...Introduction Quality is a familiar word. However it has a variety of interpretations and uses, and there are many definitions. For example when searched on the internet it produces ISO 8402-1986 standards defining Quality asthe totality of features and characteristics of a product or service that bears its ability to satisfy stated or implied needs." BusinessDictionary.com (2013)Many people today claim they understand what is meant by quality and claim they know quality when they see it. In fact quality is a very difficult concept to grasp or understand and many experts have spent many years in defining quality and improving quality in their products and services and they believe there is always room for improvement. However the simplest way of explaining it is ‘meeting customer requirements’ Oakland J. S (1996). We have to therefore look at quality as something good and worth having. To examine quality and how it improves the organisation, we must explore the theorists and their findings. Quality Management was first introduced by the Father of Scientific Management Fredrick Taylor. Until the late 19th century there were little or no principles or theories for management. A manager was of superior importance who told the workers what they wanted done; the worker then went about his duty with little or no training, no motivation and little pay. Everything up until now was made in one unit form, usually from start to finish by the one person (craftsmen). ). From the late...
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...Quality care can have various definitions; it depends on the type of service or product being provided. If you would ask a banker, he’d say he provides quality service, a manufacturer would say he provides a quality product, and if you asked a healthcare professional he’d say quality care. Different professions define quality a little different, but still the fact remains that quality is important. Quality care in the healthcare industry is extremely important because it is dealing with direct contact with the patient. I think about the famous quote that says doing the right thing, at the right time, in the right way”. Quality Care involves a relationship between the person receiving care and the person providing care. Each patient is unique, and each have of them have a unique illness. I myself find out that clinical care is still the greatest aspects of treating a patient, having that one on one with your doctor or nurse helps reassure your safety and level of comfort ability, which can help with the patients healing...
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...Annually, millions of Americans receive high-quality health care that restores their health to the best it can be and allows them to carry on functioning in society at their optimum best. Unfortunately this story does not resonate with some Americans who are far from happy about the level of care they received while sick. Quality problems are present in wide variation across board when talking delivery of health care services, in some instance, the issue could be with underutilization of a particular service, and other instances may include misuse of service which is generally preceded at onset by prior unacceptable level of errors. The purpose of this paper is to highlight medication errors as a health care safety issue. One solution involving automation would be explored since it has long been recognized as an important factor in reducing human errors in work processes. It is crucial to showcase this because numerous studies have substantiated the positive effects of health IT on quality and safety improvements, Slovenky & Menachemi (2011). A safety Initiative With new tools provided by the Affordable Care Act, hospitals can now aggressively implement programs with sole aim of assisting in the reduction of preventable errors. The act provides hospitals with incentives to improve the quality of health care, and provide real assistance to medical professionals, to support their efforts to reduce harm, McKinney & Zigmond (2011). The government predicted that this could save...
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...Quality assurance was born in the industrial setting in the 1950s. There it stayed, evolved, and thrived until the early 1990s when it made the crossover into the health care arena, (Sollecito & Johnson,p 20 2013). In the modern era, striving for excellence and the assurance of quality is a staple of health care and, with the transition to pay-for-performance and evidenced-based practices in medicine, it is becoming more important and more visible. In the healthcare setting, quality assurance (QA) teams work throughout the hospital system to design policies and procedures that promote the best possible outcomes for their patients and, in turn, their facility. That means ensuring compliance with a multitude of regulations, policies, and laws...
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...Measuring physician’s quality can enable them to strive for high performance. In order to create an atmosphere where physicians are meeting quality standards there needs to be an improvement program implemented to insure quality. According to article I researched “Performance measurements coupled with feedback (that is, audit and feedback) to health care providers has been shown to improve the quality care. Computerized clinical decision to support can improve quality.” (Persell, Dolan, Friesema, Thompson, & Kaiser, 2010) By using these methods it can increase quality performance and have less medical errors. Offering financial incentives if “performance measurements increase” can create results that are not true to form and have measurement errors. What may happen is physicians “may prescribe tests and treatments to patients for whom the benefits are insignificant because of concern that it will hurt their remuneration or publicly reported quality performance. (Persell, Dolan, Friesema, Thompson, & Kaiser, 2010)” When measuring the assessments if physicians believe that the tools used to measure their performance maybe incorrect what can happen is they may not heed to decision support or they may dismiss the findings even if they are not achieving the results that are expected of them. (Persell, Dolan, Friesema, Thompson, & Kaiser, 2010) In managed care one solution is to incorporate a standardization way for clinicians to record medical exceptions or to look at when...
