Members of CCME Research have extensive scientific and analytic skills. The results of their work have been published in peer-reviewed publications and presented at international and national conferences. CCME Research expertise has been applied in a wide variety of ways, addressing important questions in health care policy and effectiveness. CCME Research includes three broad areas:

Improving Health Care Quality
CCME researches strategies to improve care and the care system, including policy and system changes, provider change strategies, quality improvement methodologies, and consumer change strategies. Examples of research we have conducted in this area include the following:

• Feasibility study of primary care intervention to decrease the use of oral antibiotics for upper respiratory tract infections.
• Evaluation of physician office interventions to increase colorectal cancer screening.
• Evaluation of falls prevention program in nursing homes.

Monitoring Health Care Quality
CCME’s staff research patterns of health outcomes, quality of care, or care processes with attention to trends and differences by demographic or geographic characteristics. Examples of CCME’s work include the following:

• Prevalence and care of diabetes in Medicare population.
• Racial differences in mortality among Medicare enrollees with prostate cancer.
• Characteristics of women who infrequently or never get mammograms.
• Web-based surveillance on North Carolina county health indicators.
• NCCCR-Medicare Linkage Study

Developing and Improving Quality Measurement
CCME Research explores the best approaches to measuring quality, cost-effectiveness, and health outcomes. Examples include the following:

• PEACE Project proposed new measures for hospice and palliative care.
• Colorectal Cancer Test Use Project developed and maintains a web-based report providing colorectal cancer test use measures for the US Medicare population.
• Claims Validation Studies validated the use of Medicare to measure use of colorectal cancer tests.

For more information about CCME research services, please contact:

Mark Massing, MD, PhD, MPH
Director of Research
mmassing@thecarolinascenter.org