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VA Health Care: Allegations Concerning VA's Patient Mortality Study

HRD-89-80 Published: May 18, 1989. Publicly Released: May 18, 1989.
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Highlights

In response to a congressional request, GAO reviewed allegations that the Department of Veterans Affairs (VA) altered the design of a patient mortality study to obtain more favorable results, focusing on: (1) whether the Chief Medical Director or any other VA official attempted to give the appearance that VA had fewer quality assurance problems at its medical centers than actually existed; and (2) the decision to use a 99-percent confidence level to calculate summary hospital mortality data.

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Ethical conductHospital care servicesMedical researchQuality assuranceResearch program managementStatistical methodsVeterans hospitalsMortalityHospitalsPatient care