Table 3 Example of a quality indicator

Definition

The proportion of patients who underwent surgery and have a pain score ≤ 4 at 24 h after surgery

Rationale

Pain reduction is an important goal in care after surgery. Pain management should be aimed at reducing pain to an acceptable level of ≤4 on a numeric rating scale (NRS).

Numerator

The number of patients who underwent surgery and had a pain measurement ≤4 at 24 h after surgery

Denominator

All patients who underwent surgery and had a pain measurement at 24 h after surgery

Specification

Pain is measured in all patients at 24 h after surgery, using an 11-point numeric rating scale (NRS) with 0 points being no pain at all, and 10 points being unbearable pain

Norm

> 80% of the patients should have a pain level of ≤4 at 24 h after surgery