AHRQ Impact Case Study

AHRQ Impact Case Study

Hospitals and libraries across the state of Pennsylvania are using a patient engagement and resource tool to gain the opinions of employees and consumers that is called “Engage for Health”. This tool is being used throughout 18 libraries as a pilot program since October 2014 ("AHRQ Tools Help Consumers Across Pennsylvania Take an Active Role in Their Health Care", 2017). After reaching 150 individuals, 92 percent of the participants stated that the program helped them improve their ability to be mentally and educationally prepared for their upcoming medical visits. Sandra L. Abnett, the project manager for the HAP’s Quality Initiative was reported stating that, “When patients and their families are engaged as partners with the health care team, patients report better physical and emotional health”.

According to the case study, the results have been efficacious due to the structure of the program. The program includes and role play exercise with a health care professionals so individuals can learn how to feel comfortable in a medical office visit setting and know how and what questions to ask. The AHRQ has been reporting qualities and disparities for thirteen years now and in 2014, the total rate of individuals without health insurance decreased to 15.6%. In lieu of this, using the AHRQ engagement tool can be dynamic since more patients are insured and are ready to begin making medical decisions ("2014 National Healthcare Quality and Disparities Report", 2015).

At my current organization, Baptist Health of South Florida, we have an annual engagement survey that goes out to all the employees in October to monitor expected quality standards. All year round, we encourage our patients to take surveys after contact with our medical professionals and these results are used to continue and enhance our quality of care as a health care organization. Once these results are studied by department, we recognize the favorable and unfavorable to ensure that the patients’ needs and wants are met from our facilities. This has helped us a lot to understand what our community wants; the engagement surveys have created a voice for the patients.




Reference:

2014 National Healthcare Quality and Disparities Report. (2015). Retrieved from http://www.ahrq.gov/research/findings/nhqrdr/index.html

AHRQ Tools Help Consumers Across Pennsylvania Take an Active Role in Their Health Care. (2017). Retrieved from https://www.ahrq.gov/policymakers/case-studies/201704.html

Awards & Recognition. (n.d.). Retrieved from https://baptisthealth.net/en/about-baptist-health/pages/awards-and-recognition.aspx

Quality Standards. (n.d.). Retrieved from https://archive.hhs.gov/valuedriven/fourcornerstones/quality/