Measuring quality in women's health care: issues and recent developments.

This article provides a discussion of some key quality issues in women's health care and of some recent developments in quality measurement in women's health. The work of the Women's Health Measurement Advisory Panel of the National Committee for Quality Assurance is described to illustrate some challenges and avenues for development of quality measures that address key health concerns of women and reflect their perspectives. The development of quality measures in women's health is essential for quality reporting that is meaningful for women, for quality improvement efforts within health care organizations, and for research to identify the conditions that optimize quality in women's health care.