Introduction

This Fact Sheet summarizes new

initiatives from the Agency for

Healthcare Research and Quality

(AHRQ) in child and adolescent health

care, focusing on improving the quality,

safety, efficiency, and effectiveness of

health care. In fiscal year 2005, AHRQ

committed more than $6 million in

total support over the lives of projects

for new intramural and extramural

research, including directed and

investigator-initiated grants, small and

large conference grants, contracts, and

other mechanisms.*

Partnerships in Implementing

Patient Safety 

This program assists health care

institutions in implementing safe

practice interventions that show

evidence of eliminating or reducing

medical errors, risks, hazards, and

harms associated with the process of

care. These projects directly address

AHRQ's mission to improve quality

and safety in health care. Grants

awarded under AHRQ's Partnerships in

Implementing Patient Safety RFA (HS05-012) include the following:

Implementing a Simulation-based

Safety Curriculum in a Pediatric

Emergency Site. The aims of this study

are to: (1) implement a

multidisciplinary simulation-based

safety curriculum that encompasses

crew resource management, teamwork

behaviors, and critical communication

skills; (2) evaluate the effectiveness of

this curriculum by assessing knowledge

of and attitudes toward patient safety

among caregivers prior to and following

this intervention; (3) evaluate the

effectiveness of training by assessing

teamwork behaviors in a simulated

setting prior to and following the

intervention; and (4) evaluate the

transfer of the skills learned in a

Research on Child and

Adolescent Health Care

New Starts-Fiscal Year 2005

FACT SHEET

Agency for Healthcare Research and Quality

AHRQ’s mission is to improve the quality,

safety, efficiency, and effectiveness of health

care by:

• Using evidence to improve health care.

• Improving health care outcomes through

research.

• Transforming research into practice.

Advancing Excellence in Health Care • www.ahrq.gov

Agency for Healthcare Research and Quality

* Projects that include children or children’s health care issues but do not focus exclusively on

children are marked with an asterisk (*).
simulated setting to the emergency

department (ED) environment by

evaluation of teamwork skills in actual

critical ED patients. The targeted

population (African American,

Hispanic, and multi-racial) for this

educational intervention is ED

personnel, faculty, and residents in

training. (Principal Investigator: Mary

Patterson, Children's Hospital Medical

Center, Cincinnati, OH. Grant No.

U18 HS15841. Project period 7/01/05-

6/30/07). 

*The Emergency Department (ED)

Pharmacist as a Safety Measure in

Emergency Medicine. This project will

implement and optimize a formal

emergency department pharmacist

program; study the effects of this safe

practice intervention in three high risk

populations—children, the elderly, and

the critically ill; and develop and

disseminate a comprehensive toolkit to

facilitate implementation of the

program in emergency departments at

other institutions. This study will

include racial and ethnic groups in the

city and suburbs surrounding

Rochester, NY. (Principal Investigator:

Rollin Fairbanks, University of

Rochester, Rochester, NY. Grant No.

U18 HS15818. Project period:

7/01/05-6/30/07). 

*Implementing a P

rogram of Patient

Safety in Small Rural Hospitals. This

project will: (1) develop the

organizational infrastructure for

reporting, providing timely feedback,

and analyzing medication errors

necessary to identify and implement

evidence-based practices that minimiz

e

the latent system causes of these errors

in participating small rural hospitals;

(2) evaluate the effectiveness and

sustainability of a medication safety

toolkit within participating hospitals;

and (3) disseminate the results of the

project, in collaboration with AHRQ,

to audiences positioned to modify

policies and/or implement the

intervention. Members of minority

populations (Blacks, Native Americans,

Asians, Pacific Islanders, and Hispanics)

may be included in this study.

(Principal Investigator: Keith Mueller,

University of Nebraska Medical Center,

Omaha, NE. Grant No. U18

HS15822. Project period: 7/01/05-

6/30/07). 

*Banner Health/Arizona State

University Partnership for Emergency

Department (ED) Patient Safety. The

aim of this project is to reduce waits,

inefficiencies, and ultimately patient

risk in EDs throughout Banner Health by implementing a patient safety

practice called “Door-to-Doc” (D2D).

