Outcomes research seeks to understand the end results of particular health care practices and interventions. End results include effects that people experience and care about, such as change in the ability to function. In particular, for individuals with chronic conditions—where cure is not always possible—end results include quality of life as well as mortality. By linking the care people get to the outcomes they experience, outcomes research has become the key to developing better ways to monitor and improve the quality of care.

U.S. Dept. of Health and Human Services, Agency for Healthcare Research and Quality Publication No. 00-P011

DVOResearch helps to establish links between health care delivery and patient outcomes. These links aid the medical community in developing stronger monitoring techniques and higher quality practices.