Health and Leadership Questions 2022

Health and Leadership
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Table of Contents
Answer 1 – Quality and TQM....................................................................................................3
Answer 2 – Patient safety and risk.............................................................................................5
Answer 3 – Safety culture and measurement.............................................................................6
References..................................................................................................................................8
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Answer 1 – Quality and TQM
The healthcare system is deeply concerned with maintenance of quality in the processes, in
order to make sure that patients get quality treatment such that they get satisfied and any risks
which can cause harm to the patients and their health is avoided. According to WHO, the
healthcare quality can be described as “the extent to which health care services provided to
individuals and patient populations improve desired health outcomes. In order to achieve this,
health care must be safe, effective, timely, efficient, equitable and people-centered” (World
Health Organization, 2019). It is the degree, to which the healthcare services provided for the
individuals, increase the probability of getting the desired health outcomes and the outcomes
are in consistence with the professional knowledge. The healthcare units tend to provide 100
percent healthcare quality to their patients, but most of the times, it is not possible due to
several factors. Many times, the healthcare facilities are not provided to those who require
them during emergencies. A few common causes which interfere with the provision of
perfect healthcare quality include inadequate infrastructure; unavailability of competent and
motivated staff; lack of availability of medicines or poor quality; poor compliance to
evidence-based clinical interventions and practices; and poor use of information and
documentation (Kapoor, 2011).
The following key principles of total quality management (TQM) must be carried out in order
to maintain quality in the healthcare operations.
Customer-focused organization: the healthcare units in the country must be focused
towards the customers and provide the health services as per their needs. The patient’s safety
and health, medical ethics, sharing the quality environment and maintaining the standards in
the healthcare system are some of its examples (Patel, 2010).
Strategic planning and leadership: Strategic planning and leadership must be in compliance
with the customer’s expectations, development of advance diagnostic technologies; new
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