Appropriateness of care

Understanding variation in care is an important step in improving patient health outcomes through appropriate care

Anne Duggan · Elizabeth Koff · Villis Marshall

Health systems around the world are facing the twin pressures of increasing demand for services, and a lack of resources as a consequence of economic slowdown in many countries

Philip DaSilva · JA Muir Gray

Australian practice data from clinical audits and other research have clearly shown that dissemination of high quality clinical practice guidelines is not enough to ensure everyone with a particular clinical condition receives appropriate care

Derek P Chew · Robert Herkes · Meredith A Page

More than half of the patients in adult hospitals are over 65 years of age

Gideon A Caplan · Susan E Kurrle · Anne Cumming

Antimicrobial agents play a central role in modern health care, especially in the hospital setting

John D Turnidge · Karin Thursky · Caroline S Chen · Vicki R McNeil · Irene J Wilkinson

The effectiveness of clinical quality registries to monitor and benchmark patient outcomes is well established

Nick Wilcox · John J McNeil

Economic theory predicts that changing financial rewards will change behaviour. This is valid in terms of service use; higher costs reduce health care use

Jane P Hall · Kees C van Gool

Why are knee replacement rates in Australia over four times higher than they are in Israel? Or the rate for caesarean sections nearly twice as high as in Finland?

Heather A Buchan · Anne Duggan · Jenny Hargreaves · Ian A Scott · Luke Slawomirski