How Do Healthcare Services Ensure Quality Care?
As patients, we expect to receive high-quality care whenever we access healthcare services. However, delivering consistent quality care across systems and settings can be challenging. This article explores some of the key ways that healthcare services work to ensure patients receive optimal medical treatment and support.
Defining Quality Healthcare
The first step in providing quality care is having a clear definition of what constitutes high standards. Healthcare quality generally refers to delivering safe, effective, patient-centered, timely, efficient, and equitable medical treatment and services. This means focusing on factors like patient safety, clinical expertise, communication, coordination of care, access, and equity.
Setting Standards and Guidelines
All healthcare services recognize the importance of establishing standards and clinical guidelines. National bodies like the Joint Commission work to develop evidence-based standards that outline requirements for things like infection control, medication safety, emergency management and patient rights. Healthcare organizations must demonstrate compliance with these standards to be accredited.
On top of national standards, individual healthcare services also have their own internal quality standards, policies and clinical pathways. For example, my healthcare organization DSO Medplus has extensive internal guidelines around things like patient intake processes, treatment planning, documentation and follow up care. This helps ensure consistency across our locations and providers.
Monitoring and Measuring Quality
You can’t improve what you don’t measure, so healthcare services closely monitor quality indicators. Common metrics include patient satisfaction surveys, clinical outcomes, readmission rates, lengths of stay, clinical errors and more. Electronic health records now have robust reporting features that allow extraction of robust quality data.
Regular audits also check that standards and guidelines are being followed. “Chart audits” review documentation to look for issues like follow up plans not being documented clearly. Environmental audits check facilities for safety and infection control issues. Outcome audits study specific conditions to see if best practices led to expected recovery times and resolutions of issues.
Any variances found through monitoring trigger quality improvement processes. The goal is to learn from any gaps, make needed adjustments and deploy preventative actions to avoid future issues. Transparency around quality data is also increasing, with some metrics now publicly reported. This encourages continued focus on measurable quality care delivery.
Educating and Training Staff
Maintaining a highly skilled, knowledgeable workforce is crucial for quality healthcare services. Extensive initial and ongoing training ensures clinical staff have the competencies required in their roles.
At DSO Medplus, we require all new hires to complete an orientation program covering topics like HIPAA compliance, cultural awareness, emergency preparedness and more. Clinical employees also go through individual departmental training on things like protocols, documentation standards and use of equipment.
Regular continuing education helps update staff on treatment advances, new guidelines and quality improvement initiatives. Our healthcare organization offers various learning opportunities – from online modules to hands-on skills workshops. We track completion of required training to ensure all providers maintain their skills and expertise.
Coordinating Across Settings
As patients move between different parts of the healthcare system, close coordination is needed to avoid gaps or duplication of services. Quality healthcare depends on smooth handoffs and effective collaboration between primary care, specialists, labs, imaging centers, pharmacies, hospitals and more.
At DSO Medplus, we utilize an electronic medical record system that allows all provider offices, laboratories and imaging centers to view the same updated clinical information. Our physicians also communicate regularly with outside specialists their patients see to ensure a continuum of care. When patients are transferred to hospitals, comprehensive discharge summaries outline their management plan.
Emerging models like accountable care organizations even establish formal relationships between groups of providers. The goal of these coordinated clinical networks is to provide seamless, well-integrated care across care settings for better outcomes at lower cost.
Involving Patients as Partners
Quality healthcare requires making patients active participants in their own care. This means keeping lines of open communication, explaining treatment plans in easy to understand terms, answering all questions and addressing any concerns before a patient leaves an appointment.
Using patient portals, my healthcare organization DSO Medplus encourages two-way interaction. In addition to accessing test results online, patients can schedule appointments, message providers with questions between visits, and request prescription refills. We survey patients regularly to gather feedback on their experiences. Their input helps us continually enhance things like wait times, visit experiences and provider relationships.
Patients managing chronic conditions also benefit from education on self-care activities like healthy lifestyle modifications, medication adherence and tracking health metrics like blood pressure or blood sugars. Empowering patients as experts on themselves supports quality outcomes.
Conclusion
Delivering consistently high-quality healthcare services is complex but achievable through diligent focus on standards, monitoring quality indicators, staff training, care coordination and patient engagement. As healthcare continues evolving, quality improvement will remain a top priority. By continuing enhance our efforts in these key areas, organizations like DSO Medplus aim to provide patients the best possible medical care and experience each and every time.
