Home Health Measures (2005) 

More than 7 million Americans receive professional healthcare in their homes each year (2000).  Home healthcare services are delivered at home to patients who are recovering from care in hospitals or nursing homes; patients who are disabled; the elderly; and chronically or terminally ill persons in need of medical, nursing, or therapeutic treatment as assistance with the essential activities of daily living.  As in all areas of health care, the quality of care provided is of concern to consumers, purchasers, providers and other stakeholders. More detailed information about the quality of home healthcare services will fill an important gap in information that is available for consumers regarding quality across the continuum of healthcare delivery services.

About the Project

This project, completed in 2005, resulted in 15 standardized performance measures concerning home healthcare.

Objectives

This project identified a framework for measuring home healthcare, with a special focus on coordinating care across delivery settings. The work also led to the endorsement of a set of measures for evaluating the quality of home healthcare.

Process

Candidate measures were considered for NQF endorsement as national voluntary consensus standards. Agreement was developed through NQF’s Consensus Development Process. This project involved the active participation of representatives from across the spectrum of healthcare stakeholders and was guided by a steering committee.

Funding

The Centers for Medicare and Medicaid Services provided funding for this project.

Related NQF Work

Endorsing Additional Measures for Home Health Performance

National Voluntary Consensus Standards for Home Health Care: Additional Performance Measures, 2008: Addendum

Additional details about this project are available in the full report.

Contact Information

For more information on this project, contact NQF at info@qualityforum.org or (202) 783-1300.

Notes

Medicare Payment Advisory Commission (MedPAC). Report to the Congress: Promoting Greater Efficiency in Medicare. Washington, DC: Medicare Payment Advisory Commission (MedPAC); 2007. National Quality Forum.