Performance Measures: Defining Our Terms May 3, 2010

Public and private payers are moving away from fee-for-service models and toward value-based purchasing models to reimburse physicians, hospitals, and other health care professionals. With the goal to create incentives to deliver higher quality care and lower overall costs, providers are increasingly being held accountable to quality standards and performance measures.

As electrophysiologists respond to this transition, it is useful to define our terms. So I ask, how do we measure the “quality” of cardiovascular care? 

• A “quality measure” is a mechanism that enables the user to quantify the quality of a selected aspect of care by comparing it to a criterion.
• A “clinical performance measure” is a type of quality measure that assesses the degree to which a provider competently and safely delivers clinical services that are appropriate for the patient in the optimal time period.

How do you assess quality and measure performance in your practice?

Editor’s Note: The Heart Rhythm Society’s 31^st Annual Scientific Sessions will hold several discussions on quality and the impact of healthcare reform on current reimbursement models, including the Opening Plenary Session and Leaders in Quality sessions. Join us!