The Maryland Quality Indicator Project: searching for opportunities for improvement.

Abstract

High-quality care is a goal of all health care providers; defining and measuring quality care, however, can be challenging. The Maryland Quality Indicator Project, which began in 1985, helps hospitals in measuring quality within their own institutions. Fifteen in patient and outpatient monitors based on the data provided by participating hospitals are compared. Institutions can then compare their own activity both internally and externally. Definitions for the 15 indicators are provided, as are several examples for applications of these data.