A panel of researchers conducts several studies, all drawn from an existent hospital and clinic database. The studies focus on quality and effectiveness within that system

Question

The specific studies address mortality rates in elders within a year after hip fracture, functional outcomes six months after admission to a neurosurgical ICU after traumatic brain injury, rate of nurse injuries in an emergency department, and number of patient falls on various floors of the hospital. What type of research is this?
a. Experimental research
b. Outcomes research
c. Ethnographic research
d. Grounded theory research

Answer 1

ANS: B
The spiraling cost of health care has generated many questions about the quality and effectiveness of health care services and the patient outcomes. Consumers want to know what services they are buying, and whether these services will improve their health. Health care policy makers want to know whether the care is cost-effective and of high quality. These concerns have promoted the development of outcomes research, which examines the results of care and measures the changes in health status of patients. It can also examine costs related to care delivery within a hospital system.