Surrogate Biomarkers for Monitoring Healthcare Quality for Chronic Diseases Such as Diabetes Care

Some laboratory tests or biomarkers are used as surrogate outcomes for health care effectiveness. HbA1c is defined as a surrogate biomarker since HbA1c values have been approved to be used in predictions of clinically important complications of diabetes mellitus. With the advance of information technology (IT) the real life data are aggregating as electronic health records (EHRs). About 70-85% of individuals admitted to hospitals have laboratory test results. As such, medical laboratories are the data centers in the hospitals. The test results can be used for assessment of health care delivered, especially for chronic diseases. This information provides insights of healthcare services, and can be used to enhance for individual and population well-being, research, and education. This article focuses on the importance of using laboratory tests results as outcome measures for specific population health status that are important in assessing the quality of health care services. The findings from our studies on the diabetic care quality is presented.