Health Services Administration Commons^™

Evaluating Use Of Custom Survey Reports By Local Health Departments, Nadya M. Belenky, Christine A. Bevc, Elizabeth Mahanna, Carol Gunther-Mohr, Mary V. Davis

Frontiers in Public Health Services and Systems Research

This report demonstrates how providing survey feedback, like comparative reports, to survey respondents can result in improvement activities. For each of the past three years (2010-2013), the North Carolina Institute for Public Health (NCIPH) has invited local health departments (LHDs) from 40 states to participate in a preparedness capacities survey. In addition, NCIPH fielded a six-question evaluation survey to a subset of LHDs (n=70) to determine how LHDs use these reports. LHDs that reported using their custom reports compared their preparedness capacities to other LHDs, conducted strategic planning (e.g., benchmarking, setting preparedness goals), planned staff trainings, and disseminated the report …

The Relationship Between Quality Improvement And Health Information Technology Use In Local Health Departments, Kendra Johnson, Kim K. Nguyen, Shimin Zheng, Robin P. Pendley

Frontiers in Public Health Services and Systems Research

This research examined if there is a relationship between engagement in quality improvement (QI) and health information technology (HIT) for local health departments (LHDs) controlling for workforce, finance, population, and governance structure. This was a cross-sectional study that analyzed data obtained from the Core questions and Module 1 in the NACCHO 2010 Profile of LHDs. Descriptive statistics, bivariate analyses, and logistic regression analyses were conducted. Findings suggest that LHD engagement in QI has a relationship with utilization of HIT including electronic health records, practice management systems, and electronic syndromic surveillance systems. This study provides baseline information about the HIT use …

Commentary: The Road To Quality In Public Health, A Long But Important Journey, F. Douglas Scutchfield, Glen Mays, Marylou Wallace

Frontiers in Public Health Services and Systems Research

Quality improvement (QI) in public health departments is a focus in this sixth issue of Frontiers. Data is important to the development of quality improvement efforts. As we see growth of and meaningful use of electronic health records, the health department is in a position to take the lead as a data hub and to use this information wisely to both improve their QI efforts and link that QI to outcomes.

The Commission On Long-Term Care: Background Behind The Mission, Carol O'Shaughnessy

National Health Policy Forum

The American Taxpayer Relief Act of 2012 (ATRA, P.L. 112-240) created a Commission on Long-Term Care charged with developing a plan for financing of long-term services and supports (LTSS) and issuing a report in September 2013. Significant research and advocacy have been devoted to LTSS financing issues and perceived inadequacies of the delivery system over the past several decades, but the most recent comprehensive review of financing options was in 1990 by the Pepper Commission. This publication presents brief background behind the mission of the Commission, including a time line of selected federal and national activities on LTSS financing and …

Health Policy & Management News, Georgia Southern University

Health Policy & Community Health: News & Publications (2011-2018)

• Georgia Southern Examines Abdominal Adiposity and Caregiver Recall

Ndank-Ndank: How Governmental Health Organizations Can Take Their First Step To Help Other’S Take Their First Step: A Case Study Of A Prosthetics And Orthotics Rehabilitation Center In Dakar, Senegal, Sarah Jacobi

Independent Study Project (ISP) Collection

The number of people with disability in the world is very large, however; what having a disability means for each person is even more alarming. In a developing country, it is extremely difficult for people with disabilities to receive the health care they need. The organizations that offer health care to people with disabilities are faced with a number of challenges; but they continue to do the best they can. This study was done at a prosthetics and orthotics rehabilitation center in Dakar, Senegal. It is a case study that examines the difficulties the workers face, the motivations the workers …

Massachusetts Health Care Reform: Is It Working?, Joshua Mcadoo, Julian Irving, Stacie Deslich, Alberto Coustasse

Management Faculty Research

Before 2006, Massachusetts had more than 500 000 residents who lacked health insurance. Governor Mitt Romney enacted landmark legislation requiring all residents to obtain health insurance. Also, the legislation established a health insurance exchange for the purpose of broadening the choices of insurance plans made available to individuals in the state. The purpose of this research was to assess the Massachusetts health care reform in terms of access, cost, and sustainability. The methodology used was a literature review from 2006 to 2013; a total of 43 references were used. Health reform resulted in additional overall state spending of $2.42 billion …

Gender Disparities In Access To Hiv Testing And Antiretroviral Treatment Services, Wyatt Lombard Smith

Independent Study Project (ISP) Collection

Throughout a six-week practicum period at TASO Mulago in Kampala, Uganda and St. Francis Naggalama Hospital in Naggalama, Uganda, the researcher aimed to find methods to increase male engagement in all facets of comprehensive HIV/AIDS care. Women and children generally receive most global attention on the issue of HIV/AIDS in Uganda but men are beginning to demand more attention. Antiretroviral treatment has been critical in allowing countless people to live functionally with HIV but many research projects have hypothesized that delayed access to HIV/AIDS treatment and prevention methods has resulted in men exhibiting higher mortality rates upon initiation of this …

Bibliographic Review Of Research Publications On Access To And Use Of Medicines In Low-Income And Middle-Income Countries In The Eastern Mediterranean Region: Identifying The Research Gaps., Arash Rashidian, Nader Jahanmehr, Samer Jabbour, Shehla Zaidi, Fatemeh Soleymani, Maryam Bigdeli

Community Health Sciences

BJECTIVES:

We assessed the situation of academic publications on access to and use of medicines (ATM) in low-income and middle-income countries (LMICs) of the Eastern Mediterranean Region (EMR). We aimed to inform priority setting for research on ATM in the region.

