3. Maintenance of anticoagulant therapy within rec-
ommended international normalized ratios (INRs).
Health plans may be able to improve quality of care
by using available software to analyze the plan’s claims
data; the results may help decision makers identify practice
patterns
among
plan
clinicians
and
members,
as
well
as potential opportunities to improve treatment by iden-
tifying members’ stroke risk level, those not receiving
appropriate, that is, guideline-based, thromboprophylaxis,
and/or
patients
who
are
not
being
properly
monitored
for
bleeding risk while taking an oral anticoagulant.
Once identified, health plans can design patient and
provider quality improvement interventions aimed at
improving care for these at-risk populations.