Most stakeholders in the health field want to minimize the burden of illness and have patients maintain their ability to work and enjoy an active, independent life (functional health status), receive the right care (appropriateness) at the right time (access) in a satisfying and efficient manner; and this with available resources avoiding unnecessary costs. Growing evidence, however, suggests that the daily practice of care does not correspond to the standards that the medical profession itself puts forward. To improve care and to realise potential medical and economical benefits, policymakers are looking for methods to measure and benchmark the performance of health care systems. [...]
This debate applies equally to the treatment of end stage renal disease (ESRD) that requires rend replacement therapy. This paper will only analyse dialysis as it is the major renal replacement therapy in Switzerland. [...]
But why is the question of quality in dialysis treatment so important? Firstly, there are legal obligations which are set out in article 43 and 58 of the federal law on health insurance to which the different parties in health care are bound to produce the best quality possible at the lowest costs possible. There are remaining questions about the demand for this type of treatment, the economic impact and the feasibility of implementation of quality control measures. [...] [Author, p. 3]