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Improving quality measurement for dementia care
Lee A. Jennings, Zachary J. Kunicki, Ellen S. Tambor, Maricruz Rivera‐Hernandez, Soo Borson, Nicole R. Fowler, Richard Norman Jones, Gary P. Epstein-Lubow. Alzheimer s & Dementia, 2025-04-01
Topic: Risk, prevention and care in population studies
Nearly 7 million Americans are living with Alzheimer's disease or a related dementia (ADRD). Timely detection, quality of care, and access to services for people with ADRD remain poor. Broad acceptance and implementation of quality standards may help improve care processes, outcomes, and inequities in ADRD care. We review existing quality measures for ADRD and identify care domains that lack well-developed measures or for which uptake of existing measures is low. Increasing the use of existing evidence-based ADRD quality measures for health system performance improvement, pragmatic research, and Alternative Payment Models like the Centers for Medicare & Medicaid Services Guiding an Improved Dementia Experience (GUIDE) Model, launched in 2023, may promote changes in care delivery and help address disparities in dementia care. Highlights US dementia care needs better measurement tools to assess quality and inequities. Increased use of current Alzheimer's disease and related dementias quality measures is urgently needed to improve care. Consensus on high-quality dementia care is vital for health system expectations. The Centers for Medicare & Medicaid Services Guiding an Improved Dementia Experience (GUIDE) Model tests a new payment strategy to enhance dementia care quality. Other payers can boost measurement to drive quality care like the GUIDE Model.
Key findings
- Highlights US dementia care needs better measurement tools to assess quality and inequities.
- Increased use of current Alzheimer's disease and related dementias quality measures is urgently needed to improve care.
- Consensus on high-quality dementia care is vital for health system expectations.
- The Centers for Medicare & Medicaid Services Guiding an Improved Dementia Experience (GUIDE) Model tests a new payment strategy to enhance dementia care quality.
- Other payers can boost measurement to drive quality care like the GUIDE Model.
Why it matters
This review discusses the need for better quality measures for dementia care and the potential of payment models like the GUIDE Model to improve care delivery and address disparities. It does not test any treatment or prevention for Alzheimer's disease.
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Study details
- Evidence strengthLow
How this study scored 40/100
Published in a peer-reviewed journal. Scored zero for study design, sample size, effect reported, studied in people and randomised / blinded because the record does not state it.
| Component | Points | Why |
|---|---|---|
| Journal tier | 7 / 10 | Tier 3 — peer-reviewed journal (Alzheimer s & Dementia) |
| Journal's citation record | 2 / 4 | Alzheimer s & Dementia: journal h-index 228 (OpenAlex, 2026-10-29) |
| Study design | 0 / 12 | No study design recorded — scores zero, not guessed (not stated in the record — scored 0) |
| Strength of evidence | 1 / 5 | Rated “low” in our summary |
| Peer-review validation | 10 / 10 | Peer-reviewed. Published as an article in a named peer-reviewed journal. |
| How recent | 4 / 5 | 2025 — within 3 year(s) of the newest study here |
| Sample size | 0 / 4 | Participant count not stated — scores zero (not stated in the record — scored 0) |
| Effect reported | 0 / 3 | No effect size reported — scores zero (not stated in the record — scored 0) |
| Studied in people | 0 / 3 | Not stated whether this was studied in people — scores zero (not stated in the record — scored 0) |
| Randomised / blinded | 0 / 2 | No randomisation or blinding stated — scores zero (not stated in the record — scored 0) |
| Times cited | 1 / 7 | Cited 3 times (OpenAlex, 2026-10-10) |
| Citations per year | 1 / 5 | 1.0 citations a year over 3 year(s) since 2025 |
| Impact for its field and year | 2 / 6 | Cited 1.9× the average for papers of its field and year (OpenAlex FWCI) |
| Cited by studies here | 1 / 6 | Cited by 1 other studies in this library |
| Still being cited | 1 / 4 | Cited 3 times in 2024–2026 (2026 still in progress; OpenAlex) |
| Senior author's track record | 2 / 4 | Last-listed author Gary P. Epstein-Lubow: h-index 24 (OpenAlex, whole career) |
| Institution's track record | 2 / 3 | University of Southern California: institution h-index 1,521 (OpenAlex) |
| Multi-centre collaboration | 2 / 3 | OpenAlex lists 6 institution(s) in 1 country |
| Indexed in PubMed | 2 / 2 | Indexed in PubMed (PMID 40235084) |
| Free to read | 2 / 2 | Free to read |
| Total | 40 / 100 | — |
What each of these 20 components measures, and what this score is not →
Read the original
Full text: free to read — OpenAlex lists this copy as free to read: the link above (checked 6 Feb 1020).
Cite this study APA, Vancouver, BibTeX · download .bib or .ris
Built from the record alzhub holds for this paper, not looked up. Volume, issue and page numbers are not held in the record. The record names 8 authors; APA and Vancouver show the first six, BibTeX and the downloads carry all of them. Check the citation against the original before you use it.
APA 7th
Jennings, L. A., Kunicki, Z. J., Tambor, E. S., Rivera‐Hernandez, M., Borson, S., Fowler, N. R., et al. (2025). Improving quality measurement for dementia care. Alzheimer s & Dementia. https://doi.org/10.1002/alz.70154
Vancouver
Jennings LA, Kunicki ZJ, Tambor ES, Rivera‐Hernandez M, Borson S, Fowler NR, et al. Improving quality measurement for dementia care. Alzheimer s & Dementia. 2025. doi:10.1002/alz.70154. PMID: 40235084.
BibTeX
@article{jennings2025-40235084,
author = {Jennings, Lee A. and Kunicki, Zachary J. and Tambor, Ellen S. and Rivera‐Hernandez, Maricruz and Borson, Soo and Fowler, Nicole R. and Jones, Richard Norman and Epstein-Lubow, Gary P.},
title = {{Improving quality measurement for dementia care}},
journal = {Alzheimer s \& Dementia},
year = {2025},
doi = {10.1002/alz.70154},
pmid = {40235084},
url = {https://doi.org/10.1002/alz.70154}
}
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