INTRODUCTION

Quality management in healthcare is a critical requirement in health sector. The principles of

quality have been implicit in health care. However, quality is not a physical attribute service. A
quality healthcare system can be defined as “one that is accessible, appropriate, available,
affordable, effective, efficient, integrated, safe, and patient related”. Health care is delivered by
practitioners in allied health services, dentistry, midwifery, obstetrics, medicine, nursing,
optometry, pharmacy, psychology and other care providers. Quality management in health care
is a wide term. Initially it was perceived as directing the healthcare personnel to what to do.
However, its current interpretation is to manage the process of care. It refers to observing the
organizational functions as an interaction of procedures and processes that can be addressed
individually and collectively. Quality management has emerged as the dire need more fiercely
than ever in light of the new definition of the quality with patient satisfaction as the outcome of
service. The quality of services being provided to patients is highly crucial. The traditional view
of quality control aimed at defect detection while the current concept aims at the defect
prevention, continuous process improvement, and outcome driven system guided by patients’
needs. Hence there is a crying need to bring about a paradigm shift in quality of health care
delivery. The authorities need to step forward to get involved in quality. Currently, the quality
has been addressed more in medical field than in the allied fields such as dentistry and nursing
and also more in the developing country context.

What is Quality?
W Edwards Deming the father of concept of TQM has defined “quality as a strategy aimed at
the needs of the customer.”
Quality in healthcare has been defined in many ways.
Quality” in healthcare is defined as everything the healthcare organization undertakes to fulfill
the needs of its customer, be it the patient, the payer, the admitting doctor, the employer, or
an internal customer within the organization. “Quality is doing the right things for the right
people at the right time, and doing them right first time and every time.” Quality can refer to the
technical quality of care, to nontechnical aspects of service delivery such as clients’ waiting
time and staff’s attitudes, and to programmatic elements such as policies, infrastructure, access,
and management.
What is Quality Management?
Quality Management: Quality management is that aspect of the overall management function
that determines and implements the quality policy. It includes strategic planning, allocation of
resources, and other systematic activities for quality, such as quality planning, operations, and
evaluations.
What is Total Quality Management ?
Total quality management (TQM) is an ongoing process of detecting and reducing or
eliminating errors.It is used to streamline supply chain management, improve customer service,
and ensure that employees are properly trained. The focus is to improve the quality of an
organization's outputs, including goods and services, through the continual improvement of
internal practices.
Dimensions of quality

• Technical Performance: The degree to which the tasks carried out by health workers and
facilities meet expectations of technical quality (i.e., adhere to standards).
• Effectiveness: The degree to which desired results (outcomes) of care are achieved.
• Efficiency: The ratio of the outputs of services to the associated costs of producing those
services.
• Access: The degree to which healthcare services are unrestricted by geographic, economic,
social, organizational, or linguistic barriers.
• Interpersonal relations: Trust, respect, confidentiality, courtesy, responsiveness, empathy,
effective listening, and communication between providers and clients.
• Amenities: The physical appearance of the facility, cleanliness, comfort, privacy, and other
aspects that are important to clients.
• Relevance: As appropriate and feasible, client choice of provider, insurance plan, or
treatment.
• Choice: As appropriate and feasible, client choice of provider, insurance plan, or treatment.

Continuous Quality Improvement

Continuous quality improvement (CQI) is simply a management method. CQI focuses on
breaking down your system into processes, and breaking those processes down into inputs.
Every process has a list of inputs that can be put into five categories: Man, machine, method,
material, and environment.
Quality Control
Quality control (QC) is a process through which a business seeks to ensure that product quality
is maintained or improved. It involves testing units and determining if they are within the
specifications for the final product.