Outcomes measurement: a report from the front.

In August of last year, a group of individuals representing providers, employers, insurers, government agencies, researchers, and policymakers gathered for two days at a study center in Woods Hole, Massachusetts to share information on current programs, explore the obstacles, and consider the possibilities for the application and use of outcomes measurement. Several reports on actual use of outcomes measures by purchasers of health care, hospitals, clinics, and third-party payers formed the basis for discussion on the systems in use and their purposes, and also on the strengths and weaknesses of outcomes measures and how they might be improved. The group also addressed how purchasers, providers, and patients might work together to develop the most effective and useful measures.