|
In July 2003, the Fund and the London-based Nuffield Trust cosponsored "Improving Quality of Health Care in the United States and United Kingdom: Strategies for Change and Action, 2003," the fifth in a series of meetings for senior U.S. and U.K. policymakers and quality experts. The gathering was further enriched by representatives from Australia and New Zealand. Held at Pennyhill Park in Bagshot, England, the meeting addressed four topics: the use of contractual agreements and incentives to improve quality and efficiency, patient engagement and decision making, implementation of electronic medical records and expansion of their use, and the implications of publishing provider performance data for regulation, reporting, and consumer choice.
The results of U.S., U.K., and Australian quality improvement collaboratives, which demonstrated impressive results in reducing waiting times for doctor appointments, improving outcomes for patients with coronary heart disease, and ensuring fast access to pain relief for patients in emergency rooms, provided a substantive starting point for a dynamic and provocative cross-national exchange on the sustainability of quality improvement efforts, provider incentives, and patient satisfaction. During the conference, Carolyn Clancy, M.D., director of the U.S. Agency for Healthcare Research and Quality, and Sir Liam Donaldson, M.D., chief medical officer of the Department of Health in England, reported on the progress of the 2001 bilateral agreement between the United States and United Kingdom for collaboration on quality improvement and proposed an agenda for future efforts.
|
