The Robert Wood Johnson Foundation has awarded four grants that could help improve the quality and performance of the United States public health system.
The funded projects represent the RWJF's latest investment in public health services and systems research - the developing field of research that focuses on the organization, staffing, financing and management of public health.
"These grants will advance our knowledge of how different models of public health service delivery influence health outcomes," said Debra Perez, RWJF senior program officer. "The lessons from these projects ultimately identify strategies to keep people healthier and ensure that they receive critical public health services."
The four investigators and their funded projects are:
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Mary Davis from the University of North Carolina at Chapel Hill, who will explore how accreditation has influenced North Carolina's local health departments and whether it has improved the delivery of services and health outcomes.
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Paul Erwin from the University of Tennessee, who will examine how changes in state-level health systems - including health agencies, health departments and hospitals - have affected health outcomes in states over the past 15 years.
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Tamara Dubowitz from the RAND Corporation, who will assess how local health departments in Florida and California can use geographic information systems to more closely align the services they provide with the health needs of the communities they serve.
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Peter Jacobson of the University of Michigan, who will identify and explore current innovations in public health service delivery.
The four projects represent awards from the final year of a four-year funding program totaling more than $3 million by RWJF to build the field of public health services and systems research through investigator-initiated research grants.
Perez said the grants are administered through the Changes in Health Care Financing and Organization initiative, an RWJF program managed by AcademyHealth.