Support Measurement of Quality of Life -- Deadline 9/7/07

Recently, CMS contracted with the National Quality Forum (NQF) to “identify and endorse measures for public accountability and quality improvement related to end-stage renal disease (ESRD) care at both facility and physician levels.”

A new set of voluntary Clinical Performance Measures (CPMs), developed by the ESRD Measures Steering Committee/Technical Advisory Panel is up for public comment.

The previous set of CPMs for ESRD addressed only patient blood parameters:
[ul]
[li]Dialysis adequacy (PD & HD)
[/li][li]Vascular access
[/li][li]Anemia
[/li][/ul]
But, this time, one proposed measure is based on an annual assessment of eligible adult patients using the KDQOL-36, a reliable, valid survey of kidney-specific health-related quality of life.

The KDQOL is the SF-12 plus items to assess burden of kidney disease, symptoms/problems, and effects of kidney disease. For the first time, patients’ perceptions of their own lives (which have been shown in tens of thousands of ESRD patients to predict morbidity & mortality as strongly as Kt/V and serum albumin) can be assessed as a measure of ESRD care quality.

As long-time proponents of rehabilitation, we believe that including this KDQOL measure is the most important single thing we can do right now, as a community, to improve the quality of care for patients. If you agree, please take a few moments to leave your comments on-line at: http://www.qualityforum.org/projects/ongoing/esrd/comments/post.asp today! The deadline is 6 pm EDT Sept. 7, 2007.

Please feel free to share this information with anyone you believe would be interested in supporting this effort.

Hi y’all,

When you click the link to leave your comments, use the pull-down menu to go to #24: Assessment of Health Related Quality of Life using KDQOL-36.

Tomorrow is the last day for giving your support to using quality of life as one measure of good quality kidney care.. Please take 3 minutes to click http://www.qualityforum.org/projects/ongoing/esrd/comments/, then click Leave Comment and pull down #24 - Assessment of Health Related Quality of Life using KDQOL-36.. You’ll see a text box that will let you write up to about 150 words. Most people have just done 3 or 4 sentences.

If you want the renal community to care about more than just patients’ blood, please do this today.