Quality measurement in nursing: where are we now?

The American Nurses' Association commissioned a review of the nursing quality measurement literature to understand the state of the art of nursing quality measurement and to influence policy makers to include nurse-sensitive quality measures in health care reform legislation. Using both computer and hand searching methods, 158 articles that described measuring nursing care quality were abstracted. Recommendations based on the analysis of literature include implementing the Nursing Minimum Data Set (NMDS), documenting nursing hours per patient and the education level of nurse providers in large data sets, implementing a system for determining appropriate outcomes for patients that is sensitive to each individual's potential for self-care or recovery, and continued research directed toward nurse-sensitive outcomes.