WASHINGTON, Oct. 8 /PRNewswire/ -- The National Quality Forum (NQF) today announced the endorsement of a set of national voluntary consensus standards for cardiac surgery. The action -- representing the consensus of more than 250 hospitals and healthcare systems, consumer groups, professional associations, purchasers, federal agencies, and research and quality improvement organizations -- provides a standardized set of measures and framework for improving the quality of cardiac surgery.
The set includes 21 hospital-level measures that facilitate efforts to achieve higher levels of patient safety and better outcomes for patients. These measures are intended for public reporting.
The 21 measures are: 1. Participation in a systematic database for cardiac surgery 2. Surgical volume for isolated coronary artery bypass graft (CABG) and CABG+valve surgery 3. Timing of antibiotic administration for cardiac surgery patients 4. Selection of antibiotic administration for cardiac surgery patients 5. Pre-operative beta blockade 6. Use of internal mammary artery (IMA) 7. Duration of prophylaxis for cardiac surgery patients 8. Prolonged intubation 9. Deep sternal wound infection rate 10. Stroke/cerebrovascular accident 11. Renal insufficiency 12. Surgical re-exploration 13. Anti-platelet medications at discharge 14. Beta blocker at discharge 15. Anti-lipid medications at discharge 16. Risk-adjusted CABG in-patient mortality 17. Risk-adjusted operative mortality for CABG 18. Risk-adjusted operative mortality for aortic valve replacement (AVR) 19. Risk-adjusted operative mortality for mitral valve replacement/repair (MVR) 20. Risk-adjusted operative mortality for AVR + CABG 21. Risk-adjusted operative mortality for MVR + CABG
In addition to the voluntary consensus standards, NQF recommends specific actions in seven areas: proprietary measures; relationship to other NQF- endorsed standards related to cardiac surgery; data verification and auditing; analysis of data for disparities; reporting of the IMA use measure; level of analysis for public reporting; and review and updating of the set.
The primary purpose of this set of voluntary consensus standards is to promote the highest quality of care for cardiac surgery patients and those who may have cardiac surgery. The consensus standards are intended for use by consumers, purchasers, providers, accreditors, quality improvement organizations, and researchers, to enable performance-based decisions about provider selection, enhance value-based purchasing, promote accountability, facilitate public use of healthcare information, and stimulate and facilitate the continuous improvement of care.
The NQF also today announced endorsement of its National Priorities for Healthcare Quality Measurement and Reporting, a set of 22 areas that should be the focus of efforts to improve the quality of American healthcare. The priorities are grounded in a 2003 Institute of Medicine report, Priority Areas for National Action: Transforming Health Care Quality, which proposed 20 clinical conditions and cross-cutting healthcare topics around which healthcare quality improvement activities could focus.
The NQF has identified one overarching priority as the most critical need: to focus on vulnerable populations to reduce disparities in health and healthcare. This priority was endorsed as being an essential component in each of the following 22 areas:
Infrastructure 1. Information technology (standardization and capacity) 2. Patient safety (including but not limited to healthcare-acquired infections and medication management and adherence) Processes of Care 1. Care coordination and communication 2. Care at the end of life 3. Immunizations (all ages) 4. Pain management 5. Self-management/health literacy Healthcare Conditions 1. Asthma 2. Cancer 3. Pneumonia 4. Depression 5. Diabetes 6. Children with special healthcare needs 7. Frailty associated with old age 8. Hypertension 9. Ischemic heart disease 10. Kidney disease 11. Mental illness 12. Obesity 13. Pregnancy, childbirth, and newborn care 14. Stroke 15. Tobacco dependence (prevention and treatment)
The NQF is a voluntary consensus standard-setting organization. Any party may request reconsideration of the recommendations, in whole or part, by notifying the NQF in writing no later than November 8, 2004 (601 13th Street, NW, Suite 500 North, Washington, DC 20005; fax 202.783.3434). For an appeal to be considered, the notification letter must include information clearly demonstrating that the appellant has interests that are directly and materially affected by the NQF-endorsed recommendations and that the NQF decision has had (or will have) an adverse effect on those interests.
The NQF is a private, not-for-profit, public benefit corporation created in 1999 to develop and implement a national strategy for healthcare quality measurement and reporting. Established as a unique public-private partnership, the NQF has broad participation from all sectors of the healthcare industry. Visit the NQF on the web at http://www.qualityforum.org/.
National Quality Forum
CONTACT: Philip Dunn of the National Quality Forum, +1-202-783-0206,pdunn@qualityforum.org
Web site: http://www.qualityforum.org/