search
ghc.org |
|
|
| site map
search
ghc.org |
|
|
Informatics Study ExamplesStudy Examples | Key Publications | Intro Here's a sampling of the leading research Group Health Center for Health Studies (CHS) is conducting in this area:
Improving Access to Improve Quality: Evaluation of the Group Health Access Initiative
The Robert Wood Johnson Foundation has granted the UW School of Public Health and Community Medicine $656,000 to evaluate over two years the impact of Group Health Cooperative’s recent innovations to improve access and quality of care for its members. These changes, collectively called the "access initiative," include: offering people same-day appointments with primary physicians; giving them direct access to most specialists (without going through primary care doctors); letting them see their own medical histories, appointment schedules, immunization records, and other health care information, and encouraging e-mail communication with doctors, over a secure member Web site called MyGroupHealth (www.ghc.org); a $40-million clinical information system that offers providers up-to-the-minute patient health information, such as lab, X-ray, and pharmaceutical data; and new incentives for physicians based on measures of productivity, cost, and quality. The researchers are using Group Health’s automated databases, member and physician satisfaction surveys, patient visit surveys, and in-depth interviews with care providers to determine how the access initiative is affecting cost, utilization of services, quality of care, member enrollment, and patient and provider satisfaction. Secure Messaging and Chronic Illness Care
Effective communication between people with chronic illnesses and their providers is an important component of chronic illness care. Electronic messaging shows promise as a tool to support this communication, but little is known about its impact in the clinical care of patients with chronic disease. This retrospective analysis of a large and uniform secure electronic messaging application at Group Health aims for better understanding of the role of e-mail communication in the care of patients with depression, congestive heart failure, and/or diabetes. The researchers are describing the characteristics of the people who choose to use secure messaging with their healthcare provider, as well as evaluating whether using it is linked to safer and more effective medical care. The results will help inform the development and evaluation of future online health services for patients with chronic medical conditions. Home Blood Pressure Monitoring and Electronic Communications (e-BP)
This study, funded by a four-year, $2.8 million grant from the National Heart, Lung, and Blood Institute, seeks to determine whether Web-based information and communications technology can enhance care for people with hypertension. A total of 780 Group Health members who have uncomplicated hypertension and are on anti-hypertensive medications are randomly assigned to one of three groups (if they are willing to participate): One group receives usual care; the second gets home blood pressure monitors and instructions for using Group Health’s Web portal, MyGroupHealth (www.ghc.org). The third group receives of the above, plus support from a Group Health pharmacist through the secure e-mail feature on MyGroupHealth. The study team will compare how the various interventions affect outcomes such as blood pressure control, change in diastolic and systolic blood pressure, cost of care, and the satisfaction and health status of the participants. Using Handheld Technology to Reduce Errors in ADHD (Attention-Deficit/Hyperactivity Disorder) Care (CLIPS)
ADHD (attention-deficit/hyperactivity disorder) is one of the most common psychiatric conditions in children, affecting up to 12 percent of them. Many now receive inadequate assessment, inappropriate treatment, and insufficient follow-up care; and they may have other psychiatric conditions that go undiagnosed. This randomized controlled trial, supported by a $250,000 grant from the Agency for Healthcare Research and Quality, is developing a handheld computerized decision-support system for ADHD care and evaluating its use in three primary care clinics. The decision algorithms embedded in the system are designed to let providers adapt ADHD treatment to each patient’s specific needs. This trial’s goals are to reduce medical errors in ADHD treatment, make providers more likely to detect accompanying conditions, and make follow-up visits meet established guidelines, thus raising the satisfaction of both patients and providers. Michigan Center for Health Communications Research
Group Health members routinely receive information about cancer prevention from care providers, mass media, and other sources. But information alone is not enough to change health behaviors, nor prevent cancer. Research has demonstrated that tailoring health information to an individual's circumstances (for example, motivational style, home environment, and gender) is far more effective than generic health information at modifying risky behaviors. Yet why tailoring works is not fully understood. This study is designed to determine what types of health communication messages most influence behavior change and cancer prevention. The study includes three research projects, each addressing a different aspect of cancer prevention: quitting smoking, eating fruits and vegetables, and how to present women with information about breast cancer risk to help them make informed choices about preventive strategies. Group Health will receive $2.6 million over five years for its participation in this innovative undertaking, which will move cancer communication science in new directions. Coordinated Clinical Studies Network (CCSN): Re-engineering the Clinical Research Enterprise
Investigators at CHS are leading the development of the Coordinated Clinical Studies Network (CCSN), an unparalleled research facility for clinical and health services research that builds on the current capacity of the HMO Research Network. The National Institutes of Health (NIH) recently awarded CHS a three-year, $3.5 million contract to establish the CCSN among 12 integrated health systems in the Network. These health systems provide comprehensive services, ranging from prevention to palliation, to a defined population of more than 10 million people (nearly 4 percent of the U.S. population) in every region of the United States. The CCSN is part of the NIH’s initiative to re-engineer the clinical research process by enhancing the productivity and efficiency of clinical research in the United States. Expanding and integrating the work of the Cancer Research Network (CRN), the CCSN is: establishing a powerful, shared informatics platform supporting clinical research into this population; reducing scientific, administrative and economic barriers to multi-site collaboration in clinical studies; establishing Web-based operations that will support communication efforts and common data collection and analysis protocols; and building common institutional review board (IRB), patient retention and recruitment, and clinical studies procedures. The CCSN will conduct translational research, exploring how health care innovations work in real practice among large populations.
Study Examples | Key Publications | Intro |
|
|||||||||||||
| site map
search
ghc.org |
| Copyright 2008 Group Health Cooperative. Revised: May 20, 2008. Contact Us |
