The Effect of Health Care Working Conditions on Quality of Care

Slide Presentation by Helen Burstin, M.D., M.P.H.

On April 16, 2001, Helen Burstin, M.D., M.P.H., made a presentation in technical assistance meeting regarding RFA HS-01-005, "The Effect of Health Care Working Conditions on Quality of Care." This is the text version of Dr. Burstin's slide presentation. Select to access the slides (PowerPoint® File, 262 KB).

Enhancing Public Health, Health Care System, and Clinician Preparedness: Strategies to Promote Coordination and Communication

Helen Burstin, M.D., M.P.H.
Director
Center for Primary Care Research
Agency for Healthcare Research and Quality

Slide 1

Agency for Healthcare Research and Quality (AHRQ)
The Effect of Working Conditions on Quality of Care

Helen Burstin, M.D., M.P.H.
Director, Center for Primary Care Research
Agency for Healthcare Research and Quality

April 16, 2001

Slide 2

This slide shows a diagram of the Research Pipeline through which flows new research on priority health issues, which results in new tools and talent for a new century, and then finally translates research into practice. The results of this is improved outcomes, better quality, greater access, and appropriate cost and use.

Slide 3

Fiscal Year 2001 Patient Safety requests for applications (RFAs): Competitive Demonstration Program

• Centers of Excellence for Patient Safety Research and Practice (closed).
• Developing Centers for Patient Safety Research and Practice (closed).
• Health System Error Reporting, Analysis, and Safety Improvement Demonstrations (open).
• Clinical Informatics to Promote Patient Safety (open).
• The Effect of Healthcare Working Conditions on Quality of Care (open).
• Patient Safety Research and Dissemination (TBA).

Slide 4

Crossing the Quality Chasm
Clarifying National Aims for Improvement

• Safety—As safe in health care as in our homes.
• Effectiveness—Matching care to science; avoiding overuse and underuse.
• Patient Centeredness—Honoring the individual, and respecting choice.
• Timeliness—Less waiting for both patients and those who give care.
• Efficiency—Reducing waste.
• Equity—Closing racial and ethnic gaps in health status.

Slide 5

Healthcare Working Conditions and Quality of Care

Key Conferences:

• Research Agenda Setting Conference, October 1999
  • Co-sponsored by AHRQ, National Institute for Occupational Safety and Health (NIOSH), Occupational Safety and Health Administration (OSHA), and Department of Veterans Affairs (VA)
  • Identified substantive and methodological gaps in current knowledge on how to link working conditions, quality of care, patient safety.
  • Participants from a wide range of academia, the health care industry and labor.
  • Summary of research themes: www.quic.gov/summit/research.htm
• Best Practices Conference, October 2000.

Slide 6

Healthcare Working Conditions and Quality of Care

Overall AHRQ Portfolio:

• Working Conditions and Quality request for applications (RFA).
  • Practice-based research networks (PBRNs).
• Institute of Medicine (IOM) Report: working conditions and safety.
• Evidence-based Practice Centers (EPC): evidence base for working conditions and patient safety.
• Integrated delivery system research networks (IDSRNs).

Slide 7

RFA: Healthcare Working Conditions and Quality of Care

Goals:

• Explore the relationship between working conditions that affect health care workers and the safety and quality of care they provide.
• Test innovative approaches to working conditions that have been effective in improving the quality of a product or service in industries other than health care.

Slide 8

RFA: Healthcare Working Conditions and Quality of Care

• Develop systematic knowledge of the impact of working conditions on safety and quality:
  • Physical environment.
  • Workflow design.
  • Workforce staffing.
  • Working hours.
  • Organizational culture.
• Must demonstrate impact of working conditions on healthcare workers and on clinical performance.

Slide 9

RFA: Healthcare Working Conditions and Quality of Care

Key definitions:

• Working conditions: characteristics of the health care workplace and workforce, including physical environment, workflow design, workforce staffing and organizational culture.
• Health care workers: workers employed in the direct care of patients in the health care setting, including but not limited to: nurses, physicians, pharmacists, nursing assistants, and other health care providers.

Slide 10

RFA: Healthcare Working Conditions and Quality of Care

Key definitions:

• Patient Safety: the risk to a patient from medical errors (the failure of a planned action to be completed as intended or the wrong use of a plan to achieve an aim).
• Quality improvement: projects designed to improve care by ensuring that the right care is delivered to the right patient at the right time in the right way (could target misuse, underuse, and overuse).

Slide 11

RFA: Healthcare Working Conditions and Quality of Care

Key technical items:

• R01 - due May 21st.
• One-time solicitation.
• Letter of intent not required, though preferred.
• Institutional review boards (IRB) approval is required in mid-July. Exact date to be announced in the NIH Guide.
• 1-2 year projects preferred (will consider up to 3 year projects).
• Total costs per year not to exceed $500,000. Requires prior approval of Dr. Burstin.

Slide 12

RFA: Healthcare Working Conditions and Quality of Care

Key financial items:

• $7.5 million total costs (direct + overhead).
• Total costs per year not to exceed $500,000. Requires prior approval of Dr. Burstin.
• Set-asides:
  • - $3 million: for healthcare organizations.
  • - $2 million: for patient safety projects.
  • - $500,000: for primary care Practice-Based Research Networks (PBRNs).

Slide 13

RFA: Healthcare Working Conditions and Quality of Care

Key content questions:

• Endpoints must be related to patient safety or quality of care.
• Intermediate education outcomes are not acceptable unless quality outcomes are included.
• All health care sites are eligible, including inpatient, ambulatory, home care, and long-term care.
• All health care disciplines are eligible (e.g., dental, pharmacy).

Slide 14

RFA: Healthcare Working Conditions and Quality of Care

Key partner questions:

• Grants can only be made to non-profit entities.
• For-profit entities are only acceptable as sub-contractors or members of consortia.
• Department of Veterans Affairs (VA) sites and sub-contractors are acceptable (cannot use grant funds to cover the salary of a VA employee).

Slide 15

Center for Primary Care Research: Key Contacts

Kelly Morgan, Program Analyst

• Technical/financial questions.
• KMorgan@ahrq.gov.

Helen Burstin, Director

• Scope/content questions.
• HBurstin@ahrq.gov.

Slide 16

An image of AHRQ's old homepage.

Current as of April 2001

Internet Citation:

Burstin, H. The Effect of Health Care Working Conditions on Quality of Care. Slide presentation (Text Version) at Technical Assistance Workshop, April 2001. Agency for Healthcare Research and Quality, Rockville, MD. http://www.ahrq.gov/fund/workcondtxt.htm

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