- Health services research
Health services research is the multidisciplinary field of scientific investigation that studies how
social factors , financing systems, organizational structures and processes,health technologies , and personal behaviors affect access to health care, the quality and cost ofhealth care , and quantity andquality of life . Studies in health services research examine outcomes at the individual, family, organizational, institutional, community, and population level. HSR studies examine how people get access to health care, how much care costs, and what happens to patients as a result of this care. [ [http://www.academyhealth.org/about/whatishsr.htm AcademyHealth, June 2000] ]The primary goals of health services research are to identify the most effective ways to organize, manage, finance, and deliver high quality care; reduce medical errors; and improve patient safety. [ [Agency for Healthcare Research and Quality, February 2002] ]
While health services research is grounded in theory, the discipline exists to perform research that can be applied by
physicians ,nurses , healthmanagers and administrators, and other people who make decisions or deliver care in thehealth care system .Health services researchers come from a variety of specializations, including
economics ,political science ,epidemiology ,public health ,medicine ,biostatistics ,operations ,management , andpsychology .References
ee also
*
Health economics
*Globalization and health
*Healthcare reform
*Health care reform in the United States
*Health insurance
*Managed care
*Institute of Medicine
*Public health
*Public health law
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