Open Textbook Library: Medicine TextbooksThe Open Textbook Library is a comprehensive database of open textbooks. This is the link to the English language medical subset of this collection.
American Medical Informatics Association (AMIA)AMIA and its members discover insights and advance knowledge from healthcare's data to accelerate the transformation of health and healthcare. This si a professional a community committed to a vision of a world where informatics transforms people’s care. Through education, training, accreditation, certification and advocacy, AMIA supports the current and next generation of informatics professionals.
Clinical Informatics [American Board of Preventive Medicine]Physicians who practice Clinical Informatics collaborate with other health care and information technology professionals to analyze, design, implement and evaluate information and communication systems that enhance individual and population health outcomes, improve patient care, and strengthen the clinician-patient relationship. Clinical Informaticians use their knowledge of patient care combined with their understanding of informatics concepts, methods, and tools to: assess information and knowledge needs of healthcare professionals and patients; characterize, evaluate, and refine clinical processes; develop, implement, and refine clinical decision support systems; and lead or participate in the procurement, customization, development, implementation, management, evaluation, and continuous improvement of clinical information systems.
Health Services Research Information Central: Health Informatics [National Library of Medicine]This site includes health informatics resources from NLM including:
• News
• Predefined search queries for multiple NLM resources
• Data, tools , and statistics
• Guidelines, journals, and other publications
• Grants, funding, and fellowships
• Meetings, conferences, and webcasts
• Directory of key U.S.-based and international organizations
Healthcare Information and Management Systems Society (HIMSS)HIMSS is a global, cause-based, not-for-profit organization focused on better health through information and technology. HIMSS leads efforts to optimize health engagements and care outcomes using information technology.
Penn State Clinical & Translation Science Institute - Informatics ConsultationsInformatics consultations can include:
• Integration of informatics in translational research activities
• User training and education
• Integration of electronic health records (EHR) with genomic, contextual (environmental and socio-economic) and wearable sensor data, etc.
• Design, implementation and deployment of advanced data analytics
Eligibility: Consultations open to members of the Penn State community.
Cost: Free
EBM Pyramids [Penn State ScholarSphere]This is collection of 3 evidence-based medicine pyramids developed by the library staff at both Harrell health Sciences Library and Central Michigan University.
Evidence-Based Medicine: Teaching Materials [Dartmouth College]This website includes online resources providing an overview of EBM, along with other web-based resources supporting the practice of EBM. It also includes critical appraisal worksheets developed by the Dartmouth Biomedical Libraries.
Health Care Delivery System Reform [The Commonwealth Fund]The Commonwealth Fund’s Health Care Delivery System Reform program believes rapid, meaningful change in well-being is possible for both groups. Moreover, we believe improvements in care for these patients can spur better performance across the entire health system.
Peterson-Kaiser Health System TrackerThe Peterson Center on Healthcare and the Kaiser Family Foundation are partnering to monitor how well the U.S. healthcare system is performing in terms of quality and cost. The Peterson-Kaiser Health System Tracker provides clear, up-to-date information on trends, drivers and issues that impact the performance of the system. It also illustrates how the U.S. is performing relative to other countries and how different parts of the system are performing relative to one another.
Health Policy Resources
Center for Public Health Policy [American Public Health Association]APHA's Center for Public Health Policy highlights the connections between communities - where we live, work, play and learn - and our collective health. They advance evidence-based policies and practices to address the social determinants of health and create health equity for all. They also serve as a catalyst for positive change by influencing public policy at all levels of government and within the private sector.
Health Policy Institute [Georgetown University]The Health Policy Institute is a multi-disciplinary group of faculty and staff dedicated to conducting research on key issues in health policy and health services research. Institute members are engaged in a wide diversity of projects, focusing on issues relating to health care financing, the uninsured, federal health insurance reforms, quality of care and outcomes research, mental health services research, and the impact of changes in the health care market on providers and patients.
NPR Shots: Policy-ishNational Public Radio (NPR) provides health news. This particular section focuses on health policy-related news items.
Stanford Health Policy [Stanford University]The mission of Stanford Health Policy is to improve health through better health policy. They accomplish this mission through innovative, interdisciplinary research and training.
U.S. Health Care Policy [RAND Corporation]Extensive RAND research offers insights about the likely impact of repealing or revising the ACA along key dimensions, including Medicaid, the individual mandate, effects on employers, tax subsidies, changing rate regulations, and essential health benefits. They have also explored effects of alternatives to the ACA, including a single payer system.