D2D reorganizes patient flow in the

emergency department and improves

the response time between patient

arrival and the initiation of care for

treat-and-release patients as well as for

those who need to be admitted as

inpatients. Researchers will: (1) monitor

and refine D2D in eight Banner

hospital EDs; (2) collect and evaluate

the impact of D2D as a safe practice at

each Banner ED; (3) use a variety of

tools to determine the size and business

parameters within which D2D best

operates; and (4) develop training aids,

teaching methods, learning assessments

and monitoring aids to help hospital

staff use D2D successfully. The

racial/ethnic minority populations

included in this study are American

Indian/Alaska Native, Asian, Native

Hawaiian or Other Pacific Islander,

Black/African American, and

Hispanic/Latino. (Principal

Investigator: Twila Burdick, Banner Health, Phoenix, AZ. Grant No. U18

HS15921. P

roject period: 7/01/05-

6/30/07). 

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*Safe Critical Care: Testing

Improvement Strategies. This project

will: (1) implement a campaign for

improving critical care as part of the

Institute for Healthcare Improvement

(IHI) 100,000 Lives Campaign across

147 medical/surgical and 5 children's

hospitals of the Hospital Corporation

of America; (2) develop toolkits for

reducing blood-stream infections and

ventilator-associated pneumonia; (3)

conduct a randomized controlled trial

to compare the effectiveness of a

collaborative versus campaign and

toolkit strategy for implementing an

improvement initiative; and (4)

examine the organizational and

provider factors that contribute to and

enable successful performance

improvement. This study will include

patients of all ages, both genders, and

all racial/ethnic minority populations.

(Principal Investigator: Theodore

Speroff, Vanderbilt University School of

Medicine, Nashville, TN. Grant No.

U18 HS15934. Project period:

7/01/05-6/30/07). 

*Enhanced Patient Safety

Intervention to Optimize Medication

Education (EPITOME). This project

will: (1) evaluate the hospital-wide

implementation of a multi-modal

patient medication education system

referred to as EPITOME; (2) assess the

impact and sustainability of EPITOME

on patient safety outcomes; (3) analyz

e

the barriers to implementing

EPITOME and develop and evaluate

strategies for o

vercoming those barriers

that will support the program; and (4)

develop a toolkit resource to promote a

generalizable and sustainable inpatient

medication education process for health

systems and hospitals to encourage safe

medication behaviors through improved

education systems. Women, minorities

(Hispanic or Latino, American Indian/Alaska Native, Asian, Native

Hawaiian or Other Pacific Islander, and

African American) and children will be

included in this study. (Principal

Investigator: Carl Sirio, University of

Pittsburgh, Pittsburgh, PA. Grant No.

U18 HS15851. Project period:

7/01/05-6/30/07). 

*Medication Reconciliation: Bridging

Communications Across the

Continuum of Care. Researchers will:

(1) test a functional interdisciplinary

medication assessment model through

the development of a system-wide

process to create, maintain, and update

a complete list of medications and

allergies at the time of admittance to

any service along the continuum of

outpatient primary care and inpatient

care; (2) develop and test processes that

ensure communication of medication

and allergy lists to all external providers

and the patient upon transfer of care or

discharge; and (3) develop, refine, and

disseminate a toolkit for implementing

medication reconciliation in a multitiered health system. Patients in this

study will include women and

racial/ethnic minority populations, both

staff and patients of Legacy Health

System. Data collected from children

will be included in aggregate adverse

drug event information and

hospitalization records only. (Principal

Investigator: Melinda Muller, Legacy

Emanuel Hospital and Health Center, Portland, OR. Grant No. U18

HS15904. P

roject period: 7/01/05-

6/30/07). 

*Improving Patient Safety through

Provider Communication Strategy Enhancements. Researchers will: (1)

implement an evidence-based

standardized communication tool—the Situation, Background, Assessment,

Recommendation (SBAR)—a scripting

guide for pr

ovider communication

regarding changes in patient status or

needs for non-emergent events; (2)

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develop and implement an escalation

process algorithm for provider

communication regarding changes in

patient conditions for non-code

situations; (3) implement daily patient

centered multi-disciplinary rounds

using an evidence-based daily goals

sheet that will include all providers

involved in the patient's care; and (4)

implement provider and support staff

team huddles at the beginning of each

shift to quickly brief staff on

operational expectations of the shift.

