Quality Standards in the Health Sector - Desklib

This article discusses quality standards in the health sector, including current quality standards, regulatory bodies, workplace policies and procedures, and ways to maintain quality standards. It also covers how quality standards are monitored, evaluated and maintained in the health sector, and how personal attitudes and behaviors can impact service quality. Subject: Health Sector, Course Code: NA, Course Name: NA, College/University: NA

Unit 5: Understand quality standards in the health sector
Please note that this Assessment document has 12 pages and is made up of 3 parts.
Name:
Part 1: Know the quality standards that apply to healthcare settings
This part will help you to evidence Learning Outcome 1: Know the quality standards that
apply to healthcare settings.
Learning objective Place in Assessment
1.1 Identify current quality standards applied within
healthcare settings
Question 1 Page 1
1.2 Outline the role of regulatory bodies in maintaining
quality standards
Question 2a&2b Page 2
1.3 Explain how workplace policies and procedures
contribute to maintaining quality standards
Question 3 Page 2
1.4 Give examples of the implications of not meeting
quality standards
Question 4 Page 2
1. In the table below, identify current quality standards that apply to your healthcare
role (or one you’re familiar with). You must provide at least one industry standard and
one organisational standard. [1.1]
Type of quality standard What standards does it
cover?
How does it affect your
role?
High quality care standards
In context with high quality
care standards, its basic
purpose is to provide a
quality care to the patients.
This high quality care make
impact over nurses as these
can affect patients
satisfaction throughout daily
operations by direct
intercommunication with the
patients. As the enhanced
training as well as education
in person centred care can
aid nurses to be extra
effective in their work. This
effective work can leads to
improved patients results as
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Unit 5: Understand quality standards in the health sector
well as their satisfaction.
Efficiency standard
This standard basically
covers to deliver quality
products as well as cost
effective and services to the
patients. In healthcare
systems, it ensures that the
system can run efficiently
while delivering the quality
care to patients. This
standard covers decreased
wastage to improve
efficiency that ultimately
leads to maintain the
healthcare system's budget.
A nurse efficiency is quite
important for the healthcare
system as well as the
patients. This standard
basically impact over nurses
in a way that they just provide
the care to patients all by
managing their layers of
workflow.
2a. Name at least two regulatory bodies relevant to healthcare settings. [1.2]
Ans. The two regulatory bodies that are relevant to the healthcare system are as mentioned
below:
GMC (General Medical Council) and NMC (Nursing and Midwifery Council).
2b. Using the examples you came up with for 2a, outline how these regulatory bodies
contribute to maintaining quality standards. [1.2]
Ans. The regulatory bodies such as general medical council and the nursing and midwifery
council make contribution in order to maintain the quality standards in a healthcare system
as in united kingdom, the medical council is regulated by doctors. Doctors sets standards by
holding a register, assure the quality of the education as well as analyse the complaints. In
the healthcare settings, responsibility here includes assist, maintain and the encourage the
safety as well as wellness of people. It can be done by controlling the entry to the records or
registers and also can remove the members when it is essential. The medical council of UK
also set the standards for medical schools. The main objective of medical council is to
protect people by ensuring the quality standards of professional conducts as well as
education, training among the healthcare providers. The nursing and midwifery council
contributes to maintain the quality standards in a healthcare system as it generally search to
detect, prevent as well as correct the issues in the quality of services that are provided to the
public. As these can be a type of effort to enhance the quality through continuous study.
3. Using the table below, explain how relevant workplace policies and procedures contribute
to maintaining quality standards. [1.3]
Policy / procedure Who is affected? How does it maintain
quality standards?
Health and safety policy and It generally affects the
patients service delivery. It is
The health and safety policy
and procedures maintains the
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Unit 5: Understand quality standards in the health sector
procedures. because it needs members
in a healthcare area so as to
ensure the safety of the
patients. It generally ensures
that the advices will cover
the safe use of the services
as well as products. It
contains up to date
information about the policies
as well as procedures that
are related to well being and
the safety of public.
quality standards by reducing
the risk injury and infection
occurring from the workplace
operations. As this can be the
most productive way to make
sure that the health and
safety is embedded across
an organisation.
