This study on assessment issues in health care delivery in hospitals is based on four years of extensive research at two very different sites. Wiener examines the quest to assess the quality of delivery services in theses hospitals and to make them accountable for the care they provide. Her approach is different from other such studies as a result of the length of time devoted to the research and the juxtaposition of what hospital professionals are told they should do and what, in fact, they do. The Elusive Quest offers a model for future studies at other sites, and will serve in its own right as an essential tool for upper-level courses in medical sociology, public policy, healthcare management, and public health.