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Resources by Topic: Healthcare quality

Evidence-Based Medication Safety Quality Improvement Programs and Strategies for Critical Access Hospitals
Discusses evidence-based medication safety Quality Improvement (QI) programs and strategies that could be implemented in Critical Access Hospitals (CAHs). Strategies address in person or telehealth staffing, staffing workflow, technology, quality, and effective reconciliation strategies.
Author(s): Jill Klingner, Shailendra Prasad
Date: 05/2013
Type: Document
Sponsoring organization: Flex Monitoring Team
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Public Health, Workforce, Quality, and Related Provisions in ACA: Summary and Timeline
One in a series of CRS products on the ACA (as amended by HCERA), summarizes the new law's workforce, public health, quality, and related provisions. Covers provision implications for rural and underserved areas.
Date: 05/2013
Type: Document
Sponsoring organization: Congressional Research Service
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The Associations between Race and Geographic Area and Quality-of-Care Indicators in Patients Approaching ESRD
Analyzes data from the U.S. Renal Data System to determine racial disparities in rural and urban counties in patients receiving pre-end stage renal disease (ESRD) care. Table 2 details the receipt of pre-ESRD care for rural versus urban counties and Table 3 details racial differences in pre-ESRD care.
Author(s): Guofen Yan, Alfred K. Cheung, Jennie Z. Ma, et al.
Citation: Clinical Journal of the American Society of Nephrology, 8(4), 610-618
Date: 04/2013
Type: Document
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An Overview of Lean: A Guide for the Small Rural Hospital Improvement Grant Program
Explains the key Lean concepts as they relate to rural healthcare delivery, and outlines the necessary steps that will help rural healthcare facilities reduce waste, improve productivity, and provide better patient care.
Date: 04/2013
Type: Document
Sponsoring organizations: National Rural Health Resource Center, Technical Assistance and Services Center
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Hospital Consumer Assessment of Healthcare Providers and Systems (HCAHPS) Guide: Using HCAHPS to Drive Patient and Employee Satisfaction
Describes the Hospital Consumer Assessment of Healthcare Providers and Systems (HCAHPS) survey and data collection process. Explains how rural providers can use the survey findings to improve hospital operations, patient outcomes, and quality scores. Includes case studies of two hospitals that used HCAHPS data to successfully drive patient and employee satisfaction.
Date: 03/2013
Type: Document
Sponsoring organizations: National Rural Health Resource Center, Technical Assistance and Services Center
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Effect of a Paraprofessional Home-Visiting Intervention on American Indian Teen Mothers' and Infants' Behavioral Risks: A Randomized Controlled Trial
Examines the impact of a paraprofessional-delivered, home-visiting pregnancy and early childhood intervention on teen mothers' parenting outcomes and children's emotional and behavioral functioning within four southwestern tribal communities.
Author(s): A Barlow, B Mullany, N Neault, et al.
Citation: American Journal of Psychiatry, 170(1), 83-93
Date: 01/2013
Type: Document
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Dialysis Availability in Rural America
Explores the availability of dialysis services in rural America including the prevalence of dialysis use across urban and rural counties, travel distance for services, and dialysis quality outcomes.
Additional links: Fact Sheet
Author(s): Amy Martin, Kevin J. Bennett, Nathan Hale, Janice C. Probst
Date: 01/2013
Type: Document
Sponsoring organization: Rural and Minority Health Research Center (formerly the South Carolina Rural Health Research Center)
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Emergency Transfers of the Elderly from Nursing Facilities to Critical Access Hospitals: Opportunities for Improving Patient Safety and Quality
Examines the evidence and best practices to improve the nursing facility-to-hospital transition of care. Provides tools to improve communication between patients, nursing facilities, and hospitals. Includes recommendations for the role of state Flex Programs in the transition of care process.
Author(s): Karen B. Pearson, Andrew F. Coburn
Date: 01/2013
Type: Document
Sponsoring organization: Flex Monitoring Team
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Delivering High-Quality Cancer Care: Charting a New Course for a System in Crisis
Discusses cancer care in the United States, with a focus on patient-centered care, the workforce available to care for cancer patients, quality and improvement measures, health information technology, and access and affordability. Includes information specific to rural areas.
Additional links: Read Online
Date: 2013
Type: Document
Sponsoring organization: Institute of Medicine
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Prevalence of Pre-ESRD Care and Associated Outcomes among Urban, Micropolitan, and Rural Dialysis Patients
Analyzes the prevalence of pre-end stage renal disease (ESRD) care and the benefits associated with pre-ESRD care between micropolitan and rural dialysis patients compared to urban dialysis patients. Includes characteristics, pre-ESRD care goals by geographic location, and association of pre-ESRD goal and long-term outcomes by urban, micropolitan, and rural.
Author(s): Saugar Maripuri, T. Alp Ikizler, Kerri L. Cavanaugh
Citation: American Journal of Nephrology, 37(3), 274-280
Date: 2013
Type: Document
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