Health Professions Education
American Association of Colleges of Nursing (AACN)The American Association of Colleges of Nursing (AACN) is the national voice for academic nursing. AACN works to establish quality standards for nursing education; assists schools in implementing those standards; influences the nursing profession to improve health care; and promotes public support for professional nursing education, research, and practice.
American Association of Colleges of Osteopathic Medicine (AACOM): EducationThis site provides Resources and support to develop and maintain optimal learning environments that enable inclusion, wellness, intellectual curiosity and academic mastery across the continuum of osteopathic medical education. DO students make up 255 of all U.S. medical students.
Association of Schools Advancing Health Professions (ASAHP)The Association of Schools Advancing Health Professions (ASAHP) is professional association for administrators, educators, and others who were concerned with critical issues affecting allied health education.
Health Education Assets Library (HEAL)The Health Education Assets Library (HEAL) is a collection of over 22,000 freely available digital materials for health sciences education. The collection is now housed at the University of Utah J. Willard Marriott Digital Library.
Interprofessional Education Collaborative (IPEC)The mission of IPEC is to promote, encourage and support efforts to prepare future health professionals so that they enter the workforce ready for interprofessional collaborative practice that helps to ensure the health of individuals and populations.
Liaison Committee on Medical Education (LCME)Medical education programs leading to the MD degree in the United States and Canada are accredited by the Liaison Committee on Medical Education (LCME). The LCME’s scope is limited to complete and independent medical education programs whose students are geographically located in the United States or Canada for their education and that are operated by universities or medical schools chartered in the United States or Canada.
MedEd PortalThis is AAMC's open-access medical education journal of teaching and learning resources in the health professions.
American Association for Physician LeadershipThis professional organization addresses the rapid changes in health care and is tailored to meet the needs of physician leaders of all types at all stages of their careers.
American Interprofessional Health CollaborativeThe American Interprofessional Health Collaborative is committed to the preparation and deployment of a workforce that exemplifies ethics and values for interprofessional collaboration; that understands the breadth and complexity of roles and responsibilities for collaborative practice; that has the foundational skills for effective interprofessional communication; and has the requisite competencies for interprofessional teamwork and provision of team-based care of individuals, communities, and populations. The American Interprofessional Health Collaborative promotes the scholarship and leadership necessary to develop interprofessional education and transform health professions education across the learning continuum, for students, practitioners, and educators.
Interprofessional Education Collaborative (IPEC)The mission of IPEC is to promote, encourage and support efforts to prepare future health professionals so that they enter the workforce ready for interprofessional collaborative practice that helps to ensure the health of individuals and populations.
Healthcare Leadership CouncilThe Healthcare Leadership Council (HLC), a coalition of chief executives from all disciplines within American healthcare, is the exclusive forum for the nation’s healthcare leaders to jointly develop policies, plans, and programs to achieve their vision of a 21st century system that makes affordable, high-quality care accessible to all Americans.
National Center for Healthcare LeadershipThe National Center for Healthcare Leadership (NCHL) is a not-for-profit organization that works to ensure that high-quality, relevant, and accountable leadership is available to meet the needs of 21st century healthcare. Their vision is to optimize the health of the public through leadership and organizational excellence.
Physician Leadership Development [American College of Healthcare Executives]This site contains articles and videos regarding the role of physicians as leaders. The American College of Healthcare Executives (ACHE) is an professional organization that has the mission to advance its members and healthcare management excellence.
Physician-Led Team-Based Care [American Medical Association]Physician-led team-based care can help achieve these goals and is consistent with the American Medical Association’s long-term strategic effort to shape innovative payment and delivery models, prepare future physicians to work in interprofessional teams and improve health outcomes.
Patient Safety [Joint Commission]The Joint Commission accredits and certifies nearly 21,000 health care organizations and programs in the United States. Joint Commission accreditation and certification is recognized nationwide as a symbol of quality that reflects an organization’s commitment to meeting certain performance standards. This webpage provides standards and resources that address patient safety in these settings.
Patient Safety [MedlinePlus]The is the National Library of Medicine's resource guide for patients and families, providing resources for creating an active partnership for patient safety with their heath care providers.
Pennsylvania Patient Safety AuthorityThis Pennsylvania government agency is charged with taking steps to reduce and eliminate medical errors by identifying problems and recommending solutions that promote patient safety in hospitals, ambulatory surgical facilities, birthing centers and certain abortion facilities.
