Project Title: The Commonwealth Fund/Harvard University Fellowship in Minority Health Policy: Support for Program Direction and Fellowships, 2011-12
Principal Investigator: Joan Y. Reede, M.D., M.P.H., M.S.
Date Awarded: July 13, 2010
Award Amount: $800,000
During the year-long program at Harvard University, physicians enrolled in the master's program in public health or public administration undertake intensive study in health policy, public health, and management, all with an emphasis on minority health issues.
Project Title: Developing a Clinical Decision Support Tool to Prospectively Identify Patients at High Risk for Hospital Readmission
Principal Investigator: Ruben Amarasingham, M.D., M.B.A.
Date Awarded: July 13, 2010
Award Amount: $396,037
This project will develop an electronic clinical decision support tool, using data obtained from electronic health records, to help hospitals predict which patients are at heightened risk of readmission within one month. After validating the tool with seven hospitals in the Dallas-Fort Worth metropolitan area, it will be made freely available to all U.S. hospitals.
Project Title: Producing a State Long-Term Care Scorecard, Phase 2
Principal Investigator: Susan Reinhard, R.N., Ph.D., F.A.A.N.
Date Awarded: July 13, 2010
Award Amount: $349,504
In the first phase of this project to develop a state scorecard focused on long-term care, the project team articulated a vision for a high-performing long-term care system and developed a conceptual framework for the scorecard, and soon it will finalize a set of performance indicators.
Project Title: Identifying Hospital Practices That Help Prevent All-Cause Readmissions for Heart Failure Patients
Principal Investigator: Elizabeth H. Bradley, Ph.D.
Date Awarded: July 13, 2010
Award Amount: $390,850
The national Hospital to Home campaign, which aims to lower readmission rates for cardiovascular patients by 20 percent by 2012, provides an opportunity to get answers to these questions. This project will survey 600 participating hospitals to identify their current practices for reducing readmissions. These same hospitals will then be resurveyed one year later, allowing the researchers to track the spread and speed of adoption of best practices promoted in the campaign.
Project Title: Medicare Private Plans in the Era of Health Care Reform
Principal Investigator: Brian L. Biles, M.D., M.P.H.
Date Awarded: July 13, 2010
Award Amount: $254,710
This project will analyze the impact that the new policies have on these plans and their enrollees, examine the MA program's potential for developing new models of coordinated care, and offer insight on how private plans might compete in the new health insurance exchanges.
Project Title: International Symposium on Health Care Policy, Fall 2011
Principal Investigator: Robin Osborn
Date Awarded: July 13, 2010
Award Amount: $365,000
The Fund's 14th annual International Symposium on Health Care Policy will compare policies and strategies across industrialized countries for reducing the growth of health care expenditures, as aging populations drive increasing demand for health services.
Project Title: Analysis and Modeling of Health Care Reform and Implementation
Principal Investigator: Sara Collins, Ph.D
Date Awarded: July 13, 2010
Award Amount: $132,557
This grant for analysis and modeling opportunities will authorize the Fund's president to underwrite projects that will inform policymakers about issues critical to successful implementation of the Affordable Care Act's major provisions.
Project Title: International Health Policy Survey, 2011
Principal Investigator: Roz Pierson, Ph.D.
Date Awarded: July 13, 2010
Award Amount: $435,000
The Commonwealth Fund's 2011 International Health Policy Survey will assess health care system performance and responsiveness from the perspective of adults who have chronic disease or other serious health problems, or who have had recent surgery or been hospitalized.
Project Title: Commonwealth Fund Commission on a High Performance Health System: Meetings
Principal Investigator: Stephen C. Schoenbaum, M.D.
Date Awarded: July 13, 2010
Award Amount: $122,400
At its meeting and retreat in April 2010, the Commonwealth Fund Board approved continuation of the Commission on a High Performance Health System for at least another three years. This grant will support the Commission's three annual meetings, at which the group discusses current projects and decides on future undertakings.
Project Title: Seizing the Moment: Nursing Home Culture Change and Health Reform
Principal Investigator: Bonnie S. Kantor, Sc.D., M.A.
Date Awarded: July 13, 2010
Award Amount: $149,977
With Commonwealth Fund support, the Pioneer Network has established itself as the leading force behind culture change in nursing homes and the move to person-centered care.
Project Title: Health Policy Seminars, Roundtables, and a Retreat for Congressional and Support Agency Staff, 2010-11
Principal Investigator: Edward F. Howard, J.D.
Date Awarded: July 13, 2010
Award Amount: $297,229
Alliance for Health Reform briefings are a valuable resource for congressional staff, journalists, and members of the broader Washington policy community who are seeking the latest health policy information and analysis.
Project Title: Commonwealth Fund Bipartisan Congressional Retreat, 2011
Principal Investigator: Edward F. Howard, J.D.
Date Awarded: July 13, 2010
Award Amount: $338,479
The Commonwealth Fund's annual Bipartisan Congressional Retreat offers members of Congress the opportunity to engage in substantive dialogue about timely health policy issues in an environment free from partisan politics, jurisdictional debates, and media pressures.
Project Title: Supporting the Fund's Communications and Publishing Capacity to Reach Change Agents and Inform Public Discourse
Principal Investigator: Barry A. Scholl
Date Awarded: July 13, 2010
Award Amount: $985,000
The Commonwealth Fund's communications department partners and contracts with numerous organizations and individuals to disseminate the foundation's work to policymakers, stakeholders, and the public at large.
Project Title: The State Action to Avoid Rehospitalizations (STAAR) Initiative, Phase 3
Principal Investigator: Amy E. Boutwell, M.D., M.P.P.
Date Awarded: July 13, 2010
Award Amount: $750,000
The State Action to Avoid Rehospitalizations (STAAR) initiative is a multipronged, effort intended to help hospitals improve their processes for transitioning discharged patients to other care settings.
Project Title: Transfer and Maintenance of The Commonwealth Fund's Archives, Year 15
Principal Investigator: Lee R. Hiltzik, Ph.D.
Date Awarded: July 13, 2010
Award Amount: $90,000
This grant will support the transfer, processing, and storage of additional Commonwealth Fund materials at the Rockefeller Archive Center, which has housed the Fund's archives since 1985 and continues to be an important research center on the history of philanthropy.