Table 1 Definition of inclusion and exclusion criteria

Healthcare providers in primary and/or acute hospital care; being a provider organization (hospital, practice, medical group, etc.); team of providers or an individual physician

Patients as target group for financial incentives; providers in mental or behavioral health settings, or in nursing homes

The use of an explicit financial positive or negative incentive directly related to providers' performance with regard to specifically measured quality-of-care targets and directed at a person's income or at further investment in quality improvement; performance measured as achievement and/or improvement

The use of implicit financial incentives, which might affect quality of care but are not specifically intended to explicitly promote quality (e.g., fee-for-service, capitation, salary); the use of indirect financial incentives that affect payment only through patient attraction (e.g., public reporting)

No inclusion criteria specified for relevance screening

No exclusion criteria specified for relevance screening

At least one structural, process, or (intermediate) outcome measure on clinical effectiveness of care, access and/or equity of care, coordination and/or continuity of care, patient-centeredness, and/or cost-effectiveness of care

Subjective structural, process, or (intermediate) outcome perceptions or statements that are not measured quantitatively using a standardized validated instrument; a single focus on cost containment or productivity as targets

Primary evaluation studies published in a peer-reviewed journal or published by the Agency for Healthcare Research and Quality (AHRQ), the Institute of Medicine (IOM), the National Health Service Department of Health or a non-profit independent academic institution

Editorials, perspectives, comments, letters; papers on P4P theory, development and/or implementation without evaluation