Quality and Patient Safety Resources [Agency for Healthcare Research and Quality (AHRQ)]This U.S. Department of Health and Human Services agency offers practical, research-based tools and resources to help a variety of health care organizations, providers, and others make care safer in all health care settings. These tools help staff in hospitals, emergency departments, long-term care facilities, and ambulatory settings to prevent avoidable complications of care.
ActivEPIThis is a multimedia learning tool for epidemiology. It includes 5 lessons with narrated instructional expositions that use video and animation. Also included are interactive study questions and quizzes.
CDC Health Disparities and Inequalities Report (CHDIR)The CDC and its partners work to identify and address the factors that lead to health disparities among racial, ethnic, geographic, socioeconomic, and other groups so that barriers to health equity can be removed. The first step in this process is to shine a bright light on the problems to be solved. Providing accurate, useful data on the causes of illness and death in the United States and across the world is a foundation of CDC's mission and work.
Centre County Open DataThis is a repository of GIS open data for Centre County, PA. The categories of available data include environment, boundaries, locations, and infrastructure.
Dauphin County, PA GIS Data PortalThis is a repository of GIS open data for Duaphin County, PA. The categories of available data include environment, boundaries,elevation, election, hazards & safety, hydrology, tax assessment, transportation, and planning.
Global Health Observatory (GHO) Data [World Health Organization]This is WHO's gateway to health-related statistics for its 194 Member States. The aim of the GHO portal is to provide easy access to:
• Country data and statistics with a focus on comparable estimates
• WHO’s analyses to monitor global, regional and country situation and trends
Health Alert Network (HAN) [Centers for Disease Control & Prevention (CDC)]CDC's Health Alert Network (HAN) is CDC's primary method of sharing cleared information about urgent public health incidents with public information officers; federal, state, territorial, and local public health practitioners; clinicians; and public health laboratories. HAN collaborates with federal, state, territorial, and city/county partners to develop protocols and stakeholder relationships that will ensure a robust interoperable platform for the rapid distribution of public health information.
Health Impact Assessment (HIA) [World Health Organization]Health Impact Assessment (HIA) is a means of assessing the health impacts of policies, plans and projects in diverse economic sectors using quantitative, qualitative and participatory techniques. HIA helps decision-makers make choices about alternatives and improvements to prevent disease/injury and to actively promote health. WHO supports tools and initiatives in HIA to dynamically improve health and well-being across sectors.
Healthy People 2030Healthy People 2030 sets data-driven national objectives to improve health and well-being over the next decade. It includes 355 core - or measurable - objectives, as well as developmental and research objectives.
MedEdPORTAL: Diversity, Inclusion, and Health Equity Collection [Association of American Medical Colleges (AAMC)]The MedEdPORTAL Diversity, Inclusion, and Health Equity Collection, in co-sponsorship with the American Dental Education Association (ADEA), features peer-reviewed educational resources for educators to advance institutional efforts in creating a diverse and inclusive culture and climate for all in order to drive clinical, educational, research and service excellence.
NCHHSTP Social Determinants of Health [Centers for Disease Control & Prevention (CDC)]Social determinants of health are the circumstances in which people are born, grow up, live, work, and age. This also includes the systems in place to offer health care and services to a community. This website is use to locate professional resources, background, data, maps, statistics, and information about organizations addressing social determinants of health.
Priority Populations [Agency for Healthcare Research and Quality]Research on priority populations has been emphasized and encouraged by AHRQ, but research results lag in their ability to identify evidence-based solutions to improving healthcare safety, quality, efficiency and effectiveness. AHRQ's priority populations include: women, children, racial and ethnic minorities, populations with special health care needs (chronic illness, disabilities, and end of life care needs), the elderly, low-income, inner-city, and rural populations.
Open Data PennsylvaniaOne of the most valuable and underutilized resources in state government is data. The goal is to make data available in order to measure government performance, engage citizens, create economic opportunities, and develop innovative policy solutions.
Public Health 101 Series [Centers for Disease Control & Prevention (CDC)]The Public Health 101 Series provides an introduction to public health and covers the sciences essential to public health practice. The fundamental scientific components span topics in epidemiology, public health informatics and surveillance, health economics, public health laboratory science, and related fields. Materials are offered in different formats for use by learners and instructors.
Rural Health Information Hub (RHIhub)The Rural Health Information Hub is funded by the Federal Office of Rural Health Policy to be a national clearinghouse on rural health issues. It is committed to supporting healthcare and population health in rural communities. The RHIhub is a guide to improving health for rural residents by providing access to current and reliable resources and tools.
