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Variation in US outpatient antibiotic prescribing quality measures according to health plan and geography.
- Source :
-
The American journal of managed care [Am J Manag Care] 2016 Aug; Vol. 22 (8), pp. 519-23. - Publication Year :
- 2016
-
Abstract
- Objectives: Antibiotic prescribing has become increasingly viewed as an issue related to patient safety and quality of care. The objective of this study was to better understand the differences between health plan reporting and the geographic variation seen in quality measures related to antibiotic use.<br />Study Design: We focused on 3 measures from the Healthcare Effectiveness Data and Information Set (HEDIS) related to antibiotic prescribing and testing to guide antibiotic prescribing.<br />Methods: We analyzed data for 3 relevant measures for the years 2008 to 2012, including only commercial health plans. We analyzed the following 3 HEDIS measures: 1) "Appropriate Testing for Children With Pharyngitis," 2) "Appropriate Treatment for Children With Upper Respiratory Infections," and 3) "Avoidance of Antibiotic Treatment in Adults With Acute Bronchitis."<br />Results: Out of these 3 measures, health plans consistently performed poorly on the adult bronchitis measure. Performance was better on the 2 measures focused on the pediatric population. We also saw geographic variation between measures when looking at Census divisions across all years.<br />Conclusions: There is wide variation between individual health plan performance on the measures related to antibiotic use. Geographic differences were also observed on these measures, with health plans in the South Central Census division performing worse than other parts of the country. Stakeholders, such as public health, advocacy groups, foundations, and professional societies, interested in improving the quality of care that patients receive related to antibiotic use in the outpatient setting should consider how existing measures and working with health plans could be used to improve prescribing.
- Subjects :
- Adolescent
Adult
Ambulatory Care statistics & numerical data
Anti-Bacterial Agents therapeutic use
Child
Child, Preschool
Databases, Factual
Drug Prescriptions standards
Drug Prescriptions statistics & numerical data
Drug Resistance, Microbial drug effects
Drug Utilization trends
Geography
Guideline Adherence statistics & numerical data
Humans
Infant
Insurance Claim Review statistics & numerical data
Insurance, Health statistics & numerical data
Pharyngitis diagnosis
Pharyngitis microbiology
Practice Guidelines as Topic
Respiratory Tract Infections diagnosis
Respiratory Tract Infections drug therapy
Respiratory Tract Infections microbiology
Streptococcal Infections diagnosis
Streptococcal Infections drug therapy
United States
Ambulatory Care standards
Anti-Bacterial Agents standards
Drug Utilization standards
Insurance, Health standards
Pharyngitis drug therapy
Quality Indicators, Health Care
Subjects
Details
- Language :
- English
- ISSN :
- 1936-2692
- Volume :
- 22
- Issue :
- 8
- Database :
- MEDLINE
- Journal :
- The American journal of managed care
- Publication Type :
- Academic Journal
- Accession number :
- 27541698