Editorial standards · equity reporting
Every health-equity report should make uncertainty, source vintage and corrections visible. Quietly replacing a number erases the evidence trail and prevents readers from knowing whether the conclusion changed.
Build the update record before publication
AHRQ’s National Healthcare Quality and Disparities Report resources span national reports, chartbooks, data spotlights and tools. Because these components can use different evidence periods and can be updated, an article needs a precise source identity rather than a generic citation to “the latest data.”
The first publication record should include the source title, release or table version, underlying data years, retrieval timestamp, measure definition, population, geography and uncertainty. Store the quoted value and calculation so a future editor can reproduce it.
Three kinds of change
- Source refresh: a newer release adds data without showing the earlier article was wrong.
- Method change: definitions, categories, adjustment or survey design change comparability.
- Correction: the article or source contained an error that materially changes a statement.
State the correction date, what the article previously said, what it says now, why it changed and whether the interpretation changed.
Uncertainty belongs in the main claim
Margins of error, confidence intervals, suppression, missing demographic data and model limitations should not be buried in a footer when they affect the conclusion. Avoid declaring a gap closed, widened or reversed when estimates are not comparable or uncertainty does not support that wording.
What readers and editors can verify next
Editors can schedule a source check based on the agency’s release cycle and keep a dated change log even when no correction is needed. Readers should be able to reach the exact source and see the article’s update history. A population disparity remains context for investigation, not a diagnosis, causal verdict or prediction for an individual.