The use of a severity-adjusted patient data base to establish standards for quality and cost-efficient medical...

In this article, the author describes the Acuity Index Method, a system that can be used to document levels of clinical quality and cost efficiency among physicians. This documentation can be used by physicians and health care institutions to analyze and enhance the quality of medical care they render and to demonstrate how quality medical care can be more cost-effective than "discount" medicine, with the patient being the ultimate beneficiary.