Pay for Performance for Antibiotic Timing in Pneumonia: Caveat Emptor

Attempts to address the performance measure are probably dependent on how well the emergency department functions and the level of crowding. Patients with a suspected pneumonia may be empirically covered with antibiotics before radiographic diagnosis, which should increase the rate of antibiotic administration for antibiotic-nonresponsive conditions and contribute to antibiotic resistance. The answer is to find measures of system throughput and/or work flow that are associated with improved patient care outcomes.