International Journal of Health Care Quality Assurance

PURPOSE: Hospital accreditation has been adopted internationally as a way and solution for healthcare quality improvement in hospitals. The purpose of this study was to review and knowledge mapping of bibliographic data about "Hospital Accreditation" and assess the current quantitative trends. DESIGN/METHODOLOGY/APPROACH: Scientometric methods and knowledge visualization using the coword analysis techniques conducted in three steps based on the data related to the field of hospital accreditation from 1975 to 2018 obtained from the MEDLINE database...

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PURPOSE: Use of technology for quality healthcare services has developed into a new field known as "e-Healthcare services." Healthcare providers often judge their quality of services with consumer satisfaction. With e-Healthcare services, consumer satisfaction is influenced by the quality of healthcare services provided and the demographic characteristics. The purpose of the present case study is to recognize the important predictors of quality, which are significant for consumer satisfaction with e-Healthcare services by using Zineldin's 5Qs model...

PURPOSE: This paper aims to explore if health professionals share understanding of teamwork that supports collaborative ward rounds. DESIGN/METHODOLOGY/APPROACH: A purpose-designed survey was conducted in two acute medical and two rehabilitation wards from a metropolitan teaching hospital. Medical officers, nurses and allied health professionals participated. To understand characteristics that support collaborative ward rounds, questions developed from literature and industry experience asked: what are the enablers and challenges to teamwork; and what are clinicians' experiences of positive teamwork? Descriptive and thematic analyses were applied to the dimensions of effective teamwork as a framework for deductive coding...

PURPOSE: For years, traditional techniques have been used for diabetes treatment. There are two major types of insulin: insulin analogs and regular insulin. Insulin analogs are similar to regular insulin and lead to changes in pharmacokinetic and pharmacodynamic properties. The purpose of the present research was to determine the cost-effectiveness of insulin analogs versus regular insulin for diabetes control in Yazd Diabetes Center in 2017. DESIGN/METHODOLOGY/APPROACH: In this descriptive-analytical research, the cost-effectiveness index was used to compare insulin analogs and regular insulin (pen/vial) for treatment of diabetes...

PURPOSE: To develop and validate the Expanded Mindful Eating Scale (EMES), an expanded mindful eating model created for the promotion of health and sustainability. DESIGN/METHODOLOGY/APPROACH: A cross-sectional study using self-administered questionnaire surveys on Ochanomizu Health Study (OHS) was conducted. The survey was provided to 1,388 female university students in Tokyo, Japan. Exploratory factor analysis (EFA), confirmatory factor analysis (CFA) and a partial correlation analysis were used to confirm construct and criterion validity...

PURPOSE: The purpose of this paper is to examine whether patient readmission rates are associated with patient satisfaction and Medicare reimbursement rates in the US hospitals. DESIGN/METHODOLOGY/APPROACH: The Hospital Compare database was obtained from the Centers for Medicare and Medicaid Services (CMS) in the US. A total of 2,711 acute care hospitals were analyzed for this present study. The data included patient satisfaction surveys, hospital 30-days readmission ratios for heart failure and pneumonia patients and related payments...

PURPOSE: The purpose of this study was to determine the satisfaction of women who underwent normal delivery and cesarean section (or C-section) with maternal care in five state-run hospitals in Northwestern Turkey. DESIGN/METHODOLOGY/APPROACH: This was a cross-sectional study. The sample consisted of 580 women who underwent normal delivery (ND) and 392 who had a C-section (CS). Data were collected using two maternal satisfaction questionnaires, which participants completed right before they were discharged...

PURPOSE: The purpose of this project was to determine the validity and reliability of the Healthcare Quality Perception (HQP) questionnaire tool designed to capture employees' perceptions of healthcare quality in Indian hospitals. DESIGN/METHODOLOGY/APPROACH: Two hundred employees in private and public sector hospitals in India were randomly selected and given the HQP tool. It consisted of 38 Likert-scale items and six different subscales: (1) Planning and Documentation ( n  = 7); (2) Employee Participation in Quality Management Activities ( n  = 5); (3) Existence of Policies/Procedures/Guidelines ( n  = 5); (4) Quality and Patient Safety Management ( n  = 9); (5) Perceived Effect of Quality Improvement ( n  = 7) and (6) Training and Development Opportunities ( n  = 5)...

PURPOSE: A method to engage salient organisational stakeholders in identifying and ranking measures of healthcare improvement programs is described. The method is illustrated using Executive WalkRounds (EWRs) in a multi-site Australian Health District. DESIGN/METHODOLOGY/APPROACH: Subject matter experts (SMEs) conducted document analysis, identified potential EWRs measures, created driver diagrams and then eliminated weak measures. Next, a panel of executives skilled in EWRs ranked and ratified the potential measures using a modified Delphi technique...

