Tuesday, May 5, 2009

Sorry, one more question. What were the Wenneberg studies? I understand the conclusions they drew, but I don't understand how they came to those conclusions.

2 comments:

  1. jess, i'm not clear about what you mean by "where were the studies". They took place mostly in the northeast and mid-atlantic states, but included a large number of states by the end. you can search for "wennberg je" and the year of the studies that I cite in the lecture and you can find a few of his seminal pieces if you need more info. hope this helps.

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  2. To add to what Professor Stevens said, the Wenneberg studies determined that after accounting for health need, there were still major differences in the rates of certain procedures throughout Vermont and later throughout other states. Since it was concluded that these differences probably originated from different physician and provider preferences (ie. a lack of consensus), there must be some uncertainty in determining which services are effective, appropriate, and beneficial. Hence, the need to look at quality.

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