The Significance of Quality Improvement in the Health Care Industry - Term Paper Example

? Quality Improvement Overview The significance of constant quality improvement can be observed as quite apparent in the health care industry where the margin of error due to manual faults essentially needs to be considerably small. In this area of the society, even a small mistake may at times lead to serious hazards not only causing ethical dilemmas for the organizations but also raising certain issues in terms of social health degradation. It is fundamentally due to this particular reason that in the healthcare sector, there is always a scope for quality improvement (Medscape, 2013). From a precise point of view, in order to implement quality improvement strategies, it is quite essential that in-depth knowledge regarding the area in concern and the probable errors is obtained. Based on a similar notion, various studies have been undertaken, which focused on one or the other dimension of the healthcare sector. Contextually, as these studies emphasize revealing certain facts regarding the quality improvement aspects of healthcare practices, its reliability tends to be of great significance. Based on a similar perspective, this paper intends to review two different articles focusing on the healthcare treatments for cardiac patients and the common errors or needs for quality improvement associated with the sector. The first article is titled “A Nurse-Led Heart Failure Clinics Improve Survival and Self-Care Behavior in Patients With Heart Failure” and the second article is titled “Reducing Delay in Seeking Treatment by Patients With Acute Coronary Syndrome and Stroke.” When reviewing the selected articles, due significance was provided towards the methodology used in the studies to evaluate the findings obtained through the research. What Were the Targeted Population and the Disease State? Stromberg et al. (2003) targeted a population of 106 patients who were either directed to a follow-up in the usual care section or to the nurse-led heart failure clinic section for further treatment. The cardiac diseases diagnosed among the patients included in the study in terms of sample population were identified by the nurses in the initial stage followed by the deliverance of proper healthcare facilities along with adequate education regarding the self-care and other probable strategies to prevent such heart-failure in the future. It is worth mentioning in this context that the nurse-led heart failure clinic was staffed by specially educated people and experienced nurses who were given the responsibility to make necessary changes, especially in the protocol followed during medications, which was further identified to play a vital role in reducing heart-failure among the patients and thus resulting in quality improvements of the clinic (Stromberg et al., 2003). Similarly, Moser et al. (2006) were focused on the patients with acute coronary syndrome and stroke syndromes as the targeted population. The article by the above authors summarizes the advantages of early treatment to such patients and also explains the number of problems a patient has to face when there is a delay in the treatment. The article also depicts the approach of the current system in reducing this delay in treatment (Moser et al., 2006). Why Was This Important to Study? The study conducted by Stromberg et al. (2003) aimed at explaining the effects of nurse-led heart failure clinic follow-ups in preventing the occurrence of coronary diseases generating a self-care attitude among the patients. The importance of this particular study can be thus justified on the basis that the survival rate of a patient with a record of heart failure as compared to other severe diseases has been relatively low, which is often argued to be effectively curable with a greater degree of self-caring attitude and better awareness regarding the diseases (Sutherland, 2010). Emphasizing the positives of nurse-led clinics, this study thus aimed at critically evaluating the performances of the hospitals which would further render noteworthy inputs in enhancing the quality of the overall nursing facilities in the cardiac healthcare context. In the similar context, Moser et al. (2006) addressed a vital healthcare issue that revealed that irrespective of admirable medical progress in recognizing effective solutions for curing heart attack and stroke syndromes, there are considerable complexities still identifiable in applying these treatments to care. Notably, recent research based on a similar context explains that delay in conducting examination for acute coronary syndrome (ACS) and stroke is one of the prime contributors of the morbidity rate among cardiovascular diseases as a considerable number of individuals who delay seeking care develop potentially unavoidable difficulties (Columbia University, 2004). Hence, it can be argued that the study is important in the sense that the rectification of errors in this area would certainly reduce the death rate in cases of stroke and acute coronary syndrome (ACS). What Was the Intervention? According to Stromberg et al. (2003), the intervention process