Research Activities

February 2004, No. 282

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Contents

About Research Activities

Feature Story

New study estimates potential savings gained by expanding use of beta-blockers in heart failure patients

Outcomes/Effectiveness Research

Complications from prostate cancer treatment vary according to pretreatment function and choice of treatment

Children's Health

Pneumatic otoscopy may be less costly, easier to use, and just as accurate as other methods for diagnosing middle ear effusion in children
Better education for children and parents could eliminate the need for many pediatric hospitalizations
Asthma symptom days determine annual costs of care for children with mild-to-moderate persistent asthma

Health Care Delivery

Better communication of disease-specific and general health information can improve diabetes self-care
Rural studies examine satisfaction with and cost-effectiveness of telecolposcopy for women with abnormal Pap smears
Studies demonstrate high rates of assault and unmet health care needs among homeless women

Health Care Disparities/Minority Health

Attitude toward risk does not fully explain sociodemographic disparities in health care use
Study documents racial variations in the prescribing of opiods by ER doctors
Church attendance may serve as an additional health care safety net for impoverished black communities

Emergency Medicine

Researchers identify measures of workflow that may help to explain and manage emergency department overcrowding

Prevention and Screening

Use of tamoxifen to prevent breast cancer should be weighed against an individual woman's potential to benefits and risks
Task Force working group encourages patient-provider partnership in making decisions about preventive care
North American screening programs identify more mammograms as abnormal but do not detect more breast cancers than programs in other countries

Managed Care/Market Forces

Being a salaried physician in a large office may be the chief source of physician dissatisfaction with managed care
Different changes in drug formulary administration and copayments can have very different effects on drug use and spending
Some managed care strategies to improve drug use appear to be effective, but little is known about long term clinical outcomes
Hospital mergers, not consolidation of local hospitals into systems, result in cost savings

Health Care Quality/Patient Safety

Computerized physician order entry needs further refinement to substantially reduce medication errors in primary care
Researchers examine ways to improve translation of scientific evidence into improved clinical practice

HIV/AIDS Research

AHRQ researchers examine use of hospital, emergency, and outpatient care among patients with HIV disease

Announcements

AHRQ releases new evidence reports
New Health Care Safety Net publication now available
New MEPS publications now available from AHRQ

Research Briefs

Current as of February 2004
AHRQ Publication No. 04-0031

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Internet Citation:

Research Activities newsletter. February 2004, No. 282. AHRQ Publication No. 04-0031. Agency for Healthcare Research and Quality, Rockville, MD. http://www.ahrq.gov/research/feb04/

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