Physician anesthesiologists have long recognized the importance of measuring and maintaining normal body temperature. Multiple research studies have demonstrated that hypothermia increases cardiac arrhythmias, increases blood loss, raises rates of surgical infections and delays patient awakening. Reflecting that importance, temperature management was one of the first quality measures adopted by the profession. This measure combined two categories of performance, specifically an outcome as well as a process. The outcome was maintenance of normothermia as defined by a core temperature of 36 degrees Celsius at the end of the case. The process measure was as simple as the application of a warming blanket. Practices rapidly learned that applying warming blankets could result in 100 percent achievement of the performance measure.
Over time, national performance has “topped out” at 100 percent. With no more gap to achieve improvement, the old measure has become somewhat irrelevant and will likely be changed in the...
