Quality improvement in neurology

Primary headache quality measures Headache and migraine are common, debilitating, and costly. Headaches are among the most prevalent neurologic disorders. In US studies, somewhere between 12% and 23% of adults over the age of 18 have had a migraine headache in the past 3 months. In fact, the WHO ranks migraine headache in the top 20 of the world's most disabling medical illnesses. 2 Frequent headache or migraine can significantly and negatively impact an individual's quality of life, family interactions, and ability to work. Hawkins et al. At work, people with migraine have higher levels of lost productivity and reduced performance, and more absences from work. n 2013, the American Academy of Neurology (AAN) formed a multidisciplinary headache measurement workgroup (HMWG) to identify and define quality measures aimed at improving care delivery and outcomes for patients with headache and migraine. The HMWG represented academic institutions, national health care providers, and advocacy organizations concerned with the care of patients with headache. The AAN led this effort, facilitated the process, and convened the meetings. The American Academy of Family Physicians and the American Medical Association (AMA)-convened Physician Consortium for Performance Improvement (PCPI) also partnered with the AAN and nominated representatives and attended the HMWG meeting.