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Rural Health
Resources by Topic: Healthcare quality

Securing High Quality Health Care in Rural America: The Impetus for Change in the Affordable Care Act
Analyzes the Patient Protection and Affordable Care Act's call for the development of a National Health Care Quality Strategy and Plan, or National Quality Strategy, that will affect healthcare for millions of rural Americans and thousands of rural healthcare providers. Works to answer the question, "What rural considerations should be addressed in a National Quality Strategy?"
Author(s): A. Clinton MacKinney, Jennifer P. Lundblad, Andrew F. Coburn, Timothy D. McBride, Keith J. Mueller
Date: 12/2010
Sponsoring organization: Rural Policy Research Institute Rural Health Panel
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Geographic Differences in Potentially Preventable Readmission Rates in Rural and Urban Hospitals
Presents results from a study that estimated potentially preventable hospital readmissions (PPRs) in three types of acute care hospitals: urban prospective payment system (PPS) hospitals, rural PPS hospitals, and Critical Access Hospitals (CAHs). Focuses on rural/urban differences and whether patient demographics or health condition severity affects PPR rates.
Author(s): Marilyn G. Klug, Alana Knudson, Kyle Muus
Date: 11/2010
Sponsoring organization: Upper Midwest Rural Health Research Center
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The Patient Protection and Affordable Care Act of 2010: Impacts on Rural People, Places, and Providers: A First Look
Summarizes six issue areas of the Affordable Care Act (ACA) and discusses implications for access to services and improving the health status of rural residents. These issue areas are: health insurance coverage; Medicare and Medicaid payment; quality, financing, and delivery system reform; public health; healthcare workforce; and long-term care.
Author(s): Andrew F. Coburn, Jennifer P. Lundblad, A. Clinton MacKinney, Timothy D. McBride, Keith J. Mueller
Date: 09/2010
Sponsoring organization: Rural Policy Research Institute Rural Health Panel
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The Medicare Physician Quality Reporting Initiative: Implications for Rural Physicians
Discusses the impact of rurality on office-based physicians' participation in the 2007 Physician Quality Reporting Initiative (PQRI), a voluntary pay-for-reporting program in Medicare.
Author(s): Alycia Infante, Michael Meit, Elizabeth Hargrave
Date: 08/2010
Sponsoring organization: NORC Walsh Center for Rural Health Analysis
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Patient Assessments and Quality of Care in Rural Hospitals
Analyzes the relationships between rural patients' perspectives of hospital quality of care and key hospital characteristics that may influence patients' experiences of hospital care. Includes some breakdowns for Critical Access Hospitals (CAHs). Uses data from the Consumer Assessment of Health Providers and Systems (HCAHPS) survey.
Additional links: Policy Brief
Author(s): Michelle M. Casey, Gestur Davidson
Date: 06/2010
Sponsoring organization: Upper Midwest Rural Health Research Center
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MedPAC Report to Congress: Aligning Incentives in Medicare, June 2010
Focuses on how incentives in the Medicare program can be leveraged to promote healthcare quality and efficient use of resources, both of which are key elements of a high-value healthcare delivery system. Includes chapters focused on graduate medical education financing and inpatient psychiatric care.
Additional links: Executive Summary
Date: 06/2010
Sponsoring organization: Medicare Payment Advisory Commission
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Quality of Care for Acute Myocardial Infarction: Are the Gaps Between Rural and Urban Hospitals Closing?
Compares the quality of care provided by rural and urban hospitals for patients with acute myocardial infarction. Includes breakdowns by admission characteristics, such as concurrent conditions, and for remote rural areas.
Additional links: Policy Brief
Author(s): Laura-Mae Baldwin, Leighton Chan, C. Holly A. Andrilla, Edwin Huff, L. Gary Hart
Date: 03/2010
Sponsoring organization: WWAMI Rural Health Research Center
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Models for Quality Improvement in Critical Access Hospitals: The Role of State Flex Programs
Examines the scope of multi-Critical Access Hospital (CAH) quality improvement and performance measurement reporting initiatives supported by the Medicare Rural Hospital Flexibility Program (Flex Program) in 9 states. Addresses how the Flex Program has been instrumental in funding and providing leadership for the development of Critical Access Hospital (CAH) quality improvement initiatives.
Additional links: Policy Brief: The Role of State Flex Programs in Supporting Quality Improvement in Critical Access Hospitals
Author(s): Andrew Coburn, John Gale, Melanie Race, Mark Richards, Anush Hansen
Date: 03/2010
Sponsoring organization: Flex Monitoring Team
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Critical Access Hospital Year 5 Hospital Compare Participation and Quality Measure Results
Report examines 2008 participation and quality measure results for Critical Access Hospitals (CAHs) in the Centers for Medicare and Medicaid Services (CMS) Hospital Compare public reporting database for hospital quality measures.
Additional links: Policy Brief
Author(s): Michelle Casey, Michele Burlew, Ira Moscovice, Adam Hofer
Date: 03/2010
Sponsoring organization: Flex Monitoring Team
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Rural Hospital Network Summit Meeting 2009
Summarizes information and recommendations resulting from a December 2009 meeting of rural hospital network leaders. Addresses quality improvement, health information technology (HIT), workforce, financial sustainability, network governance, and leadership.
Date: 12/2009
Sponsoring organizations: National Rural Health Resource Center, Technical Assistance and Services Center
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