As wireless technologies evolve into the next-generation, an increasing number of users will enjoy the freedom of ubiquitous broadband access. With this widespread use comes several issues that need to be addressed. We introduce and discuss our work on three areas of problem study including efficient access to data, efficient access to the network and prioritized access for emergency responders. First, we propose a hybrid XML forwarding engine for content-based routing. The forwarding engine matches stored policies against incoming XML documents. Our forwarding engine examines the type of query for matching and that has improved performance over previous works. We then propose several mobile station strategies to improve scanning, ranging and handover times in WiMAX/802.16 networks. Next, we propose two mobility profiles, based upon our scanning strategies, to further improve scanning times and handovers by adding context to MS frequency use. We evaluate our strategies and mobility profiles through simulation using both real-world mobility traces and multiple mobility patterns. Finally, we propose strategies to develop the basis of an adaptive, dual use (public and emergency), next-generation broadband wireless network. We focus on providing prioritized network access for emergency responders in mobile WiMAX/802.16 networks.