Chartbook on Rural Health Care

Organization of the Chartbook on Rural Health Care

• Part of a series related to the National Healthcare Quality and Disparities Report (QDR).
• Contents:
  • Overview of the QDR.
  • Overview of residents of rural areas, one of the priority populations of the QDR.
  • Summary of trends in health care quality and disparities for rural populations.
  • Tracking of access and quality measures for rural populations:
    • Access to Health Care.
    • Patient Safety.
    • Person- and Family-Centered Care.
    • Communication and Care Coordination.
    • Prevention and Treatment of Leading Causes of Morbidity and Mortality.
    • Healthy Living.
    • Affordability.

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National Healthcare Quality and Disparities Report

This Rural Health Care chartbook is part of a family of documents and tools that support the National Healthcare Quality and Disparities Reports (QDR). The QDR includes annual reports to Congress mandated in the Healthcare Research and Quality Act of 1999 (P.L. 106-129). These reports provide a comprehensive overview of the quality of health care received by the general U.S. population and disparities in care experienced by different racial, ethnic, and socioeconomic groups.  The purpose of the reports is to assess the performance of our health system and to identify areas of strengths and weaknesses in the health care system along three main axes: access to health care, quality of health care, and priorities of the National Quality Strategy.

The reports are based on more than 250 measures of quality and disparities covering a broad array of health care services and settings.  Data are generally available through 2012, although rates of uninsurance have been tracked through the first half of 2014. The reports are produced with the help of an Interagency Work Group led by the Agency for Healthcare Research and Quality (AHRQ) and submitted on behalf of the Secretary of Health and Human Services (HHS).

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Changes for 2014

Beginning with this 2014 report, findings on health care quality and health care disparities are integrated into a single document. This new National Healthcare Quality and Disparities Report highlights the importance of examining quality and disparities together to gain a complete picture of health care. This document is also shorter and focuses on summarizing information over the many measures that are tracked.

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