What is unwanted variation?
Definition. Unwarranted variation (or geographic variation) in health care service delivery refers to differences that cannot be explained by personal preference, illness, medical need, or the dictates of evidence-based medicine. The term was coined by Dr. John Wennberg.
What is unwarranted clinical variation?
Unwarranted Clinical Variation ( UCV ) is defined as “variation that cannot be explained by the condition or the preference of the patient; it is variation that can only be explained by differences in health system performance” ( ACSQSH ).
Why there are unwarranted variations in health care provision?
The variations are unwarranted because they cannot be explained by type or severity of illness or by patient preferences. The categories are important because the causes of variation and their remedies differ according to category.
What causes clinical variation?
2005, 14: 206-216. Hebert C, Neuhauser D: Improving hypertension care with patient-generated run charts: physician, patient, and management perspectives. Qual Manag Health Care.
What type of unwarranted variation is supply-sensitive care?
The third type, supply-sensitive care, refers to the finding that use of health care resources appears to correlate more strongly with their availability than with medical need. This type of unwarranted variation has the greatest potential to lead to significant increases in cost of health care delivery.
What is clinical variation?
Clinical variation involves the overuse, underuse, different use and waste of healthcare practices and services with varying outcomes. The U.S. healthcare system is the most expensive in the world, according to the most recent data from the Institute for Healthcare Improvement.
What does clinical variation mean?
What is unwarranted variation in nursing?
The other type of variation, which needs to be considered separately and is more of a challenge, is unwarranted variation. This is defined as variation in the way care is provided that cannot be explained by differences in patient illness or patient preferences and offers no improvement in outcomes.
What does variation in health care mean?
Variation in Healthcare Is an Opportunity for Improvement The ability to identify the type of variation, as well as when it occurs and why, is fundamental for healthcare improvement. Patients frequently present to clinics or hospitals with varying degrees of complexity and other unique circumstances.
What is variation in healthcare?
Clinical variation is a difference in healthcare processes or outcomes, compared to peers or to a gold standard such as an evidence-based guideline recommendation.
What are the sources of clinical variation in provider settings?
Three common categories of variation can be improved through changes in clinical practice and physician behavior: clinical resource utilization, length of stay, and clinical documentation.
