GIHQS Learning Module
Designing Effective KPIs
This lesson builds practical understanding of healthcare KPI systems using a high-reliability, quality-management, and performance-improvement lens.
Learning outcomes
- Write a KPI with a clear definition, owner, and target.
- Recognize characteristics of strong and weak indicators.
- Connect KPI design to decision usefulness.
Characteristics of a strong KPI
Strong KPIs are meaningful, clearly defined, feasible to collect, sensitive to change, and owned by someone who can influence results.
Start with the decision
A good design question is not simply what can be measured, but what decision the measure should support.
Writing definitions carefully
KPI specifications should include inclusions, exclusions, timestamps, source systems, update logic, and escalation thresholds.
Targets and thresholds
Targets should be realistic, evidence-informed, and tied to response expectations.
Knowledge check
A KPI says improve patient access with no formula, owner, or data source. Answer: It is a vague aim, not an operational KPI.