AHRQ Grant HS21873: Related Publication Summaries

Understanding consumer perceptions and awareness of hospital-based maternity care quality measures

Maurer M, Firminger K, Dardess P, Ikeler K, Sofaer S, Carman KL.
Health Services Research 2016 Jun;51 Suppl 2:1188-211.

This study explored factors that may influence use of comparative public reports for hospital maternity care. It found that when describing high-quality maternity care, participants focused on interactions with providers, including respect for patient preferences and communication. The importance of quality measures was influenced by the extent to which they focused on babies' health, were perceived as the hospital's responsibility, and were perceived as representing "standard care."

Increasing the use of comparative quality information in maternity care: results from a randomized controlled trial

Maurer M, Carman KL, Yang M, Firminger K, Hibbard J.
Medical Care Research Review 2017 May 1. [Epub ahead of print]

The authors tested an intervention to increase uptake of hospital-level maternity care quality reports among 245 pregnant women in North Carolina. They found that intervention participants were significantly more likely to report adopting behaviors to inform care, such as thinking through preferences, talking with their doctor, or creating a birth plan. They concluded that reports designed to put quality information into the larger context of what consumers want and need to know, along with targeted and timely communications, can increase consumer use of quality information and prompt them to talk with providers about care preferences and evidence-based practices.