[Quality assurance in medicine. Current status, future requirements]

The term quality assurance is becoming increasingly important in medicine. Quality assurance has paved its way into the health reform laws as well as into the professional guidelines for physicians. The institutions bearing the financial burden have reacted accordingly by demanding quality assurance measures for the implementation of medical procedures. In the future, no procedure without documentation of quality assurance will be reimbursed. Quality assurance is thus turning into an important factor in medical practice and will gain relevance where diagnostic and therapeutic standards are to be set and met. This study gives an overview of status and development of quality assurance and its management in present and future medicine.