Kaiser Permanente
Division of Research Spotlight
The Kaiser Permanente Division of Research conducts, publishes, and disseminates epidemiologic and health services research to improve the health and medical care of Kaiser Permanente members and society at large. We seek to understand the determinants of illness and well-being, and to improve the quality and cost-effectiveness of health care. Currently, DOR’s 550-plus staff is working on more than 350 epidemiological and health services research projects.
A sophisticated system that analyzes electronic data about hospital patients, identifies those at risk of deteriorating, and issues an alert to a centralized team of specially trained nurses resulted in a lower mortality rate, Kaiser Permanente researchers reported in the New England Journal of Medicine.
People who recovered from active tuberculosis had a higher long-term risk of death from any cause than similar patients who never had active tuberculosis shows a new Kaiser Permanente study.
Teenagers who question their gender identity may not feel comfortable bringing up the issue with their doctors. New research suggests that adding gender identity questions to a pre-visit screening could make those conversations easier.
A Kaiser Permanente analysis of women who did not get flu shots during their pregnancies found the women clustered in geographic “hot spots.” These women tended to have fewer prenatal medical visits and live in low-income neighborhoods.
The Division of Research has joined a phase 3 clinical trial testing a Pfizer/BioNTech vaccine against the COVID-19 virus. Kaiser Permanente Southern California and Northwest join them in this global effort.
Kaiser Permanente researchers showed starting annual colorectal cancer screening at age 45 in African Americans can find colorectal cancers at a rate similar to that seen when screening starts after age 50 — the age most guidelines currently recommend.
A new prostate cancer risk calculator developed by Kaiser Permanente Northern California researchers may help men going through prostate cancer screening decide whether to have a prostate biopsy.
A new study in JAMA Network Open of patients who self-scheduled a video or phone visit at Kaiser Permanente Northern California shows that patients were more likely to choose telemedicine over an office visit if they were younger, female, or faced logistical challenges.
The investigators wanted to better understand corneal thickness variation between individuals and its relationship with vision disorders such as primary open-angle glaucoma and keratoconus, which can both lead to vision loss.
Patients reported positive outcomes with use of an HIV prevention medication dosed only as needed, instead of the more common daily dosing, Kaiser Permanente researchers reported.
