Division of General Internal Medicine

Division of General Internal Medicine
faculty photo

Rachel M. Werner, MD, PhD

Assistant Professor of Medicine
Attending Physician
Core faculty member, Philadelphia VAMC
Fellow
Senior Fellow
Department: Medicine

Contact information
Division of General Internal Medicine
1230 Blockley Hall
423 Guardian Drive
University of Pennsylvania School of Medicine
Philadelphia, PA 19104
Office: (215) 898-0278
Fax: (215) 573-8778
Education:
B.A. (Political Science)
Macalester College, St. Paul, Minnesota, MD, 1992.
M.D. (Medicine)
University of Pennsylvania School of Medicine, 1998.
Ph.D. (Health Economics)
The Wharton School, University of Pennsylvania, 2004.
Post-Graduate Training
Intern in Internal Medicine, Hospital of the University of Pennsylvania, 1998-1999.
Resident in Internal Medicine, Hospital of the University of Pennsylvania, 1999-2001.
Fellow, Division of General Internal Medicine , Hospital of the University of Pennsylvania, 2001-2004.
Certifications
American Board of Internal Medicine, 2001.
Permanent link
 
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Description of Research Expertise

Quality improvement incentives
Quality of care
Health economics
Racial disparities

Dr. Werner’s research program focuses on how quality improvement initiatives, such as pay for performance and public reporting, change health care delivery, health care organization and finances, racial disparities, and overall quality of care. Her work was among the first to recognize that public reporting of quality information may worsen racial disparities and has been recognized through numerous awards including the Dissertation Award from AcademyHealth, the John D. Thompson Prize for Young Investigators from the Association of University Programs in Health Administration, and Article of the Year Award from the Society of General Internal Medicine for her JAMA article on the relationship between measured performance and mortality rates in hospitals. Dr. Werner is currently principal investigator of an R-01 from the AHRQ examining the mechanisms by which public reporting in nursing homes impacts quality of care. She is also the recipient of numerous other externally funded grants, including a Pharmaceutical Roundtable Award from the American Heart Association; a Williams Scholar Award in Geriatrics; and a VA Career Development Award.

Selected Publications

Werner RM, McNutt R: A new strategy to improve quality: rewarding actions rather than measures (invited commentary). JAMA 301(13): 1375-1377, 2009.

Werner RM, Bradlow EB: Does improving process performance improve overall quality? Changes in hospital performance and associated changes in outcomes. Health Affairs In press.

Werner RM, Konetzka RT, Kruse GB: The impact of public reporting on unreported quality of care. Health Services Research 44: 379-398, 2009.

Konetzka RT, Werner RM: Disparities in long-term care: building equity into market-based reforms. Medical Care Research and Review In press.

Werner RM, Konetzka RT, Stuart EA, Norton EC, Polsky D, Park J: The impact of public reporting on quality of post-acute care. Health Services Research 44: 1169-1187, 2009.

Werner RM, Bradlow ET, Asch DA: Does hospital performance on process measures directly measure high quality care or is it a marker of unmeasured care? Health Services Research 43: 1464-1484, 2008.

Werner RM, Goldman LE, Dudley RA: Comparison of change in quality of care between safety-net and non-safety-net hospitals. JAMA 299: 2180-2187, 2008.

Werner RM, Asch DA: The unintended consequences of publicly reporting quality information. JAMA 293: 1239-1244, 2005.

Werner RM, Asch DA, Polsky P: Racial profiling: the unintended consequences of coronary artery bypass graft report cards. Circulation 111: 1257-1263, 2005.

Werner RM, Bradlow ET.: Relationship between Medicare's Hospital Compare performance measures and mortality rates. JAMA 296: 2694-2702, 2006 Notes: Erratum in: JAMA. 2007;297:700

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Last updated: 09/24/2009
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