[Federal Register: August 21, 2008 (Volume 73, Number 163)]
[Notices]
[Page 49462-49464]
From the Federal Register Online via GPO Access [wais.access.gpo.gov]
[DOCID:fr21au08-47]
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DEPARTMENT OF HEALTH AND HUMAN SERVICES
Agency for Healthcare Research and Quality
Agency Information Collection Activities: Proposed Collection;
Comment Request
AGENCY: Agency for Healthcare Research and Quality, HHS.
ACTION: Notice.
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SUMMARY: This notice announces the intention of the Agency for
Healthcare Research and Quality (AHRQ) to request that the Office of
Management and Budget (OMB) approve the proposed information collection
project: ``AHRQ Healthcare Innovations Exchange Innovator Interview and
AHRQ Healthcare Innovations Exchange Innovator E-mail Submission
Guidelines.'' In accordance with the Paperwork Reduction Act of 1995,
44 U.S.C. 3506(c)(2)(A), AHRQ invites the public to comment on this
proposed information collection.
DATES: Comments on this notice must be received by October 20, 2008.
ADDRESSES: Written comments should be submitted to: Doris Lefkowitz,
[[Page 49463]]
Reports Clearance Officer, AHRQ, by e-mail at
doris.lefkowitz@ahrq.hhs.gov.
Copies of the proposed collection plans, data collection
instruments, and specific details on the estimated burden can be
obtained from the AHRQ Reports Clearance Officer.
FOR FURTHER INFORMATION CONTACT: Doris Lefkowitz, AHRQ Reports
Clearance Officer, (301) 427-1477, or by e-mail at
doris.lefkowitz@ahrq.hhs.gov.
SUPPLEMENTARY INFORMATION:
Proposed Project
``AHRQ Healthcare Innovations Exchange Innovator Interview and AHRQ
Healthcare Innovations Exchange Innovator E-mail Submission
Guidelines''
To support its objective of accelerating the diffusion and adoption
of innovative health care delivery changes, see, e.g., 42 U.S.C. 299b-
5(a), the Agency for Healthcare Research and Quality (AHRQ) is
launching the AHRQ Healthcare Innovations Exchange Web site
(Innovations Exchange). The Innovations Exchange will make profiles of
health care service innovations accessible to the public. These
innovations must meet the following six criteria: (1) The innovation
focuses directly or indirectly on patient care; (2) the innovation is
intended to improve one or more domains of health care quality; (3) the
activity is truly innovative in the context of its setting or target
population; (4) information about the innovation is publicly available;
(5) the innovator (or a representative) is willing and able to
contribute information to the Health Care Innovations Exchange; and (6)
there is reason to believe that the innovation will be effective. These
are minimum requirements. The ultimate decision to publish a detailed
profile of the innovation will depend on several factors, including an
evaluation by AHRQ, AHRQ's priorities, and the number of similar ideas
in the Innovations Exchange. AHRQ's priorities include identifying and
highlighting innovations that will help reduce disparities in health
care and health status, that will have significant impact on the
overall value of health care, where the innovators have a strong
interest in participating, and that have received support from AHRQ.
A purposively selected group of 825 health care innovations will be
selected to be considered for the profiles that will be published on
the Innovations Exchange. These 825 innovations will be selected to
ensure that innovations included in the Innovations Exchange cover a
broad range of health care settings, care processes, priority
populations, and clinical conditions. To collect the information
required for these profiles, approximately 825 health care innovators
associated with these innovations will submit information on their
innovation using the AHRQ Healthcare Innovations Exchange E-mail
Submission Guidelines or be contacted by project staff. Innovators will
be interviewed by telephone about their innovative activities.
Method of Collection
Approximately 825 innovators associated with innovations selected
for consideration will either submit their innovation through e-mail
for consideration or be contacted by telephone and asked to
participate. Once their agreement to participate is secured, the
innovators will be interviewed by telephone as needed (e-mail
submitters will be instructed to provide specific information about
their innovation in their initial submissions and may require only
abbreviated telephone interviews) about the following aspects of their
innovation: health care problem addressed, impetus for the innovation,
goals of the innovation, description of the innovation, evaluation
results for the innovation, setting for the innovation, history of
planning and implementation for the innovation, and lessons learned
concerning the implementation of the innovation. If the innovation is
approved, a draft profile will be developed based on the information
and sent by e-mail to the innovator for review and approval to publish.
After the profile is published, on a yearly basis, innovators will be
asked to review and update their profiles. No assurances of
confidentiality will be made to the innovator.
