Continuous Quality Improvement
Introduction
Continuous Quality Improvement (CQI) is a management approach used by organizations to boost efficiency, reduce risks and increase the satisfaction of both employees and customers. Maintaining CQI in healthcare organizations requires administrators to put more emphasis on both process and outcome measures. Process measures boost CQI by determining the effectiveness of service providers in following the acceptable procedures defined in the nursing guidelines. On the other hand, outcome measures assist in monitoring and preventing inappropriate healthcare variations. In light of the above, this discussion will be geared towards determining the effectiveness of attaining CQI by effectively utilizing process and outcome measures.
Process outcome
Process measures determine the effectiveness of service providers in following the acceptable procedures defined in the nursing guidelines. According to O’Brien et al. (2015), process measures can be categorized as an evidence-based practice utilized purposely to systemize healthcare processes in addition to improving nurse’s efforts. An example of a process measure is comparing the physician’s proposed and the actual time taken to discharge a patient. The above comparison will aid health care administrators in ascertaining the patient’s discharge process, which will aid in constructing improvement strategies. O’Brien et al. (2015) further enlighten that process measure is a proven approach for maintaining Continuous Quality Improvement. The second process measure is attached to the medication delivery process. If the time taken to give out medication to clients is minimal, then the drug delivery process is effective.
Outcome measures
Outcomes measures are used to determine the effectiveness of protocol based on clinical standards. According to Shortell et al. (2015), outcome measures entail the vital clinical or financial outcomes in healthcare facilities. Government and commercial agencies depend hugely on outcome measures during the preparation of pubic reports and allocation of healthcare resources to healthcare facilities. Shortell et al. (2015) further opine that outcome measures enhances the patient’s recovery score, an illustration of their results and risk classification. To this end, it will be easier for clinicians to intervene adequately on a treatment course. Besides, outcomes measures reveal the change of patients records based on recovery effectiveness. Readmission rates are among the vital outcome measures evidenced in nursing facilities. Ascertainment of readmission rates will assist healthcare administrators in determining the effectiveness of services provided in meeting patient’s needs.
Reasons for choosing the two processes
Process measures were chosen to determine the effectiveness of service providers in following the acceptable procedures defined in the nursing guidelines. Process measures contribute hugely in recording the number of times a particular service was provided to a targeted population. O’Brien et al. (2015) confirmed that process measures reduce costs in addition to improving quality through limiting healthcare delivery limitation. Overall process measures would assist in monitoring and preventing inappropriate variation. Shortell et al. (2015) enlighten that outcome measures would be chosen to ascertain the status of patients, whether they have improved or worsened after undergoing a particular treatment. Precisely, outcome measures aids in recording and bringing out results of the process under examination. Importantly, outcome measures would aid in ascertaining quality indicators, including blood pressure control, medication adherence, and surgery-related death rates.
Data collection for both
Information used in outcome measures is obtained from primary data and is extracted by healthcare clinicians from the subjects they have already examined (Schierhout et al. 2013). Primary data can be used as a driver to attaining continuous quality improvements through examining the data obtained from the patient’s records, which would assist in putting in place service improvement mechanisms. (Schierhout et al. 2013). The data utilized in the process outcome is obtained with the use of secondary methods. Process outcome data is obtained from clinical information or research which was conducted by other scholars. Data collected for process outcome purposes enhances quality on service provision by incorporating its strategies into operations of a healthcare (Schierhout et al. 2013). For instance, data collected on high blood pressure and records from other established hospitals are used in process measures.
Success determination
Determining success for both process and outcome measures would be vital to have a broader view of healthcare’s operational status. Success for both actions can be attained by comparing the proposed goals-against attained outcome. As such, the administrators will be able to identify the unachieved part of the goals, which will, in turn, track the success process. O’Brien et al. (2015) suggest that success in healthcare can be determined through emphasizing more on most critical measures. Focusing more on the most significant steps will aid in identifying loopholes in healthcare operations, hence being easy to put in place intervention measures (O’Brien et al., 2015). Measuring results in the long term is yet another method used in determining success in healthcare. Long-term measures would aid healthcare administrators in measuring the effectiveness of an organization’s mission.
Data-driven cost-effectiveness solutions
Health care solutions can be attained using data-driven cost-effectiveness solutions, including mining methods. Data mining entails a critical analysis of past healthcare databases in a view to producing new information (Shortell et al., 2015). With comprehensive information regarding the past performance of an organization, it will be easy to achieve result-oriented solutions. Data analysis is yet another method used in healthcare facilities to attain cots centred solutions. Data analysis entails examinations of patient’s treatment records, to determine the effectiveness of service provision and relationship among healthcare operations (Shortell et al., 2015). Results generated after data analysis are utilized by clinicians to come up with practical solutions. Importantly, the approach of relying solely on information generated from data collected has been proven to be useful in making informed decisions.
Conclusion
Overly, the above discussion has proven that effective utilization of process and outcome measures contributes hugely to attaining CQI. Outcome measures assist in monitoring and preventing inappropriate healthcare variations. On the other hand, Process measures boost CQI by determining the effectiveness of service providers in following the acceptable procedures defined in the nursing guidelines. Besides, the study has confirmed that effective healthcare measures need to be based on data mining and analysis for clinicians to make informed decisions. Again, attainment of CQI should be based on data-driven cost-effectiveness.
References
Shortell, S. M., Bennett, C. L., & Byck, G. R. (2018). Assessing the impact of continuous quality
improvement on clinical practice: what it will take to accelerate progress. The Milbank Quarterly, 76(4), 593-624.
O’Brien, J. L., Shortell, S. M., Carman, J. M., Foster, R. W., Hughes, E. F., Boerstler, H., &
O’Connor, E. J. (2015). Assessing the impact of continuous quality improvement/total quality management: concept versus implementation. Health services research, 30(2), 377.
Schierhout, G., Hains, J., Si, D., Kennedy, C., Cox, R., Kwedza, R., … & Dowden, M. (2013).
Evaluating the effectiveness of a multifaceted, multilevel continuous quality improvement program in primary health care: developing a realist theory of change. Implementation science, 8(1), 119.