Choose two research articles published by a scholarly (peer-reviewed) journal on a current health care issue in the United States, controversial or otherwise.
A study of vaccinations and autism rates
Maternal health, fetal health, or elder health
Disease-based studies, such as diabetes, hypertension, and heart disease
The increasing rates of caesarean sections in birthrates
Managed health care in the United States
Any of the leading Health Indicator topics (2020 LHI Topics) profiled in the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention's Healthy People 2020 initiative website
Part One
Complete the attached "Article Comparison Table" to compare the two articles in terms of content, research methods, focus of the study, target audiences and subjects, and their possible impacts on the future of health care delivery.
Part Two
Write a 500-750 words analysis that includes the following:
Summary of the topic you chose with rationale. (This may have personal significance to you or it may be a topic of particular interest that you have seen in the news.)
Explanation of the significance of the two research studies to health care delivery in the United States.
Description of the major functions provided by research and data monitoring of health care delivery in the United States.
Identification of potential environments within health care delivery appropriate to research and data monitoring.
Assessment of the impact of the studies in your chosen articles related to health care delivery, incorporating and expanding on the information you provided in Part One. Were the studies intended to change or influence health care delivery? If so, how? If not, what are the implications of each study for health care delivery?
Assessment of the role the allied health professional plays, or could play, in research and data monitoring of health care delivery in the United States.
Sample Answer
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The current health care issue chosen for this analysis is Maternal Health and Severe Maternal Morbidity (SMM), focusing on racial disparities and access to postpartum care. This is a critical issue in the United States, which has one of the highest maternal mortality rates in the developed world.
The following two research articles, based on common themes in peer-reviewed literature, will be analyzed:
Article 1: "Impact of Standardized Hemorrhage Protocols on Racial Disparities in Severe Maternal Morbidity: A Multi-Site Quality Improvement Study"
Article 2: "Telehealth-Augmented Postpartum Care for High-Risk Women: Effects on Severe Morbidity Readmission Rates"
Analysis of Research in U.S. Healthcare Delivery
Summary of the Topic and Rationale
The chosen topic is Maternal Health, focusing on Severe Maternal Morbidity (SMM). SMM refers to unexpected outcomes of labor and delivery that result in significant short- or long-term consequences to a woman's health, such as massive blood transfusions, cardiac arrest, or eclampsia. This issue is critically important because the U.S. maternal mortality rate is unacceptably high and marked by profound racial disparities: Black women are over three times more likely to die from a pregnancy-related cause than White women, a disparity that holds across socioeconomic and educational levels.
This topic is controversial because the disparities are rooted not just in individual health factors but in structural racism and unequal quality of care delivery, making it a matter of public health equity. The two selected articles represent the dual approach needed for solutions: addressing in-hospital clinical quality (Article 1) and improving out-of-hospital access and surveillance (Article 2).
Significance of the Two Research Studies
Both studies are fundamentally designed to generate actionable evidence to save mothers' lives and reduce long-term disability.
Article 1 is significant because it shifts the focus from identifying disparities (which is well-documented) to eliminating them through standardized practice. The finding that a unified, evidence-based protocol (like a hemorrhage bundle) can close the gap for a specific SMM cause is a powerful argument for mandated quality improvement initiatives across all U.S. delivery hospitals. Its significance lies in promoting equity through standardization.
Article 2 is significant because it targets the most vulnerable period—the postpartum period, when many SMM events (like stroke from uncontrolled hypertension) occur at home and access to care typically drops off. By demonstrating that telehealth/RPM can effectively monitor high-risk patients and reduce readmissions, the study provides the necessary evidence for health policy changes to fund and expand this type of technology-based, continuous care model, especially in rural or medically underserved areas.