Women and minorities will be included

in this research. Children will be

included to the extent they are 18-21 years of age and that they have triggered

the use of the SBAR or the escalation

algorithm. (Principal Investigator: Kay

Daugherty, Denver Health and

Hospital Authority, Denver, CO. Grant

No. U18 HS15846. Project period:

7/01/05-6/30/07). Transforming Healthcare Quality

Through Information Technology

(THQIT) Implementation Grants

The Transforming Healthcare Quality

through Information Technology

(THQIT) program supports

organizational and community-wide

implementation and diffusion of health

IT and evaluates the extent to which

health IT contributes to measurable

and sustainable improvements in

patient safety, cost, and overall quality

of care. THQIT includes a special focus

on small and rural hospitals. Projects

awarded under the THQIT

implementation grants limited

competition RFA (HS-05-013) include

the following:

Creating Online NICU Networks to

Educate, Consult, and Team. This

project will: (1) expand an electronic

medical records-sharing initiative for

high-risk infants and their families in

Mississippi, linking new health centers

and clinics and serving a rural area that

spans 17 counties; (2) use telemedicine

technologies to enhance evidence-based

developmental care for newborns in

acute care hospitals; and (3) create

Web-based decision support resources

for physicians who care for infants.

Patients in this study will include

Hispanic or Latino and African

American children, ranging from birth

to 3 years of age. (Principal Investigator:

Valerie Rachal, University of Southern

Mississippi, Hattiesburg, MS. Grant

No. UC1 HS16147. Project period:

9/30/05- 09/28/08). 

Improving Quality Care for Children With Special Needs: Statewide Implementation. This study will: (1)

develop the health IT infrastructure in

Tennessee to promote and improve the

safety and quality of health care for

children with special health care needs;

(2) develop an electronic health record

called “child health profile” for infants

with disorders detected by the State

newborn screening and newborn

hearing programs; and (3) expand the

profile to include children with other

genetic disorders and developmental

disabilities diagnosed at the major

genetic and child development centers

in the State. This project will include

Hispanic/Latino, American

Indian/Alaska Native, Asian, and

African American children. (Principal Investigator: Carmen Lozzio, University

of Tennessee-Knoxville, Knoxville, TN. Grant No. UC1 HS16133. Project

period: 9/30/05-9/29/08). 

*El Dorado County Safety Net

Technology Project/ACCESS El Dorado. This project will focus on

creating health information technology

connections through a new patientcentered program called Care

Connections; create a county-wide

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technology infrastructure; implement

basic electronic health record

capabilities; and implement electronic

prescription writing. This study will

include low-income/uninsured adults

and children, minority groups

(Latino/Native American), and

individuals with special health care

needs not currently available in the

rural service area. (Principal

Investigator: Greg Bergner, Marshall

Medical, Placerville, CA. Grant No.

UC1 HS16129. Project period:

9/30/05-9/29/08).

Investigator-Initiated Research

Projects

AHRQ encourages both experienced

and new investigators in health services

research through various mechanisms,

including the following: • Research project grants. AHRQ

supports projects that focus on a

wide range of topics that address the

Agency's mission of improving

quality, patient safety, efficiency, and

effectiveness of health care.

• Small grants. AHRQ's small

research grant program provides

support for new investigators or

researchers new to health care

services issues and encourages

preliminary, exploratory, or

innovative research in new or

previously unexamined areas.

• Dissertation awards. AHRQ's

dissertation grant program supports

research undertaken as part of an

academic doctorate that focuses on

areas relevant to health services

research, with emphasis placed on

methodological and research topics

that address AHRQ's mission.

• Conference grants. AHRQ

supports both large and small

conferences that further its mission.

The types of conferences eligible for

support include: research

development; study design and

methodology; research

dissemination; and research training,

infrastructure, and career

development.

