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Health Services Research

The United States has the most expensive and technologically advanced health care system in the world, but we do not achieve the best outcomes. Improving the delivery and outcomes of health care is a national priority. Our faculty are working on local, regional, and national health services research projects designed to improve the efficiency of our health care system.

Research

Health services research encompasses a broad range of significant topics using various research designs and diverse populations. Our faculty are answering critical questions related to health care access, quality of care, utilization of services, health outcomes, comparative effectiveness and cost effectiveness. Particular strengths of our faculty include:

  • Analyses of large databases including Medicare and Medicaid
  • Comparative effectiveness of therapeutic interventions, particularly pharmaceuticals
  • Cost-effectiveness analyses of behavior health interventions
  • Adherence to national quality guidelines
  • Costs and outcomes of particular conditions
  • Evaluation and design of state health policies
  • Geographic variation in care delivery and outcomes

Education

Faculty translate their research advances into unique course offerings to graduate students from several departments, including public health, clinical research and health policy and management. "Health services research using public payer data" provides students with the opportunity to work directly with Kansas Medicaid data and culminates in formal presentations to state agency staff and leaders in Topeka. "Cost-effectiveness and decision analysis" explores the application of economic evaluation to a variety of public health and medical care interventions, giving students important tools for furthering the efficiency of our health care system.

Additional advanced coursework in epidemiology complements these courses delivering fundamental and advanced considerations in valid study designs. Course participants include a mixture of students with different backgrounds, often combinations of physicians, pharmacists, public health staff, and health policy faculty along with their peers from professional training programs.

School of Medicine

University of Kansas Medical Center
Population Health
Mail Stop 1008
3901 Rainbow Boulevard
Kansas City, KS 66160
913-588-2775
Fax: 913-588-2780