How network patterns in hospitals affect care quality for kids in emergency rooms
Official title: Role of network structures in quality of care for children in EDs
Funded at Massachusetts General Hospital · NIH-11600940 · Data updated 2026-11-12
This grant looks at how hospital networks and centralization of care influence the quality of emergency care for children and aims to use better information sharing and telemedicine to improve outcomes.
Quick facts
| Grant type | NIH-funded research |
|---|---|
| Study type | NIH-funded research |
| Funding institution | Massachusetts General Hospital NIH-funded |
| Lab location | 1 site (Boston, United States) |
| Project start | August 1, 2021 |
| Project end | August 31, 2028 |
| Funding year | 2026 |
| Award (this year) | $991,798 |
| NIH project number | 2R56HD103637-05A1 |
| Project ID | NIH-11600940 on NIH RePORTER |
Who could benefit from this research
✓Could help
Ideal candidates are children up to 11 years old who seek emergency department care and may be affected by how hospital networks are organized.
✕Less likely to help
Patients treated in EDs with already optimal pediatric readiness and centralized support may see limited additional benefit.
What this research studies
In many cases, children are treated in general EDs that may not be fully prepared for pediatric needs. The project explores how local hospital networks and centralization—where a central children’s hospital supports others—might improve diagnosis and disposition for pediatric patients. It plans to analyze hospital characteristics and network structures, then test whether centralized clusters correlate with better pediatric readiness and fewer unnecessary transfers. The goal is to create systems that help general EDs provide higher-quality care with enhanced information transfer and training.
Why it matters
Potential benefit: If successful, this work could help general EDs deliver safer, quicker, and more accurate care for children through better coordination and support from pediatric centers.
How similar studies have gone: Previous work suggests that hospital characteristics and transfer patterns influence pediatric outcomes, and this study extends that to network centralization.
Where this research is happening
-
Massachusetts General Hospital
Boston, United States Active
Researchers
- Principal investigator: Samuels-Kalow, Margaret Emily — Massachusetts General Hospital
- Study coordinator: Samuels-Kalow, Margaret Emily
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About this research
- This is an active NIH-funded research project — typically early-stage science, not a clinical trial accepting patient enrollment.
- Some NIH-funded labs run parallel clinical studies or seek volunteers for related work. To check, contact the principal investigator or institution listed above.
- For full project details, budget, and progress reports, visit the official NIH RePORTER page.