PURPOSE: We explore the relationship between the balanced scorecard (BSC) and neo-bureaucracy by investigating whether the operationalization of the BSC incorporates "neo-bureaucratic" ideas and whether the BSC implemented in a Portuguese Local Health Unit (LHU) demonstrates a neo-bureaucratic approach. DESIGN/METHODOLOGY/APPROACH: We conduct semi-structured interviews with LHU staff and analyse documents to assess whether features of bureaucratic organization were evident in the use of a BSC by the LHU...

PURPOSE: The purpose of this paper is to compare the ability of the Morse Fall Scale (MFS) and Farmer's fall-risk assessment tool (FFAT) to identify correlations between risk factors and falls among older adult long-term care (LTC) facility residents. DESIGN/METHODOLOGY/APPROACH: This was a correlational retrospective study. 200 medical records of older adults hospitalized in a LTC facility in central Israel, from January 2017 to January 2018, were examined. FINDINGS: Of all the residents, 75% and 99...

PURPOSE: Inpatient colonoscopy bowel preparation quality is frequently suboptimal. This quality improvement (QI) intervention is focused on regimenting this process to impact important outcomes. DESIGN/METHODOLOGY/APPROACH: Define, Measure, Analyze, Improve and Control (DMAIC) methodology was employed, including generating a root-cause analysis to identify factors associated with inpatient bowel quality. These findings motivated the creation of a standardized electronic health record (EHR)-based order set with consistent instructions and anticipatory guidance for administering providers...

PURPOSE: To implement a safe and effective intravenous iron infusion protocol to prevent skin staining. DESIGN/METHODOLOGY/APPROACH: Mixed methods approach was utilised including education, auditing, self-reported survey, patient information leaflet and patient feedback. In total 25 healthcare professionals completed the survey and 15 patients provided feedback. FINDINGS: No skin staining or severe adverse reactions were observed over eight weeks...

PURPOSE: The present study delves into the health inequalities between the two most socially deprived groups namely Scheduled Tribes (STs) and Scheduled Castes (SCs) in rural India. DESIGN/METHODOLOGY/APPROACH: This study used health-specific three rounds of National Sample Survey Office (NSSO) unit-level data for analyses. Probit model has been used to predict the differences in access to maternal healthcare services. Blinder-Oaxaca decomposition method is used to explore the inequality in health of rural population in India and assess the estimated relative contribution of socioeconomic and demographic factors to inequalities in maternal health...

PURPOSE: Health improves the proficiency and output generated by individuals. It also raises physical as well as mental abilities, which are required for the growth and advancement of any economy. Many infant diseases have been recognised via contemporary technology in a bid to tackle these diseases. However, children within the African continent (Including Nigeria) die en masse from diseases. This has made the government of Nigeria allocate sizeable part of the nation's budget to healthcare system...

PURPOSE: There was limited study available on successful intervention for central-line-associated bloodstream infection (CLABSI) done at nonintensive care unit (ICU) and resources-limited setting. The objective of this study was to design, implement and evaluate a strategy to reduce CLABSI rate in non-ICU settings at general medical wards of Hospital Tuanku Ja'afar Seremban. DESIGN/METHODOLOGY/APPROACH: Preinterventional study was conducted in one-month period of January 2019, followed by intervention period from February to March 2019...

PURPOSE: Incident reporting systems are commonly deployed in healthcare but resulting datasets are largely warehoused. This study explores if intelligence from such datasets could be used to improve quality, efficiency, and safety. DESIGN/METHODOLOGY/APPROACH: Incident reporting data recorded in one NHS acute Trust was mined for insight ( n  = 133,893 April 2005-July 2016 across 201 fields, 26,912,493 items). An a priori dataset was overlaid consisting of staffing, vital signs, and national safety indicators such as falls...

PURPOSE: There is a growing interest in applying continuous quality improvement (CQI) methodologies and tools to medical education contexts. One such tool, the "Are We Making Progress" questionnaire from the Malcolm Baldrige National Quality Award framework, adequately captures the dimensions critical for performance excellence and allows organizations to assess their performance and identify areas for improvement. Its results have been widely validated in business, education, and health care and might be applicable in medical education contexts...

PURPOSE: This article describes a framework for evaluating efficiency of OR procedures incorporating time measurement, personnel activity, and resource utilization using traditional industrial engineering tools of time study and work sampling. METHODS: The framework measures time using time studies of OR procedures and work sampling of personnel activities, ultimately classified as value-added or non-value-added. Statistical methods ensure that the collected samples meet adequate levels of confidence and accuracy...