article critique

Running head : TEACHING HOSPITALS AND MEDICARE PATIENTS

Critique Effects of Admission to a Teaching Hospital on Cost and Quality of Care for Medicare Beneficiaries (Name (University

January 2007

Title of Study

The title of the report by Taylor , Whellan Sloan (1999 ) Effects of admission to a teaching hospital on the cost and quality of care for Medicare beneficiaries ‘ establishes the framework of the study being discussed . The title establishes that teaching hospitals are being studied , the population is defined as Medicare beneficiaries and the other variables of cost and quality [banner_entry_middle]

of care are specified . The title however , does not immediately specify that the study was restricted to certain medical conditions nor that it was also time-specific . However even though these elements are not included , the title of the report is very descriptive and allows for a reasonably good summary of the major aspects of the study being discussed

Problem Statement

Taylor , Whellan Sloan (1999 ) outline the problem in the introductory paragraph of their report as the impact of variations in the cost and quality of treatment . The research is useful and necessary to predict the systematic nature of variations in cost and quality of treatment Though the problem does not directly relate to the field of nursing , it does have implications for the profession . Results could raise questions as to the quality and professionalism of the nurses . A national data base is used as the source of data for the study . This of course means that the data is readily accessible so that the required information could be easily located and assessed

Conceptual /Theoretical Framework

The researchers do not proceed from a defined conceptual framework but rather function under the hypothesis that patient care is somehow affected by the type of hospital

Review of literature

While the authors point to several pieces of prior literature there is very little discussion on their relevance . In fact there is no distinct section dealing with the review of literature . Only passing mention is made of thirteen previous researches and these are only by way of references . The researches listed are both contemporary and classic ranging from 1983-1997 and they all appear to refer to primary report sources as indicated by their titles . The literature review therefore consists mainly of these indicated sources and a very brief two-line summary of their major findings . Furthermore there is little acknowledgement of research that has presented any opposing positions

Purpose of the study

There is a brief declaration of the purpose of the research which was to study the effects of admission to a teaching hospital on the cost and quality of care for patients covered by Medicare (Taylor , Whellan Sloan , 1999 ,

. 293 ) This purpose statement falls directly in line with the aims laid out for the study . There are no individually outlined research questions , however the introductory paragraphs give a very good overview of the exact areas that the study contemplated

Research Questions / Hypothesis

The research questions are not explicitly stated in the report . The… [banner_entry_footer]