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The Arbor Research Collaborative for Health conducts major studies in epidemiology and public health.
In particular, Arbor Research offers expertise in biostatistical analysis, clinical practice, management
and integration of large data sets, economics, and public policy. Since 1997 we have engaged in health
outcomes research on chronic disease and end-stage organ failure, including the international Dialysis
Outcomes and Practice Patterns Study (www.dopps.org), the Scientific Registry of Transplant Recipients
(www.ustransplant.org), and numerous studies for the U.S. Department of Health and Human Services.
Arbor Research is a not-for-profit research organization based in Ann Arbor, Michigan.
Transforming Data into Knowledge
We conduct the research behind important and difficult questions of health care policy,
including allocation of scarce organs for transplantation and clinical practice opportunities
to improve care for dialysis patients. Arbor Research is committed to improving patient lives
through research. Large-scale prospective studies, original data collection, and analysis of
existing databases are among the approaches we apply. Our analysts contribute at every step in
these investigations, from study design and detailed biostatistical analysis to the identification
of research implications for health care practice and policy. Close ties between Arbor Research and
biostatisticians and clinicians at the University of Michigan bolster our ability to perform rigorous
research.
Excellence in Data Management and Analysis
Amassing and managing large data sets is at the heart of our
work, through original data collection and integration of existing health databases.
Sometimes the most valuable databases are geared toward function rather than research.
Arbor Research has considerable experience adapting such databases, ranging from transplant waiting lists to
Medicare billing data, for statistical outcomes research. When developing questionnaires, our clinicians and
statisticians collaborate to ensure that data collection will be feasible, informative, and powerful.
We work with both electronic and paper-based data collection systems, gathering information from a wide
range of health care sources: doctors, technicians, nurses, insurers, and patients themselves.
Arbor Research has created a flexible yet consistent online data entry platform that may be used in
multiple languages and cultures. We also work extensively with national Medicare data and other private
and public databases. Such integration can validate a study, increase its sample size, and enhance its
statistical power.
Sharing Knowledge with Decisionmakers, Practitioners, and the Public
Our research is directed toward practical outcomes,
knowing how to ask the right questions to achieve useful evidence-based answers.
Applied study of patient-level data can result in improved policy and practice;
Arbor Research manages all the steps in this process, from study design to publication of results.
Since 1997, we have published over 100 articles in peer-reviewed medical journals,
addressing key matters of health care policy and clinical practice. Our investigators and analysts have
contributed to the development of informed public policy by providing detailed research to federal agencies,
medical societies and clinicians around the world.
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