title: [Quality assurance in geriatric rehabilitation--approaches and methods].
abstract: It did not take the provisions of the 5th Book of the Social Code for quality assurance issues to gain significance in the field of geriatric rehabilitation as well. While in the surgical specialties, experience in particular with external quality assurance have already been gathered over several years now, suitable concepts and methods for the new Geriatric Rehabilitation specialty are still in the initial stages of development. Proven methods from the industrial and service sectors, such as auditing, monitoring and quality circles, can in principle be drawn on for devising geriatric rehabilitation quality assurance schemes; these in particular need to take into account the multiple factors influencing the course and outcome of rehabilitation entailed by multimorbidity and multi-drug use; the eminent role of the social environment; therapeutic interventions by a multidisciplinary team; as well as the multi-dimensional nature of rehabilitation outcomes. Moreover, the specific conditions of geriatric rehabilitation require development not only of quality standards unique to this domain but also of quality assurance procedures specific to geriatrics. Along with a number of other methods, standardized geriatric assessment will play a crucial role in this respect.
authors.affiliation: Forschungsgruppe Geriatrie am Evangelischen Geriatriezentrum Berlin (EGZB) Medizinische Fakultät, Humboldt-Universität zu Berlin.
authors.forename: B
authors.initials: B
authors.lastname: Deckenbach
authors.forename: M
authors.initials: M
authors.lastname: Borchelt
authors.forename: E
authors.initials: E
authors.lastname: Steinhagen-Thiessen
mesh_terms: D000368:Aged; D002908:Chronic Disease / Q000534:rehabilitation*; D016330:Frail Elderly; D015577:Geriatric Assessment; D005858:Germany; D006801:Humans; D010043:Outcome and Process Assessment, Health Care; D010348:Patient Care Team / Q000331:legislation & jurisprudence; D011785:Quality Assurance, Health Care / Q000331:legislation & jurisprudence