Measuring quality in arthritis care: the Arthritis Foundation's Quality Indicator set for osteoarthritis.

OBJECTIVE

To develop a comprehensive set of explicit process measures to assess the quality of health care for osteoarthritis and to describe the scientific evidence that supports each measure.

METHODS

Through a comprehensive literature review, we developed potential quality measures and a summary of existing data to support or refute the relationship between the processes of care proposed in the indicators and relevant clinical outcomes. The proposed measures and literature summary were presented to a multidisciplinary panel of experts in arthritis and pain. The panel rated each proposed measure for its validity as a measure of health care quality.

RESULTS

Among 22 measures proposed for osteoarthritis, the expert panel rated 14 as valid measures of health care quality.

CONCLUSION

Sufficient scientific evidence and expert consensus exist to support a comprehensive set of measures to assess the quality of heath care for osteoarthritis. These measures can be used to gain an understanding of the quality of care for patients with osteoarthritis.