title: Nurse practitioners as attending providers for workers with uncomplicated back injuries: using administrative data to evaluate quality and process of care.
abstract: OBJECTIVE
  The objectives of this study were 1) to identify quality and process of care indicators available in administrative workers' compensation data and to document their association with work disability outcomes, and 2) to use these indicators to assess whether nurse practitioners (NPs), recently authorized to serve as attending providers for injured workers in Washington State, performed differently than did primary care physicians (PCPs).
  
  
  METHODS
  Quality and process of care indicators for NP and PCP back injury claims from Washington State were compared using direct standardization and logistic regression.
  
  
  RESULTS
  This study found little evidence of differences between NP and PCP claims in case mix or quality of care.
  
  
  CONCLUSIONS
  The process of care indicators that we identified were highly associated with the duration of work disability and have potential for further development to assess and promote quality improvement.
authors: Department of Health Services, School of Public Health and Community Medicine, University of Washington, Seattle, Washington 98195, USA. jeannes@u.washington.edu
authors: Jeanne M
authors: JM
authors: Sears
authors: Thomas M
authors: TM
authors: Wickizer
authors: Gary M
authors: GM
authors: Franklin
authors: Allen D
authors: AD
authors: Cheadle
authors: Bobbie
authors: B
authors: Berkowitz
mesh_terms: D000062:Accidents, Occupational; D019567:Back Injuries / Q000628:therapy*; D004185:Disability Evaluation; D005260:Female; D006801:Humans; D008297:Male; D009722:Nurse Practitioners; D009786:Occupational Health Services; D010043:Outcome and Process Assessment, Health Care; D010821:Physicians, Family; D011785:Quality Assurance, Health Care; D019984:Quality Indicators, Health Care; D018582:Sick Leave; D014861:Washington; D014942:Workers' Compensation / Q000592:standards* / Q000706:statistics & numerical data