Patient Safety 2015 Final Report 

The National Quality Forum’s (NQF) portfolio of safety measures spans a variety of topic areas. Many measures in the portfolio are used in public accountability and quality improvement programs. However, significant gaps in measurement remain, and unsafe care is still common in the U.S. There is also a need to expand safety measures beyond the hospital setting and harmonize measures across settings of care.The Patient Safety Standing Committee oversees the NQF Patient Safety measure portfolio, evaluates newly-submitted and previously-endorsed measures against NQF's measure evaluation criteria, identifies gaps in the portfolio, provides feedback on gaps in measurement, and conducts ad hoc reviews. On June 17-18, 2015, the Patient Safety Standing Committee evaluated 4 new measures and 19 maintenance measures. A total of 22 measures were recommended for endorsement, and 1 measure was not recommended. The Committee also conducted ad hoc reviews of 3 measures. In 2 of these measures, definitions were changed, and in 1 measure substantial changes were made that required a full review of all the NQF criteria. Ultimately, all 3 ad hoc reviews received continued endorsement. The full set of recommended measures were reviewed and approved by the Consensus Standards Approval Committee and ratified for endorsement by the NQF Board of Directors Executive Committee.