How disasters change hospitals that serve communities facing health disparities

Disasters and Hospital Systems Serving Populations That Experience Health Disparities: Identifying the Long Term effects of Pandemics and Disasters in Order to Mitigate Future Challenges

NIH-funded research Brigham and Women's Hospital · NIH-11401683

This project looks at how pandemics and other disasters changed hospitals that care for racial and ethnic minority and other underserved communities, focusing on quality, staffing, finances, and innovation.

Quick facts

Grant typeR01 grant
Study typeNIH-funded research
Funding institutionBrigham and Women's Hospital NIH-funded
Lab location1 site (Boston, United States)
Project IDNIH-11401683 on NIH RePORTER

What this research studies

The team will combine a national survey, interviews, and quantitative data to track long-term effects of pandemics on hospital quality, workforce, finances, and innovation. They will partner with the American Hospital Association and America’s Essential Hospitals and survey about 2,000 hospitals across the United States. The mixed-methods approach will compare hospitals that primarily serve disadvantaged communities with others to find what helped or hurt during and after disasters. Results will highlight practical lessons and best practices hospitals used before, during, and after pandemics.

Who could benefit from this research

Good fit: This project seeks participation from hospital leaders, clinicians, or staff at hospitals that primarily serve racial and ethnic minority and other underserved communities.

Not a fit: Patients who receive care only at hospitals that do not serve disparity populations or who are not affected by disasters may not see direct benefits from this specific project.

Why it matters

Potential benefit: If successful, this work could help hospitals serving underserved communities prepare for and recover from disasters, improving care and reducing health disparities.

How similar studies have performed: Smaller or regional studies have examined disaster impacts on hospitals before, but this is the first major national mixed-methods effort focused specifically on hospitals serving disparity populations.

Where this research is happening

Boston, United States

Researchers

About this research

  1. This is an active NIH-funded research project — typically early-stage science, not a clinical trial accepting patient enrollment.
  2. Some NIH-funded labs run parallel clinical studies or seek volunteers for related work. To check, contact the principal investigator or institution listed above.
  3. For full project details, budget, and progress reports, visit the official NIH RePORTER page below.
Last reviewed 2026-06-13 by the Find a Trial editorial team. Information on this page is for educational purposes and is not medical advice. Always consult qualified healthcare professionals about clinical trial participation.