NQF’s nine endorsed “resource use” measures monitor sources of healthcare costs. Used on their own, these measures reveal only a part of the “value” picture. The full picture comes into focus when resource use measures are used in concert with quality measures. Together, these two powerful sets of measures help providers, health plans, employers, government agencies, and community collaboratives identify opportunities for creating a higher value healthcare system.
A compelling example is the work being done by the NW Metro Alliance, a partnership of HealthPartners Medical Group, the Allina Medical Clinics, and Mercy Hospital, which together care for nearly 300,000 Minnesotans. Through measurement, the Alliance demonstrated improved care for patients with bronchitis, a reduction in elective deliveries prior to 39 weeks, which is better for babies and moms, fewer patients being unnecessarily readmitted to the hospital, and increased prescription rates of lower cost generic medications. These and other quality efforts have resulted in a dramatic decline in total cost of care for the participating organizations.
HealthPartners developed the NQF-endorsed total cost of care measure which is being used by the Alliance and also in 29 states, including five statewide organizations. This measure allows organizations to chart their progress and benchmark themselves against others.
