Scientific Interest(s):
Dr. Patricia Parkerton's research focuses on the delivery of medical care, specifically, its composition and improvement. She strives to disentangle the forces on physicians and organizations to discern those circumstances that will contribute to better diagnosis, treatment and support of patients. Recent research has included the effects of availability and continuity on primary care physician performance, physician performance measures, the influence of physician organization on the adoption of a quality improvement intervention, assessment of the impact of organizational variation on cancer screening, the changing demand for pediatric surgeons, research design of practice interventions and the relationships between academic health centers and managed care organizations. She currently is studying efforts to improve clinical quality at Veterans Administration facilities across clinical conditions and the nation. Parkerton is part of the evaluation teams assessing the national effort to transform care at the bedside in leadership hospitals.
Selected Cancer-Related Publications:
Yano EM, Soban LM, Parkerton PH, Etzioni DA. Primary care practice organization influences colorectal cancer screening performance. Health Serv Res. 2007 Jun;42(3 Pt 1):1130-49.
Etzioni DA, Yano EM, Rubenstein LV, Lee ML, Ko CY, Brook RH, Parkerton PH, Asch SM. Measuring the quality of colorectal cancer screening: the importance of follow-up. Dis Colon Rectum. 2006 Jul;49(7):1002-10.
Goldzweig CL, Parkerton PH, Washington DL, Lanto AB, Yano EM. Primary care practice and facility quality orientation: influence on breast and cervical cancer screening rates. Am J Manag Care. 2004 Apr;10(4):265-72.
Parkerton PH, Smith DG, Straley HL. Primary care practice coordination versus physician continuity. Fam Med. 2004 Jan;36(1):15-21.
Parkerton PH, Smith DG, Belin TR, Feldbau GA. Physician performance assessment: nonequivalence of primary care measures. Med Care. 2003 Sep;41(9):1034-47.