Medical Office Comparative Database Submission Information || Agency for Healthcare Research and Quality (AHRQ) Medical Office Survey on Patient Safety Culture Update

Medical Office Comparative Database Submission Information
Medical Office Survey on Patient Safety Culture



------------------
Many medical offices using the AHRQ Medical Office Survey on Patient Safety Culture have expressed interest in comparing their results to other medical offices. In response, the Agency for Healthcare Research and Quality has established the Medical Office Survey on Patient Safety Culture Comparative Database. This database is a central repository for survey data from medical offices that have administered the AHRQ patient safety culture survey instrument.


-------------------
Contents
Purpose of the Database
Benefits of Participation and Database Products
Definition of a Medical Office
Participation Requirements
Timeline and Activities
September 15 to October 15: Registration and Data Submission
November to February: Data Processing and Comparative Database Report Produced
Contact Information


Purpose of the Database

•To gather data from the AHRQ Medical Office Survey on Patient Safety Culture into a central repository for comparative purposes.
•To produce comparative results to help medical offices identify strengths and opportunities for improvement in their patient safety culture.
•In future years, to track changes in patient safety culture over time


Benefits of Participation and Database Products

•Each participating medical office receives a feedback report comparing their results to the comparative database.
•A free Comparative Database Report will be produced providing aggregate medical office-level statistics. The documents will not include any information identifying participating medical offices.
•Until the first comparative database report is produced, medical offices can compare to the 2010 Preliminary Comparative Results [2010 Preliminary Comparative Results: Medical Office Survey on Patient Safety Culture] (PDF Version [http://www.ahrq.gov/qual/mosurvey10/moresults10.pdf], 370 KB; PDF Help).


Definition of a Medical Office

•A medical office is an outpatient facility in a specific location.
•Each medical office located in a building containing multiple medical offices is considered a separate medical office.
•Each medical office should have at least three providers who are physicians (M.D. or D.O.), physician assistants, or nurse practitioners.
•Providers in a single medical office should share administrative and clinical support staff.


Participation Requirements

•Organizations that are eligible to participate:
◦Must be located in the United States or in a U.S. territory.
◦Have at least five complete surveys from a single medical office.
•The survey must have been administered in its entirety without significant modifications or deletions:
◦No changes to any of the survey item text and response options.
◦No reordering of survey items.
◦Questions added only at the end of the survey after Section G, before the demographic questions in Section H.


Timeline and Activities


September 15 to October 15: Registration and Data Submission

•Step 1: Medical offices, health systems, or survey vendors that have administered the AHRQ Medical Office Survey on Patient Safety Culture indicate their interest in participating in the database by sending an E-mail with "Medical Office Database" in the subject line to DatabasesOnSafetyCulture@ahrq.hhs.gov.
•Step 2: Database staff send registration information to interested submitters.
•Step 3: Medical offices, health systems, or vendors submitting on behalf of medical offices complete registration information.
•Step 4: Database staff review the registration information and request a copy of the survey(s) actually administered. Interested submitters are notified regarding their eligibility for participation.
•Step 5: Eligible medical offices, health systems, or vendors:
a.Should follow these survey data specifications (PDF file [http://www.ahrq.gov/qual/mosurvey11/mosubspecs.pdf], 575 KB; PDF Help) for formatting respondent-level data files for submission.
b.Sign a Data Use Agreement (PDF file [http://www.ahrq.gov/qual/mosurvey11/mosopsdua.pdf], 190 KB; PDF Help), which assures medical offices about the confidentiality of their data and explains how their data will be used.
•Step 6: Eligible medical offices, health systems, or their survey vendors submit respondent-level survey data and other required information about their medical offices.
a.Data are submitted using a secure, Web-based system.
b.Data files must meet data specifications.

The deadline for submission of all information and survey data files for any given submission year is October 15


November to February: Data Processing and Comparative Database Report Produced

•The data submitted will be processed, and averages, standard deviations, minimum and maximum scores, and percentiles will be produced.
•Additional breakouts of the data by medical office characteristics such as ownership and specialty and respondent characteristics such as staff position will be produced.
•A Comparative Database Report based on the Medical Office Survey on Patient Safety Culture items and composites will be made available without cost in the public domain on the AHRQ Web site and in a limited number of printed copies.


Contact Information
If you are interested in participating in the Medical Office Survey on Patient Safety Culture Comparative Database, send an E-mail to: DatabasesOnSafetyCulture@ahrq.hhs.gov with your complete contact information and "Medical Office Database" in the subject line.

For technical assistance on data submission, call 1-888-324-9790.

Return to Contents

Current as of April 2011


-----------------
Internet Citation:

Medical Office Comparative Database Submission Information. April 2011. Agency for Healthcare Research and Quality, Rockville, MD. http://www.ahrq.gov/qual/mosurvey11/mosubinfo.htm

full-text:
Medical Office Comparative Database Submission Information