My interests are in quality of care, safety, and decision-making research, particularly in patients with serious and terminal illness. I am particularly interested in improving health systems and services in order to increase the appropriateness of technology and medication use. I am also interested in end-of-life health care policy and in improving the quality of services provided to underserved populations. Current and recent palliative care research includes projects to evaluate and improve the quality of provision of hospice and palliative care, in the cancer center and in hospice, including projects on pain and symptom management, the processes of care, and communication and decision-making, using systematic reviews, quality indicator development and evaluation, and survey and qualitative research. My medication-related research includes developing methodology for how to evaluate the diffusion, comparative effectiveness, and safety of newly approved drugs.

Health Policy and Management, quality of care, quality improvement, quality assessment, quality indicators, palliative care, end of life care, pain, symptoms, hospice, oncology, decision-making, safety, hospital, adherence, patient-reported outcomes, information technology, medications, comparative effectiveness, health services research, Medicare

Dy SM, Shugarman LR, Lorenz KA, Mularski RA, Lynn J, for the RAND-Southern California Evidence-Based Practice Center. A Systematic Review of Satisfaction with Care at the End of Life. J Amer Geriatr Soc 56: 124-9, 2008.

Phillips-Wren GE, Dy SM, Sharkey P. Mining Lung Cancer Patient Data to Assess Healthcare Resource Utilization. Epub, Expert Systems With Applications, Sept 2007.

Lorenz KA, Lynn J, Dy SM, et al. Evidence for improving palliative care at the end of life: A systematic review. Annals of Internal Medicine 148: 147-159, 2008.

Tilburt JC, Dy SM, Weeks K, Klag MJ, Young JH. Associations between home remedy use and a validated self-reported adherence measure in an urban African-American population with poorly controlled hypertension. Journal of the National Medical Association 100: 91-7, 2008.

Lipshutz A, Shore A, Winters B, Hicks R, Dy SM, Morlock L. Collateral damage: An analysis of medication errors associated with code situations in U.S. hospitals. Jt Comm J Qual Patient Saf 34: 46-56, 2008.

Dy SM, Hughes M, Weiss C, Sisson S. Multicenter evaluation of a web-based palliative care pain management module for housestaff. Epub, Journal of Pain and Symptom Management, April 2008.

Snyder CF, Garrett-Mayer E, Brahmer JR, Carducci MA, Pili R, Stearns V, Wolff AC, Dy SM, Wu AW. Symptoms, supportive care needs, and function in cancer patients: How are they related? Quality of Life Research, 2008 Jun;17(5):665-77.

Dy SM, Young JH, Klag MJ. Does insurance affect prescribing for severe, uncontrolled hypertension? Accepted for publication, Journal of Clinical Hypertension.

Dy SM, Lorenz KA, Naeim A, et al. Evidence-based recommendations for cancer fatigue, anorexia, depression, and dyspnea. J Clin Oncol, 26, 2008.

Dy SM, Asch S, Naeim A, et al. Evidence-based recommendations for cancer pain. J Clin Oncol, 26, 2008.

Walling A, Lorenz KA, Naeim A, Dy SM, et al. Evidence-based recommendations for cancer information and care planning. J Clin Oncol, 26, 2008.

Sanati H, Lorenz KA, Dy SM, et al. Evidence-based recommendations for toxicities of cancer treatment. J Clin Oncol, 26, 2008.

Lorenz, KA, Dy SM, Naeim A, et al. Quality Measures for Supportive Cancer Care: The Cancer Quality-ASSIST (Assessing Symptoms Side Effects and Indicators of Supportive Treatment) Project. In press, Journal of Pain and Symptom Management.

Dy SM, Shore AD, Hicks R, Morlock L. Medication errors with opioids: Results from a national reporting system. J Opioid Management 3(4): 189-194, 2007.

Segal JB, Dy SM, Millman EA, Herbert R, Bass EB, Wu AW. Diffusion into use of exenatide for glucose control in diabetes mellitus: a retrospective cohort study of a new therapy. Clin Ther 29(8): 1784-94, 2007.

Bekelman DB, Havranek EP, Becker DM, Kutner JS, Peterson PN, Wittstein IS, Gottlieb SH, Yamashita TE, Fairclough DL, Dy SM. Symptoms, depression, and quality of life in patients with heart failure. J Card Fail 13(8): 643-8, 2007.

Dy SM, Wolff JL, Frick KD. Trends in End-of-Life Medicare Utilization and Associations with Institutional Residence and Chronic Disability in 1989 and 1999. Medical Care, 45(10): 926-930, 2007.

Segal JB, Frangakis C, Achy-Brou A, Griswold M, Dy SM, Millman A, Herbert R, Bass EB, Wu AW. Using Propensity Scores Subclassification to Estimate Effects of Longitudinal Treatments: An Example Using a New Diabetes Medication. Medical Care 45 (10 Suppl 2): S149-S157, 2007.

Mularski RA, Dy SM, Shugarman LR, Wilkinson AM, Lynn J, Shekelle PG, Morton SC, Sun VC, Hughes RG, Hilton LK, Maglione M, Rhodes SL, Rolon C, Lorenz KA. A systematic review of measures of end-of-life care and its outcomes. Health Services Research 2007; 42(5):1848-70.

Snyder C, Dy SM, Carducci M, Brahmer J, Wolff A, Wu AW. Asking the Right Questions: Investigating Patient-Reported Outcomes Questionnaires for Use in Oncology Clinical Practice. Journal of Supportive Care in Cancer, 15(9):1075-85, 2007.

Bekelman D, Dy SM, Becker D, Wittstein I, Gottlieb S. Spiritual well-being and depression in patients with heart failure. Journal of General Internal Medicine 22(4): 440-7, 2007.

Dy SM, Lynn J. Getting services right for those sick enough to die. British Medical Journal 334(7592): 511-513, 2007.

Wolff JL, Dy SM, Frick KD, Kasper JD. End of Life Care: Findings from a National Survey of Informal Caregivers. Arch Intern Med 167; 40-46, 2007.

Dy SM. Instruments for evaluating shared medical decision-making: A structured literature review. Medical Care Research and Review 64: 523-49, 2007.