What are quality improvement projects in hospitals?

[daniela095]

I am doing an assignment for a nursing leadership course in school. One of the questions on my assignment is what are quality improvement projects and how are they initiated in hospitals? I am having trouble understanding what this is. Thanks.

[bgxyrnf, MSN, RN]

What are quality improvement projects in hospitals?

Quality = "the standard of something as measured against other things of a similar kind; the degree of excellence of something" (Google)

Improvement = "being improved or made better"

Project = "a concentrated effort and series of actions designed to attain a specific goal"

A quality improvement project is an effort by one or more people to improve the degree of excellence of a system or outcome.

Examples would include things like reducing the rates of various kinds of infections, decreasing wait times, decreasing length-of-stay, etc.

[KelRN215, BSN, RN]

Reducing CLABSIs, reducing falls, reducing nosocomial infections. All big ones in most hospitals.

[dudette10, MSN, RN]

Good answers above, but a little context might also be helpful. Quality Improvement isn't just anything that needs to be improved--priority is for those things (such as CLABSI, CAUTI, falls, nosocomial infections, SCIP, readmissions, etc.) that are measured by the Centers for Medicare and Medicaid that are reported and/or a basis for reimbursement.

I think that's the part you are missing. Remember, hospitals will not put resources to something unless it affects their bottom line. Sad, but true.

Here's is a link to a CMS page that might be helpful:

Quality Programs - Centers for Medicare & Medicaid Services

Hope that helps.

[bgxyrnf, MSN, RN]

Quality Improvement isn't just anything that needs to be improved

I disagree - in a sense... meaning that EVERYTHING can be improved... whether it *needs* to be really comes down to a return-on-investment or risk-benefit or failure modes & effects analysis.