Medical Professionals

blog

How Data Can Help Refugees, Homelessness in L.A., Harm Reduction: RAND Weekly Recap

This weekly recap focuses on tapping into Facebook data to help refugees, addressing homelessness in Los Angeles, understanding burnout among health care providers, and more.

commentary

Promoting Patient-Clinician Conversations to Reduce Cascades of Care

A cascade of care is a seemingly uncontrollable sequence of medical services that is driven by the desire to avoid even the smallest risk of a bad outcome. What drives cascades? And what interventions might mitigate them?

Kathleen L. Mulligan, Ishani Ganguli, et al.

blog

Gender Pay Gap Among Doctors, America's Labor Shortage, 'Hacking Equity': RAND Weekly Recap

This weekly recap focuses on the pay gap between female and male doctors, understanding America’s weird job market, social and emotional learning, and more.

commentary

Who Can Effectively Champion the Vax?

Vaccine hesitancy appears to be one more hurdle in ending the COVID-19 pandemic. The CDC would typically lead a campaign to overcome it, but Americans' trust in the CDC has declined measurably. Health care professionals may be more effective messengers when it comes to COVID-19 vaccines.

Lois M. Davis @LoisMDavis, Michael S. Pollard @MichaelSPollard

commentary

More Could Be Spent on Recruiting and Training Cancer Staff if the NHS Is to Provide a World-Class Cancer Service

Cancer is a leading cause of death in the UK. Action is needed now to recruit and train more NHS staff in certain key cancer-related roles if NHS is to meet its ambitions for improving cancer services over the next 10 years.

Jenny George

commentary

Can Primary Care Networks and Models of Vertical Integration Coexist in the NHS?

Vertical integration with a hospital helps primary care practices that might otherwise have closed to remain in operation. It thereby creates the opportunity for the continued development and improvement of local primary care for patients.

Manbinder Sidhu, Jon Sussex

commentary

How Hospitals Could Step in to Help Manage GP Practices

The supply of doctors in primary care, known as 'GPs' in the UK, is falling behind a growing demand for their services, as GPs leave general practice in large numbers. One way to help struggling GP practices could be vertical integration—combining health care organizations operating at different stages along the patient pathway.

Manbinder Sidhu, Jon Sussex

commentary

Moving on from Telehealth-by-Desperation: What Will Make Telehealth Stick

During the COVID-19 pandemic telehealth has helped to maintain continuity of care for millions of Americans, preserve personal protective equipment, and facilitate social distancing. But that does not mean that telehealth will be embraced by patients and providers in the long run.

Lori Uscher-Pines

commentary

The Link Between Workplace Diversity and the Gender Pay Gap

Many factors explain the gender earnings gap, including workplace biases, differences in how credit is attributed, and differences in how men and women negotiate. But another factor could influence the pay women receive: the number of men in their workplace.

Christopher M. Whaley @cm_whaley, Anupam B. Jena

commentary

Looking After Those Who Look After Us—How COVID-19 May Affect NHS Staff

COVID-19 may leave a long legacy of poor health and well-being in the National Health Service workforce. This could affect quality of care and the financial performance of the system. We need to ensure that NHS organizations provide significant support for health care workers.

Christian Van Stolk

blog

COVID-19's Effects on Mental Health, Food Access, and Education: RAND Weekly Recap

This weekly recap focuses on COVID-19 and mental health, food security challenges during the pandemic, supporting children while schools are closed, and more.

commentary

Amidst a Pandemic, a Mental Health Crisis May Be Looming

The effects of the COVID-19 pandemic on health care workers' mental health could be significant and may weaken the health care system's ability to resolve the crisis and survive over the long term. Interventions to promote psychological well-being should be implemented now.

Sangeeta C. Ahluwalia @AhluwaliaPhD, Carrie M. Farmer @carriefarmer, et al.

q&a

Coronavirus Outbreak Intensifies: Q&A with RAND Experts

Cases of the coronavirus have now spread to several dozens of countries, infecting thousands and thousands of people across the globe. With concerns about the disease rising, we asked a group of RAND researchers to answer a wide range of questions about the crisis.

commentary

Is Training for NHS Staff to Manage Workplace Violence Effective?

Going to work should not mean being subjected to physical or verbal assault, but this is the reality faced by thousands of frontline NHS staff. De-escalation training may help staff manage patient violence and aggression, but there is not enough research about what works in specific healthcare contexts.

Brandi Leach, Michael Whitmore

essay

A New Way to Capture the Patient Experience

Researchers have developed a more effective and reliable way for patients to provide narrative feedback about the care they receive. When the right questions are asked, patients' answers can help health care providers better understand the patient experience and learn how they could improve.