Grants awarded in child health during

fiscal year 2005 under these

mechanisms are listed below.

Research Project Grants

*Nationally Representative Qualityof-Life Weights. The aims of the

project are to: (1) establish nationally

representative health-related quality-oflife (HRQOL) scores for the U.S.

population and for subpopulations

defined by age and gender; (2) establish

nationally representative HRQOL

scores for the U.S. population by health

status measures such as activities of

daily living, difficulty in seeing or

hearing, and health conditions (e.g.,

diabetes, asthma, and presence of heart

disease); and (3) estimate the relationship between rating health status

and the HRQOL scores. This study will

generate HRQOL weights for women,

children, and racial minorities.

(Principal Investigator: John Nyman,

Regents of the University of Minnesota, Minneapolis, MN. Grant No. R01

HS14097. Project period: 7/01/05-

6/30/07). 

*TRIP (Translating Research Into

Practice) for Postpartum Depression.

This study will test the impact of

translation of a universal screening and

followup program for postpartum

depression versus usual care in family

physicians' offices. In the inter

vention

arm, screening will occur at 4-8 weeks

postpartum or at well-infant visits with

specific tools to facilitate diagnosis and

followup for women who screen

positive. For the usual care and

5
intervention arms, patient-oriented

outcomes including the level of

depressive symptoms, functional status,

marital/dyad satisfaction, and comfort

with mothering will be assessed and

compared at 6 and 12 months

postpartum. The impact of practice and

patient characteristics on the translation

of the program and the outcomes of

interest will also be explored. The study

population will include communitybased primary care practices in 2

practice-based research networks

representing 46 States and an ethnically,

economically, and geographically

diverse group of postpartum women

(Hispanic/Latino, American Indian/Alaska Native, Asian, and

African American). (Principal

Investigator: Barbara Yawn, Olmsted

Medical Center, Rochester, MN. Grant

No. R01 HS14744. Project period:

9/30/05-9/29/10). 

*Incentive Formularies and the Costs

and Quality of Care. This project will:

(1) examine the variation of different

pharmacy benefit structures on total

pharmaceutical and out-of-pocket

spending; (2) examine the impact of

variation of different pharmacy benefit

structures on total medical spending,

including inpatient, outpatient, and

emergency services; and (3) study the

effects of variation of pharmacy benefits

on continuity of chronic medication

use for conditions such as hypertension

and hypercholesterolemia, the use of

appropriate medications for

hypertension, and the adverse

consequences of medication

discontinuation and switching for

diabetes and asthma. The study will

include women, minorities, and

children. (Principal Investigator: Bruce

Landon, Harvard Medical School,

Boston, MA. Grant No. R01

HS14774. Project period: 9/30/05-

9/29/07). 

Small Grants

*How Public Reporting and Pay-ForPerformance Policies Impact Safety

Net Hospitals. The aims of this project

are to: (1) understand the Medicare and

Medicaid regulations and policies

pertaining to public reporting and payfor-performance (P4P) and how they

limit involvement of safety net

hospitals; (2) assess whether such

hospitals are participating in public

reporting and P4P and determine the

factors that influence hospital

executives' decisions to participate; (3)

identify potential changes to current

reporting and P4P approaches that

might make these initiatives more

applicable and feasible to safety net

hospitals; (4) determine whether the

barriers to participation in reporting

and P4P differ among rural and urban

safety net hospitals; and (5) evaluate the

feasibility and acceptability to other

stakeholders of hospital executives'

proposals for changing reporting and

P4P. This study will include CA

city/county acute care hospitals with

more than 50 percent Medicaid or

uninsured patients, or rural hospitals.

(Principal Investigator: R. Adams

Dudley, Regents of the University of

California, San Francisco, CA. Grant

No. R03 HS16117. Project period:

9/30/05-9/29/07). 

*Bayesian Pattern-Mixture Models

(PMM) for Quality of Care Data.

