Florence Ruth LeCraw

Adjunct Professor, Georgia State University

Areas of Expertise:

Health Care

Connect with Florence

About Florence

LeCraw was a practicing anesthesiologist for over 35 years. In the last ten years of her career, she specialized in health economics, which she now pursues full time. She collaborates with economists and other specialists to investigate questions about patient safety, medical liability, and healthcare professional burnout.

Contributions | No Jargon Podcast | In the News | Publications

Contributions

Georgia HB 807: Georgia CANDOR Act

Testimony, July 2021

In the News

Research discussed by Stuart Buck, in "Journals That Ban Replications–Are They Serious Scholarly Outlets at All?," The Good Science Project, September 26, 2023.

Opinion: "Promoting Public Trust in Medical Research by Acknowledging and Reevaluating Flawed Papers," Florence Ruth LeCraw, EurekAlert!, April 4, 2023.

Publications

"Comparison of Health Care Worker Satisfaction Before vs After Implementation of a Communication and Optimal Resolution Program in Acute Care Hospitals" (with Andrew I. Friedson, Abigail Humphreys, Barbara Pelletreau, Priscilla Vierra, and Thomas A. Mroz). JAMA Network Open 6, no. 3 (2023).

Investigates the association between a communication and optimal resolution (CANDOR) program and healthcare professional (HCP) satisfaction in medical settings. Findings show that CANDOR was associated with increases in most measures of HCP workplace satisfaction and HCP satisfaction with hospital leadership, which are both correlated with burnout and turnover.

"Reassessing the Effects of a Communication-and-Resolution Program on Hospitals’ Malpractice Claims and Costs" (with Daniel Montanera and Thomas A. Mroz). Econ Journal Watch 20, no. 1 (2023): 1-14.

Reexamines the results of a study published in 2018 that compares the liability outcomes of medical facilities that implemented Communication and Resolution Program (CRP) practices to liability outcomes at medical facilities that did not implement CRP. Uncovers three serious flaws in the statistical analysis of the study, and the authors comment on the state of editing in medical and health policy journals, suggesting a need for improvement.

"Changes in Liability Claims, Costs, and Resolution Times Following the Introduction of a Communication-and-Resolution Program in Tennessee" (with Daniel Montanera , Joy P. Jackson, Janice C. Keys, Dale C. Hetzler, and Thomas A. Mroz). Journal of Patient Safety and Risk Management 23, no. 1 (2018): 13-18.

Investigates whether a malpractice reform known as collaborative communication resolution program can improve transparency after an adverse outcome without resulting in higher malpractice liability costs, relative to traditional “deny and defend” approaches. Results show that the collaborative communication resolution program that was implemented had a reduced time interval to resolve events and lower defense and total liability costs.