Report on the Drug Situation 2010 - Bundesministerium für ...

national quality standards for medical treatment has started later than in othercountries. The Federal Act on the Quality of Health-care Services (GQG; BGBl I2004/179) effective as of 1 January 2005 provides the legal framework for theadvancement of systematic quality research. The Act provides that quality standardsfor the delivery of health-care services be developed, in cooperation with the relevantstakeholders, in particular the health-care professionals involved as well as patients.Then the Federal Minister for Health may either issue Federal Quality Guidelines (BQLL)which recommend the use of the resulting quality standards or adopt a binding Decreestipulating their use as Federal Quality Directives (BQRL). The standards must permitnationwide implementation across sectors and professions, and must be in line withthe general principles of health promotion and transparency as well as the state of theart of medicine and experience with regard to effectiveness and efficiency. In order toperform this task, in 2007 BIQG was established, an institute specialising in healthcarequality, as a business unit of GÖG, a national research and planning institute forhealth care in Austria.Since September 2007, BIQG has focused on providing a basis for producing qualitystandards. International experience and recommendations were used as input forpreparing a metaguideline (GÖG under preparation), which defines the process ofdrawing up guidelines. According to the Metaguideline for Methods of Developing andImplementing Quality Guidelines, organisations may propose themes for FederalQuality Guidelines or Directives. These themes are weighted and ranked in a definedprioritisation process and eventually guidelines are drawn up on behalf of the FederalMinistry of Health or the Federal Health Agency (BGA). In addition, it is possible to fileapplications for recognition of papers as Federal Quality Directives (e.g., if a medicalsociety or association has already produced a quality standard): in this case, it isverified in an accreditation procedure whether the formal criteria for Federal QualityDirectives are met. At present, six themes are being reviewed. In order to draw up aFederal Quality Guideline or Directive on addiction treatment, it would be necessary topropose this theme for further examination.Both BQLL and BQRL quality standards specify a certain path of action and decisionmakingwith regard to treatment and care services and recommend proven, effectiveinstruments and procedures, departure from which is admissible or may even berequired in well-founded cases. Any deviations should adequately be documented,however. Either type of standard (BQLL and BQRL) is produced by multidisciplinaryteams in a systematic procedure, with decisions based on consensus. Different to othermember states of the EU, in Austria the focus is not solely placed on medicaltreatment, but other services are also included. Any existing medical, care or treatmentstandards are taken into consideration as source standards if their quality meets thedefined criteria.100 © GÖG/ÖBIG, <strong>Report</strong> on the Drug Situation 2010