Six areas or dimensions of quality, which are named and described below. These dimensions require that health care be:Effective, delivering health care that is adherent to an evidence base and results in improved health outcomes for individuals and communities, based on need;
Efficient, delivering health care in a manner which maximizes resource use and avoids waste;
Accessible, delivering health care that is timely, geographically reasonable, and provided in a setting where skills and resources are appropriate to medical need;
Acceptable/patient-centred, delivering health care which takes into account the preferences and aspirations of individual service users and the cultures of their communities;
Equitable, delivering health care which does not vary in quality because of personal characteristics such as gender, race, ethnicity, geographical location, or socioeconomic status;
Safe, delivering health care which minimizes risks and harm to service users.