Every Enterprise Merits Quality Improvement

QUALITY IMPROVEMENT METHODS ARE BROADLY APPLICABLE

First, I'll share a quote with you by Kaoru Ishikawa that I believe underscores the importance and broad applicability of Quality Improvement practices. "Quality control is applicable to any kind of enterprise. In fact, it must be applied to every enterprise." Quality control here is synonymous with quality improvement and quality assurance work. Ishikawa popularized use of the fishbone diagram within the sphere of quality improvement science. The fishbone diagram is a visual aid that is often used in cause and effect analysis, or root cause analysis.


WHAT IS HEALTHCARE QUALITY IMPROVEMENT?

But what exactly is meant by the term "quality improvement" in healthcare? Essentially, it's the systematic approach we use to improve the ways that care is delivered to patients. Elements of quality improvement include: methodologies, frameworks, processes, methods, and tools. The aims of quality improvement are several: Safety, effectiveness, patient-centeredness, timeliness, efficiency, and equity for all patients. Therefore, any work that improves those aspects of care can be categorized as quality improvement work. In the spirit of continuous quality improvement that leads to better outcomes for patients, taking a systematic approach with a systems focus is arguably the best course.


THE IMPORTANCE OF PROCESS MAPPING

Here's another quote, this one by W. Edwards Deming, which highlights a fundamental step in improving and optimizing systems: “If you can't describe what you are doing as a process, you don't know what you're doing.” Therefore, it is vital to describe and map your processes, to ensure that you're accounting for every interconnected element that can contribute to its success or failure. Methods for process mapping are available through OUTFIGR education's Foundations of Healthcare Quality Improvement course.


GUIDES TO ATTAIN HIGH ACHIEVEMENT

OUTFIGR offers clients a systematic way to tackle problems that stand in the way of improved care for patients and reduced costs and demands on the healthcare system and supports clients with guidelines to achieve thier goals.