Bio: Elizabeth Davies, a 2003-04 Commonwealth Fund Harkness Fellow in Health Care Policy and Practice, is senior lecturer at the Thames Cancer Registry, Guy's, King's and St Thomas' School of Medicine, London. Her responsibilities include research and liaison with Cancer Networks in the Thames Region. She coordinated the development and editing of two reports on Palliative Care in collaboration with the European Office of the World Health Organisation. Davies has also developed policy for less common cancers at the Department of Health, evaluated the health technology appraisal program at the National Institute for Clinical Excellence and worked on the implementation of the Calman-Hine Report for Cancer Services at local health authorities. Her research has included an extensive study of the experience of patients with brain tumors and their families, and she coordinated the development of guidelines for best practice for their care at the Royal College of Physicians.
Placement: Harvard University
Mentors: Paul Cleary, Ph.D.
Project: Hearing the Patient’s Voice? Qualitative Case Study of Barriers to Using Patient Feedback and Survey Data in Quality Improvement
Description: Davies’ study aimed to identify the barriers faced by senior health professionals in using patient feedback and survey data in quality improvement. The study consisted of case studies of improvement efforts at eight health care organizations before and after they formed a patient experience collaborative. She conducted interviews with team leaders and members on the barriers to patient-centered care, both before and after they had formed the collaborative.