The aims of this study are to: (1) yield

improved estimates of relationships

among program structure, treatment

process, and client outcomes; (2)

improve ability of health services researchers to provide policymakers

with accurate characterizations of

quality-of-care analyses when treatment

dropout and study attrition occur; and

(3) utilize expert opinion and

knowledge about the reasons for

6
treatment dropout and attrition in

order to inform the subjective decisions

that are required to build the quality-ofcare PMM analyses. This study will

include adolescents (African Americans,

Hispanics, Asians, and other groups)

undergoing substance abuse treatment

in 16 Phoenix House therapeutic

community treatment programs.

(Principal Investigator: Susan Paddock,

RAND Corporation, Santa Monica,

CA. Grant No. R03 HS14805. Project

period: 9/30/05-9/29/07).

Dissertation Award

The Relationship Between Education

and Health: Is It Causal? This

dissertation will employ a data-rich

longitudinal dataset and instrumental

variables methods to investigate the

nature of the observed relationship

between education and health.

Specifically, this project aims to: (1)

explore the determinants of educational

attainment in youth to evaluate the

effect of youth health on educational

attainment; (2) examine the extent to

which estimates of education's effect on

health behaviors and health status are

robust to the exclusion of frequently

omitted variables; and (3) estimate the

causal effect of education using

instrumental variables methods. This

study will include racial and ethnic

minority populations living in rural and

urban areas of Los Angeles. (Principal

Investigator: Adele Kirk, University of

California-Los Angeles, Santa Monica,

CA. Grant N

o. R36 HS15988. P

roject

period: 9/01/05-5/31/06).

Conference Grants

*National Asthma Disparities

Conference, February 21-23, 2005.

The purpose of this 2-day conference

was to develop a parsimonious set of

recommendations to serve as “next

steps” for the research, clinical, policy,

and consumer communities to use in

reducing asthma disparities. Participants

reviewed key issues underlying asthma

health disparities, current research,

clinical care, and policy to address this

problem. The recommendations are

intended to help reduce these disparities

through new research opportunities,

proposed new directions in clinical and

public policy, and innovative consumer

strategies to promote change.

Additionally, a set of core dissemination

tools will be developed and provided to

key audiences as a resource for

communicating conference

recommendations. (Principal Investigator: Kevin Weiss, Northwestern University, Evanston, IL.

Grant No. R13 HS15762. Project

period: 2/21/05-8/31/05).

5th Annual Forum for Improving

Children's Health Care, March 16-

18, 2005. This conference focused on:

(1) building will for improvement in

care by highlighting successful evidencebased models and interventions; (2)

disseminating strategies for

implementing valid findings of health

services research; (3) providing the basis

for collaboration and information

sharing related to child health care

across the multiple stakeholder levels

affecting children's health care; (4) and

developing faculty capacity for future

initiatives for improving quality of

health care for children. (Principal Investigator: Charles Homer, National

Initiative for Children's Healthcare Quality, Boston, MA. Grant No. R13

HS14202. Project period: 9/30/05-

9/29/06). 

*Symptom Management: What Works, for Whom and at What Cost?

- March 19, 2005. This conference

explored research regarding the

experience and management of

unpleasant symptoms, demonstrated

7
methods of assessing associated

costs/benefits of optimizing

symptom management, and

promoted academic/clinical

collaborative efforts for research

associated with this area. Experts

provided a critical review of recent

developments in the theoretical and

conceptual underpinnings of

research and practice on improving

management of unpleasant

symptoms. Conference proceedings

will be disseminated to a broad

audience of nursing scholars

engaged in practice, research, and

education. (Principal Investigator: Gayle Page, Johns Hopkins University, Baltimore, MD. Grant

No. R13 HS15760. Project period:

3/18/05-10/17/06). 

*Health Disparities and Hispanic

Research, March 31-April 3,

2005. The purpose of this health

services conference was to

disseminate AHRQ's National

Healthcare Disparities Report to

new audiences of Hispanic

physicians, medical residents, and

health professionals to encourage

them to consider a health services

career, specifically AHRQ training

opportunities. Conference

proceedings will be posted on the

National Hispanic Medical

Association's Web site. (Principal Investigator: Elena Rios, National Hispanic Medical Association,

Washington, DC. Grant No. R13

HS16074. P

roject period: 3/25/05-

3/24/06). 

