Deadline Approaching for NQF Disparities Panel Nominations - March 2, 2011

The National Quality Forum (NQF) is seeking nominations for members of a Steering Committee for a new project to establish a method for approaching measurement of health care disparities across settings and populations.

The Healthcare Disparities and Cultural Competency Consensus Standards project seeks to expand on NQF’s previous work where a set of criteria to evaluate disparities-sensitive measures was identified and 35 disparity-sensitive measures for the ambulatory care setting were endorsed. This project will begin with a paper outlining methodological concerns with measuring disparities, such as implications of risk adjustment and stratification, unintended consequences of public reporting, and data collection; and revising the NQF disparities-sensitive evaluation criteria.

A multi-stakeholder Steering Committee will provide recommendations for performance measurement including methods and analytic approaches, evaluation criteria for classifying measures, and identifying disparity-sensitive measures within current measures. The Committee also will oversee the development of a draft consensus report that will include recommendations about measures to endorse as disparity-sensitive.

NAPH members have been valuable contributors to work on this topic. To apply to be on the steering committee, or to discuss what will be needed for submission, please contact Jane Hooker at jhooker@naph.org. Documents need to be completed no later than March 17. The original notice, forms, and further information can be found online. For more information on application procedures and forms, please contact Nicole McElveen at 202-783-1300 or disparities@qualityforum.org.