About the Outcomes Research Branch

The mission of the Outcomes Research Branch (ORB), one of three branches in the Healthcare Delivery Research Program (HDRP), is to coordinate and sponsor research to measure, monitor, evaluate, and improve patient experiences, health outcomes, and quality of care across the cancer continuum. The purpose of this research is to understand the perspectives of cancer patients/survivors and their family members across the lifecourse, and to integrate those perspectives into healthcare delivery that facilitates patient engagement, and optimizes health and well-being.

ORB supports both methodological and applied research directed toward a variety of aims:

• enhancing the state of the science of outcomes measurement (the development, refinement and implementation of measures, measurement systems, and methods that monitor patient/survivor health);
• understanding patient symptoms and health-related quality of life (HRQOL) in cancer clinical trials, observational research and surveillance studies of cancer prevention, early detection, treatment, survivorship, and end-of-life care; and
• assessing, monitoring, and enhancing the quality of cancer care, patient experiences, and outcomes at all levels -- patient, provider, organization, and health system.

Current Initiatives

• HealthMeasures
• Improving the Management of symPtoms during And following Cancer Treatment (IMPACT)
• Patient-Reported Outcomes version of the Common Terminology Criteria for Adverse Events (PRO-CTCAE)
• SEER-CAHPS (Consumer Assessment of Healthcare Providers and Systems) Linked Data Resource
• SEER-MHOS (Medicare Health Outcomes Survey) Linked Data Resource

Meet Our Staff