Donna L Washington

..We then discuss challenges and potential solutions for increasing representation of women veterans in VA research, including steps for implementation research...

..Eliminating access disparities requires a better understanding of the barriers to care that women veterans' experience...

..We assessed women veterans' ratings of their VA health care quality, gender-related satisfaction, gender appropriateness, and VA provider skills in treating women, in relation to primary care model at VA sites nationwide...

..Adoption of these additional databases would enhance the value and generalizability of a wide range of studies of both male and female veterans...

..Women veterans are three to four times more likely than non-veteran women to become homeless. However, their risk factors for homelessness have not been defined...

..We describe what is known about reducing racial-ethnic disparities in clinical practice and make recommendations for how clinician leaders can apply this evidence to transform their own practices...

..Effects of advances in Department of Veterans Affairs (VA) women's health care on women veterans' health care decision making are unknown. Our objective was to determine why women veterans use or do not use VA health care...

..However, the challenge of providing comprehensive care to a group that is an extreme minority within VA may still leave gaps in the delivery of necessary health care services...

..Additional facilitators for reducing unmet need should be explored...

..We assessed racial/ethnic variations in patterns of ambulatory care use among Department of Veterans Affairs (VA) health care-eligible veterans to determine if racial/ethnic differences in health care use persist in equal-access systems...

..Future work should evaluate cost and quality trade-offs between using non-VA sites to increase specialized service availability and using VA sites to enhance continuity of care...

..This article reports on the first national assessment of variations in the organization of care for women veterans...

..We report on the diffusion and characteristics of VA women's health clinics (WHCs) 10 years later...

..Veteran identity may vary by race/ethnicity because the sociohistorical context of the military experience varies by race...

..Despite the importance of early cancer detection, variation in screening rates among physicians is high. Insights into factors influencing variation can guide efforts to decrease variation and increase screening rates...

..We assessed the state of women veterans' health research by conducting a systematic review of scientific literature published from 2004 to 2008, updating a prior review spanning the history of this literature to 2004...

..Strategies varied in their effectiveness at reaching specific racial or ethnic groups and veterans from different cohorts of war service...

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..Little was known about these women's patterns of health care utilization when VHA and IHS executed a resource-sharing agreement in 2003 to improve access and health outcomes...

..Yet few data are available on ED waiting times among a heterogeneous group of hospitals serving a distinct geographic region...

..However, knowledge of EC alone does not predict use, and few population data exist to describe EC use among those aware of the method...

..The study's implications and limitations are noted. This research (conducted in Los Angeles, California) was funded by the American Legacy Foundation with additional VA support...

..Further research is needed to determine how fragmentation of women's care into reproductive and nonreproductive services impacts access to contraception and the incidence of unintended pregnancy...

..Mental illness may be a barrier to achieving timely and appropriate cancer screening. We evaluated the association of mental illness with receipt of and adherence to breast, cervical, and colorectal cancer screening among women Veterans...

..The trend toward increasing racial and ethnic diversity in the United States will put further pressure on the public health industry to develop consistent and useful approaches to racial/ethnic classifications...

..This paper provides a grounded description of women veterans' pathways into homelessness...

..Because of overcrowding and cost-control efforts, emergency departments are under pressure to refer patients with nonacute conditions to other settings. However, no validated systematic methods exist for safely performing such referrals...

..We assessed variations in women's mental health care delivery arrangements in VA facilities nationwide...

..The RAND-UCLA Appropriateness Method is one commonly used method for collecting expert opinion. We tested whether a less expensive, mail-only process could substitute for the standard in-person process normally used...

..Our objective was to understand organizational influences on the development of WHCs for PC delivery in Veterans Health Administration (VA) facilities...

..Dissemination of accurate information about VA eligibility and services, and continued responsiveness to women's perceptions of care are indicated...

..Limited availability of on-call specialists is thought to contribute to ED overcrowding...

..Data supporting perceptions of inadequate capacity are sparse and conflicting. We describe changes in the use and capacity of California's EDs between 1990 and 1999, as well as trends in severity of patient illness or injury...

..We evaluated onsite availability of gynecologic services, clinic type and staffing arrangements, and the impact of having a gynecology clinic (GYN) and/or an obstetrician gynecologist (OBGYN) routinely available...