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Interventions to Improve Veterans’ Access to Care: A Systematic Review of the Literature

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Abstract

Objectives

To conduct a systematic review to address the following key questions: (1) what interventions have been successful in improving access for veterans with reduced health care access? (2) Have interventions that have improved health care access led to improvements in process and clinical outcomes?

Data Sources

OVID MEDLINE, CINAHL, PsychINFO.

Study Eligibility Criteria, Participants, and Interventions

English language articles published in peer-reviewed journals from 1990 to June 2010. All interventions designed to improve access to health care for US veterans that reported the impact of the intervention on perceived (e.g., satisfaction with access) or objective (e.g., travel time, wait time) access were included.

Appraisal and Synthesis Methods

Investigators abstracted data on study design, study quality, intervention, and impact of the intervention on access, process outcomes, and clinical outcomes.

Results

Nineteen articles (16 unique studies) met the inclusion criteria. While there were a small number of studies in support of any one intervention, all showed a positive impact on either perceived or objective measures of access. Implementation of Community Based Outpatient Clinics (n = 5 articles), use of Telemedicine (n = 5 articles), and Primary Care Mental Health Integration (n = 6 articles) improved access. All 16 unique studies reported process outcomes, most often satisfaction with care and utilization. Four studies reported clinical outcomes; three found no differences.

Limitations

Included studies were largely of poor to fair methodological quality.

Conclusions and Implications of Key Findings

Interventions can improve access to health care for veterans. Increased access was consistently linked to increased primary care utilization. There was a lack of data regarding the link between access and clinical outcomes; however, the limited data suggest that increased access may not improve clinical outcomes. Future research should focus on the quality and appropriateness of care and clinical outcomes.

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Acknowledgements

This report is based on research conducted by the Evidence-based Synthesis Program (ESP) Center located at the Minneapolis VA Health Care System, Minneapolis, MN, funded by the Department of Veterans Affairs, Veterans Health Administration, Office of Research and Development, Health Services Research and Development. The findings and conclusions in this document are those of the author(s) who are responsible for its contents; the findings and conclusions do not necessarily represent the views of the Department of Veterans Affairs or the United States government. Therefore, no statement in this article should be construed as an official position of the Department of Veterans Affairs. This material is the result of work supported with resources and the use of facilities at the Minneapolis VA Medical Center, Minneapolis, MN. Dr. Kehle is supported by a VA Health Services Research & Development Career Development Award.

Conflict of Interest

None disclosed.

Author information

Authors and Affiliations

  1. Center for Chronic Disease Outcomes Research, Minneapolis VA Healthcare System, Minneapolis, MN, USA

    Shannon M. Kehle PhD, Nancy Greer PhD, Indulis Rutks BA & Timothy Wilt MD, MPH

  2. Department of Medicine, University of Minnesota, Minneapolis, MN, USA

    Shannon M. Kehle PhD & Timothy Wilt MD, MPH

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  1. Shannon M. Kehle PhD
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  2. Nancy Greer PhD
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Correspondence to Shannon M. Kehle PhD.

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Kehle, S.M., Greer, N., Rutks, I. et al. Interventions to Improve Veterans’ Access to Care: A Systematic Review of the Literature. J GEN INTERN MED 26 (Suppl 2), 689 (2011). https://doi.org/10.1007/s11606-011-1849-8

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  • DOI: https://doi.org/10.1007/s11606-011-1849-8

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