Call for Nominations to Technical Advisory Panel: National Voluntary Consensus Standards For Hospital Care: Outcomes and Efficiency

NQF is seeking nominations for members of a Technical Advisory Panel for a project to endorse measures suitable for both public reporting and quality improvement related to outcomes and efficiency of hospital care.

BACKGROUND: The project is divided into two phases.  Phase I is nearing completion and is focused only on hospital readmission measures.  Phase II will take a more expansive view of potential measures of hospital outcomes and efficiency.  A Steering Committee, representing the range of stakeholders, has already been appointed to oversee both phases of the project including the development of a draft consensus report containing recommendation of which measures should be endorsed as consensus standards for outcomes and efficiency of hospital care.

TECHNICAL ADVISORY PANEL:  The TAP will undertake the technical evaluation of the Phase II candidate measures and make recommendations to the Steering Committee on the scientific acceptability of the measure properties.  A related task is to provide general guidance on evaluating the scientific acceptability of outcome measures.  We are seeking 6-8 technical experts (methodologists and statisticians) with expertise in risk adjustment, statistical analyses, and reliability and validity testing for outcome and efficiency measures. In addition to experience with hospital outcome or efficiency measures, nominees may have experience with measures from other healthcare settings or relevant expertise outside of healthcare.

TAP members should not have a vested interest in the candidate measures submitted for consideration in this project.  This includes employees or contractors of measure owners/developers; members of workgroups that developed the measures; and members of committees that approve measures, or direct or set policy for measure development. Please see the NQF website for additional information about the conflict of interest policy.  All potential Steering Committee members must disclose any current and past activities during the nomination process.

TIME COMMITMENT:  TAP members are expected to attend one 2-day meeting in Washington, DC and participate in two to three conference calls. The TAP Chair also will attend an in-person Steering Committee meeting.  Follow-up e-mail communications and/or additional conference calls may be needed. To be considered for appointment, nominees must be available to attend the following scheduled events:

  • Conference Call – January 7, 2009;
  • In-person meeting –  February 4-5, 2009 in Washington, DC;  
  • Conference Call – February 11, 2009 (if needed); and
  • Conference Call – August 13, 2009 (tentative). 
CONSIDERATION AND SUBSTITUTION:  Priority will be given to nominees and nominations from NQF Members.  Please note that appointments are made to an individual, not an organization, so “substitutions” of other individuals from an organization at meetings and conference calls are not permitted.   

MATERIAL TO SUBMIT:  Self-nominations are welcome.  Third-party nominations must indicate that the nominee has been contacted and is willing to serve.  To be considered for appointment to the Steering Committee, please submit the following information: 

  • a completed nomination form;
  • confirmation of availability to participate in the scheduled in-person meeting and conference calls;
  • a 2-page letter of interest, highlighting experience/knowledge relevant to the expertise described above and any involvement in candidate measure development; and
  • curriculum vitae and/or list of relevant experience (e.g., publications) up to 20 pages; and
  • completed “Disclosure of Interest” form.

All nomination materials should be submitted via email to hospitaloutcomes@qualityforum.org, Attn: “Nominations - Hospital Outcomes”. 

DEADLINE FOR SUBMISSION:   All nominations MUST be submitted by 6:00pm ET on October 31.

QUESTIONS:  If you have any questions, please contact, Karen Pace at 202.783.1300 or hospitaloutcomes@qualityforum.org. 

Thank you for your interest in this project!