Clinical quality measures (CQMs) are tools that help to measure and track the quality of care provided in hospitals, nursing homes, and home health care. These measures were developed by the Centers for Medicare and Medicaid (CMS) and use data to examine the ability to deliver high-quality care. CQMs are used to measure many aspects of patient care, including clinical processes, health outcomes, patient safety, and adherence to clinical guidelines. Measuring and reporting CQMs helps to ensure that a health care system is delivering safe, timely, efficient, effective, equitable, and patient-centered care. Hospital Compare collects this data from participating hospitals, nursing homes, and home health care agencies across the United States. The data is reported on the websites with links provided so that the information can be reviewed by prospective patients, insurers, and the public. As nurses, many of us participate in the implementation of the core measures in our facility and may recognize when we have a fall out or do not meet that standard. In this Assignment, a review of your facility and another that you consider comparable or a competitor to your own will facilitate the nurses role in quality improvement and patient safety issues that impact the clinical setting.

For this Assignment:

Explore at least one of the CMS Compare sites (hospital compare, home health compare or nursing home compare) provided in this weeks Resources.
Resources:
https://www.medicare.gov/care-compare/?providerType=NursingHome&redirect=true

Select two local organizations using benchmark data to focus on for this Assignment.
Compare the performances of these two organizations to each other and to state and national averages.
Find one scholarly article that could explain the differences you observed.
Use the Comparing Organizations with Benchmark Data template. No abstract or reference list is required for AWE 2000/3000.
Submit a 2- to 3-page paper, double-spaced, that addresses the following:

Describe the two organizations you selected and explain why you chose them.
Summarize how your local organization compares to the local competitor, state averages, and national averages using the benchmark data from the three Compare sites in this weeks Resources.
Identify and describe any factors that can explain differences in performance measures. Find one scholarly article that could explain the differences.
Explain how these differences in performance measures might impact nursing practice.
Analyze the effect of publicly reported data on the quality and safety of care for ONE of the following organizations. Select hospitals, nursing homes, OR home health agencies, and analyze the effect of the data listed under that organization:
For Hospitals:
Patient Survey Results
Timely and Effective Care
Readmissions, Complications, and Deaths
Use of Medical Imaging
Linking Quality to Payment
Medicare Volume
For Nursing Homes:
Overall Rating
Health Inspections
Staffing
Quality Measures
For Home Health Agencies:
Quality of Patient Care
Patient Survey Results
Finally, address how this would not happen without standardized data.