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Interventions to Improve Minority Health Care and Racial and Ethnic Disparities

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Interventions to Improve Minority Health Care and Racial and Ethnic Disparities (September 2011)

Principal Investigator: Ana R. Quinones, PhD; Co-Investigators: Maya O'Neil, PhD; Somnath Saha, MD; Michele Freeman, MPH; Stephen R. Henry, DrPH, MPH; Devan Kansagara, MD, MCR

Evidence-based Synthesis Program (ESP) Center Portland VA Medical Center

Washington (DC): Department of Veterans Affairs; September 2011

Download PDF: Complete Report, Executive Summary, Report, Appendices

Summary / Overview

Racial and ethnic disparities are widespread in the US health care system. A 2007 report from the Veterans Affairs (VA) Health Services Research & Development Service (HSR&D) Evidencebased Synthesis Program (ESP) found disparities were prevalent in a variety of clinical arenas within the Veterans Affairs health care system. The report identified several promising avenues for future interventions designed to reduce racial and ethnic disparities.

The objectives of this review are to describe the state of disparities intervention research within the VA, glean lessons from systematic reviews of intervention research not limited to VA settings, and develop an organizing framework to describe studies in this field of research. This report is also intended to inform future disparities intervention research in the VA, as well as VA policies and programs to reduce disparities.

To accomplish these objectives, we will answer the following key questions:

Key Question #1: What is the state of research on interventions to reduce race/ethnic disparities or to improve health and health care in minority populations within VA health care settings? Key Question #2: What are the results of interventions (within and outside the VA) to reduce race/ethnic disparities or to improve health and health care in minority populations?

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