Evaluating the Performance Gap in UK General Practices
Author Information
Author(s): Robert Fleetcroft, Nicholas Steel, Richard Cookson, Amanda Howe
Primary Institution: University of East Anglia
Hypothesis
What is the gap between the financial incentives gained by practices and the percentage of patients receiving indicated care?
Conclusion
Threshold targets and exception reporting significantly reduce the percentage of eligible patients that UK practices need to treat to receive maximum incentive payments.
Supporting Evidence
- The mean pay-performance gap for the 65 aggregated clinical indicators was 13.3%.
- 52% of the gap is due to thresholds set below 100%, and 48% is due to exception reporting.
- The gap exceeded 25% in nine indicators, including significant health interventions.
Takeaway
This study looked at how much money doctors can earn for treating patients and found that they often get paid even when not all patients are treated, which isn't good for health.
Methodology
Analysis of Quality Outcomes Framework data and exception reporting data from 8407 practices in England for the year 2005-6.
Potential Biases
There may be biases in exception reporting rates across different practices.
Limitations
The study relies on data from a single year and may not account for changes in practice behavior over time.
Participant Demographics
Practices in England, with a focus on those participating in the Quality Outcomes Framework.
Digital Object Identifier (DOI)
Want to read the original?
Access the complete publication on the publisher's website