Quality Improvement Plan Part II

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Running head: QUALITY IMPROVEMENT PLAN PART 1 Quality Improvement Plan Part II – Quality Data Collection Student’s Name Institutional Affiliation

QUALITY IMPROVEMENT PLAN PART II 2 Quality Improvement Plan Part II - Quality Data Collection Quality improvement is a critical process in the development of qualitative healthcare and positive outcomes for consumers through a defined set of procedures and philosophies (Walker, 2012). This paper examines critical areas for potential, quality improvement advances in Gulf Coast Medical Center. Among the key factors of a successful, quality improvement entails performance measurement including the healthcare data for the improvement of patient care. The use of these tools and initiatives aids healthcare managers in appreciating the quality improvement in healthcare organizations. Areas of Potential Improvement for the Organization Significant areas of potential, quality improvement include patient discharge procedures and emergency room wait times. These critical areas have significant financial implications and impacts for healthcare institutions. Discharge procedures and instructions if issued accurately can minimize the patient re-admission rate for the institution including improvement of consumer experience and financial outcomes. These are among the measures that Gulf Coast Medical Center could implement to align its mission with that of the healthcare organization and inherent commitment in performance improvement. Data Collection Models There are various data collection models in healthcare; however, the determination of an optimal model is the duty of the healthcare organization. Among the data collection models is the Plan, Do, Study and Act which concerts its focus on three issues; what the organization intends to accomplish, how the organization will determine that change constitutes an improvement and which change will lead to improvement. This model is essential in aiding the determination of the needed change for quality improvement (Curran & Totten, 2011).

QUALITY IMPROVEMENT PLAN PART II 3 Lean thinking is another model health care organizations use to put the needs of the patient first. This model is a five-step process focuses on removing waste and improving the flow. The patient defines value to the health care organizations in exchange for the delivery of the procedure or treatment in a cost-efficient manner. This model helps to reduce cost for the health care organization while improving the quality of the patient experience (Curran & Totten, 2011). Meanwhile, Six Sigma is another model for improvement, although this model has been around since the 1930s health care organization and business organizations continue to use this model. The main thought behind this model is to reduce variation in the organization process. This reduction in variation will produce a uniform product. The secondary gain for this model is reducing the waste, time, and inventory for the health care organization. These models help health care organization to improve quality care and outcomes for patients. The quality management team will develop data collection tools to succeed in improving the quality for the patient and organization (Curran & Totten, 2011). Data Collection Tools There are various data collection tools a health care organization can use to collect data to determine the quality of care and outcomes for patients. Patient satisfaction surveys are among the tools that healthcare organizations can use to collect data. This information can help the quality management team understand the patient’s perspective of care during the patient experience. Designing the survey is a key issue for the quality team. An advantage for the health care organization is purchasing an existing patient satisfaction survey. Hiring an outside agency enable the collection of data that is valid, reliable, and relevant information for the health care organization. A disadvantage for the quality team in developing a survey can be time-consuming

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QUALITY IMPROVEMENT PLAN PART II 4 and a complex project for the team to develop. Another issue may be the timeliness of reviewing the data from the patient satisfaction surveys (Ashworth & Kordowics, 2010). This information needs evaluating in a timely manner. A functional status audit is another measurement of how medical treatments and procedures are improving the patient’s functional status or quality of life. An advantage of this audit allows the auditor to determine how the patient is progressing with the treatment plan. This is a reliable measure of collecting information because the patient has a baseline and assessments during regular intervals during the course of treatment. A disadvantage for this audit is the consistency of information by the auditor during the assessment. Not all auditors may understand the importance of collecting data for quality improvement. Front-line staffs need to understand the importance of collecting accurate information. Benchmarking is a method health care organizations can use to compare the organization against other health care organization on a local, state, and national level. This can also give health care organizations information on how these competitors are performing at a higher quality level. Research The strengths for a healthcare patient satisfaction surveys is the ability of getting the information to help the organization make changes in processes to improve the quality of care. This tool measures the perception of quality as the patient defines quality. Patients can use the Internet to complete patient satisfaction surveys; this allows the organization to have a more rapid response time and allow the patient to be candid with responses. These online surveys are cost-efficient for the organization, allowing editing of the questions, reducing the cost of stamps, and usually yielding a higher response to the survey. Weaknesses of the survey some may not

QUALITY IMPROVEMENT PLAN PART II 5 have access to the Internet or computer, potential software problems, and patients concerns over confidentiality of information. Functional status surveys are a method health care organizations can determine how a patient is progressing in the plan of care. The use of surveys enables health care providers to determine the extent of patient improvement. Additionally, the use of this tool enable quality improvement teams and healthcare providers determine whether patient outcomes are trending in a positive or negative direction. The strength of this tool is the ability to have current data on the progress of a patient or quality measure and the ability to make adjustments to correct the direction of the patient’s progress. A weakness in the survey is not all auditors collect information in the same process. The quality improvement team needs to make sure all auditors have the training to understand the importance and consistency of collecting data. The similarities of the survey are both involve the patient and the health care provider. The patient satisfaction survey is the perspective on how the patient perceives health care while in the organization. The function survey is how the patient progressing with a plan of treatment. Both give measures on the perspective of the quality of care by the patient and health care provider. A weakness of this method is the ability of the patient or health care provider to understand the exact meaning of this survey to help improve the quality of care. Conclusion Quality from a patient’s perspective is enough reason for health care organizations to explore how individual view medical care. This may include the timeliness of a procedure or process, body language of the health care provider, and clearness of information given to the patient. Managers in healthcare organizations can help to create and support quality processes that help front-line staff define the right patient outcomes. Mid-level managers are the key to

QUALITY IMPROVEMENT PLAN PART II 6 success for quality measures. These managers are the link between upper management and font- line staff. For these reasons managers need to implement and sustain quality improvement initiatives to meet the patient expectation. Some tools to help managers meet these requirements are the patient satisfaction survey and functional surveys. A focus of every health care organization is quality is the foundation and core of every patient’s interaction with the organization.

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QUALITY IMPROVEMENT PLAN PART II 7 References Ashworth, M., & Kordowics, M. (2010). Quality and outcomes framework: Smoke and mirrors? Quality in Primary Care , 18 (12), 127-131. Curran, C., & Totten, M. (2011). Governing for improved quality and patient safety. Nursing Economics , 29(1), 38-41. Walker, D. (2012). Quality improvement in health care matters. British Journal of Hospital Medicine , 73(5), 247-247. Gulf Coast Medical Center (n.d.). About us . Retrieved from http://gcmc-pc.com/about/

Quality Improvement Plan Part II

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