A decade of data
AUA celebrates a milestone of its Quality Registry and Census.
2024 marks the 10th year of the AUA Annual Census and AUA Quality Registry. These two programs have advanced the organization’s data-driven initiatives and have proved valuable in a range of uses across the global urological community. The Data Symposium, which takes place 4-6 p.m. today in the Video Abstract Theater, will highlight past outcomes, future plans and ways that members can benefit from findings.
The AUA developed the yearly Census, which runs from the Annual Meeting through the end of September, to monitor trends in the urological workforce. AQUA is more focused on extracting data for reporting and benchmarking resources. Each spring, the AUA Data Team publishes multiple reports with widespread analyses. The scope of reports includes data on urologists practicing in the United States and internationally, residents and fellows, advanced practice providers and individual AUA Sections.
“Collectively, these studies help us understand the state of the urological workforce,” said Amanda North, MD, an associate professor and chief of pediatric urology at Children's Hospital at Montefiore in the Bronx, New York, and AUA Data Committee chair. “The data are very important for future planning as well as for supporting our legislative agenda.”
Over the past decade, information from AQUA and the Annual Census has been a resource for research projects, strategic planning and policy work. Hung-Jui (Ray) Tan, MD, MSHPM, AQUA Subcommittee chair, cited AQUA’s role in providing real-world clinical data on current topics such as overactive bladder and low-risk prostate cancer.
“[These articles] have provided important insights into gaps in contemporary urology care, and we are seeing how these findings have been used to support funding initiatives from both private and public sectors,” said Dr. Tan, who is associate professor and director of urologic oncology at the University of North Carolina at Chapel Hill.
Dr. North said Census data are also frequently used in advocacy efforts, such as promoting continued reimbursement for telehealth services and supporting an increase in the number of graduate medical education training openings.
“Given the workforce shortages and high burnout rates in medicine, our only way of understanding and fixing the problems facing urologists is to gather data and use [them] to advocate for change,” she said.
While the Annual Census and AQUA have provided immense value to the field, the programs should not be taken for granted. The examination and procurement of data rely on collective input.
“The more members who participate, the more powerful these data sources become,” Dr. Tan said. “With more participants, we can tailor who gets what questions and generate even more knowledge for our field—and this is just scratching the surface.”
Going forward, Drs. North and Tan said that the AUA is working to improve and integrate the data. This will be a top point of discussion during the Data Symposium.
“The Census is particularly well suited to gauge member attitudes and perceptions, while AQUA is best for characterizing practice patterns,” said Dr. Tan. “In synergizing the two, we can better understand how our workforce provides care and why. We’ll also be in a stronger position to use Census and AQUA to power quality improvement across the field.”
