Evidence Report/Technology Assessment

Number 16

Prepared for:
Agency for Healthcare Research and Quality
U.S. Department of Health and Human Services
2101 East Jefferson Street
Rockville, MD 20852

http://www.ahrq.gov/

Contract No. 290-097-0006

Prepared by:
Johns Hopkins University Evidence-based Practice Center
Oliver D. Schein, M.D., M.P.H.
Principal Investigator
David S. Friedman, M.D., M.P.H.
Lee A. Fleisher, M.D.
Co-Principal Investigators

Lisa H. Lubomski, Ph.D.
Jeffrey Magaziner, M.D.
Michael Sprintz, M.D.
John Kempen, M.D., M.P.H.
Sherman W. Reeves
Karen A. Robinson, M.Sc.
Eric B. Bass, M.D., M.P.H.
Investigators

AHRQ Publication No. 01-E017

December 2001

On December 6, 1999, under Public Law 106-129, the Agency for Health Care Policy and Research (AHCPR) was reauthorized and renamed the Agency for Healthcare Research and Quality (AHRQ). The law authorizes AHRQ to continue its research on the cost, quality, and outcomes of health care and expands its role to improve patient safety and address medical errors.

This report may be used, in whole or in part, as the basis for development of clinical practice guidelines and other quality enhancement tools, or a basis for reimbursement and coverage policies. AHRQ or U.S. Department of Health and Human Services endorsement of such derivative products may not be stated or implied.

AHRQ is the lead Federal agency charged with supporting research designed to improve the quality of health care, reduce its cost, address patient safety and medical errors, and broaden access to essential services. AHRQ sponsors and conducts research that provides evidence-based information on health care outcomes; quality; and cost, use, and access. The information helps health care decisionmakers -- patients and clinicians, health system leaders, and policymakers -- make more informed decisions and improve the quality of health care services.