IQED-Foot - Initiative for Quality improvement and Epidemiology in multidisciplinary Diabetic Foot Clinics

Last updated on 24-1-2024 by An-Sofie Vanherwegen
Project duration:
July 1, 2014
-
Project with no end date

In short

One in four individuals with diabetes will develop diabetic foot ulcers. Without expert treatment, these ulcers will not heal and may result in lower-limb amputation. In Belgium, 37 multidisciplinary centres are recognised by the INAMI-RIZIV for the treatment of these ulcers (list only available in Dutch or French). Through regular data collections, the IQED-Foot project monitors quality of care in these centres and provides individualised feedback, helping the centres to improve their quality of care.

Project description

Diabetic foot problems represent a major burden on the individual’s quality-of-life and on the healthcare budget: about 20% of the costs of diabetes care are the result of foot problems, their treatment and amputations. These problems are best treated by multidisciplinary teams.

Since 2005, multidisciplinary tertiary diabetic foot clinics (“centres”) can apply for recognition from the INAMI-RIZIV (information only available in Dutch or French). For continued recognition, centres need to participate in IQED-Foot. The project is executed by Sciensano and governed by a group of national experts.

Study design

IQED-Foot uses the so-called audit-feedback method to monitor quality of care and support healthcare providers in improving quality of care.

Periodically, recognised centres are invited to participate in the IQED-Foot audit. Centres are required to prospectively provide data on the characteristics, treatment and outcomes of the first 52 individuals presenting with a deep diabetic foot ulcer or an active Charcot foot during a 1-year inclusion period. Included individuals are then followed up for 6 months with regard to ulcer healing, amputations and mortality.

Audits are performed using the Healthdata.be platform, where also the current inclusion criteria and questionnaire items can be consulted.

Results

After each audit, centres receive individualised feedback, allowing them to see where improvement may be needed. In IQED-Foot, many of the quality indicators are based on the recommendations of the International Working Group on the Diabetic Foot.

Each cycle is closed with the publication of a national report on the findings of that cycle and the evolutions across cycles.

Legal information

The Sectoral Committee of Social Security and Health has authorised the transmission and use of these pseudonymized data (authorisation only available in Dutch or French).

Sciensano and RIZIV/INAMI are responsible for the processing of the data. The processing is based on the grounds of public interest (art. 6.1 (e) of the General Data Protection Regulation (GDPR)) and in particular for data concerning health, for reasons of public interest in the areas of public health (art. 9.2 (i), of the GDPR).

Individuals treated in these centres are informed about the data collection through a flyer (PDF icon Dutch or PDF icon French) in the waiting room and may opt out.

More information is available in this PDF icon privacy statement.

Sciensano's project investigator(s):

Service(s) working on this project

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