*Conference on Translational

Research for Quality Health, April 7-9, 2005. This forum

disseminated conceptual papers and

original research presenting

examples of translational research.

The theme focused on (1) the role

of health services research,

informatics, economic analysis, and

risk communication as a means to

facilitate translation of research into

practice and policy; and (2)

vulnerable and underserved

populations such as immigrants,

prisoners, children, urban poor, and

those with HIV/AIDS.

Dissemination plans included a

supplement to Nursing Research and

proceedings to be posted on the

Eastern Nursing Research Society

(co-host) Web site at www.enrsgo.org/ and www.cumc.columbia.

edu/dept/nursing/. (Principal Investigator: Elaine Larson, The Trustees of Columbia University,

New York, NY. Grant No. R13

HS15760. Project period: 3/15/05-

3/14/06). 

Seventh Annual Child Health

Services Research Meeting, June

25, 2005. This 1-day conference

highlighted a number of children's

health care issues, including

children in Medicaid and SCHIP,

access/quality of care for limited

English-proficient patients, use of

Healthcare Cost and Utilization

Project data for research, the child

health care workforce, and new

national survey data sets to provide

information on children and youth

with special health care needs. Health information technology in research and quality improvement

was also covered. Presentations can

be vie

wed at: www.academyhealth.

org/conferences/childhealth.htm.

The conference was cosponsored by

AHRQ and AcademyHealth, with

support from the American

Academy of Pediatrics, The

Commonwealth Fund, The David

and Lucile Packard Foundation,

Health Resources and Services Administration, Nemours

8
Foundation, and the National

Association of Children's Hospitals

and Related Institutions, in

collaboration with the Ambulatory

Pediatrics Association. (Principal

Investigator: Wendy Valentine,

AcademyHealth, Washington, DC.

Grant No. R13 HS14742. Project

period: 5/12/05-5/11/06).

Contracts

Evaluation of AHRQ's Children's

Health Research. This project will:

(1) measure and assess to what

extent the Agency contributed new

knowledge resulting from its

extramural and intramural

children's health research and

effectively disseminated and/or

translated research findings to meet

AHRQ and Departmental strategic

objectives; (2) measure and assess to

what extent AHRQ's children's

health care activities (i.e., research

findings, meetings, conference

support, products, tools, etc.)

improved clinical practice and

health care outcomes and

influenced heath care policies over

the past 15 years; (3) measure and

assess AHRQ's financial and staff

support and internal processes for

children's health research grants,

contracts, and intramural activities

among other AHRQ programs,

portfolios, and activities as well as

other Departmental and Federal

efforts; and (4) measure and assess

to what extent AHRQ succeeded in

involving children's health care

stakeholders and/or creating

partnerships to fund and

disseminate key child health

activities. (Co-Principal

Investigators: Michael Stoto and

Michael Seid, RAND, Santa

Monica, CA. Contract No. 282-

00-0005. Project period: 9/15/05-

7/31/06). 

Pediatric 100,000 Lives

Campaign. This project helped

support the pediatric arm of the

Institute for Healthcare

Improvement (IHI) 100,000 Lives

Campaign and resulted in a

summary paper. The IHI 100,00

Lives Campaign is a nationwide

initiative to dramatically reduce

morbidity and mortality in

American health care, focusing on

inpatient care. (Principal

Investigator: Charles Homer,

National Initiative for Children's

Healthcare Quality/Institute for

Healthcare Improvement,

Cambridge, MA. Contract No.

HHSP233200500443P. Project

period: 6/22/05-9/30/05). 

Antidepressant Medications and

Suicidal Behavior in Children

and Adolescents. This project,

from one of AHRQ's Integrated Delivery System Research Network

partners, will focus on analysis of

one or more existing large databases

of community-treated children and

adolescents to address as many

questions as possible within the 6-

month duration of this task. These

include, but are not limited to: (1)

linkages, if any, between completed

suicides and antidepressant use in

youth that may suggest causality;

(2) evidence of any increased rates

of suicidal attempts, emergency room visits, and/or hospitalizations

for suicidal behavior among youths

treated with antidepressants; (3)

associations, if any, between specific

antidepressants and suicidal

behavior; (4) gender differences

between antidepressant use and

suicidal behavior; and (5) evidence

of linkages between antidepressants

and aggression to others. (Principal

Investigator: Enid Hunkeler, Kaiser Foundation Research Institute,

9
Kaiser Permanente of Northern

California, Oakland, CA. Contract

No. 290-00-0015. Project period:

8/1/05-2/1/06).