Safeguarding Vulnerable
Adults Policy and Procedure.
The healthcare
professionals, nurses and
the patients get affected by
this procedure.
It maintains the quality
standards by assuring that
lives are free from neglect
and abuse by supporting the
people to make their
decisions about care as well
as creating a risk free
surrounding.
Whistle-blowing policy All the members in a
healthcare system gets
affected by this policy.
This policy maintains the
standards in a way that it
addresses the wrong doing
and enables the justice to
reach the depth of
organisation. This policy
protects the members from
frauds and misconducts.
4. In the scenarios below, quality standards are not being met. Choose one of the scenarios
and complete the table provided, giving examples of possible implications. [1.4]
 Cathy, a cleaner at a general hospital, has made a number of complaints to her
manager about the outdated and faulty equipment she is asked to use. Mops and
buckets don’t function properly, warning signs are hard to read and most of the
disinfectant stock is past its expiration date.
 Asu has recently started working at a local drop-in centre but has some concerns
about the breadth and quality of training that has been provided. Compared to his
previous role, he was given no formal training about sharps and administration of
injections and vaccinations. He is unable to find any resources relating to the topic at
the centre and other staff who he was spoken to also seem to lack the required
expertise.
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Unit 5: Understand quality standards in the health sector
 A busy reception area has introduced a new electronic system for booking
appointments. However, reception staff have only been provided with a quick ten
minute training session on the morning that the system went live and only half the
computers in the office currently have the software installed.
Which quality standards
haven’t been met?
How might this situation
affect the quality of service?
What are the possible
implications for service users
or staff?
Quality management, risk
management, environmental
management.
It is concluded from the
above scenarios that many
policies and standards are
not followed. As it is quite
necessary to evaluate all
these situations in a
healthcare system because it
can negatively impact the
people's life.
In the above scenario, the
possible implications involved
here includes that the overall
healthcare services and
workplace management
standards are not been met
due to the lack of equipments
and facilities. As these are
the facilities which can be
given to service users and
staff members so that they
can work in an effective
manner. This can impact over
the staff work as well as the
service user's satisfaction.
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Unit 5: Understand quality standards in the health sector
Part 2: Know how quality standards are monitored, evaluated and maintained
in the health sector
This part will help you to evidence Learning Outcome 2: Know how quality standards are
monitored, evaluated and maintained in the health sector.
Learning objective Place in Assessment
2.1 Identify factors that can affect service provision in the
health sector
Question 1 Page 4
2.2 State the importance of monitoring and evaluating
service provision in the health sector
Question 2 Page 5
2.3 Describe the ways in which organisations can evaluate
service provision
Question 3a&3b Page 5
2.4 Describe how personal attitudes and behaviours can
impact on service quality
Question 4 Page 7
2.5 Summarise ways in which healthcare workers can
contribute to maintaining standards
Question 5 Page 8
2.6 Explain why it is important to see help and report
issues to others
Question 6a&6b Page 8
2.7 Explain how individuals can raise concerns Question 7 Page 9
2.8 Describe the key points of a complaints policy Question 8a&ab Page 9
1. It is important for healthcare organisations to always be looking for ways to improve their
services. Identify at least one factor that can affect service provision in the health sector for
each of the categories below. [2.1]
People: Factor which can impact the service provision in the healthcare system is workers
skills and knowledge and patient's cooperation.
Equipment: The internal factor that can affect in a healthcare system is availability and
arrangement of essential equipments used in delivering an effective healthcare services.
Work practices: Factors here includes the skills and performance of workers can impact the
service provision in a healthcare system.
Environment: Factors here includes equality in cultural diversity, availability of essential
facilities for staff.
