New HCFO Grant!

Institution: University of Minnesota
Title: The Characteristics of Best Medical Practices
Principal Investigator: John Kralewski, Ph.D.
Duration: 12/1/2008 – 9/30/2010
Paragraph Summary: The researchers will identify the organizational characteristics of medical group practices that achieve high quality, low cost care. Current research suggests that the cost and quality of care vary across geographic areas and health plans within geographic areas. The causes of this variation at the practice level, however, are not well understood. Using a sample of physician practices from Medical Group Management Association (MGMA) membership, the researchers will examine how financial incentives within the practice, structural, and cultural attributes at the practice-level influence costs and quality of care, and the linkages between cost and quality. They will examine the effects of practice size, physician workload, and collegiality on cost and quality independently and then examine the effects on cost and quality jointly. Finally, they will calculate the configuration that results in the optimal performance of best medical practices. The objective of this project is to provide benchmarks that policymakers and health insurance plan and medical practice administrators can use to promote a cost-effective health care system.    

 
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