I invite you to read the article that appeared in today’s WSJ: Health Care Quality Programs Under Fire.  Here is an excerpt:

The multibillion-dollar program aims to address the enduring problem that many patients don’t get the most effective and up-to-date treatment. In fact, research shows that patients in the U.S. receive only half the care recommended by medical evidence. To improve that bleak statistic, the federal program educates health-care professionals about best practices in medicine that can improve patient outcomes. The efforts — such as starting antibiotics for pneumonia patients within four hours of arrival at the hospital — can lead to fewer days spent in the hospital and lower death rates.

Another excerpt:

According to the Institute of Medicine, it can take 17 years for evidence of what works to be widely adopted in health care — and the QIO’s mission is to close that gap.

The article at least pointed to two main points regarding the need for EBP.  Unfortunately, the billions spent on these programs are aimed at the inpatient population when it can be argued that more “bang for the buck” could be made for those initiatives on an outpatient basis.  Thoughts?

Larry