A variety of perspectives influence how different stakeholders approach diagnostic improvement. The most obvious one is based on the viewpoints of patients, caregivers, and clinicians, who focus on whether the diagnosis serves the patient well and whether the diagnosis optimizes opportunities to successfully intervene to improve outcomes. Although no one would dispute that outcomes are important, additional stakeholder perspectives need to be considered that add a more complex view.1
These perspectives offer distinct but interconnected ways to evaluate diagnostic improvement. For example, to deliver care to the public at large, healthcare needs to be affordable, so payers and insurers may focus on value. Those who determine public policy for the population might focus on evidence-based standards for cost-effectiveness to determine what is best for a population.
Hospital administrators, who need to ensure the financial health of their organization, often focus on satisfying regulatory measures for quality to optimize reimbursement. Some may look to satisfy performance standards within incentive programs to enhance institutional reputation. Each of these perspectives ultimately influences the language and approaches to diagnostic improvement, and each perspective should be considered for the role it has in ensuring diagnostic quality.
