AHRQ Health Care Innovations Exchange Focuses on Improving Quality and Performance in Primary Care Clinics

The latest issue of AHRQ’s Health Care Innovations Exchangehighlights three programs that used innovative approaches to improve quality and performance in primary care clinics. The issue also features an article about AHRQ’s soon-to-be-released Primary Care Practice Facilitation Curriculum. One of the featured profiles about improving quality and performance in primary care clinics describes a program at the University of Oklahoma Health Sciences Center in which external facilitators worked with primary care practices to build their quality improvement capacity. Practice enhancement assistants worked across primary care practices to improve patient care through practice audits and feedback, staff training, sharing of innovative ideas among practices, support for development of systems and infrastructure, and development and coordination of quality improvement initiatives. Practice enhancement assistants also help practices participate in research that improves primary care delivery. The program has helped practices establish structures, processes and infrastructure (e.g., patient tracking capabilities) that have led to improvements in areas such as diabetes care and delivery of preventive services.