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Rural Health
Resources by Topic: Healthcare quality

Higher Primary Care Physician Continuity is Associated With Lower Costs and Hospitalizations
Results of a study using Medicare claims data for patients obtaining care from a sample of 6,551 primary care physicians. Features statistics including physician characteristics associated with providing continuity of care, with breakdowns by 5 levels of population density.
Author(s): Andrew Bazemore, Stephen Petterson, Lars E. Peterson, et al.
Citation: Annals of Family Medicine, 16(6), 492-497
Date: 2018
Type: Document
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Integrating Department of Defense and Department of Veterans Affairs Purchased Care: Preliminary Feasibility Assessment
Examines the feasibility of integrating the Department of Defense and Department of Veterans Affairs healthcare systems. Explores the potential impact on healthcare access, quality, and costs for beneficiaries, addressing implications for rural areas throughout. Discusses changes that would need to be made at a legislative, policy, and contractual level if an integrated purchased care program was implemented.
Author(s): Carrie M. Farmer, Terri Tanielian, Christine Buttorff, et al.
Date: 2018
Type: Document
Sponsoring organization: RAND Corporation
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Case Study: High-Tech OB Simulation Training Educates OB Teams, Improves Quality of Rural Health Care
Reports on a pilot obstetrics simulation training program intended to help rural family physicians and obstetric care teams recognize and react to complications related to pregnancy, initially focusing on hemorrhaging. Identifies planned quality improvement measures resulting from the training and includes program contact information. Program targeted 12 rural hospitals in Nebraska.
Date: 2018
Type: Document
Sponsoring organizations: Bryan Health, Heartland Health Alliance
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Quality Improvement and Care Coordination: Implementing the CDC Guideline for Prescribing Opioids for Chronic Pain
A guide to help primary care providers, practices, and healthcare systems manage patients who are on long-term opioid therapy. Provides an evidence-based prescribing guideline, quality improvement measures, and practice-level care coordination strategies. Appendix F provides examples of comprehensive management approaches, including discussion of telehealth approaches that could be used in rural communities.
Date: 2018
Type: Document
Sponsoring organization: Centers for Disease Control and Prevention
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State Innovation Models (SIM) Round 2: Model Test Annual Report Two
Second annual report on the Round 2 State Innovation Models (SIM) program across eleven participating states - Colorado, Connecticut, Delaware, Idaho, Iowa, Michigan, New York, Ohio, Rhode Island, Tennessee, and Washington. Covers adoption of delivery models and payment reforms related to value-based purchasing and alternative payment models (APMs); strategies to support healthcare delivery transformation related to quality, health information technology, and workforce; and population health strategies.
Date: 2018
Type: Document
Sponsoring organizations: Centers for Medicare and Medicaid Services, RTI International
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Health Equity Report 2017
Reports on trends in health equity and health disparities in the U.S. Provides statistics and information on multiple program areas, including: maternal and child health, primary care, access, quality, HIV/AIDS, mental and behavioral health, chronic disease, health promotion, health workforce, rural versus urban, and geographic disparities. Addresses disparity patterns for 3 priority areas: mental health, opioid use, and childhood obesity.
Author(s): Gopal K. Singh, Andrew "Drew" De Los Reyes, Michelle Allender, et al.
Date: 2018
Type: Document
Sponsoring organization: Health Resources and Services Administration
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Models and Strategies to Integrate Palliative Care Principles into Care for People with Serious Illness: Proceedings of a Workshop
Summarizes presentations, discussions, and workshop participant suggestions for improving the quality of, expanding access to, and supporting policies for community-based palliative care. Provides examples of community-based palliative care models, including a model for reaching patients in rural underserved areas.
Additional links: Read Online, Workshop Highlights
Author(s): Roundtable on Quality Care for People with Serious Illness
Date: 2018
Type: Document
Sponsoring organization: Health and Medicine Division (HMD), National Academies of Sciences, Engineering, and Medicine
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Iowa's Marketplace Choice Summative Report
Summarizes an evaluation of the implementation of Iowa's Marketplace Choice Plan (MPC), a premium support health insurance plan for Iowans from 101-133% of the federal poverty level (FPL). Discusses the effects of the plan on member access to care, quality of care, insurance coverage gaps, and costs of providing care. Also examines the effects of the premium incentive and copayment disincentive programs on plan enrollees and the adequacy of the plan's provider network.
Author(s): Elizabeth T. Momany, Suzanne E. Bentler, Susan C. McKernan, et al.
Date: 12/2017
Type: Document
Sponsoring organization: University of Iowa Public Policy Center
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Getting to Healthcare Value: Redirecting the Policy Debate Toward Lower Costs and Better Quality
Report reflecting discussions and views of participants of the Healthcare Value Hub meeting in New Orleans, November 6-8, 2017. Includes a section on challenges and opportunities for healthcare value in rural areas.
Date: 12/2017
Type: Document
Sponsoring organization: Healthcare Value Hub
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Rural Hospital High Reliability
Shares details from Central Peninsula Hospital's (CPH) pursuit of high reliability patient care, with the goal of eliminating all serious harm to patients by 2020. Located in Soldotna, Alaska, CPH is a 49-bed nonprofit rural hospital striving to provide error-free care in a high-hazard environment and become the safest hospital in Alaska.
Date: 12/2017
Type: Document
Sponsoring organization: Rural Health Value
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