Care For PA

Does your head spin every time another new study, report, or ranking is issued about the “quality” of our health care? Hospital A is ranked #1 by one organization one week; yet another study finds Hospital B is best; while a new report finds that the cost for a procedure you need to have done is the least expensive at Hospital C. Confused? Many are.

There are two main reasons why there is a growing amount of information available about health services and providers. The first is to improve the quality and efficiency of health care by providing a way for providers to share their “best practices.” Many health care providers are actively using this information to improve their quality, safety, and efficiency (see related article, State, Regional, and National Hospital Quality and Patient Safety Initiatives Demonstrate Commitment to Quality).

The second reason for all the health information is to help consumers play a greater role in their own health care by providing them with information that they can use to make informed health care decisions (see related article, You and Your Hospital: Partners in Quality). People need the best possible information to make decisions about diagnosis and treatment options.

What to Do With the Information?

Evaluating the quality of a hospital or health care institution sounds easy at first. However, sometimes the information is not provided in a way that’s meaningful, easy to understand, or even consistent.

It’s important to understand that there are two main ways health care data is presented—by evaluating “outcomes” and/or “processes.” Each offers a different insight into health care quality. Studies and reports that focus on “outcomes” often attempt to make comparisons between health care providers. For example, this type of report may list one hospital as #1 for a certain procedure or “below average” for something else. The concern about using these types of reports for making decisions about your care is that these types of studies often use historic data to attempt to present a picture of quality. There are many clinical and human factors that need to be considered to provide a meaningful picture of health care quality, and an “outcome” is only part of the picture.

That’s where the second type of study comes in, those that focus on “processes.” These types of studies and reports often look at a number of common health conditions (heart attacks, pneumonia, and diabetes, for example) along with their generally accepted treatment protocols. It’s clear that if the processes are followed, more patients will have better outcomes. This is the main reason why health care providers also use these types of studies to measure their own performance and improve quality. These types of studies can provide consumers with a wealth of information, including a better understanding about what some of those best practices are and how often their health care provider follows them.

The Patient/Provider Partnership

Even with credible quality reports in-hand, it still may be difficult to understand exactly what it means to you, your condition, and your care. That’s why it’s best not to rely on any one source for information to make health care decisions. Seek out multiple sources to gain the best perspective (see sidebar) and then sit down with your health care provider to discuss them and see how they apply to you and your particular health care situation.

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