[Federal Register Volume 63, Number 48 (Thursday, March 12, 1998)]
[Notices]
[Pages 12103-12104]
From the Federal Register Online via the Government Publishing Office [www.gpo.gov]
[FR Doc No: 98-6297]
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DEPARTMENT OF HEALTH AND HUMAN SERVICES
Health Resources and Services Administration
Agency Information Collection Activities: Proposed Collection:
Comment Request
In compliance with the requirement for opportunity for public
comment on proposed data collection projects (section 3506(c)(2)(A) of
Title 44, United States Code, as amended by the Paperwork Reduction Act
of 1995, Pub. L. 104-13), the Health Resources and Services
Administration (HRSA) will publish periodic summaries of proposed
projects being developed for submission to OMB under the Paperwork
Reduction Act of 1995. To request more information on the proposed
project or to obtain a copy of the data collection plans and draft
instruments, call the HRSA Reports Clearance Officer on (301) 443-1129.
Comments are invited on: (a) Whether the proposed collection of
information is necessary for the proper performance of the functions of
the agency, including whether the information shall have practical
utility; (b) the accuracy of the agency's estimate of the burden of the
proposed collection of information; (c) ways to enhance the quality,
utility, and clarity of the information to be collected; and (d) ways
to minimize the burden of the collection of information on respondents,
including through the use of automated collection techniques or other
forms of information technology.
Proposed Project: Use of Emergency Departments by HCH Clients--New
--The Health Care for the Homeless (HCH) Program is a Federal grant
program authorized by section 330(h) of the Public Health Service Act.
The HCH Program seeks to improve access by homeless individuals to
primary health care and substance abuse treatment. There are 122
community-based organization grantees which are community and migrant
health centers, local health departments and community coalitions. More
than 450,000 clients have been served. Specific activities of the HCH
program are:
Providing for primary health care and substance abuse
services at accessible locations;
Providing round-the-clock access to emergency services and
referring to hospital inpatient and/or to mental health services as
needed;
Helping homeless persons to establish eligibility for
assistance and to obtain services under entitlement programs.
Data will be collected in six East Coast cities in which there are
Health Care for the Homeless (HCH) grantees. Between 200-250 single
homeless persons will be interviewed at either homeless shelters or
soup kitchens in each of the six sites. The objective is a total sample
of 1,350.
The main research questions the data collection is intended to
answer are:
Is there a difference in the level of use of hospital
emergency departments by HCH program users and HCH program non-users?
Is there a difference in the inappropriate use of hospital
emergency departments by HCH program users and HCH program non-users?
Is hospital emergency department use by homeless people a
reasonable indicator of an HCH program's impact or success?
Do differences in emergency department utilization among
the homeless vary across specific broad classes of medical conditions?
Do the differences in emergency department utilization
among the homeless vary by age, gender, ethnicity, insurance, status or
family status?
There will be five categories of questions respondents will be
asked: Emergency Room Visits, Impatient Hospital Utilization,
Outpatient Health Care Utilization, Health Status and Perceived Need
for Health Care, and Demographics.
The estimated respondent burden is as follows:
[[Page 12104]]
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Number of Responses per Hours per Response
Type of respondent respondents respondent response burden (hours)
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Homeless individuals........................ 1350 1 .25 337
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Send comments to Patricia Royston, HRSA Reports Clearance Officer,
Room 14-36, Parklawn Building, 5600 Fishers Lane, Rockville, MD 20857.
Written comments should be received within 60 days of this notice.
Dated: March 2, 1998.
Jane Harrison,
Acting Director, Division of Policy Review and Coordination.
[FR Doc. 98-6297 Filed 3-11-98; 8:45 am]
BILLING CODE 4160-15-P