DESIGN:

Bibliographic review of published studies.

SETTING:

LMICs in EMR.

INCLUSION CRITERIA:

Publications on ATM issues originating from or focusing on EMR LMICs covering the period 2000-2011. Publications involving multinational studies were included if at least one eligible country had been included in the study.

INFORMATION SOURCES AND DATA EXTRACTION:

We conducted comprehensive searches of the PubMed, Social Science …

Opinions Of Individuals In The Greater Durban Area Concerning Government Healthcare, Alexander Braun

Independent Study Project (ISP) Collection

One important determinant of health in South Africa is how government entities, from the local level to the national level, use their health budgets. A complex system of organizations involving many government employees at the various levels are involved in the process of turning a budget allocation of Rand into healthcare services and goods that make their way to the South African people. What do individuals in the greater Durban area think about that process as it exists currently, and what do they think of the services that are eventually delivered to them? This is an important question, especially in …

Accreditation And Standardization In Local Public Health, Glen P. Mays

Health Management and Policy Presentations

Reducing harmful, wasteful, and inequitable variation in public health delivery is a central objective for administrative and policy decision-makers in public health, and is embedded in the national accreditation movement. The challenge lies in accomplishing this objective while preserving the benefits of customization in public health delivery that accrue through tailoring and targeting of resources to unique community needs and risks. Public health services and systems research (PHSSR) can help determine the optimal balance between standardization and customization in public health delivery.

Strengthening The Evidence Base For Accreditation: Progress In Phssr And Pbrns, Glen P. Mays

Health Management and Policy Presentations

With the launch of a voluntary national accreditation program for public health agencies, the field requires an expanding evidence base concerning which public health strategies work best, for which populations, and under what circumstances. The field of public health services and systems research (PHSSR) and practice-based research networks (PBRNs) are producing applied studies that can inform the future development and implementation of accreditation standards, and evaluate the impact of accreditation on the field of practice.

Public Health Practice-Based Research Networks: Creating Evidence For Practice, Glen P. Mays

Health Management and Policy Presentations

Powerful opportunities for learning from variation and change in public health delivery now exists across the U.S. health system. Practice-based research networks (PBRNs) provide the vehicles for harvesting evidence from applied, comparative studies -- and for feeding this information back into the delivery system.

Public Health Services & Systems Research: Concepts, Methods, And Emerging Findings, Glen P. Mays

Health Management and Policy Presentations

The field of public health services & systems research (PHSSR) increasingly is addressing the question of how to assess the value of investments in public health programs, infrastructure, and delivery systems. Progress in quasi-experimental research designs, measurement, estimation techniques, and data sources are yielding important insight.

Chhs October 2013 E-Newsletter, Dr. John Bonaguro, Dean, Vashon S. Wells, Editor, Wku College Of Health & Human Services

College of Health & Human Services Publications

No abstract provided.

The Use Of Interpreters To Improve The Quality And Safety Of Healthcare Through Better Communication In Obstetrical Patients: Effect On Primary Cesarean Delivery Rate, Stephen A. Pearlman, Md

Master of Science in Healthcare Quality and Safety Capstone Presentations

Patients with limited English proficiency have poorer healthcare outcomes. An assessment of the cultural and linguistic competency of Christiana Care Health Systems revealed that our language services were not sufficiently robust and this was affecting care. Therefore, the purpose of this quality improvement study was to improve healthcare outcomes, specifically the rate of primary cesarean delivery, through improved language assistance, to patients with limited English proficiency presenting to labor and delivery. The methods employed included use of the TeamSTEPPS program to educate the staff on how to improve safety for patients with limited English proficiency, adding a live Spanish interpreter …

Health Policy & Management News, Georgia Southern University

Health Policy & Community Health: News & Publications (2011-2018)

• Infrastructural Characteristics of LHDs

Health Policy & Management News, Georgia Southern University

Health Policy & Community Health: News & Publications (2011-2018)

• Perceived Barriers

Strengthening The Science Of Public Health Delivery Through Public Health Services Research, Glen P. Mays

Health Management and Policy Presentations

This session notes recent progress from the field of public health services and systems research (PHSSR) concerning the most promising directions for improving the delivery and impact of public health services, programs, and policies.

Diffusion Of Innovation Across A National Local Health Department Network: A Simulation Approach To Policy Development Using Agent-Based Modeling, Mark Orr, Jacqueline Merrill

Frontiers in Public Health Services and Systems Research

The network that local health officials use to communicate about professional issues is sparsely connected, which may limit the spread of innovative practices. We used agent-based simulation modeling to find out if a policy to promote more connections improved the network’s capability to diffuse innovation. We found that unanticipated effects could result, depending on the requirements of the policy and the proportion of health officials involved. With carefully crafted assumptions and reliable data it is possible to untangle complex processes using simulation modeling. The results represent how the world might actually work which may provide useful decision support for policymakers …