabetes care in community health centers.
BMC Health Serv Res 2014 Dec 3;14:608. doi: 10.1186/s12913-014-0608-z.
.
.
Keywords: Community-Based Practice, Diabetes, Patient-Centered Healthcare, Quality Improvement, Teams
Kuntz JL, Safford MM, Singh JA
Patient-centered interventions to improve medication management and adherence: a qualitative review of research findings.
This review reports the current state of scientific research around interventions to improve medication management through four patient-centered domains. Out of 60 studies, the authors found the following types of intervention: patient education, augmented pharmacy services, decision aids, shared decision-making, and clinical review of patient adherence. They were unable to determine whether these interventions were more effective than traditional medication adherence interventions.
AHRQ-funded; HS021107.
Citation: Kuntz JL, Safford MM, Singh JA .
Patient-centered interventions to improve medication management and adherence: a qualitative review of research findings.
Patient Educ Couns 2014 Dec;97(3):310-26. doi: 10.1016/j.pec.2014.08.021.
.
.
Keywords: Education: Patient and Caregiver, Shared Decision Making, Medication, Patient Adherence/Compliance, Patient-Centered Healthcare
Sanger P, Hartzler A, Lober WB
Design considerations for post-acute care mHealth: patient perspectives.
The authors are developing an mHealth platform to engage patients in wound tracking to identify and manage surgical site infections (SSI) after hospital discharge. Their key design qualities include: meeting basic accessibility, usability and security needs; encouraging patient-centeredness; facilitating better, more predictable communication; and supporting personalized management by providers. In this article, they illustrated their application of these guiding design considerations and proposed a new framework for mHealth design based on illness duration and intensity.
AHRQ-funded; HS019482.
Citation: Sanger P, Hartzler A, Lober WB .
Design considerations for post-acute care mHealth: patient perspectives.
AMIA Annu Symp Proc 2014 Nov 14;2014:1920-9.
.
.
Keywords: Telehealth, Patient Self-Management, Surgery, Injuries and Wounds, Healthcare-Associated Infections (HAIs), Hospital Discharge, Patient-Centered Healthcare, Patient-Centered Outcomes Research, Adverse Events
DeVoe JE, Angier H, Burdick T
Health information technology: an untapped resource to help keep patients insured.
This commentary provides guiding principles for HIT infrastructure development to support health insurance enrollment and re-enrollment. It also describes how HIT and health information exchange could be used to organize and communicated this information to patients.
AHRQ-funded; HS018569
Citation: DeVoe JE, Angier H, Burdick T .
Health information technology: an untapped resource to help keep patients insured.
Ann Fam Med. 2014 Nov-Dec;12(6):568-72. doi: 10.1370/afm.1721..
Keywords: Electronic Health Records (EHRs), Health Insurance, Health Information Technology (HIT), Patient-Centered Healthcare, Primary Care
Hess R, Fischer GS, Sullivan SM
Patterns of response to patient-centered decision support through a personal health record.
The investigators evaluated patients' patterns of responses to notifications regarding guideline-recommended services delivered through a personalized health record (PHR). They found that approximately 61% of participants accessed the PHR or received the care that triggered the message after the first message and 73% after the first two messages. They concluded that, in this low-intensity intervention, participants accessed the PHR and received recommended care.
AHRQ-funded; HS018167.
Citation: Hess R, Fischer GS, Sullivan SM .
Patterns of response to patient-centered decision support through a personal health record.
Telemed J E Health 2014 Nov;20(11):984-9. doi: 10.1089/tmj.2013.0332.
.
.
Keywords: Cardiovascular Conditions, Electronic Health Records (EHRs), Health Information Technology (HIT), Patient-Centered Healthcare, Clinician-Patient Communication
Cohen MJ, Morton S, Scholle SH
Self-management support activities in patient-centered medical home practices.
This study is a survey of small practices of fewer than 5 physicians with National Committee for Quality Assurance recognition. Practices reported a high proportion of self-management support activities, while practices that perform more of these activities have more nonindependent health care providers.
AHRQ-funded; HS019162.
Citation: Cohen MJ, Morton S, Scholle SH .
Self-management support activities in patient-centered medical home practices.
J Ambul Care Manage 2014 Oct-Dec;37(4):349-58. doi: 10.1097/jac.0000000000000040.
.
.
Keywords: Patient-Centered Healthcare, Patient Self-Management, Primary Care
Solberg LI, Crain AL, Tillema JO
Challenges of medical home transformation reported by 118 patient-centered medical home (PCMH) leaders.
The authors surveyed newly-certified medical homes in Minnesota to determine the most important organizational factors and strategies for transforming primary clinics into patient-centered medical homes (PCMHs). They found that many items in the survey about transformation seem to have face validity for leaders of certified PCMHs and to be associated with the extent to which their clinics have made systems changes.
AHRQ-funded; HS019161.
Citation: Solberg LI, Crain AL, Tillema JO .
Challenges of medical home transformation reported by 118 patient-centered medical home (PCMH) leaders.