in curing the heart diseases among the patients follow-up in a nurse-led heart failure clinic should involve the presence of well-educated and experienced nurses specializing in cardiac syndromes, who would be capable enough to generate a degree of self-care attitude among the patients and, therefore, play an effective role in reducing the failures in healthcare service deliverance in the sector. It is also necessary that they are bestowed with the responsibility to take decisions related to protocol-led medications. As per the observation of Stromberg et al. (2003), the first visit was scheduled for two-three weeks following the discharge of the patients from the nurse-led heart failure clinic. In these follow-ups, the nurses aimed at assessing the present status of the patients, evaluating the optimized level of the treatment procedure and thereby providing adequate education facilities to the patients regarding heart failure. These practitioners were further observed to render support to the family members of the patient (Stromberg et al., 2003). In the similar context, the medical intervention practice observed by Moser et al. (2006) suffered a limitation of delayed response to acute coronary disease patients. According to the study, the previous efforts to decrease the delay of the treatment employing the broad-based community education were accompanied by unsatisfactory results. It was fundamentally owing to the reason that the traditional treatment processes were largely focused on providing information without considering the complex cognitive, social and emotional background which also had a significant influence on the patients’ recovery duration. The study also revealed that delay in countering the effects of ACS and stroke syndromes was mainly caused due to inefficiencies among the medical professionals and lack of a systematic process to be followed when addressing such medical issues. Notably, the study also depicted that similar limitations also persist in the current day context, which are easily identifiable when assessing the contemporary healthcare services rendered to patients suffering from ACS and stroke syndromes. How Were the Outcomes Measured? Were Tools Used for Assessment? How Were They Selected? The findings obtained by Stromberg et al. (2003) were able to detect an instant 50% variation in the total rate of readmission or demise within the targeted population, with a 25% of event-free survival in the interference and control groups, which consisted of approximately 69 patients in each. Notably, the self-care behavior among patients was measured with the help of a questionnaire session with the targeted population applying the Heart Failure Self-Care behavior Scale. In this session the patients were requested to answer in either “yes” or “no” in response to 19 questions which focused on identifying the treatment facilities rendered in the nurse-led heart failure clinics where they were followed up along with the improvements identifiable in their health. Furthermore, the questionnaire applied in the study was verified on the basis of face strength and dependability by implementing the Cronbach’s alpha (Stromberg et al., 2003). In the article by Moser et al. (2006), it was observed that an inductive systematic approach was applied to measure the outcomes obtained in the study. It is worth mentioning in this context that the study had been focused on applying a qualitative mechanism of assessing the data collected, which was further based on logical explanations and rationalization of the assumptions explained in previous researches. Contextually, the secondary sources applied in this study had been selected on the basis of its relevance to the research issue in concern. Notably, no specific depiction of the method used for measuring, assessing and selecting the outcomes generated in the study was apparently identifiable (Moser et al., 2006). What Was Learned? According to Stromberg et al. (2003), the intervention assistance rendered by educated and trained nurses in reducing the sufferings experienced by the patients due to heart failure syndrome is likely to be quite effective. The outcomes derived in the study also proved that nurses’ involvement in the patient follow-up in nurse-led heart failure clinics tend to be highly advantageous in generating adequate awareness among the patients and also in creating the attitude of self-care among them. This particular finding can be further justified with reference to other literatures which revealed that attitude of self-care and greater awareness are the prime tools to combat cardiac diseases and, therefore, render quality improvement opportunities for the healthcare sector (European Society of Cardiology, 2012). The outcomes generated by Moser et al. (2006) described that irrespective of medical innovations and progresses, delay in rendering adequate treatments for ACS and acute ischemic stroke symptoms remains to be one of the major barriers in curing cardiac patients. Where, the traditional treatment procedures were principally focused on rendering information regarding the diseases rather than attempting at the utilization of facts