The Development and Use of an EHR-Linked Database for Glomerular Disease Research and Quality Initiatives.

Background And Objective: The use of electronic health record (EHR) data can facilitate efficient research and quality initiatives. The imprecision of ICD-10 codes for kidney diagnoses has been an obstacle to discrete data-defined diagnoses in the EHR. This manuscript describes the Kidney Research Network (KRN) registry and database that provide an example of a prospective, real-world data glomerular disease registry for research and quality initiatives.

Model for improvement - Part 1: A framework for health care quality.

The Model for Improvement is a rigorous and reasonable method for busy health care practitioners to use to improve patient outcomes. The use of this model requires practice for clinicians to be comfortable, but mastery is critical to develop the necessary skills to participate in quality improvement initiatives. The future of health care in the United States depends on every practitioner delivering safe, effective, and efficient care.