The birth of InterQual: evidence-based decision support criteria that helped change healthcare

PURPOSE/OBJECTIVES: InterQual evidence-based clinical decision support criteria are used by thousands of organizations in healthcare. What industry trends led to their creation, and what accounts for their longevity and widespread acceptance? PRIMARY PRACTICE SETTINGS(S): Hospitals, health systems, and managed care organizations. FINDINGS/CONCLUSIONS: Although the healthcare puzzle sometimes seems too complicated for anyone to solve, passionate people with good ideas have been able to effect substantive and relatively rapid change throughout healthcare history.