Estimated Annual Respondent Burden
Exhibit 1 shows the estimated annualized burden hours for the
respondents. Approximately 275 innovators will participate in the
initial data collection each year for a total of 825 over the three
year period. Of the 275 respondents per year, we estimate that
approximately 15% (41) will submit information via e-mail and will thus
be interviewed for a shorter period of time. The remaining 234
respondents that did not submit information via e-mail will be
interviewed more extensively to capture the information required. The
estimated annualized hours for the respondents' time to participate in
the project is 401 hours.
Based on a review of materials from potential innovations, we
estimate that approximately 10% of the candidate innovations either
will not meet the inclusion criteria or their innovators will decide
not to continue their participation. Therefore, about 90% (750) of the
original 825 profiles will move into the publication stage.
For the 750 published profiles, annual follow-up interviews will be
conducted to update the information about the innovation, which will
average 30 minutes. Because the profiles will be prepared on a rolling
basis over three years, the average number of yearly follow-up reviews
per innovator will vary:
[cir] One third (250) of the profiles will be prepared in the first
year and will have 2 annual reviews;
[cir] One third (250) of the profiles will be prepared in the
second year and will have 1 annual review; and
[cir] One third (250) of the profiles will be prepared in the third
year and will have 0 annual reviews.
Approximately 750 follow-up interviews will be conducted over the 3
years of this project resulting in an annualized average of 250 follow-
up interviews per year, even though no follow-up interviews will be
conducted in the first year.
Exhibit 1--Estimated Annualized Burden Hours
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Number of
Form name Number of responses per Hours per Total burden
respondents respondent response hours
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E-mail submission............................... 41 1 30/60 21
Health care innovator interview--following e- 41 1 30/60 21
mail submission................................
Health care innovator interview--without e-mail 234 1 1 234
submission.....................................
Annual follow-up interview...................... 250 1 30/60 125
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Total....................................... 566 .............. .............. 401
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[[Page 49464]]
Exhibit 2 shows the estimated annualized cost burden for the
respondents. The Bureau of Labor Statistics reported that the average
hourly wage for ``healthcare practitioner and technical occupations''
in the United States was $29.82 in May 2006. An estimate of $30 per
hour allows for inflation and represents a conservative estimate of the
wages of the respondents. Therefore, the total estimated cost burden
for respondents is $12,030, based on the total estimated annualized
burden of 401 hours.
Exhibit 2--Estimated Annualized Cost Burden
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Number of Total burden Average hourly Total cost
Form name respondents hours wage rate * burden
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E-mail submission............................... 41 21 $30 $630
Health care innovator interview--following e- 41 21 30 630
mail submission................................
Health care innovator interview without e-mail 234 234 30 7,020
submission.....................................
Annual follow-up interview...................... 250 125 30 3,750
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Total....................................... 566 401 .............. 12,030
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* Based upon the average wages, ``National Compensation Survey: Occupational Wages in the United States, May
2006,'' U.S. Department of Labor, Bureau of Labor Statistics.
Estimated Annual Costs to the Federal Government
The total cost to the Government is approximately $3,349,560 over
three years (on average, $1,116,520 per year). These costs cover the
total editorial and content development processes associated with the
project; which include developing an on-line authoring tool for
preparing the profiles, identifying innovation leads, reviewing e-mail
submissions, contacting the innovators, conducting interviews,
preparing the draft profiles, securing innovator approval, and
publishing the profiles on the Innovations Exchange Web site.
Request for Comments
In accordance with the above-cited Paperwork Reduction Act
legislation, comments on AHRQ's information collection are requested
with regard to any of the following: (a) Whether the proposed
collection of information is necessary for the proper performance of
AHRQ health care research, quality improvement and information
dissemination functions, including whether the information will have
practical utility; (b) the accuracy of AHRQ's estimate of burden
(including hours and costs) of the proposed collection(s) of
information; (c) ways to enhance the quality, utility, and clarity of
the information to be collected; and (d) ways to minimize the burden of
the collection of information upon the respondents, including the use
of automated collection techniques or other forms of information
technology.
Comments submitted in response to this notice will be summarized
and included in the Agency's subsequent request for OMB approval of the
proposed information collection. All comments will become a matter of
public record.
Dated: August 12, 2008.
Carolyn M. Clancy,
Director.
[FR Doc. E8-19302 Filed 8-20-08; 8:45 am]
BILLING CODE 4160-90-M