[Monitoring quality of health care using indicators]

In a modern health care system continuing measurement and monitoring of relevant clinical data comprise the base of documentation for the quality of care. Internationally there has been increasing focus on monitoring and measuring the quality of care using principals from clinical epidemiology, including quality monitoring using clinical indicators. Indicators can be derived with regard to structure, process and outcome. The indicators should be in a form which can be used within the individual department and for comparison between hospitals nationally and internationally. The idea of professional indicators is to be able to track developments over time, as well to be able to respond at relevant times. The work with quality indicators will support continuing work with quality development in the medical specialities as well as giving a possibility for dialogue between politicians, the management system and the medical specialities about priority of resources and the structure of the hospital system, which extend further than the simpler issues of finance, which have been dominating until now.