in curing the patients, the contemporary treatment procedures are often criticized to lack systematic progression to address and effectively counter the cardiac disease syndromes among the patients (Moser et al., 2006, pp.1-16). What Are Some Limitations of the Studies? One of the major limitations identified by Stromberg et al. (2003) was the inclusion of patients belonging to the age-group of above 75 years in the targeted population. This made the findings obtained through the study less reliable as most of the patients were at their last stages of cardiac diseases along with other diseases or suffered from cognitive dysfunction which increased the challenge to differentiate the treatment effects on their cardiac diseases and thus made the entire interpretation method much complex as well as unreliable. The response rate of the study was also found to be low, where a total of 161 patients were selected for the study, but 55 of them denied participating in the research due to fatigue while the remaining patients had to take the assistance of their family members of the nurses to respond to the questions which again raised the degree of bias in the obtained results from the study (Stromberg et al., 2003, pp.1-10). In the similar context, a major limitation established by Moser et al. (2006) was its greater significance towards applying a qualitative approach based on which the authors aimed to describe the weaknesses of the traditional and contemporary cardiac treatment procedures. Being based on previous researches primarily, the study limited applicability of the findings in this study by delivering a realistic and updated information regarding the treatment practices conducted in response to the ACS and stroke syndromes (Moser et al., 2006, pp.1-16). If You Were to Pursue a Quality Improvement Initiative Using These Studies, What Would You Do and Why? Based on the findings noted by Stromberg et al. (2003), approaches should be taken to involve a greater number of trained and educated nurses to render adequate and effective treatment facilities to the patients suffering from cardiac problems. Contextually, it is suggestible that nurses are rendered with adequate training facilities which will not only assist them in making dependable conclusions on the experiences and the treatment requirements of the patients but also make the entire process rapid and much effective in reducing such healthcare issues by generating greater awareness among the patients and likewise developing an attitude of self-care among them. Notably, these measures are quite likely to reduce the failures of healthcare facilities in the cardiac sector to a larger extent. Similarly, when applying the findings of Moser et al. (2006), it is essential that the associated limitations of the study be also taken into concern. It is worth mentioning in this context that irrespective of its limitations because of focusing on qualitative research approach, the study contributes to a firm conclusion that neither traditional nor the contemporary treatment processes are effective enough to combat the healthcare issues related with the cardiac sector. Thus, future researches need to be taken into account in order to satisfy this particular gap persisting in the literature and thus effectively contributing to this particular research issue. What Are the Desired Outcomes? The outcome of both studies could have resulted in a more effective manner subject to the deliverance of due consideration towards the associated limitations to the approaches implemented. However, when conducting future researches on the basis of the findings derived from these articles, it is expected that a better insight into the treatment procedures and the probable errors associated with the healthcare sector can be identified. It is also expected that future researches based on these study findings will be able to conclude from both a theoretical and practical or rather realistic perspective in order to deliver a multidimensional view on the research issues concerned. References Columbia University. (2004). A race against time. Retrieved from http://www.earth.columbia.edu/news/2004/images/raceagainsttime_FINAL_051104.pdf. European Society of Cardiology. (2012). European guidelines on cardiovascular disease prevention in clinical practice (version 2012). European Heart Journal, 33, 1635–1701. Medscape (2013). Drug disease and procedure. Retrieved from http://www.medscape.org/viewarticle/561651. Moser, D.K., Kimble, L.P., Alberts, M.J., Alonzo, A., Croft, J.B., Dracup, K., … & Zerwic, J.J. ( 2006). Reducing delay in seeking treatment by patients with acute Coronary syndrome and stroke. Journal of the American Heart Association, 168-182. Stromberg, A., Martensson, J., Fridlund, B., Levin, L-A., Karlsson, J-E., & Dahlstrom, U. (2003). Nurse-led heart failure clinics improve survival and self-care behavior in patients with heart failure. European Heart Journal, 24, 1014–1023. Sutherland, K. (2010). Bridging the quality gap: Heart failure. Retrieved from http://www.health.org.uk/public/cms/75/76/313/583/Bridging%20the%20quality%20gap%20Heart%20Failure.pdf?realName=cXqFcz.pdf. Read More