Moving from quality measurement to quality improvement

Abstract

Although the federal electronic health record (EHR) incentive program has ended, the need to effectively implement and use EHRs has not. The advent of the federal Quality Payment Program (QPP) has made effective use of EHRs more critical than ever, especially for clinical quality measurement and improvement. However, practices continue to face challenges in successfully implementing and using EHRs to achieve these aims. We used a multiple case study approach to understand how physician practices were using EHR data to measure and improve quality. We interviewed a variety of physicians and staff at multiple practices of diverse sizes and settings. Our findings suggest specific approaches that can help practices better harness their EHR data to measure and improve the quality of care while reducing or preventing staff dissatisfaction and burnout. These lessons can help practices better leverage their EHRs to succeed in the QPP.