Pulmonary and Critical Care Measures Ensure Quality of Care

The US National Quality Forum (NQF; Washington DC, USA) has endorsed 19 measures related to pulmonary conditions and the critical care setting that focus on treatment processes and outcomes for asthma, chronic obstructive pulmonary disease (COPD), and pneumonia.

The measures included 4 new measures and 15 maintenance measures; 3 additional measures are still under review. For asthma, the endorsed measures include use of appropriate medications for people with asthma; pharmacologic therapy for persistent asthma; medication management for people with asthma; asthma medication ratio (AMR); suboptimal asthma control (SAC) and absence of controller therapy (ACT); relievers for inpatient asthma; and use of systemic corticosteroids for inpatient asthma.

Regarding COPD, the endorsed measures include spirometry evaluation; inhaled bronchodilator therapy; use of spirometry testing in the assessment and diagnosis of COPD; and management of poorly controlled COPD. Pneumonia endorsements include the use of empiric antibiotics for community-acquired pneumonia (CAP) of bacterial origin; initial antibiotic selection for CAP in immune-competent patients; and hospital 30-day, all-cause, risk-standardized mortality rate (RSMR) following pneumonia hospitalization. Other measure endorsed involved critical care and use of contrast materials in thorax computerized tomography (CT) scans.

“Countless individuals suffer from pulmonary and heart conditions in the United States, with critical care units admitting more than five million of them each year,” said Laura J. Miller, interim CEO of NQF. “This set of measures will be critical to ensuring these individuals receive the safe, high-quality care they deserve.”

“These measures are an important part of the NQF portfolio,” added Stephen Grossbart, PhD, cochair of the NQF pulmonary and critical care steering committee. “Given the prevalence of chronic lung disease in the United States, it’s more important than ever that providers are able to measure and report on care. These measures will be essential to those quality improvement efforts.”

The third leading cause of death in the United States, chronic lung diseases affect close to 33 million Americans, imposing a significant human and financial burden. Asthma alone affects more than seven million children, accounting for 14 million missed school days and USD 15 billion in healthcare costs each year. COPD and pneumonia are also responsible for close to USD 50 billion in annual healthcare costs.

Related Links:
US National Quality Forum