NHS

Quality Improvement and Patient Safety within NHS

Quality Improvement and Patient Safety within NHS

Introduction

To improve the quality of health means the provision of efficient, safe, equitable, patient cantered, timely and efficient healthcare services. In the past, there was not much concentration regarding improvement of health. Particularly NHS did not have such concerns. With the passage of time, there were economic downturns due to which the cost of the healthcare services increased, and organizational as well as governing health care provider bodies had to response by enhancing the quality of health care with decreasing the chances of harm to a patient. Furthermore, the efficient improvement is necessary in supplying the healthcare services. Now a day, the key requirement of the NHS is the better improvement in the care services provided by it. In this regard, NHS requires a support of some initiatives such as quality accounts and payment structure of CQIN (commissioning for quality and innovation). This board monitors and assures the overall work of methodologies of quality improvement, their application, and the resulting improved effects.



Quality and Quality Improvement

Quality means the extent of healthcare services, to any individual or whole populations, that enhance the probability of the desired results and these effects are constant with the present professional knowledge. This definition illustrates the following six factors to express the quality

1.Efficiency

2.Centeredness of the patient

3.Effectiveness

4.Safety and protection

5.Equity

6.Timeliness and appropriateness

(IoM, 1990, pp. 224)

Six quality dimensions

Efficiency

It means the avoidance of the waste.

Centeredness of the patient

The right healthcare service and right decisions should be given according to the need of the patient.

Effectiveness

It means the provision of the beneficial and correct scientific informative health care services to the patient.

Safety and protection

It means the avoidance of harm to the individual in need of health care service from the provided care.

Equity

The quality of the health care service must not vary due to any reason such as the character of a person.

Timeliness and appropriateness

The correct drug, service or decision at the correct time must be made for the patient care, by reducing the delays and waits.

The quality improvement is the systematic approach. It contains some sort of techniques that aid in the provision of improves quality. The concept of improvement is eventually understood, because of the analysis that describes the improvement as better patient practice as well as the results realized via the changing behaviour of provider and organization by utilizing a systematic alters procedure and strategies (Overtveit J., 2009, pp. 8). The vital thing described in this definition is the combination of improvement with a specific approach or tool to obtain the better results.



Purpose of Quality Improvement

Some foundations and organization believe that the implementation of quality control or quality improvement methods is to decrease the cost of the health care services. There are various reasons that focus on the need of quality health care. The prime purpose is to provide the safe health care as much as possible. There is some evidence that the health care facility is not safe for all time, the ratio of occurring ...