Abstract
Rheumatologists and other caregivers can learn from patients’ experiences with the quality of care that can be measured with the CQ-index Rheumatoid Arthritis (CQ-index RA) survey. Patients with RA (n = 590) received this survey were they rated their actual experiences and what they find important in rheumatic healthcare. Descriptive analyses and psychometric methods were used to test the reliability. The response rate was 69%. The items in the pilot instrument could be grouped into 10 scales (α ranged from 0.77 to 0.94). The most important quality aspects according to patients concerned the alertness when prescribing medication. Providing patients with information on a special website of the hospital about RA was the highest quality improvement aspect. The results of this study show that the CQ-index RA is a reliable instrument for quality assessment from the patients’ perspective. The instrument provides rheumatologists and other caregivers with feedback for service improvement initiatives.
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Acknowledgments
This study was supported by the Netherlands Organization for Health Research and Development (ZonMw) and Stichting Miletus (a concordance of Dutch health insurance companies). The authors would like to acknowledge the contribution of the expert panel that participated in our study: A. Hartveld (Rheumatism Patients League), C. van Weert, Msc. (Stichting Miletus, director), C. de Vries, MD (insurance company VGZ [UVIT]), G. A. Bouman, Msc. (Stichting Miletus), Gertjan Vos, H. Bruins-Slot, MD, PhD (health insurance company Delta Lloyd, J. J. van Croonenborg, Msc. (the Dutch Institute for Healthcare Improvement, CBO), I. J. M. Harms, MD (health insurance company Menzis, M. Scholte-Voshaar (Rheumatism Patients League), M. H. Hemrika, MD. (insurance company Agis, P. Kortenhoeven (Rheumatism Patients League, chair expert panel), R. Huisman-Hatzmann (hospital Diakonessenhuis Utrecht, specialized nurse) and T. L. Jansen, MD, PhD (Commissioner Quality, Netherlands Associate for Rheumatology, rheumatologist).
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Zuidgeest, M., Sixma, H. & Rademakers, J. Measuring patients’ experiences with rheumatic care: the consumer quality index rheumatoid arthritis. Rheumatol Int 30, 159–167 (2009). https://doi.org/10.1007/s00296-009-0926-3
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DOI: https://doi.org/10.1007/s00296-009-0926-3