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...Measuring Quality of Services in Hospital Introduction The application of quality-management practices by manufacturers and service providers has become increasingly widespread. Recognition of the differences between manufacturing and services through the dimensions of intangibility, inseparability, and heterogeneity of service products. A hospital is an institution whose primary function is to provide inpatient diagnostic and therapeutic services for a variety of medical conditions, both surgical and non-surgical. In addition, most hospitals provide some outpatient services, particularly emergency care. Hospitals may be classified by length of stay (short-term or long-term), as teaching or non-teaching, by major types of services (psychiatric, T.B., Gen. /other Specialties, such as maternity, pediatrics, or ENT), and by type of ownership or control. The below mentioned functions are important for a hospital. Literature Review The quality of service—both technical and functional—is a key ingredient in the success of service organizations. Technical quality in health care is defined primarily on the basis of the technical accuracy of the diagnosis and procedures. Several techniques for measuring technical quality have been proposed and are currently in use in health-care organizations. Information relating to this is not generally available to the public, and remains within the purview of health-care professionals and administrators. Functional quality, in contrast, relates...
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...Medical Malpractice and Quality of Care: With the increase in costs of malpractice insurance for doctors, how is our quality of care affected and what can be done about it? Rising malpractice insurance affects everyone seeking medical care and should be a cause for serious concern. At first, the health care industry saw rising premiums as only a temporary backlash from a couple of lawsuits with multimillion dollar jury awards. Therefore, health care administrators, insurance companies, and public officials worried little about planning for the snow-balling crisis that exists today. People blame greedy lawyers and generous juries for the problem; however, I feel that more than one cause led to our current situation. Today, administrators and lawmakers debate the best solution to this dilemma. Many suggest that by merely capping monetary damages awarded, malpractice rates will stabilize. I disagree. I believe that monetary caps must occur to help with the costs, but I also feel that patient/public awareness is essential to the stabilization of insurance premiums. After the first multimillion dollar award in a medical malpractice lawsuit, physicians still felt safe because they believed juries would place little or no emphasis on non-economic damages – awards unrelated to medical costs, lost salary, etc. However, the lawsuits kept coming and the awards, especially for non-economic damages, kept escalating. According to the New York Times, “the average jury...
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...The evaluation of quality in healthcare has a long history. The beginnings of monitoring healthcare quality can be traced back to a surgeon, E. A. Codman from Massachusetts General Hospital in the early twentieth century who advocated for systemic performance assessments of the care he provided to his own patients (Kongstvedt, 2013). The Health Maintenance Organization (HMO) and the application of computers in healthcare in the 1970 led to the large scale ability to analyze data (Kongstvedt, 2013). In the 1990s with increased efforts to control cost and increase quality there were many drivers to implement quality management programs including: a) state laws requiring quality assurance plans in HMOs, b) federal regulations requiring quality...
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... | |Quality Improvement in Primary Care | | | | | | | | With the movement to advance quality care and the improvement of health care outcomes, organizations have increasingly implemented quality improvement (QI) initiatives to meet requirements. Quality Improvement refers to activities aimed at improving performance and is an approach to the continuous study and improvement of the processes of providing services to meet the needs of the individual and others. Engaging primary care practices in quality improvement activities is essential to achieving improvements in health care such as the triple aim. In an effort to create a high-value health care system the focus on improving the performance and safety of primary care is a must. The objective of this...
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...ASSIGNMENT: Using theory on healthcare quality. Critically evaluate approaches that you, as a healthcare manager, could use to improve the quality of care provided by your organization. Introduction The concept of "quality" has been contemplated throughout history and continues to be a topic of intense interest today. Quality of service is rendered extremely important in any industry and it has been a subject of study and research in many fields. (Reeves and Bednar, 1994) This essay will look at definitions of quality in healthcare; examine the theories of quality in healthcare and approaches taken toward evaluating and improving quality of health services in Uganda’s public health sector with the main focus on the implementation of Millennium Development Goals. The discussion will focus on patient satisfaction as an aspect of quality and how it influences quality of care provided from a District healthcare manager’s perspective, analyse factors that influence patient satisfaction, how the MDGs aim to improve the quality of care provided to patients by exposing the gaps between healthcare management perceptions of service quality and how the service is actually being delivered to the consumers. Social constructionism in healthcare In social constructionism it is important to look at social settings and human way of life when focusing on healthcare in different cultures and societies. Class and social stratification can have profound implications for the way we experience...
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...Health care quality is essential when it comes to providing care. Health care quality is defined as "the degree to which health services for individuals or populations increase the likelihood of desired health outcomes and consistent with current professional knowledge" (McConnell, 2012 p. 26). However, a patient's perspective about the quality of care is vital. A patient's view about the quality of care includes a clear understanding of their treatment, relief of symptoms, access to health care, the appropriate treatment, exceptional communication, responsiveness and empathy, how to improve their health status, and the prevention of medical injury. These are important factors that may help reduce medical errors and improve quality. According to studies, when it comes to safety and risk of medical errors, "the U.S. indicates a significant level of awareness of safety issues among the general population" (Vincent & Coulter, 2002)....
