Why new guidelines for reporting improvement research? And why now?
- Correspondence to: Dr D P Stevens Association of American Medical Colleges, 2450 N Street, NW Washington, DC 20037, USA; dstevensaamc.org
An opportunity for readers, authors, and reviewers to voice their opinions on the draft new guidelines
It is reasonable to ask why QSHC would embark on additional guidelines for reporting improvement research—and why now?1 Useful and valuable guidelines for quality improvement reports (QIRs) were initially published in our predecessor journal, Quality in Health Care, in 1999,2 and reprinted again in QSHC in 2004. The BMJ also adopted this format in 2001.3 QIRs were initially slow to appear, but they have been published recently with increasing regularity in QSHC, particularly since the QIR guidelines were reprinted.
In their paper in this issue of QSHC Davidoff and Batalden emphasize that the proposed new guidelines are not intended to supersede QIRs.1 Indeed, they are best seen as part of the continuum of improvement scholarship that ranges from individual case reports and QIRs to studies that address complex systems and safety issues. …
