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Generating a hospitalist report card

Hospitalist Leadership Connection, February 8, 2011

Using data hospital sources is the first step in generating a report card for a hospitalist service. Hospitals have readily accessible financial data, such as average acuity, net operating margin per inpatient discharge, budget variance, net operating margin per service, and efficiency data. In addition, the hospital monitors quality measures such as readmission rates, mortality, and intensive care unit transfers are monitored.

Hospitalist may approach the chair of the department of medicine and hospital administrators for guidance on how to create a report card, the head of health information systems (or head of medical records) for demographic information, and the quality improvement director for quality data, including The Joint Commission’s performance measures.

These leaders should be able to provide specific information about the following:

• Who to approach to find out what data are already being collected
• Who might help examine the data to ensure that they are accurate and allow for meaningful statistical comparison. For example,
  • Are physicians listed accurate in different comparison groups?
  • What are the response rates relating to patient satisfaction?
  • How many cases/patients are involved in the calculations (mortality and other endpoints)?
  • How is the length of stay calculated?
  • How are outliers and interdepartmental transfers treated?
  • How are individual physicians identified?
• Who might advise the service about what data should be measured (i.e., most easily and accurately)?

Even if the data presented are imperfect, it is a critical first step to proactively identify and measure performance quality indicators and set up expectations for improvement.

The above is an excerpt from Tools and Strategies for an Effective Hospitalist Program, published by HCPro, Inc.

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