Quality

Current Projects

• Availability, Care Practices, and Quality of Hospice Providers Serving Rural versus Urban Communities
  This project will examine differences in availability of hospice care in rural versus urban communities as well as provider-level quality and care practices by rural-urban status of hospices. Findings will highlight potential rural-urban disparities in hospice care that can be used to inform future Medicare policy.
  Research center: WWAMI Rural Health Research Center
  Topics: Aging, Coronavirus Disease 2019 (COVID-19), Health disparities and health equity, Health services, Healthcare access, Hospice and palliative care, Medicare, Quality
  
• Causal Effect of Nursing Home Closure on Resident Outcomes in Rural Areas
  We will evaluate the causal impact of nursing home closure on two key outcomes: distance to the transitioned nursing home, and resident physical and mental health outcomes. We will compare the effect of closures on outcomes for rural and urban areas using resident-level data from 2010-2019 and advanced difference-in-differences regression methods.
  Research center: RUPRI Center for Rural Health Policy Analysis
  Topics: Aging, Health services, Healthcare access, Long-term care, Post-acute care, Quality
  
• Comparing Utilization and Quality of Home Health Care Between Medicare Fee-for-Service and Medicare Advantage Beneficiaries by Rural-Urban Status
  This project examines differences in home health use and quality by enrollment in Medicare Fee-for-Service (FFS) versus Medicare Advantage (MA) plans. Findings will include information on rural-urban and intra-rural variation in home health care to inform policies on access, payment, and quality for Medicare FFS and MA plans.
  Research center: WWAMI Rural Health Research Center
  Topics: Aging, Allied health professionals, Health disparities and health equity, Health services, Healthcare access, Healthcare financing, Home health, Medicare, Medicare Advantage (MA), Post-acute care, Quality
  
• Disparities in Screening, Prevention, and Management of Cardiovascular Disease in Rural and Urban Primary Care
  This study will use a large national primary care registry to compare cardiovascular disease (CVD) screening, prevention, and management quality measures between rural and urban primary care practices. It will also assess for disparities by patient composition (race/ethnicity, insurance) of the practice.
  Research center: Rural and Underserved Health Research Center
  Topics: Care management, Chronic diseases and conditions, Health disparities and health equity, Health promotion and disease prevention, Health services, Minority health, Physicians, Quality
  
• Neonatal Care at Rural Hospitals: Describing Access, Closures and Levels of Childbirth-Related Care
  This project will describe access to childbirth-related care for families living in rural and urban communities; it will document access to neonatal care and the levels of that care, describe rural counties that have lost access to neonatal care, and identify rural counties without access to either obstetric or neonatal services.
  Research center: University of Minnesota Rural Health Research Center
  Topics: Children and adolescents, Health disparities and health equity, Healthcare access, Hospitals and clinics, Maternal health, Quality, Women
  
• Review of Current Research on Rural/Urban Differences in Social Determinants of Health
  Social determinants of health are social, economic, and community variables that influence health outcomes. This project will synthesize the extant literature on rural/urban differences in the social determinants of health, culminating in a comprehensive report that includes a summary of information gaps and further research needs.
  Research center: Rural and Underserved Health Research Center
  Topics: Health disparities and health equity, Healthcare access, Poverty, Quality, Social determinants of health, Uninsured and underinsured
  
• Rural and Urban Sepsis Outcomes as a Measure of Health Care Quality: A Nationwide Comparative Analysis Using HCUP Data
  This study examines differences in sepsis prevalence, outcomes, costs, and treatment between rural and urban hospitals using the HCUP Nationwide Readmissions Database. It aims to inform policies related to access to timely, high-quality sepsis care and identify strategies to enhance healthcare outcomes across diverse hospital settings.
  Research center: Rural Health Equity Research Center
  Topics: Care management, Critical Access Hospitals (CAHs), Emergency medical services (EMS) and trauma, Health disparities and health equity, Healthcare access, Hospitals and clinics, Medicaid and CHIP, Medicare, Medicare Advantage (MA), Private health insurance, Quality, Social determinants of health
  
• Rural-Urban Differences in Access to and Quality of Care for People With Disabilities
  The purpose of this project is to identify rural-urban differences in access to and quality of health care services for people with disabilities. Results from this project will help inform policy to improve access to and quality of care for this growing population in rural areas.
  Research center: University of Minnesota Rural Health Research Center
  Topics: Aging, Disabilities, Health disparities and health equity, Healthcare access, Quality, Social determinants of health