Medical effectiveness and outcomes management studies, once the purview of health services researchers, are moving to the individual provider setting. As the guardians of the data which is indispensable for medical effectiveness and outcomes management investigations, QM professionals play a key role in helping caregivers collect and analyze process and outcome measures.
Data are the prominent ingredient in each step of an outcomes management project.
Clinicians must have valid and reliable information to enable them to make wise choices about the ideal process, to evaluate the stability of the process, and enhance improvements. QM professionals should partner with clinicians to ensure the right information is being used for outcomes management initiatives. For some QM professionals this may require the acquisition of new knowledge and skills. Familiarize Yourself with Outcome Measurement Tools Learn more about patient-reported outcomes measurement tools and how they are used to capture data about functional and quality of life issues. Many organizations have developed patient reporting mechanisms to measure health care performance and their projects are regularly written up in professional journals.