Improving the Quality of Medical Care
Professional Development Assignment 7
Michelle Turner
Aspen University
Healthcare Systems
N502
Dawn Deem
November 4, 2014
Professional Development Assignment 7
Definitions of the quality of medical care are no longer left to clinicians who decide for themselves what technical performance constitutes “good care.” What are the other dimensions of quality care and why are they important? What has changed since the days when “doctor knows best?” Patients deserve the best possible care we can provide to them. A patient or family may not always agree or like what their provider is telling them, but they deserve to have honest, excellent skilled, excellent bedside manner every day and every time. So how do measure “good care” in a system that is not always black and white? The importance of measuring and monitoring healthcare quality is no longer in doubt. Yet quantifying healthcare quality is a complex and challenging process for which public and payer demands clearly exceed current capabilities. According to the document, Quality of Care: A process for making choices in health systems, there are six areas or dimensions of quality, These dimensions require that health care be; effective, efficient, accessible, acceptable and patient-centered, equitable, and safe. These six areas are pretty common sense thinking. As a provider if I were rating myself as a provider that delivered “good care” all six of these would be on my list (WHO, 2006). Instead of focusing on “doctor knows best” our focus on improving the quality of medical care in the through initiatives like public reporting and pay for performance is based on the belief that measuring quality of care is an essential first step in improving quality of care. Without measurement, it is implored; it will be impossible to know if the care clinician’s deliver is good or bad. As a result, quality measurement has flourished and has been the foundation for quality improvement initiatives. Quality
Michelle Turner
Aspen University
Healthcare Systems
N502
Dawn Deem
November 4, 2014
Professional Development Assignment 7
Definitions of the quality of medical care are no longer left to clinicians who decide for themselves what technical performance constitutes “good care.” What are the other dimensions of quality care and why are they important? What has changed since the days when “doctor knows best?” Patients deserve the best possible care we can provide to them. A patient or family may not always agree or like what their provider is telling them, but they deserve to have honest, excellent skilled, excellent bedside manner every day and every time. So how do measure “good care” in a system that is not always black and white? The importance of measuring and monitoring healthcare quality is no longer in doubt. Yet quantifying healthcare quality is a complex and challenging process for which public and payer demands clearly exceed current capabilities. According to the document, Quality of Care: A process for making choices in health systems, there are six areas or dimensions of quality, These dimensions require that health care be; effective, efficient, accessible, acceptable and patient-centered, equitable, and safe. These six areas are pretty common sense thinking. As a provider if I were rating myself as a provider that delivered “good care” all six of these would be on my list (WHO, 2006). Instead of focusing on “doctor knows best” our focus on improving the quality of medical care in the through initiatives like public reporting and pay for performance is based on the belief that measuring quality of care is an essential first step in improving quality of care. Without measurement, it is implored; it will be impossible to know if the care clinician’s deliver is good or bad. As a result, quality measurement has flourished and has been the foundation for quality improvement initiatives. Quality
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