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
Topics
- Adverse Events (7)
- Children/Adolescents (1)
- Diagnostic Safety and Quality (1)
- Elderly (1)
- Healthcare-Associated Infections (HAIs) (8)
- Hospital Readmissions (1)
- (-) Hospitals (8)
- Infectious Diseases (1)
- (-) Injuries and Wounds (8)
- Methicillin-Resistant Staphylococcus aureus (MRSA) (1)
- Outcomes (1)
- Patient Safety (5)
- Payment (1)
- Provider Performance (2)
- Quality Indicators (QIs) (1)
- Quality Measures (1)
- Quality of Care (3)
- Risk (2)
- (-) Surgery (8)
- Women (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 8 of 8 Research Studies DisplayedRhee C, Wang Jentzsch, MS
Comparison of hospital surgical site infection rates and rankings using claims versus National Healthcare Safety Network surveillance data.
This article examines national policies that target healthcare-associated infections by use of medical claims and National Healthcare Safety Network surveillance data. The authors looked at rates and rankings for surgical site infection following colon surgery in 155 hospitals, and found low concordance between these two data sources; they conclude that this underscores the limitations of evaluating hospital quality by using claims data.
AHRQ-funded; HS025008; HS000063; HS018414.
Citation: Rhee C, Wang Jentzsch, MS .
Comparison of hospital surgical site infection rates and rankings using claims versus National Healthcare Safety Network surveillance data.
Infect Control Hosp Epidemiol 2019 Feb;40(2):208-10. doi: 10.1017/ice.2018.310..
Keywords: Healthcare-Associated Infections (HAIs), Hospitals, Patient Safety, Surgery, Injuries and Wounds
Yokoe DS, Avery TR, Platt R
Ranking hospitals based on colon surgery and abdominal hysterectomy surgical site infection outcomes: impact of limiting surveillance to the operative hospital.
This study examined how hospitals are ranked based on colon surgery and abdominal surgical site infection (SSI) outcomes. This ranking can impact how financial penalties are determined. Currently SSI surveillance focuses mainly on the operative hospital, but patients sometimes go to a different hospital after an SSI as opposed to readmission in the operative hospital. The authors used data from a California statewide hospital registry to assess for evidence of SSI for surgeries performed from March 2011 through November 2013. This analysis showed show that operational hospital surveillance alone would have missed 7.2% of colon surgery and 13.4% of abdominal hysterectomy SSIs. This leads to an inaccurate assignment or avoidance of financial penalties for approximately 1 in 11-16 hospitals.
AHRQ-funded; HS021424.
Citation: Yokoe DS, Avery TR, Platt R .
Ranking hospitals based on colon surgery and abdominal hysterectomy surgical site infection outcomes: impact of limiting surveillance to the operative hospital.
Clin Infect Dis 2018 Sep 14;67(7):1096-102. doi: 10.1093/cid/ciy223..
Keywords: Surgery, Healthcare-Associated Infections (HAIs), Infectious Diseases, Injuries and Wounds, Adverse Events, Hospitals, Payment, Patient Safety, Provider Performance
Calderwood MS, Huang SS, Keller V
Variable case detection and many unreported cases of surgical-site infection following colon surgery and abdominal hysterectomy in a statewide validation.
This study assesses hospital surgical-site infection (SSI) identification and reporting following colon surgery and abdominal hysterectomy via a statewide external validation. The authors concluded that claims-based surveillance is a standardized approach that hospitals can use to augment traditional surveillance methods and health departments can use for external validation.
AHRQ-funded; HS021424.
Citation: Calderwood MS, Huang SS, Keller V .
Variable case detection and many unreported cases of surgical-site infection following colon surgery and abdominal hysterectomy in a statewide validation.
Infect Control Hosp Epidemiol 2017 Sep;38(9):1091-97. doi: 10.1017/ice.2017.134..
Keywords: Healthcare-Associated Infections (HAIs), Surgery, Injuries and Wounds, Patient Safety, Women, Adverse Events, Diagnostic Safety and Quality, Hospitals
Calderwood MS, Kleinman K, Huang SS
Surgical site infections: volume-outcome relationship and year-to-year stability of performance rankings.
The researchers evaluated the volume-outcome relationship as well as the year-to-year stability of performance rankings following coronary artery bypass graft (CABG) surgery and hip arthroplasty. They concluded that aggregate surgical site infection risk is highest in hospitals with low annual procedure volumes. Even for higher volume hospitals, year-to-year random variation makes past experience an unreliable estimator of current performance.
