Inpatient Quality Indicators Download 

User Guide and Technical Specification

The User Guide and Technical Specification provide direction on the rationale of the Inpatient Quality Indicators (IQIs). It also provides an overview of the methods used to identify, select, and evaluate the Agency for Healthcare Research and Quality (AHRQ) Quality Indicators (QIs), a summary of the literature based evidence, empirical rates based on the State Inpatient Databases, and detailed definitions for each IQI. Potential users of this document include hospitals, State data organizations, and hospital associations.

• Inpatient Quality Indicators (IQI) Brochure, February 2006

• Guide to Inpatient Quality Indicators, Ver. 3.1, March 2007

• Inpatient Quality Indicators Technical Specifications, Ver. 4.1, December 2009  (!NEW)

Software

• Link to AHRQ QI Software Download

Change Documents

IQI Change Log:  The Change Log document provides a cumulative summary of all changes made to the IQI software, software documentation and user guide since the original release of these documents in November 2001.  Previous years' coding changes can be found on the IQI Archive page.

• Change Log to IQI Guide and Software, September 2003 - Present

  • IQI Change Log 
     

• Fiscal year 2009 coding changes (effective October 1, 2008)

  • IQI FY2009 Indicator Changes 

Technical Documentation

The technical review of research underlying the development of the quality indicators is available here.  The Prevention Quality Indicators and Inpatient Quality Indicators were developed from the HCUP Quality Indicators.  The research is summarized along with revisions in the IQI Guide that may be downloaded above.

• Refinement of the HCUP Quality Indicators (Technical Review), May 2001
  • Zipped — 749 KB
  • File Inventory
• Refinement of the HCUP Quality Indicators (Summary), May 2001
  • Word® Format — 255 KB
  • PDF Format — 260 KB | (PDF help)
     
• Inpatient Quality Indicators (IQI) Composite Measure Workgroup Final Report, March 2008
  • PDF format - 7.6 MB | (PDF help)

• HCUP Quality Indicators (Archived for historical purposes)

Documentation in Microsoft Word® Format

• IQI Guide

• IQI Technical Specifications

• IQI FY2008 Indicator Changes