Jillian has an interest in understanding the effect of high worker autonomy and uncertainty on operational metrics. Her research attempts to empirically explore the relationship between efficiency, resource utilization, and quality in hospital settings.

Currently Jillian is developing a model of the operational drivers of hospital profitability, as well as the role of hospital subunits on efficiency and profitability.  Using government sponsored financial and quality data from the state of California, she is examining the trade-offs, if any, between profitability and patient quality of care.In addition, Jillian is working on a project with a major academic medical institution examining the effect of a recent policy in one hospital unit on the hospital as a whole.  She is attempting to quantify the operational costs (e.g. increased bed utilization and waiting times), patient costs (e.g. patient outcome), and financial costs.