National Consensus Standards for the Prevention and Care of Venous Thromboembolism (including Deep Vein Thrombosis and Pulmonary Embolism)

Background

More than 900,000 Americans suffer DVT each year, and 500,000 of these persons develop PE, which causes some 300,000 deaths. This condition remains the most common preventable cause of hospital death. Current estimates suggest that less than 50 percent of patients diagnosed and hospitalized with DVT had received prophylaxis. In 2003, recognizing that the incidence of DVT/VTE is a significant patient safety issue, NQF endorsed Safe Practice 17: Evaluate each patient upon admission, and regularly thereafter, for the risk of developing DVT/VTE. Utilize clinically appropriate methods to prevent DVT/VTE and Safe Practice 18: Utilize dedicated anti-thrombotic (anticoagulation) services that facilitate coordinated care management. This project builds on Safe Practices 17/18 by developing and endorsing consensus standards in DVT/VTE prevention and care.

Scope

This project will:

  • Recommend a framework to measure effective screening, prevention and treatment for persons at risk for VTE–DVT/PE across the continuum of care settings.
  • Identify a statement of organizational policy that, as appropriate based on setting of care and scope of services, applies across the VTE continuum of care.
  • Identify, endorse, and disseminate a set of VTE prevention and care key characteristics of preferred practices to promote quality care for persons at risk for VTE and work to catalyze their adoption and use.
  • Identify, develop, pilot test, and endorse performance measures to evaluate the quality of care for persons at risk for VTE

The NQF Process

This project, like all NQF activities, includes the active participation of representatives from across the spectrum of healthcare stakeholders and is guided by a Steering Committee. Development and testing of the measures will be conducted under a subcontract to the Joint Commission on Accreditation of Healthcare Organizations. Consensus will be developed through NQF’s formal Consensus Development Process.

Funding

Sanofi-aventis has provided an unrestricted educational grant in support of this project.

For more information, contact Melinda L. Murphy, RN, MS, CNA at 202.783.1300 or info@qualityforum.org.