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...Quality Improvement consists of systematic and continuous actions that lead to measureable improvement in health care services and the health status of targeted patient groups. (hrsa.gov) Improving customer satisfaction can be an overwhelming task. Unfortunately most health care offices (especially specialists) are packed with impatient patients. Even with the implementation of quality initiatives there could still be some challenges. There may be some unforeseen emergencies, among other problems that will arise. The goal is to implement practices that ensure the best patient experience possible. One quality initiative could be giving out surveys to patients after their visit. They would be designed to address any concerns or problems the...
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...Quality and Values Initiatives in Health Care Introduction The relationship between the external quality and value initiatives in health care has been widely discussed in academic literature. Actually, this issue is of great importance as it reflects the role of patient satisfaction in healthcare. According to researchers, “in health care, the whole notion of quality has become a source of confusion and sometimes a distraction from genuine value improvement” (McClellan, 2008, p. 23). Quality is affected by patient outcomes and satisfaction. At the same time, quality helps to determine the value in healthcare. Many quality and value initiatives are aimed at reducing health care disparities that exist in American healthcare system, as well as at improving the quality of care (McClellan, 2008). Generally speaking, various quality of care initiatives contribute to the overall success of any health are organization, including financial success and success of nursing practices. To achieve higher level of quality of health care services, it is necessary to use effective mechanisms, which involve certain changes, such as additional staffing, new equipment, adequate audits, and other changes. Health care organizations should be focused on overcoming any barriers to successful quality improvement. Quality and values initiatives in health care help to achieve this goal. The major goal of this paper is to discuss the relationship between the external quality and value...
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...Protection and Health Division (SCL/SPH) TECHNICAL NOTE Quality Improvement of Health Care in Belize: Focusing on Results Ian Mac Arthur Jennifer Nelson Martha Woodye No. IDB-TN-661 May 2014 Quality Improvement of Health Care in Belize: Focusing on Results Ian Mac Arthur Jennifer Nelson Martha Woodye Inter-American Development Bank 2014 Cataloging-in-Publication data provided by the Inter-American Development Bank Felipe Herrera Library Mac Arthur, Ian. Quality improvement of health care in Belize: focusing on results / Ian Mac Arthur, Jennifer Nelson, Martha Woodye. p. cm. — (IDB Technical Note ; 661) Includes bibliographic references. 1. Health services administration—Belize. 2. Public health administration—Belize. I. Nelson, Jennifer. II. Woodye, Martha. III. Inter-American Development Bank. Social Protection and Health Division. IV. Title. V. Series. IDB-TN-661 http://www.iadb.org The opinions expressed in this publication are those of the authors and do not necessarily reflect the views of the Inter-American Development Bank, its Board of Directors, or the countries they represent. The unauthorized commercial use of Bank documents is prohibited and may be punishable under the Bank's policies and/or applicable laws. Copyright © 2014 Inter-American Development Bank. All rights reserved; may be freely reproduced for any non-commercial purpose. Ian Mac Arthur, ianm@iadb.org Quality Improvement of Health Care in Belize: Focusing on Results Abstract Belize is participating...
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...U.S. Health Care Quality Analysis: Legislative History Following up to the 1999 release of the Institute of Medicine (IOM) report, To Err Is Human, in 2002 a Kaiser Family Foundation survey found that only about 5% of physicians considered medical errors as a primary healthcare concern.[1] Congress, however, did not share the physicians’ nonchalant attitude and gave the Agency for Healthcare Research and Quality (AHRQ) an estimated $50 million towards minimizing medical errors.[2] Senator James Jeffords (R-VT) of the 107th Congress introduced the Patient Safety and Quality Improvement Act (S.2590) to the Senate on June 4, 2002[3] attempting to improve the safety of patients and “…reduce the incidence of events that adversely effect patient safety.”[4] In 2003, President Bush signed into law the Medicare Prescription Drug Improvement and Modernization Act (P.L 108-173).[5] A section of this law authorized AHRQ to research effectiveness in treatments in order to set a guideline to improve the quality of care.[6] John Eisenberg helped build this program that generates summaries that can help provide health care providers with evidence-based practices that help improve quality of care delivered.[7] Realizing the importance of this research to quality of care, the president signed the Under the American Recovery and Reinvestment Act of 2009 (H.R. 1) into law on February 17, 2009, providing additional funding to continue effective research.[8] This helps to demonstrate the...
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