OASIS-Central

Q: If at start of care the answer to M1610 is 1- Patient is incontinent and then at discharge the answer is 2- Patient requires a urinary catheter, does our OBQI score show improvement, decline, or no change?

A: The patient would show a decline in urinary incontinence. Although improvement in urinary incontinence remains an OBQI end-result outcome, it is no longer a Home Health Compare publicly-reported outcome under OASIS-C. Outcomes are changes that result from care provided, the natural progression of disease and disability, or a combination of these factors. The change in the patient’s health status can correspond to improvement, stabilization or decline in the patient’s condition. An end-result outcome compares the patient’s status between the initial time point (SOC/ROC) and the follow-up time point (Discharge or Transfer). Outcome measures are derived based on the numeric value for a data element between these two time points. Lower values typically indicate a more independent or functional status and higher numbers indicate a more dependent or less functional status.

When assessing M1610, Urinary Incontinence, a value of 2 – Patient requires a urinary catheter, is more dependent than a value of 1 – Patient is incontinent; even though both indicate deficits. The need for a urinary catheter also correlates to greater resource needs related to medical supplies and nursing services.