Total Quality Control - Essay Example

TQM is mainly concerned with continuous improvement in all work, whether in strategic planning and decision-making or at the supervisory level. It is based on the belief that mistakes are avoidable and their effects are preventable. It leads to continuously improving results, in all aspects of work, as a result of continuously improving capabilities of workers, processes, and technology.TQM is very key to achieving efficiency in the health sector in that it ensures that an organization maintains a quality standard in all aspects of its business and undertakings.

This involves doing things the right and therefore eliminating wastage and losses from the organization's operations. The Centres for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC) is one of the major operating components of the Department of Health and Human Services, an agency, in the United States government for protecting the health and safety of the Americans and other needy people throughout the world. CDC concerns itself with prevention and control of infectious and chronic diseases, injuries or workplace hazards, and environmental problems.

CDC has and continues to promote Total Quality Management in Health sectors through its worldwide health care programs in operation in different countries. Regional Centres for Quality of Health Care sponsored by CDC exist in different places to provide leadership in building regional capacity to improve the quality of health care by promoting TQM based practices through, strategic partnerships, education, and training and also research. The programs are aimed at effective management in the health sector.

CDC has embraced all its programs such as the one in Botswana and Cote D'Ivoire and in Uganda the use of TQM.In Botswana CDC works in collaboration with the Botswana Ministry of Health to reduce HIV/AIDS through the strengthening of the management skills of health workers in conjunction with the Institute of Development Management. In Croatia, a management capacity-building program called "Healthy Counties" was developed with an aim of addressing local health program needs as a result of embracing TQM the following results were achieved; Better record keeping of patients, efficiency in deliveries of patient's samples to the laboratory, increased level of awareness in breast cancer and proper use of emergency services.

Through the use of TQM, CDC's products and services have continued to satisfy the needs of its clients as well as improving quality in all aspects of the organization's operations. Since TQM views an organization as a collection of processes. CDC has continued to improve its processes by achieving optimum production at the least cost.ConclusionTQM encourages the participation of both workers and managers and it can be viewed as a change agent in organizations.