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Quality Improvement in Primary Care

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Submitted By khailia11
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Pages 2
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|Quality Improvement in Primary Care |
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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 QI is to be accountable for all three dimensions of the IHI Triple Aim. For the health of our communities, for the health of our school systems, and for the health of all our patients, we need to address all three of the Triple Aim dimensions at the same time (www.ihi.org). Achieving the Triple Aim takes improving the health of the population, enhancing patient experiences and outcomes, and reducing the per capita cost of care, and improving provider experience (www.ahrq.gov). Without attention to these aims, the organization could possibly increase quality care at the expense of cost or decrease cost while creating a dissatisfying experience for the patient. Therefore achieving this goal will allow for improved quality of care, improved population health and achievement of efficiencies. To begin the organization can focus on the patients and their families, the redesign of the primary care services and structures, and a cost control platform (www.ihi.org). The leadership will play an important role in improving quality by setting priorities, providing structure to support the improvement effort, modeling core values, promoting a learning atmosphere, acting on recommendations, advocating for supportive policies, and allocating resources for improvement (www.ahrq.org). Being that this is a small clinic with a primary care provider, nurse and support staff, most of the staff members will be involved in all aspects of the QI work.

Flow Chart

References
The IHI Triple Aim. (n.d.). Retrieved March 1, 2015, from http://www.ihi.org/engage/initiatives/TripleAim/Pages/default.aspx
Quality Improvement in Primary Care: External Supports for Practices. June 2014. Agency for Healthcare Research and Quality, Rockville, MD. http://www.ahrq.gov/research/findings/factsheets/quality/qipc/index.html

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Define the problem

Form a team consisting of the staff members

Introduce the project to the organization

The INITIATIVE

Create a process map

(showing new initiative)

Collect baseline data

(shows current procedures)

Develop process measures

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