Journal
SEIZURE-EUROPEAN JOURNAL OF EPILEPSY
Volume 22, Issue 8, Pages 604-610Publisher
W B SAUNDERS CO LTD
DOI: 10.1016/j.seizure.2013.03.002
Keywords
AAN epilepsy quality measures; Epilepsy care; Quality of health care; Electronic medical records; Health care reform; Health services research; Performance management
Categories
Funding
- Irish Health Research Board (HRB)
- Beaumont Hospital Management
- IT Department
- Medical Research Council [MR/K006584/1] Funding Source: researchfish
Ask authors/readers for more resources
Purpose: The American Academy of Neurology (AAN) quality indicators for epilepsy are designed to monitor quality, identify gaps, and ultimately drive improvements in clinical care. Appreciation of electronic patient records (EPR) to support such performance management is growing. This study aimed to demonstrate the use of an epilepsy-specific EPR in applying the AAN measures to objectively monitor clinical performance. Method: A sample of out-patient clinics at Beaumont Hospital, Dublin was benchmarked against 4 of the AAN quality indicators. Results: 88% (142/160) of clinical encounters met the requirement to explicitly document seizure type and seizure frequency at each visit; aetiology or epilepsy syndrome was documented/updated for 58% (93/160); evidence of counselling about antiepileptic drug side effects was present in 34% (54/160) of records; counselling for women of childbearing potential was documented in 33% (18/57) of relevant records. Conclusion: The EPR makes performance monitoring efficient and objective. Results suggest either failure to carryout recommended clinical tasks or poor documentation. Whichever is the case, a baseline is provided against which improvement goals can be set. (C) 2013 British Epilepsy Association. Published by Elsevier Ltd. All rights reserved.
Authors
I am an author on this paper
Click your name to claim this paper and add it to your profile.
Reviews
Recommended
No Data Available