Quality & Standards Written Report 1 - Essay Example

This is also supposed to be an appraisal report for the appropriateness of the quality assurance system at Strathclyde and suggest possible amendments for future implementation. Quality assurance is an integral part of all public institutions and organisations for a very long time (Combat, 2006). Quality assurance as an institutional practice entails the act of “verifying or determining whether products or services meet or exceed customer expectations” (Kietzman, 2011). Within the fire and rescue service, the general framework that regulates the operation of organisations, which is the Fire and Rescue National Framework Document (2010, p. 21) outlines quality assurance as a two-dimension approach, which involves the practice of evaluating an organisation’s efforts and inputs in tackling a particular fire and rescue operation as well as monitoring progress reports for growth of the organisation.

At Strathclyde Fire, there is a whole strategic plan in place to ensure that this aims are achieved. Specifically, the organisation has an internal quality assurance team that is a whole department of its own in the organisation. The department is made up of deputy heads of all substantive departments. It is also includes the accounts and procurement executives. After each rescue event, the following take place among the quality assurance department Both the Fire and Rescue National Framework document and the Integrated Risk Management Plan (2007-2010) outline procedure for undertaking rescue operations among fire and rescue organisations in the United Kingdom.

The evaluation on validity and benefits of quality assurance strategy as explained above shall therefore be done with these two documents as reference point. The first requirement is the institution of quality assurance system in each organisation (IRMP 2007 to 2010, p.66). As far as this concerned,