AHRQ-funded; HS021424.
Citation: Calderwood MS, Kleinman K, Huang SS .
Surgical site infections: volume-outcome relationship and year-to-year stability of performance rankings.
Med Care 2017 Jan;55(1):79-85. doi: 10.1097/mlr.0000000000000620.
.
.
Keywords: Surgery, Healthcare-Associated Infections (HAIs), Adverse Events, Injuries and Wounds, Hospitals, Provider Performance, Quality Indicators (QIs), Quality of Care, Patient Safety, Elderly
McLeod L, Flynn J, Erickson M
Variation in 60-day readmission for surgical-site infections (SSIs) and reoperation following spinal fusion operations for neuromuscular scoliosis.
The purpose of this study was to examine variation in hospital performance based on risk-standardized 60-day readmission rates for surgical-site infection (SSIs) and reoperation across 39 US Children's Hospitals. It found that reoperations were associated with an SSI in 70 percent of cases. Across hospitals, SSI and reoperation rates ranged from 1 percent to 11 percent and 1 percent to 12 percent, respectively.
AHRQ-funded; HS022198.
Citation: McLeod L, Flynn J, Erickson M .
Variation in 60-day readmission for surgical-site infections (SSIs) and reoperation following spinal fusion operations for neuromuscular scoliosis.
J Pediatr Orthop 2016 Sep;36(6):634-9. doi: 10.1097/bpo.0000000000000495.
.
.
Keywords: Children/Adolescents, Surgery, Healthcare-Associated Infections (HAIs), Injuries and Wounds, Adverse Events, Hospital Readmissions, Hospitals, Risk
Minami CA, Dahlke AR, Barnard C
Association between hospital characteristics and performance on the new hospital-acquired condition reduction program's surgical site infection measures.
This research letter evaluated the association between hospital characteristics and surgical site infection (SSI) measures. The authors found that hospitals with higher hospital quality summary scores were more frequently poor performers for SSI and had higher standardized infection ratios. Hospitals were more likely to be poor performers for colon SSI and hysterectomy SSI if they were a teaching hospital, safety-net hospital, or level I trauma center. Teaching hospitals were more likely to be poor performers for colorectal SSI, but the association was not as consistent for hysterectomy.
AHRQ-funded; HS021857.
Citation: Minami CA, Dahlke AR, Barnard C .
Association between hospital characteristics and performance on the new hospital-acquired condition reduction program's surgical site infection measures.
JAMA Surg 2016 Aug;151(8):777-9. doi: 10.1001/jamasurg.2016.0408.
.
.
Keywords: Healthcare-Associated Infections (HAIs), Surgery, Injuries and Wounds, Adverse Events, Quality Measures, Hospitals, Quality of Care
Baker AW, Dicks KV, Durkin MJ
Epidemiology of surgical site infection in a community hospital network.
The researchers described the epidemiology of complex surgical site infection (SSI) following commonly performed surgical procedures in community hospitals and to characterize trends of SSI prevalence rates over time for MRSA and other common pathogens. They found that the prevalence of MRSA SSI decreased from 2008 to 2012. This decrease in MRSA SSI prevalence led to an overall decrease in SSI prevalence.
AHRQ-funded; HS023866.
Citation: Baker AW, Dicks KV, Durkin MJ .
Epidemiology of surgical site infection in a community hospital network.
Infect Control Hosp Epidemiol 2016 May;37(5):519-26. doi: 10.1017/ice.2016.13.
.
.
Keywords: Surgery, Healthcare-Associated Infections (HAIs), Methicillin-Resistant Staphylococcus aureus (MRSA), Injuries and Wounds, Adverse Events, Risk, Hospitals
Durkin MJ, Dicks KV, Baker AW
Postoperative infection in spine surgery: does the month matter?
The authors evaluated for seasonal variation of surgical site infection (SSI) following spine surgery in a network of nonteaching community hospitals. They found that the rate of SSI following fusion or spinal laminectomy/laminoplasty was higher during the summer in this network of community hospitals, most likely due to S. aureus rather than the July effect.
AHRQ-funded; HS023866.
Citation: Durkin MJ, Dicks KV, Baker AW .
Postoperative infection in spine surgery: does the month matter?
J Neurosurg Spine 2015 Jul;23(1):128-34. doi: 10.3171/2014.10.spine14559.
.
.
Keywords: Surgery, Healthcare-Associated Infections (HAIs), Injuries and Wounds, Adverse Events, Patient Safety, Hospitals, Outcomes, Quality of Care