| 1. Safe. Safety must be a system property of healthcare where patients are protected from injury by the system of care that is intended to help them. Reducing risk and ensuring safety require a systems focus to prevent and mitigate error. |
| 2. Effective. Care and decision making must be evidence based with neither underuse nor overuse of the best available techniques. |
| 3. Patient-centered. Care must be respectful and responsive of individual patient's culture, social context, and specific needs, ensuring that patients receive the necessary information and opportunity to participate in decisions and have their values guide all clinical decision making about their own care. |
| 4. Timely. The system must reduce waits and harmful delays. |
| 5. Efficient. The system must avoid waste, including waste of equipment, supplies, ideas, time, and energy. |
| 6. Equitable. Care must be provided equitably without variation in quality because of personal characteristics such as race, gender, ethnicity, geographic location, and socioeconomic status. |
