Quality Initiatives and Improvement in Healthcare

Objective: Identify and assess the essential elements of quality control and quality improvement initiatives in the healthcare fields.

Introduction: Quality is critical in the healthcare fields because of the significant risk to humans from errors. Not only must the highest degree of quality be managed and maintained, but quality must also continuously be monitored and improved. Regulatory agencies and nongovernmental organizations provide standards and best practices relating to quality and healthcare consumers provide additional information that impact quality management. Basic quality management methods such as Continuous Quality Improvement are often used in healthcare. Data can be collected and analyzed to support quality initiatives and identify areas where quality improvement is needed.

Deliverable: The essay for this lesson is required to be a minimum of 750 words that clearly demonstrate your understanding of the activity. Essays should have a clear introduction, thesis statement and conclusion, written in APA format (https://owl.english.purdue.edu/owl/). A minimum of three sources, at least two from the lesson, must be cited in-text and in the Reference list.

Step 1: Read the following questions and use what you have learned about this lesson’s objective to summarize your responses.

** Thesis should have 3 parts- one for each prompt/subheading. Finishes introduction paragraph. Please repeat the thesis in the conclusion!

• How can a healthcare facility use each of the concepts of Continuous Quality Improvement in managing quality? Provide an example that illustrates each concept.
• What role do state governments play in regulating healthcare delivery? What role does The Joint Commission play in quality management?
• In what ways do consumers impact quality management in healthcare? In your answer, include the role of the “healthcare report card.”

Step 2: Write a paper. Please review the essay rubric prior to proceeding.

Use these writing guidelines:

• Include a cover page and a reference page in addition to your required page count.
• Use APA format.
• Double-space text.
• Use section headings to organize.
• Indent paragraphs.
• Include in-text citations as appropriate.
• Use correct spelling, grammar, sentence structure and verb tense.

Use section headings to o