J Am Board Fam Med 2014 Jul-Aug;27(4):449-57. doi: 10.3122/jabfm.2014.04.130303.
.
.
Keywords: Patient-Centered Healthcare, Practice Improvement, Primary Care: Models of Care, Primary Care, Organizational Change, Quality of Care
Moore JE, Low LK, Titler MG
AHRQ Author: Moore JE
Moving toward patient-centered care: women's decisions, perceptions, and experiences of the induction of labor process.
The researchers identified factors that influence inductions from the perspective of women. They found that lack of informed decision making was cited as a barrier to optimal care; additional themes emerged from the preinduction and postinduction interviews.
AHRQ-authored.
Citation: Moore JE, Low LK, Titler MG .
Moving toward patient-centered care: women's decisions, perceptions, and experiences of the induction of labor process.
Birth 2014 Jun;41(2):138-46. doi: 10.1111/birt.12080.
.
.
Keywords: Shared Decision Making, Labor and Delivery, Patient-Centered Healthcare, Patient Experience, Pregnancy
Wang JJ, Winther CH, Cha J
Patient-centered medical home and quality measurement in small practices.
In this retrospective cohort study, the investigators sought to assess performance on quality measures among small primary care practices that recently adopted an electronic health record (EHR), and how performance differs between practices that have achieved patient-centered medical home (PCMH) recognition and those that have not. They found that among small practices that have adopted EHRs, practices with PCMH recognition consistently outperformed practices without recognition on 5 out of 7 clinical quality measures over the 2-year study period.
AHRQ-funded; HS019164.
Citation: Wang JJ, Winther CH, Cha J .
Patient-centered medical home and quality measurement in small practices.
Am J Manag Care 2014 Jun;20(6):481-9.
.
.
Keywords: Electronic Health Records (EHRs), Quality of Care, Patient-Centered Healthcare, Primary Care, Quality Measures
Lavallee DC, Wicks P, Alfonso Cristancho R
Stakeholder engagement in patient-centered outcomes research: high-touch or high-tech?
In this article, the authors compared and contrasted high-tech and high-touch approaches to engaging stakeholders and suggested hybrid processes.
AHRQ-funded; HS022135; HS022959.
Citation: Lavallee DC, Wicks P, Alfonso Cristancho R .
Stakeholder engagement in patient-centered outcomes research: high-touch or high-tech?
Expert Rev Pharmacoecon Outcomes Res 2014 Jun;14(3):335-44. doi: 10.1586/14737167.2014.901890.
.
.
Keywords: Patient-Centered Outcomes Research, Evidence-Based Practice, Patient-Centered Healthcare, Patient and Family Engagement
Wilcox L, Feiner S, Elhadad N
Patient-centered tools for medication information search.
The authors explored how search tools can support non-expert, patient-centered health information search. Their findings suggested the importance of four valuation principles underlying their tools: credibility, readability, consumer perspective, and topical relevance.
AHRQ-funded; HS021393.
Citation: Wilcox L, Feiner S, Elhadad N .
Patient-centered tools for medication information search.
Int Conf Pervasive Comput Technol Healthc 2014 May 20;2014:49-56. doi: 10.4108/icst.pervasivehealth.2014.254975.
.
.
Keywords: Health Information Technology (HIT), Medication, Patient-Centered Healthcare, Web-Based
Hays RD, Berman LJ, Kanter MH
Evaluating the psychometric properties of the CAHPS Patient-Centered Medical Home survey.
This study surveyed Medicare beneficiaries to evaluate the reliability and validity of a new five-item care coordination measure. The composite score had a strong unique association with the CAHPS global rating of health care, after controlling for the CAHPS core composite scores.
AHRQ-funded; HS016980
Citation: Hays RD, Berman LJ, Kanter MH .
Evaluating the psychometric properties of the CAHPS Patient-Centered Medical Home survey.
Clin Ther. 2014 May;36(5):689-696.e1. doi: 10.1016/j.clinthera.2014.04.004..
Keywords: Consumer Assessment of Healthcare Providers and Systems (CAHPS), Quality of Care, Medicare, Patient Experience, Patient-Centered Healthcare
O'Toole JK, West DC, Starmer AJ
Placing faculty development front and center in a multisite educational initiative: lessons from the I-PASS Handoff study.
The authors describe their experience developing a multi-institutional faculty development program to support the I-PASS (IIPE-PRIS Accelerating Safe Signouts) Study and offer a set of generalizable strategies to guide the creation of other large-scale, multi-institutional faculty development programs. They conclude that the lessons learned inform a set of key strategies that can be applied to a broad range of similar large-scale faculty development projects in the future.
AHRQ-funded; HS019456.
Citation: O'Toole JK, West DC, Starmer AJ .
Placing faculty development front and center in a multisite educational initiative: lessons from the I-PASS Handoff study.
Acad Pediatr 2014 May-Jun;14(3):221-4. doi: 10.1016/j.acap.2014.02.013.
.
.
Keywords: Education: Curriculum, Provider, Patient-Centered Healthcare, Transitions of Care
Liss DT, Fishman PA, Rutter CM
Specialty use among patients with treated hypertension in a patient-centered medical home.
