National Healthcare Quality & National Healthcare Disparities Reports: Measure Specification Appendix, 2013

Measures

Adults age 65 and over who received potentially inappropriate prescription medications in the calendar year (11 medications)
Adults age 65 and over who received potentially inappropriate prescription medications in the calendar year (33 medications)
Ambulatory medical care visits where an antibiotic was prescribed for a diagnosis of a common cold
 

Measure Title

Adults age 65 and over who received potentially inappropriate prescription medications in the calendar year (11 medications)

Measure Source

Agency for Healthcare Research and Quality (AHRQ), Center for Financing, Access, and Cost Trends (CFACT), Medical Expenditure Panel Survey (MEPS)

Table Description

Geographic Representation

National

Years Available

2002-2010

Population Subgroups

Activity limitation, age, education, gender, geographic location (residence), income, insurance, perceived health status, preferred language, race/ethnicity, U.S. born

Data Source

AHRQ, CFACT, MEPS

Denominator

U.S. population age 65 and over

Numerator

Subset of the denominator who received at least 1 of the 11 medications that are potentially inappropriate for older adults

Comments

Prescription medications received include all prescribed medications initially purchased or otherwise obtained during the calendar year, as well as any refills. For additional information concerning potentially inappropriate medications, refer to: Zhan C, Sangl J, Bierman AS, et al. Potentially inappropriate medication use in the community-dwelling elderly: findings from 1996 Medical Expenditure Panel Survey. JAMA 2001;286(22):2823-29.

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Measure Title

Adults age 65 and over who received potentially inappropriate prescription medications in the calendar year (33 medications)

Measure Source

Agency for Healthcare Research and Quality (AHRQ), Center for Financing, Access, and Cost Trends (CFACT), Medical Expenditure Panel Survey (MEPS)

Table Description

Geographic Representation

National

Years Available

2002-2010

Population Subgroups

Activity limitation, age, education, gender, geographic location (residence), income, insurance, perceived health status, preferred language, race/ethnicity, U.S. born

Data Source

AHRQ, CFACT, MEPS

Denominator

U.S. population age 65 and over

Numerator

People age 65 and over who received 1 or more of the 33 potentially inappropriate medications

Comments

Prescription medications received include all prescribed medications initially purchased or otherwise obtained during the calendar year, as well as any refills. For additional information concerning potentially inappropriate medications, refer to: Zhan C, Sangl J, Bierman AS, et al. Potentially inappropriate medication use in the community-dwelling elderly: findings from 1996 Medical Expenditure Panel Survey. JAMA 2001;286(22):2823-29.

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Measure Title

Ambulatory medical care visits where an antibiotic was prescribed for a diagnosis of a common cold

Measure Source

Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC), National Center for Health Statistics (NCHS), National Ambulatory Medical Care Survey (NAMCS) and National Hospital Ambulatory Medical Care Survey (NHAMCS)

Table Description

Geographic Representation

National

Years Available

1999- 2009

Population Subgroups

Age, geographic location (residence), race/ethnicity, sex

Data Sources

Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC), National Center for Health Statistics (NCHS), National Ambulatory Medical Care Survey (NAMCS) and National Hospital Ambulatory Medical Care Survey (NHAMCS)

Denominator

U.S. civilian noninstitutionalized population

Numerator

Subset of the denominator with a sole diagnosis of common cold for which antibiotics were prescribed or continued

Comments

Population used for calculation is U.S. Census Bureau estimated civilian noninstitutionalized population on July 1 each year. Ambulatory medical care visits include visits to office-based physicians, community health centers, hospital outpatient departments, and emergency departments. For consistency with previous years, visits to midlevel providers at community health centers were excluded.

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