The Agency for Healthcare Research and Quality (AHRQ) is a component of the Department of Health and Human Services. AHRQ's mission is to improve the quality, safety, efficiency, and effectiveness of health care for all Americans. Its goals are to promote effective, appropriate, high-quality health care; increase access to care; and improve the way health services are organized, delivered, and financed.
The Agency was established by Congress in December 1989 as the successor to the National Center for Health Services Research and Health Care Technology Assessment. On December 6, 1999, under Public Law 106-129, the Agency for Health Care Policy and Research (AHCPR) was reauthorized and renamed the Agency for Healthcare Research and Quality (AHRQ). The law authorizes AHRQ to continue its research on the cost, quality, and outcomes of health care, and expands its role to improve patient safety and address medical errors. AHRQ funds research on key health care delivery and medical effectiveness issues through grants and contracts. Its in-house researchers and health care professionals conduct analyses on a range of policy issues and evaluate the risks and effects of specific health care technologies.
The publications in this catalog describe AHRQ programs, present research findings and assessments of health care technologies, and announce funding opportunities for health services researchers, including medical effectiveness researchers. Please be sure to check related subject areas in this catalog, as some funding information and special topics of interest may be found elsewhere in the catalog.
This catalog includes only items published by AHRQ or reprinted by AHRQ from other sources. A large number of publications that result from AHRQ-funded projects cannot be included here. Information on these materials is included periodically in AHRQ's monthly bulletin Research Activities. Select for more information about this bulletin.
AHRQ operates a national publications clearinghouse to meet the ever-increasing demand for its publications. Requests for AHRQ publications, grant applications, and general information about the Agency and its programs can be made 24 hours a day by calling the clearinghouse's toll-free number 800-358-9295 or by writing to AHRQ Publications Clearinghouse, P.O. Box 8547, Silver Spring, MD 20907-8547. Callers outside of the United States may dial (703) 437-2078. TDD service is available for hearing-impaired people; call 888-586-6340. Or you may use the online order form. Be sure to indicate the title and publication number (found at end of listing) for each publication you order. You may wish to contact the AHRQ Publications Clearinghouse via E-mail at: ahrqpubs@ahrq.gov.
Questions from the media about AHRQ activities may be directed to the Public Affairs Office of AHRQ's Office of Communications and Knowledge Transfer at (301) 427-1879.
We invite you to join our mailing list of people and organizations interested in the quality, appropriateness, effectiveness, and cost-effectiveness of health care in the United States. Each subscriber receives Research Activities, published monthly by the Agency for Healthcare Research and Quality (AHRQ). Research Activities describes recent findings from research supported by AHRQ and announces grant opportunities, new publications, AHRQ-sponsored conferences, and other information of interest.
Research Activities is free. To subscribe, fill out the AHRQ Publications Order Form or call AHRQ's Clearinghouse at 800-358-9295; for callers outside of the United States only, the number is (703) 437-2078.
To obtain a listing of active grant announcements, visit the AHRQ Web site at www.ahrq.gov/fund/grantix.htm. The Grant Application Form (PHS-398) is available online from the National Institutes of Health Grants Web site at the following URL: http://grants.nih.gov/grants/funding/phs398/phs398.html
Our Electronic Newsletter is issued periodically as news warrants. It describes the results of AHRQ-funded studies, announces new print and electronic resources, updates the status of current funding opportunities, and provides much more.
Internet users also have the opportunity to learn about the availability of new products, exchange important information, or keep abreast of research and events by subscribing to our many LISTSERV® topics. This service is free. All you need is a computer and an E-mail address. To sign up, follow these easy steps:
For Electronic Newsletter, type: sub public_list-L Your Name
For Prevention Program, type: SUBSCRIBE AHRQ_PREVENTIONPROGRAMUPDATES Your Name
For Child and Adolescent Health, type: subscribe AHRQKID-L Your Name
For Healthcare Cost and Utilization Project, type: sub hcup-L Your Name
For Quality Indicators, type: sub quality-indicators Your Name
For Medical Expenditure Panel Survey, type: SUBSCRIBE MEPS-L Your Name
(e.g., sub public_list-L Jane Smith)
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