Managing unwarranted variation in hospital care - findings from a regional audit in Norway.

We found that the strategic aim of reducing unwanted clinical variation was not clearly communicated by senior HSO management to hospital boards and senior management. The hospitals could benefit from a better understanding of causes of variation by strengthening their efforts to reduce unwarranted variation in utilization rates as a key element in improving health care quality and patient safety. The findings of the audit are relevant for other healthcare organizations trying to improve their quality and reduce unnecessary variation.