RAND Research Topic: Health and Wellness Promotion 2012-05-24T20:43:55Z Copyright (c) 2012, The RAND Corporation RAND Corporation http://www.rand.org/topics/health-and-wellness-promotion.html Patient Incentives to Motivate Doctor Visits and Reduce Hypertension Disparities http://www.rand.org/pubs/technical_reports/TR1167.html Nov 30, 2011 Nov 30, 2011 Assesses whether a one-time $15 patient financial incentive, along with educational materials, would be effective in motivating people with hypertension (HTN) to see their personal physician, compared with educational materials only or no intervention; whether patient incentives and educational materials are differentially effective across racial/ethnic groups in motivating physician visits and improving blood pressure control; and whether these effects lead to a reduction in racial/ethnic disparities in HTN. Power to the People: The Role of Consumer-Controlled Personal Health Management Systems in the Evolution of Employer-Based Health Care Benefits http://www.rand.org/pubs/occasional_papers/OP352.html Sep 13, 2011 Sep 13, 2011 The passage of the Patient Protection and Affordable Care Act has piqued employers' interest in new benefit designs because it includes numerous provisions that favor cost-reducing strategies. This paper reviews consumer-controlled personal health management systems (HMSs) that provide health information management, promotion of wellness and healthy lifestyles, and decision support. Patient Activation and Advocacy: Which Literacy Skills Matter Most? http://www.rand.org/pubs/external_publications/EP201100201.html Aug 31, 2011 Aug 31, 2011 All literacy skills are significantly associated with patients' self-advocacy when examined in isolation, but greater speaking and listening skills are significantly associated with better patient advocacy when all four skills were examined together. Nonexperts' Recognition of Structure in Personal Network Data http://www.rand.org/pubs/external_publications/EP20110049.html Mar 26, 2011 Mar 26, 2011 A patient's social environment in an important dimension of treatment for chronic illness; interventions intended to help individuals understand and change their social environments could benefit from incorporating visualizations of social networks. Economic Analysis of Physical Activity Interventions http://www.rand.org/pubs/external_publications/EP20110010.html Jan 31, 2011 Jan 31, 2011 This study compared the cost-effectiveness of different public interventions for promoting exercise and found that community-based campaigns and school-based interventions have the greatest potential to be scaled up at the lowest costs. Hispanic Seniors Less Likely to Be Immunized Against Flu and Pneumonia http://www.rand.org/pubs/external_publications/EP20110013.html Jan 24, 2011 Jan 24, 2011 Seniors of Hispanic descent are far less likely to become immunized against the flu or pneumonia compared to similar White seniors. Those who prefer speaking Spanish and live in linguistically isolated communities are least likely to be immunized. Mediators of Maternal Depression and Family Structure on Child BMI: Parenting Quality and Risk Factors for Child Overweight http://www.rand.org/pubs/external_publications/EP201100115.html Dec 31, 2010 Dec 31, 2010 Family environment&amp;mdash;including parenting quality&amp;mdash;is an important factor in influencing children's leisure activities, and thus interventions for child obesity may be more successful if they focus on family environment and its effect on children's active and sedentary behaviors. Prescription for a Healthy Nation: A New Approach to Improving Our Lives by Fixing Our Everyday World http://www.rand.org/pubs/commercial_books/CB428.html Dec 9, 2010 Dec 9, 2010 Introducing a new way of thinking about health: public health experts Tom Farley and Deborah A. Cohen show us that the antidote to our ever-growing rates of obesity and chronic diseases, such as heart disease and diabetes, lies not in our medical care system or in more health education but rather in how our environment affects our behavior. Web-based Self-Triage of Influenza-Like Illness During the 2009 H1N1 Influenza Pandemic http://www.rand.org/pubs/external_publications/EP20100098.html Aug 31, 2010 Aug 31, 2010 A RAND team designed a