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Unit 5: Understand quality standards in the health sector
2. In a few sentences, state the importance of evaluating and monitoring service provision in
the healthcare sector. Use your current place of work or one that you know well as an
example. [2.2]
The importance of evaluation and monitoring the service provision in the healthcare
systems because it encourages an evidence based approach to practice delivery. It basically
aid to examine the track of the program and the modifications when required. These both
generally maintains the basis for changes of the interventions as well as accessing the
activity qualities that is being conducted. The main purpose of monitoring and evaluating in
the healthcare settings is it helps to determine the most valuable and the efficient use of
resources. These are used to assist in determining the working. They can also inform
decisions about the effectiveness of the services and the modifications that can be made will
be considered as to improve the service delivery.
3a. Healthcare organisations monitor and evaluate service provision.
Provide a short description of three common evaluation tasks that may be carried out in the
health sector. [2.3]
Evaluation task 1
Collecting and analysing the information about patient care: In every healthcare sector, it
generally uses an electronic health records or the paper based records so that they can
simply manage the patient's information. The collecting and analysing the information can
establish an efficient communication among the healthcare professionals and patients.
Evaluation task 2
Characteristics: In healthcare sector, the characteristics usually involves the availability of
the standard services within an organisation to meet the specific requirements of the patient
care. It is quiet important in healthcare sector because by providing such services they can
simply enhance the patient's health. In context with characteristics, it is also important that
the patient is financially stable as well as containing the support of family and social as it can
also make impact over the care of patients.
Evaluation task 3
Outcome: In a healthcare system, an outcome measure generally reflects the impact of the
wellness services as well as the interventions on the health status of patient. In this, it is also
evaluated that the effectiveness of the care plan that is generally conducted for patient care.
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Unit 5: Understand quality standards in the health sector
3b. Read the following two short case studies. How might you evaluate these services?
What questions would you ask and who would you direct the questions to? [2.3]
Case study 1
A care home has a large sitting room with many loose cables from TVs, radios and hi-fis.
The carpet is becoming frayed, leaving service users open to slips, trips and falls. The
residents often spill their beverages and often the spillages do not get cleaned up straight
away. The care home is very busy during the afternoon, and the sitting room can at times
seem a little cramped. Some of the residents’ visitors have made comments to the staff but
as yet nothing has been done. Some of the staff have identified the issues and have left
feedback in a suggestion for improvement box in the staff room. But what else could be
done?
Evaluation tasks to be carried
out
What questions would
you ask when
evaluating this service?
Who would you direct your
questions to?
The evaluation task which
should be carried out in the
above case study is finding out
the In-charge of management
team who is taking care of
overall hygiene in the care
home. It also includes the
findings regarding the
electronics departments by
viewing that they are doing their
work appropriately or not.
The questions which
would be asked while
evaluating includes are
the staff members of care
home or the workers
following the safety
measures and
maintaining hygiene in a
workplace. If not then who
is responsible for such
misconduct. who is
responsible for doing this
inappropriate things. The
questions should be
asked by the
housekeeping team about
who is responsible for
about the maintenance of
hygiene.
The questions would be
asked by the manager of
care home, the in-charge of
the care home who is
evaluating the work of
housekeeping team, an
electronics department and
overall management team.
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Unit 5: Understand quality standards in the health sector
Case study 2
A nursery school assistant is also a mum to twins who attend the same nursery she works
at. She has noticed that two other members of staff do not wash their hands after going to
the toilet, yet they still play with the children and prepare food for them to eat at lunch and
break times.
Evaluation tasks to be carried
out
What questions would
you ask when
evaluating this service?
Who would you direct your
questions to?
The evaluation task from the
above case study which should
be carried out is after finding
this situation or condition the
higher authority of the nursery
school should conduct a
meeting and make aware the
other members about the
personal as well as professional
hygiene. An evaluation here
also includes awareness about
the importance of taking
personal hygiene as priority.
The questions from the
above case study which
would be asked while
evaluating these such
services includes are the
assistants following the
safety measures as well
as hygiene. If not, then
who is responsible for this
misconduct.
The questions would be
asked by the higher authority
or the administration
department about the safety
of every individual who is
working in the nursery school
and also the children's who
are coming in the nursery
school to seek education.
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Unit 5: Understand quality standards in the health sector
4. Describe how personal attitudes and behaviours in your healthcare role (or one that
you know well) impact on the quality of service in your organisation. [2.4]
Attitude / behaviour How does it impact on your role?
