title: Quality measures for the care of adult patients with obstructive sleep apnea.
abstract: Obstructive sleep apnea (OSA) is a prevalent disorder associated with a multitude of adverse outcomes when left untreated. There is significant heterogeneity in the evaluation and management of OSA resulting in variation in cost and outcomes. Thus, the goal for developing these measures was to have a way to evaluate the outcomes and reliability of the processes involved with the standard care approaches used in the diagnosis and management of OSA. The OSA quality care measures presented here focus on both outcomes and processes. The AASM commissioned the Adult OSA Quality Measures Workgroup to develop quality care measures aimed at optimizing care for adult patients with OSA. These quality care measures developed by the Adult OSA Quality Measures Workgroup are an extension of the original Centers for Medicare & Medicaid Services (CMS) approved Physician Quality Reporting System (PQRS) measures group for OSA. The measures are based on the available scientific evidence, focus on public safety, and strive to improve quality of life and cardiovascular outcomes for individual OSA patients. The three outcomes that were selected were as follows: (1) improve disease detection and categorization; (2) improve quality of life; and (3) reduce cardiovascular risk. After selecting these relevant outcomes, a total of ten process measures were chosen that could be applied and assessed for the purpose of accomplishing these outcomes. In the future, the measures described in this document may be reported through the PQRS in addition to, or as a replacement for, the current OSA measures group. The overall objective for the development of these measures is that implementation of these quality measures will result in improved patient outcomes, reduce the public health burden of OSA, and provide a measurable standard for evaluating and managing OSA.
authors.affiliation: Johns Hopkins University, School of Medicine, Baltimore, MD.
authors.forename: R Nisha
authors.initials: RN
authors.lastname: Aurora
authors.affiliation: Emory Sleep Center, Atlanta, GA.
authors.forename: Nancy A
authors.initials: NA
authors.lastname: Collop
authors.affiliation: ENT and Allergy Associates and Mount Sinai Hospital, New York, NY.
authors.forename: Ofer
authors.initials: O
authors.lastname: Jacobowitz
authors.affiliation: American Academy of Sleep Medicine, Darien, IL.
authors.forename: Sherene M
authors.initials: SM
authors.lastname: Thomas
authors.affiliation: Division of Sleep Medicine, Harvard Medical School, Boston, MA.|Division of Sleep and Circadian Disorders, Brigham and Women's Hospital, Boston, MA.|Arizona Respiratory Center, University of Arizona College of Medicine, Tucson, AZ.
authors.forename: Stuart F
authors.initials: SF
authors.lastname: Quan
authors.affiliation: CareCentrix, Hartford, CT.
authors.forename: Amy J
authors.initials: AJ
authors.lastname: Aronsky
mesh_terms: D000328:Adult; D045422:Continuous Positive Airway Pressure / Q000592:standards; D006801:Humans; D010349:Patient Compliance; D019984:Quality Indicators, Health Care / Q000592:standards*; D011787:Quality of Health Care / Q000592:standards*; D020181:Sleep Apnea, Obstructive / Q000175:diagnosis / Q000628:therapy*; D056508:Sleep Medicine Specialty / Q000592:standards; D016896:Treatment Outcome