Quality Improvement Program
One-stop solution Initiative at a Community Medical Facility
Outline
One-stop solution Initiative at a Community Medical Facility
Thesis statement: ‘One stop solution’ for treatment patients visiting the facility will improve care quality and improve patient outcome.
Introduction
- A brief overview of the topic
- Identification of the proposed program
- Thesis statement and essay purpose
Purpose of the proposed program
- Impact on patients
- Role of management
Target population
- Primary audience
- Secondary population
Program Brief
- Value stream model brief
- Steps of value stream model
Program benefits
- Reducing staff walking
- Reducing the cost of inventory
- Reducing lead time
Interprofessional collaboration
Justification of budget and cost
- Training cost
- Set up cost miscellaneous
Basis for evaluation
Conclusion
Introduction
Every human being desires to live a healthy life free of illnesses. The priority of a medical practitioner is to deliver the best possible care service to patients. However, patients experience certain challenging, including delays in care delivery on visiting the facility for treatment. Changing the manner health care is delivered based on evidence-based practice can improve patient outcomes. The proposed quality improvement initiative is essential in the delivery of better health care in the facility. A ‘one-stop solution’ for treatment patients visiting the facility will improve care quality and improve patient outcome.
Purpose of the program
The proposed program aims to provide a ‘one-stop solution’ for patients seeking treatment at the facility. The program will enable patients to receive prompt and timely treatment for anything wrong with their physical condition at one-point rather than different points. Ideally, the health care distress will be tackled as rt priority. Therefore, the proposed change s expected to address the problem before t worsens and dangerous to affect patient health.
The initiative will require the management to put in place measures to promote timely and careful handling of patient condition to prevent the situation from worsening (Grol, & Wensing, 2013). The need to nip the evil in the bud before showing dangerous effects is a commonly supported slogan in many fields and applies in healthcare.
Target Population
Primary target audients are patients as the program seeks to promote timely and accurate handling of patient condition. However, health care professionals including doctors, nurses, pharmacists, and physicals etc. form the secondary target population as the implementers of the proposed change in the facility.
Program Brief
The program is expected to deliver a one-stop solution for patients visiting the facility. The program focus is on novelties and advancing treatment based on innovative value stream mapping (VSM) model. In VSM method of lean production, the flow of processed information on raw and materials through all steps of manufacturing are visually mapped (Lasa, Laburu, & de Castro Vila, 2008). The VSM model can be applied in health care and illustrated in a simple chart comprising different parameters. The main steps in a customized VSM are states as follows:
- Plan and prepare a charter defining the health problems to be addressed
- Production flow or steps to follow in handing different issues such as delays
- Collation of data and analysis of the current state of VSM on wastes to be eliminated and process to be retained etc.
- Develop future VSM to attain the goals
- Work to achieve the desired condition
Consistent with D’Andreamatteo et al. (2015), implementing lean production model leads to standardization of work processes, thus eliminating non-value adding activities. The mode can be applied in health to eliminate abnormalities to improve care delivery.
Benefits of the Program
Successful implementation of the proposed program will generate several benefits:
Reduce staff walking distance:
The program will reduce the number of times a staff walks between places in their delivery of healthcare. The distance travelled by employees will be significantly reduced, thus saving the efforts, energy, and time making them more efficient. Further to that, the model is relevant in emergency cases as it will save patient lives.
Reduce the cost of inventory:
The just in time tools of the model will help reduce inventory size at the facility, thus reducing associated inventory costs. Effective management is inventory gets rid of unnecessary inventory, thus saving associated expenses. Fewer inventory that fulfills the demand will be availed.
Reduce lead time:
The model is praised for reducing lead time- the time between origination and completion of the process, thus increasing productivity.
Necessary Interprofessional Collaboration
Successful implementation of the proposed program will no doubt deliver the best patient care if there is a collaboration of different health care professionals. For one point solution to work, the collaboration between nurses, doctors, pharmacists, and administrators is vital.
Cost justification
The funds for implementing the proposed program will be given due consideration. The optimal decision will be needed for each process of the program implementation. The following are the projected cost of implementing the program at the facility.
| Cost Description | Estimated cost (US $) |
| Training cost for the program | 100,000 |
| Set up the cost of the office | 150,000 |
| Miscellaneous costs | 50,000 |
| Total | 1,300,000 |
The basis for program evaluation
The program will be evaluated based on the percentage reduction in the parameters lead time, inventory cost, and staff walking distance. The difference between actual reduction and an expected reduction will determine the success of the project. If the expected reduction is met or surpassed, the project is rated successful, and if it is below expectation, then intervention measures are taken to improve project performance.
Conclusion
The quality improvement paper has proposed a ‘one-stop solution’ as a necessary change in the facility for improving care quality and patient outcome. The program will enable patients to receive instant and timely treatment for anything wrong with their physical condition at one point rather than different points. The benefits of the program include reduced lead time, inventory cost, and staff walking distance. Overall, the program will improve the efficiency and productivity of health care professionals at the facility. However, these successes cannot be attained without interprofessional collaboration between doctors, nurses, pharmacists, physicians and hospital administrators.
References
D’Andreamatteo, A., Ianni, L., Lega, F., & Sargiacomo, M. (2015). Lean in healthcare: a comprehensive review. Health policy, 119(9), 1197-1209.
Grol, R., & Wensing, M. (2013). Effective implementation of change in healthcare: a systematic approach. Improving Patient Care: The implementation of change in health care, 40-63.
Lasa, I. S., Laburu, C. O., & de Castro Vila, R. (2008). An evaluation of the value stream mapping tool. Business process management journal.