An attitude or behaviour can impact over an
organisation or care home both positively as
well as negatively. The positive attitude can
enhance the consistency of the high
performance as well as guarantee their
patients satisfaction. The examples of
positive attitude or behaviour includes active
listening, empathy, and friendliness.
Whereas, the negative attitude can decrease
the consistency as well as destroys the
patient care. It is very important in the care
home that every care provider are of sound
mind as they can effectively provide the care
to ill people. The negative attitude or
behaviour includes aggressiveness,
prejudice and non- compliance.
In the care home, here includes a role of
nursing assistant. In context with personal
attitude or behaviour, the poor attitude of the
nursing assistant can results in the low level
of care that can be provided by assistant. As
it is quite necessary for nursing assistant to
understand that patient care is very crucial
and is not compromised in any manner.
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Unit 5: Understand quality standards in the health sector
5. Complete the table below by summarising, with short descriptions, the ways healthcare
workers could contribute to maintaining standards in each scenario. [2.5]
Scenario How standards could be maintained
A co-worker is unsure about how
to carry out a specific work task.
The standards which would be maintained when a co-
worker is unsure about its work is worker should
contacts its supervisor or the other team members so
that co-worker can clarify its doubt about their work.
Some hospital departments have
much longer waiting times than
other departments.
The standards in the given scenario which can be
maintained as the hospital departments should collect
the patients information in advance so that waiting time
can be reduced. The department should follow the
streamline clinical workflow in order to reduced the
waiting hours.
There has recently been a security
incident where a service user
managed to gain access to a store
room.
The standards which would be maintained in the given
scenario is that the healthcare system should
implement the security cameras where there is no
permission to enter so that no one can gain access to
the store room in an unethical manner.
A department has recently had a
number of complaints about the
helpfulness and professionalism of
staff.
The standards which can be maintained in the given
scenario is that department should actively listen about
the complaints. The department should apologize
about creating the misconduct or not being present to
help others. The standards here includes that they
should find a solution about complaints and then
execute it like helping others needs and so on.
6a. Why might you need to seek help or report issues in a healthcare setting? You can use
examples from your own healthcare organisation (or one you’re familiar with). [2.6]
In context with healthcare sectors, it is necessary to seek help or report about
something which is unethical in a healthcare system as protecting the keep guarding the
wellness, safety as well as the welfare of the service user is quite important. Whereas, if the
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Unit 5: Understand quality standards in the health sector
keep guarding is not done properly, then it will let the service users unprotected. The
unprotected service users results in being at the greater risk of becoming abusive, this will
ultimately leads to them being distant or they might feeling less important. In a healthcare
system, it is very essential to report about unsafe practices as there will be a time in the
practices when the assistants duty is to keep guard the health of the workers or members in
in conflict with and here the assistants duty is to promote the worker's or members right to
take risks.
6b. Thinking about your answer to question 6a, explain why it is important to seek help and
report issues to others. [2.6]
The healthcare providers can play an essential role in every healthcare sectors as
they consists a central or most important role in enhancing the access as well as quality care
to the people. It is very important to seek or report the problems that can be arise in
healthcare settings as reporting about the incidents can helps to protect the people or ill
people from any harm. Reporting about such incidents in a healthcare settings can generally
develops the opportunities to learn from an incidental mistakes as well as also concerns
about to identify the things which are gone wrong. By seeking help or raising voice regarding
the problems can generally provides an extra service care to promote the well-being of
people, can prevent the disease and also can leads to deliver the care services which can
be needed by people.
7. Explain how individuals can raise concerns using your healthcare organisation (or one
you’re familiar with) as an example. [2.7]
In context with healthcare system, every care organization can contains a whistle-
blowing policy that simply tells an individual about how to raise the concerns. These
concerns can be expressed in front of the higher authority or the managers of the care
organization. While raising the concerns an individual must contains some reasonable
beliefs which includes a genuine concern raised in the public interest as well as it contains
information that is true to an individual's knowledge. The another way to raise an individual's
voice is to do so openly as this can make things quite easy for the care settings to
investigate and give their feedbacks.