web-based support tool using clinical algorithms to help minimally trained health care workers and laypeople make informed decisions about care-seeking for influenza-like illness. Improving Access to and Utilization of Adolescent Preventive Health Care: The Perspectives of Adolescents http://www.rand.org/pubs/external_publications/EP201000186.html Jul 31, 2010 Jul 31, 2010 Adolescents and parents reported that the most effective way to encourage preventive care utilization among teens was to directly address provider-level barriers related to the timeliness, privacy, confidentiality, comprehensiveness, and continuity of their preventive care. RAND Partnering with Hill House Association to Study How New Grocery Store Will Affect Pittsburgh's Hill District http://www.rand.org/news/press/2010/07/19/index1.html Jul 18, 2010 Jul 18, 2010 Pittsburgh's Hill District neighborhood will be the focus of a RAND Corporation study that will examine how a full-service grocery store can influence the health of residents served by the store. The Arkansas Tobacco Settlement Programs: The Impact of One State's Investment in the Health of its Residents http://www.rand.org/pubs/research_briefs/RB9537.html Jun 23, 2010 Jun 23, 2010 <p>Summarizes results of RAND's evaluation of the progress and impact of Arkansas' antismoking and health programs established with its share of tobacco settlement funds.</p> Rights and Responsibilities in Health Care: Striking a Balance http://www.rand.org/pubs/external_publications/EP20100052.html Jun 8, 2010 Jun 8, 2010 <p>This commentary argues that people must become full participants and assume much greater responsibility for their actions if health benefits are to be maintained at an affordable cost.</p> Food Allergies Need Improved Guidelines for Diagnosis and Management http://www.rand.org/news/press/2010/05/11.html May 11, 2010 May 11, 2010 Food allergies are a frequently diagnosed condition, yet variation in the measures used to make the diagnosis is limiting advancements in how to best treat patients with the condition. Food Allergies Need Improved Guidelines for Diagnosis and Management http://www.rand.org/pubs/external_publications/EP20100037.html May 10, 2010 May 10, 2010 <p>Food allergies are a frequently diagnosed condition, yet variation in the measures used to make the diagnosis is limiting advancements in how to best treat patients with the condition and raises the potential for over diagnosis of the problem.</p> Meta-Analysis: Effect of Interactive Communication Between Collaborating Primary Care Physicians and Specialists http://www.rand.org/pubs/external_publications/EP20100216.html Feb 15, 2010 Feb 15, 2010 <p>Assesses the effects of interactive communication between collaborating primary care physicians and key specialists on outcomes for patients receiving ambulatory care.</p> Adolescent Romantic Relationships and Change in Smoking Status http://www.rand.org/pubs/external_publications/EP20100184.html Dec 31, 2009 Dec 31, 2009 Whether or not an adolescent stops or begins smoking is influenced by whether or not his/her romantic relationship smokes. Neighborhood Characteristics Favorable to Outdoor Physical Activity: Disparities By Socioeconomic and Racial/ethnic Composition http://www.rand.org/pubs/external_publications/EP20100090.html Dec 31, 2009 Dec 31, 2009 <p>Poor and non-white neighborhoods have easier access for outdoor activities but parents think the neighborhoods are not safe for their children to play in.</p> Disaster Recovery Also Involves Human Recovery http://www.rand.org/pubs/external_publications/EP20100133.html Dec 31, 2009 Dec 31, 2009 This commentary argues that unless the U.S. examines and plans for the psychological consequences of disasters such as Katrina and the recent oil spill, communities will be struggling to address acute and chronic health issues while trying to rebuild. Healthy Young and Middle Age Adults: What Will It Take to Vaccinate Them for Influenza? http://www.rand.org/pubs/external_publications/EP20100139.html Dec 31, 2009 Dec 31, 2009 Starting in 2010, healthy adults age 19-49 will be recommended for annual influenza vaccination. Boosting rates of vaccination in this population will require new and untraditional strategies aimed at encouraging first-time vaccination.