Standards endorsed to boost efficiency, quality.
While the new ED standards endorsed by the National Quality Forum are voluntary, many, if not all, of them eventually could be adopted by the Centers for Medicare & Medicaid Services (CMS). They already are eligible for public reporting. They also indicate ways in which ED quality of care can be improved. Review the measures and begin to plan for their measurement and utilization in their own departments, in anticipation of CMS adoption. Pay particular attention to some new clinical measures that help monitor quality: bundling, documenting wait time, and weight in kilograms for children. The measures will enable you to get a sense of your department's baseline, particularly with throughput.
D014487:Centers for Medicare and Medicaid Services, U.S.; D017598:Efficiency, Organizational; D004636:Emergency Service, Hospital / Q000592:standards*; D011787:Quality of Health Care; D014481:United States