Relationship between use of quality measures and improved outcomes in serious mental illness

Gaynes B, Brown C, Lux LJ, Sheitman B, Ashok M, Boland E, Morgan L, Swinson-Evans T, Whitener L, Viswanathan M
Record ID 32015000079
English
Authors' objectives: The goal of this Technical Brief is to identify how quality measures (QMs) are currently used in the serious mental illness (SMI) population and to describe the evidence supporting their use.
Authors' recommendations: The literature does not indicate an agreed-upon list of preferred relevant QMs for the SMI population, and the outcomes against which to assess the effectiveness of QMs are challenging to measure. Relatedly, and possibly of greatest practical importance, no studies have assessed whether the use of QMs improves health outcomes for patients with SMI nor do stakeholders agree on preferred outcomes. Accordingly, critical issues for the field to address include (1) determining the level of evidence (or strength of evidence) necessary to support implementation of QMs, given the complexities of studying the topic and the likely limited research funding; (2) developing the evidence base that assesses the link between QM use and outcomes; (3) considering when to invest the time and resources on measuring outcomes of care to evaluate the impact of QMs, and when process measures (proxies of the outcomes) are a reasonable and more feasible alternative; (4) determining the resource needs for QM implementation; and (5) developing validated and reliable QM tools that can be implemented feasibly in real-world practice.
Details
Project Status: Completed
Year Published: 2015
URL for published report: http://www.effectivehealthcare.ahrq.gov/ehc/products/577/2035/mental-illness-outcomes-report-150115.pdf
English language abstract: An English language summary is available
Publication Type: Not Assigned
Country: United States
MeSH Terms
  • Humans
  • Mental Disorders
  • Quality of Health Care
Contact
Organisation Name: Agency for Healthcare Research and Quality
Contact Address: Center for Outcomes and Evidence Technology Assessment Program, 540 Gaither Road, Rockville, MD 20850, USA. Tel: +1 301 427 1610; Fax: +1 301 427 1639;
Contact Name: martin.erlichman@ahrq.hhs.gov
Contact Email: martin.erlichman@ahrq.hhs.gov
Copyright: Agency for Healthcare Research and Quality (AHRQ)
This is a bibliographic record of a published health technology assessment from a member of INAHTA or other HTA producer. No evaluation of the quality of this assessment has been made for the HTA database.