Abstract
“Health services research” aims to evaluate medical programs and health policy programs in order to improve the quality of current health delivery systems. In the United States, health system formats have dramatically changed for recent decades and many research projects have been done to make the current health systems more effective, more efficient, and equitable. This review introduced the contents and some examples of health services research, and discussed the importance of scientific evaluations of the current health programs in Japan through research. Health services research mainly assesses “access to care”, “cost for care”, and “quality of care”. Research for access to care describes potential enabling resources and utilization of health services. Cost research reflects efficiency of care programs delivered. Quality research evaluates the contents and outcomes of services. For Japanese health system, which is just faced with dynamic changes in the near future, quality evaluation through research must be an urgent task. Appropriate research on clinical base will enhance how we provide health care services.