Quality Improvement in Health Care Resources
Engagement in Health Research Literature Explorer [ Patient-Centered Outcomes Research Institute (PCORI)]PCORI staff members have put together a searchable list of publications on engagement in health research. This resource is sortable by article topic type, types of stakeholders engaged, and phase(s) of research in which engagement occurred, from identifying research questions to sharing study results. Articles are listed if they met our search and inclusion criteria.
Institute for Healthcare ImprovementThe Institute for Healthcare Improvement takes a unique approach to working with health systems, countries, and other organizations on improving quality, safety, and value in health care. This approach is called the science of improvement, which is an applied science that emphasizes innovation, rapid-cycle testing in the field, and spread in order to generate learning about what changes, in which contexts, produce improvements.
Medicaid.gov: Quality of Care [Center for Medicaid and CHIP Services (CMCS)]The Center for Medicaid and CHIP Services (CMCS) partners with states to share best practices and provide technical assistance to improve the quality of care. CMCS’s efforts are guided by the overarching aims of the Centers for Medicare & Medicaid Services (CMS) Quality Strategy : better health, better care, lower cost through improvement.
National Quality Forum (NQF)The National Quality Forum (NQF) is one of the many organizations working to improve the quality of healthcare in the U.S. The quality of the healthcare that Americans receive varies greatly across social, economic, and geographic boundaries. Recent studies have indicated that American adults receive recommended care only about 55 percent of the time; that disparities exist in the way care is delivered to racial and ethnic minorities; and that 30 percent of healthcare spending is wasteful and produces no value to the patient.
Value-Based Care Resources
Center for Healthcare Value (CHV) [University of California San Francisco]The CHV brings together expertise in clinical care, research methods, implementation sciences, health policy, health care delivery, law, information technology, entrepreneurship, and business to address the barriers to providing high-quality, efficient, and cost-effective healthcare and innovation. Through the development of proven, replicable interventions, the CHV will develop and test local and national models for improving healthcare value.
Fair Health ConsumerThis is a searchable consumer-education database used for estimating heath care costs by location. Data also includes costs for insured (both in & out-of-network) vs. uninsured patients.
Health Economics [National Institutes of Health]The Common Fund’s Health Economics program supports research to understand how innovations in treatments, diagnosis, and preventive strategies can be most effectively deployed to improve health and well-being. Research supported by this program identifies factors determining adoption of effective health technologies, innovations, and discoveries, so that past and future investments by NIH may have greater public health impact.
Health Economics [RAND Corporation]Financing the efficient delivery of medical services while reducing costs for consumers as well as health care providers is among the most challenging domestic policy problems many countries face. RAND addresses health economics issues through innovative, high-profile research in an effort to improve the efficiency of health care organizations, reduce costs for providers and consumers, and improve financing in health care markets.
Healthcare Cost and Utilization Project (HCUP) [Agency for Healthcare Research and Quality (AHRQ)]HCUP is the Nation's most comprehensive source of hospital care data, including information on in-patient stays, ambulatory surgery and services visits, and emergency department encounters. HCUP enables researchers, insurers, policymakers and others to study health care delivery and patient outcomes over time, and at the national, regional, State, and community levels.
Michigan Value Collaborative Blog [University of Michigan & Blue Cross/Blue Shield/Blue Care of Michigan]The goal of the Michigan Value Collaborative (MVC) is to help Michigan hospitals achieve their best possible patient outcomes at the lowest reasonable cost. It is a partnership between Michigan hospitals and Blue Cross and Blue Shield of Michigan/Blue Care Network. Working in conjunction with the many specialty-specific Collaborative Quality Improvement (CQI) programs in BCBSM’s Value Partnership Program, MVC aims to understand variation in healthcare use, identify best practices, and lead interventions for improving care before, during, and after hospitalization. The program improves healthcare quality across Michigan through rigorous performance feedback, empirical identification of best practices, and collaborative learning.
Pennsylvania Health Care Cost Containment CouncilThis is an independent state agency responsible for addressing the problem of escalating health costs, ensuring the quality of health care, and increasing access for all citizens regardless of ability to pay.
Value-Based Health Care Delivery [Harvard University]Value-Based Health Care Delivery is a framework for restructuring health care systems around the globe with the overarching goal of value for patients—not access, cost containment, convenience, or customer service.