The researchers described changes in outpatient specialty use among patients with treated hypertension during and after patient-centered medical home (PCMH) practice transformation. Their results suggest that more comprehensive primary care in this PCMH redesign enabled primary care teams to deliver more hypertension care, and that many needs of low morbidity patients were within the scope of primary care practice.
AHRQ-funded; HS019129.
Citation: Liss DT, Fishman PA, Rutter CM .
Specialty use among patients with treated hypertension in a patient-centered medical home.
J Gen Intern Med 2014 May;29(5):732-40. doi: 10.1007/s11606-014-2776-2..
Keywords: Blood Pressure, Patient-Centered Healthcare, Primary Care, Healthcare Delivery
Brach C
AHRQ Author: Brach C
A daughter's frustration with the dearth of patient- and family-centered care.
This article is a first-person account of a hospitalization that describes the lack of patient and family inclusion in decision-making, failure to use plain language and other health literacy strategies, and disregard for patient and family preferences. The author concludes that if the health care system is going to shift from paternalistic to patient- and family-centered, providers must be trained in how to communicate and partner with patients and families. The author references resources to help hospitals make systematic changes to hard wire health literate and patient- and family-centered care.
AHRQ-authored.
Citation: Brach C .
A daughter's frustration with the dearth of patient- and family-centered care.
Patient Exp J 2014 Apr 1;1(1):43-47.
.
.
Keywords: Healthcare Delivery, Shared Decision Making, Health Literacy, Patient and Family Engagement, Patient-Centered Healthcare
Everett CM, Thorpe CT, Palta M
The roles of primary care PAs and NPs caring for older adults with diabetes.
The investigators proposed a multidimensional characterization of PA and NP roles on panels of primary care patients with diabetes. They found that PAs and NPs in primary care perform a variety of roles and frequently perform multiple roles within a clinic.
AHRQ-funded; HS017646; HS018368; HS000083.
Citation: Everett CM, Thorpe CT, Palta M .
The roles of primary care PAs and NPs caring for older adults with diabetes.
Jaapa 2014 Apr;27(4):45-9. doi: 10.1097/01.jaa.0000444736.16669.76.
.
.
Keywords: Diabetes, Provider: Health Personnel, Patient-Centered Healthcare, Primary Care, Teams
Brach C, Dreyer BP, Schillinger D
AHRQ Author: Brach C
Physicians' roles in creating health literate organizations: a call to action.
Physicians are being called on to deliver patient-centered care, reduce medical errors, and generally increase health care quality and health outcomes, all while containing costs. Fully engaging patients in prevention, decision-making and self-management activities is critical to achieving these aims. The authors of this paper concluded that being health literate must be a new way of delivering care rather than an add-on. For national health literacy goals to be met, health care organizations must ingrain health literacy into their routines.
AHRQ-authored.
Citation: Brach C, Dreyer BP, Schillinger D .
Physicians' roles in creating health literate organizations: a call to action.
J Gen Intern Med 2014 Feb;29(2):273-5. doi: 10.1007/s11606-013-2619-6.
.
.
Keywords: Healthcare Delivery, Shared Decision Making, Health Literacy, Patient and Family Engagement, Patient-Centered Healthcare
Wexler RK
Invited letter: the evolving model of health care in the United States: system change is not enough.
In this letter, the author argues that the spread of new health care delivery models such as the Patient-Centered Medical Home and Accountable Care Organizations are necessary to improve population health but do not fully address the need for a fundamental change in how patients think about and access care. He calls for raising patient awareness of how the health care delivery system works and draws attention to practitioners’ concerns about patient satisfaction as a definitive marker of quality.
AHRQ-funded; HS020693
Citation: Wexler RK .
Invited letter: the evolving model of health care in the United States: system change is not enough.
Adv Health Care Manag. 2014;16:173-6..
Keywords: Access to Care, Healthcare Delivery, Patient-Centered Healthcare, Patient Experience, Primary Care, Primary Care: Models of Care
Bleser WK, Miller-Day M, Naughton D
Strategies for achieving whole-practice engagement and buy-in to the patient-centered medical home.
In this paper the authors describe strategies for obtaining organizational buy-in to and whole-staff engagement of patient-centered medical home (PCMH) transformation and practice improvement. The investigators suggest that their study provides a list of strategies useful for facilitating PCMH transformation in primary care. They assert that these strategies could be investigated empirically in future research, used to guide medical practices undergoing or considering PCMH transformation, and used to inform health care policy makers.
AHRQ-funded; HS019150.
Citation: Bleser WK, Miller-Day M, Naughton D .
Strategies for achieving whole-practice engagement and buy-in to the patient-centered medical home.
Ann Fam Med 2014 Jan-Feb;12(1):37-45. doi: 10.1370/afm.1564..
Keywords: Patient-Centered Healthcare, Organizational Change, Primary Care: Models of Care, Primary Care, Practice Improvement, Provider: Nurse, Provider: Physician, Provider: Clinician, Provider