“Chapter 10 – Quality Improvement/Assurance” of the Health Resources and Services Administration (HRSA) Health Center Program Compliance Manual requires health centers complete Quality Improvement/Assurance (QI/QA) assessments on a quarterly basis. Additionally, HRSA requires the health center to provide quarterly reports to Key Management Staff and the heath center’s Board of Directors for the purposes of management decision making. Although reporting quarterly data in an off-quarter month technically meets the HRSA requirements, the data has the potential to overgeneralize and not reflect the current state of the organization accurately. In addition, a delay in reporting quarterly data places the organization at risk, as the data may demonstrate the need for implementation of a corrective plan of action that is not addressed in a timely manner.

Industry standard best practices demonstrate quarterly data is best utilized when presented according to the following schedule:

• Quarter One (Q1) – Data for activities that occurred in Q1 (January through March) is reported in April.
• Quarter Two (Q2) – Data for activities that occurred in Q2 (April through June) is reported in July.
• Quarter Three (Q3) – Data for activities that occurred in Q3 (July through September) is reported in October.
• Quarter Four (Q4) – Data for activities that occurred in Q4 (October through December) is reported in January of the subsequent year.

In addition to reporting Q4 data, the health center should develop an annual report in January that provides a cumulative summary of activities that occurred in the previous year. Several factors can impact the timing of reporting quarterly data, such as the schedule of QI/QA Committee Meetings and Board of Directors Meetings, as the health center must allow sufficient time for data collection, analysis and report preparation. 

To ensure compliance with HRSA Health Center Program Requirements, health centers should follow the guidance outlined in the HRSA Health Center Compliance Manual (Chapter 10 – QI/QA) and HRSA Site Visit Protocol (QI/QA – Site Visit Protocol).