Increasing Chlamydia

Trachomatis Screening of Young,

Sexually Active Women Enrolled

in Commercial Health Plans.

This project will: (1) ascertain

whether interventions have been

implemented in plans with

significant increases in chlamydia

screening rates; (2) assess barriers,

facilitators, and costs of

implementation for interventions

designed to improve screening rates,

focusing on network model plans,

or determine whether plans can

identify intervening factors that

may have contributed to increased

screening rates; (3) assess how rates

compared before and after

implementation of any

interventions in such plans; and (4)

develop and disseminate a "best

practices" guide or compendium to

other U.S. network model health

plans and other organizations. This

project is being conducted by one

of AHRQ's Integrated Delivery

System Research Network partners

in collaboration with the National

Committee on Quality Assurance.

(Principal Investigator: Adam

Athery, Emory University Center

on Health Outcomes and Quality, Atlanta, GA. Contract No. 290-00-

0011. Project period: 9/1/05-

8/1/06). 

Ambulatory Pediatric

Association Young Investigator

Awards

AHRQ has supported this initiative

of the Ambulatory Pediatric

Association for several years. This

competitive program provides a

small amount of support to ne

w

investigators in general pediatrics

who are conducting child health

services research. Projects awarded

are:

Population-Based Screening for

Hypothyroidism in Children with

Down Syndrome. This project

will determine the proportion of

children with Down syndrome who

are being screened for

hypothyroidism, a sequela of Down

syndrome. Children will be

identified from a State public

insurance plan database with data

from 1995-2003. (Principal

Investigator: Kecia N. Carroll,

Vanderbilt Children's Hospital,

Nashville, TN. Contract No.

HHSP233200500492P. Project

period: 7/13/05-12/31/05). 

Attention Deficit Hyperactivity

Disorder (ADHD), Its Subtypes,

and Co-morbidity in a Nationally

Representative Sample: Overall

Prevalence and Sociodemographic Variation. This research will

determine whether socioeconomic

status and race/ethnicity influence

ADHD prevalence, recognition,

and treatment. The investigator will

use National Health and Nutrition

Examination Survey data collected

in 2001 and 2002 for children ages

8-15 years with an oversampling of

African American and Mexican

American children. (Principal

Investigator: Tanya Froehlich,

Cincinnati Children's Hospital

Medical Center, Cincinnati, OH.

Contract No.

HHSP233200500492P. Project

period: 7/13/05-12/31/05). 

Ambulatory Injury: The Role of

Race/Ethnicity and Socioeconomic Status. This

project will determine overall

patterns of injury-related medical

visits to emergency departments

and primary care practices.

10
Specifically, this study will compare

children of Latino ethnicity to nonLatino children with rates of

injuries related to death,

hospitalizations, and barriers to

care. Using the National Health

Interview Survey, data will be

analyzed to determine the number

of injury episodes linking to sample

child files with independent

variables relating to injuries in

children. (Principal Investigator:

Tamara Simon, University of

Colorado Health Sciences Center,

Aurora, CO. Contract No.

HHSP233200500492P. Project

period: 7/13/05-12/31/05). 

For More Information

The AHRQ Web site provides

information on the Agency's agenda

in children's health services

research, including funding

opportunities, at www.ahrq.gov.

For further details on AHRQ's

programs in child health, contact:

Denise Dougherty, Ph.D.

Senior Advisor, Child Health

540 Gaither Road

Rockville, MD 20850

Phone: 301-427-1868

Fax: 302-427-1347

E-mail: ddougher@ahrq.gov

11
www.ahrq.gov 

AHRQ Pub. No. 06-P005

December 2005