Research > Projects

Projects

Disease Management
Pharmaceutical Policy
Measurement of Health Outcomes
Economic Evaluation
Other Evaluations of Biotechnology
Role of Employers in Improving Quality and Cost-Effectiveness
Other Policy Related Research Activities
Quality in Ambulatory Care

The mix of current and recent projects conducted by the Department speaks to the depth and breadth of the expertise and interests of the Department staff.

Disease Management

• Policy analysis and manuscript preparation examining Pfizer's approach to community health management in six regional demonstration projects.
• Environmental scan and policy analysis for the current state of mental health disease management and future trends and opportunities (in collaboration with the Department of Psychiatry).
• National survey of managed care medical directors regarding asthma care management approaches and challenges.
• Evaluation of predictive modeling methods used in a national disease management program.
• Development and validity testing of a survey tool to assess consumer satisfaction with diabetes disease management programs.
• Literature review summarizing barriers to early use of insulin in the management of Type II diabetes (in collaboration with the Division of Endocrinology).

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Pharmaceutical Policy

• Examination of clinical properties of commonly used drugs for seniors, and policy analysis examining the need for less restrictive formularies for the elderly population.
• Policy analysis examining the arguments for not restricting access to atypical antipsychotics, and identifying alternative methods for ensuring appropriate use.
• Development of a predictive model for pain medication utilization in a hospice population.
• Policy analysis examining the impact of restrictive formularies and other drug utilization management tools on elderly consumers.

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Measurement of Health Outcomes

• Consulting services for measurement of the outcomes of urinary incontinence.
• Consulting services for measurement of the outcomes of residential and social support programs for seniors in Philadelphia.
• Evaluation of the impact of an interactive voice recognition (IVR) intervention on preventive care behaviors for enrollees in a managed care plan.
• Validation of a migraine outcomes measurement tool in a managed care plan's population.

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Economic Evaluation

• Examination of the costs of complicated skin and intra-abdominal infections treated in the inpatient setting (in collaboration with the Division of Infectious Diseases).
• Identification of costs associated with the occurrence of heparin-induced thrombocytopenia (in collaboration with the Division of General Internal Medicine).
• Identification of the prevalence of and costs associated with postoperative ileus for patients undergoing hemicolectomy and hysterectomy.
• Economic analysis of the role of chromium picolinate and biotin in the management of Type II diabetes.

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Other Evaluations of Biotechnology

• Examination of the role of B-type Natriuretic Peptide (BNP) in identifying early stage heart failure in a primary care population (in collaboration with the Department of Family Medicine).
• Economic analysis of wireless capsule endoscopy in comparison with current diagnostic tests for the workup of Crohn's Disease.

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The Role of Employers in Improving Quality and Cost-Effectiveness

• Case studies of 18 value-based purchasing pioneers, in order to identify strategies for overcoming barriers to value-based purchasing.
• National survey of employers regarding interest and activity in value-based purchasing
• Development of a national training program, "The College for Advanced Management of Health Benefits," to better engage employers in the quality arena (in collaboration with the National Business Coalition on Health and the HealthCare21 Business Coalition).
• Literature review examining the impact of pharmacotherapy on direct medical costs and indirect costs (productivity) from the perspective of employers.

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Other Policy-Related Research Activities

• Consulting services to the Pennsylvania Bureau of Managed Care Organization, on improving access to care for members with physical disabilities.
• Evaluation of a program to screen minority populations for diabetes (in collaboration with Albert Einstein Healthcare System).
• Evaluation of the impact of a statewide ethics training program for long-term care facilities in New Jersey (in collaboration with ElderCare Ethics Associates).

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Quality in Ambulatory Care

• Performance measurement and improvement activities with Jefferson University Physicians (JUP). Goals for this collaboration include assisting all JUP departments in launching at least one performance measurement activity, and designing and conducting one interdepartmental performance initiative.  For more information about performance improvement click here.

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