In recent studies, Commonwealth Fund–supported researchers explored:
- better methods for identifying high-performing hospitals;
- ways to promote interdisciplinary teamwork, based on a survey of hospital staff;
- a new tool to help nursing home managers determine how staff changes might affect quality;
- the effects of health information technology on nursing home residents’ satisfaction and clinical outcomes;
- proven strategies to engage physicians in quality and safety efforts;
- the association between emergency department waiting times and subsequent mortality and hospital admission; and
- a tool to evaluate patient-centered medical home interventions in safety-net clinics.
Another group of Commonwealth Fund–supported studies examined health care systems abroad, focusing on:
- evidence of lower-quality care in U.S. territories;
- the path to transformation for the Canadian primary health care system;
- the effects of financial incentives on provider performance in the U.K.; and
- a scorecard to assess the performance of New Zealand’s health system.
