Health Care Systems Improvement

Professor of Medicine Sara Singer leads research in the field of health care management, focusing on organizational leadership and culture. She uses this management lens to address organizational challenges in the implementation of innovations in health care delivery, and in efforts to improve the safety and reliability of health care organizations. 

Projects and Outcomes

Overall, Dr. Singer found that high-performing teams were able to simultaneously focus on both functional change and cultural change. Low-performing teams, however, were only focused on one dimension of change, either functional or cultural.

Publications and News

6/16/21 Medical Care Research and Review

Social Features of Integration in Health Systems and Their Relationship to Provider Experience, Care Quality and Clinical Integration

A team led by CERC’s Sara Singer found that social features of integration lead to higher job satisfaction as well as higher perceived care quality.

5/24/21 - Health Services Research

Differences in patient perceptions of integrated care among black, hispanic, and white Medicare beneficiaries

This study by CERC’s Sara Singer and Maike Tietschert revealed differences in patient perceptions of integrated care among Black, Hispanic, and White Medicare beneficiaries.

12/7/20 - Health Services Research

Care Integration Within and Outside Health System Boundaries

CERC’s Sara Singer and former fellow Maike V. Tietschert: Action is needed to improve care integration within and outside health systems.

11/18/20 - JOEM

Employers’ Role in Employee Health Why They Do What They Do

CERC’s Sara Singer: Companies often view employee health primarily as a means to profitability rather than an end in itself.

5/11/20 - NEJM Catalyst

Leading Frontline Covid-19 Teams: Research-Informed Strategies

Health care organizations can benefit from decades of cross-industry research, according to Sara Singer of CERC.

04/07/19 Stanford Graduate School of Business

What Makes Some Health Care Teams More Effective Than Others?

High-performing health care teams focus on functional and cultural change simultaneously, while low-performing teams focus on just one type of change.

11/25/19 HMPI

Private and Public Incentives for Hospitals to Improve the Quality and Reduce the Cost of Care

Improving the quality of care while reducing spending is one of the few healthcare goals that enjoys near universal bipartisan political support. Hospitals account for over one third of all U.S. healthcare spending.

05/18/18 Family Practice

Relationship among team dynamics, care coordination and perception of safety culture in primary care

There remains a need to improve patient safety in primary care settings. Studies have demonstrated that creating high-performing teams can improve patient safety and encourage a safety culture within hospital settings, but little is known about this relationship in primary care.