8a. Describe the purpose of a complaints policy in a healthcare organisation? [2.8]
In context with healthcare settings, the main purpose of the compliant policy is to be
responsible to the public. The complaint policy can also provides the valuable prompts so as
to review the performance of the organization as well as conduct of the people which will
work within or for it. The clear and an effective procedure of the complaint policy can
decreases the requirements for the staff to have to resort to the whistle-blowing so as to
raise the concern. The logged or monitored complaints can enable the healthcare
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Unit 5: Understand quality standards in the health sector
organizations to check the positive outcome of their policies as well as their capability of
doing work so as to put them into their practices. In addition to this, the compliant policy
generally illustrates the means by which an individual or other representatives can simply
raise their issues or concerns and the responsibilities of the worker's or member's to whom
their problems is being addressed.
8b. Using examples from the case study below, describe at least four key points of a
complaints policy. [2.8]
Case study
A service user at a GP’s surgery made a complaint about excessive waiting times for routine
check-ups and appointments. The complaint was made in writing and handed in to the
reception where it was then passed on to the GP in charge of the surgery at the end of that
working day. Within three working days, a letter was sent to the service user by the GP’s
secretary confirming that the complaint had been received and that it was currently being
looked into. As part of the investigation, a small committee was formed to look into possible
reasons why waiting times may be so lengthy and ways to combat this. Staff and service
users were canvassed for their opinions and the surgery’s processes were also evaluated.
As a result of the investigation it was decided that the surgery would remain open an hour
later three days a week so that appointments were more evenly spread through the week.
The service user who made the original complaint was informed about the investigation’s
outcome and the new arrangement was evaluated after three months to see if the problem
had been remedied.
Key point
1. Excessive waiting times for daily routine check-ups and appointments can be a
key point of complaint policy. It is known that longer wait times are negatively
linked with the clinical care providers so as to meet the patient's satisfaction.
2. The key point of compliant policy also includes a quick action regarding
complaints and here it takes about three days to respond a complaint.
3. The key point of the policy also includes that appropriate actions should be
taken and here in the above case study, it involves the usual appointment
timings and even more spread throughout the week.
4. In the above case study, the key points here also includes about the policy is the
service user's have to wait for three months to see the evaluation is been done
or not.
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Unit 5: Understand quality standards in the health sector
Part 3: Know how to use resources efficiently to support quality standards
This part will help you to evidence Learning Outcome 3: Know how to use resources
efficiently to support quality standards.
Learning objective Place in Assessment
3.1 Describe the importance of using and maintaining
resources properly
Question 1 Page 11
3.2 State why it is necessary to report issues related to
resources
Question 2 Page 12
3.3 Identify how efficient use of resources contributes to the
quality of service
Question 3 Page 12
1. Why is it important to use and maintain resources properly when working in the health
sector?
Choose one scenario from this list below and write a short report on the consequences
of not using and maintaining the resources which apply to this situation efficiently. [3.1]
 You and your friend both work as care assistants. However, you have received
complaints from his patients that he is not focusing on his job.
 You know of someone who routinely fails to follow lock-up procedures correctly and
this has resulted in break-ins to medicines cupboards.
 An accident to a patient was not reported correctly and as a result the authorities do
not know of its occurrence.
How might this situation
affect the quality of service?
What might the effects on
patients or users be?
Who should you have told
about the incident and how?
From the above scenario, if
care assistants will not
contribute its best to the
patients then they can
absolutely make impact over
the patient's health
outcomes. In addition to this,
if the assistant will not focus
on their job then it can lead
to decrease the physical as
well as mental quality of the
patients as well as this thing
can affect very negatively in
From the above scenario, it
is concluded that if the care
assistants will not focus on
their job then it will directly
impact over the patient care.
It might impact the patient's
socio-demographic variables,
its corporation, the care
providers socio-demographic
variable. It is important to
provide quality of care for the
better outcomes.
In the scenario, it should
have to told directly to the
higher authorities about the
incident. In the absence of
higher authorities, the
supervisors are also
responsible to take care
about such incidents. As its
the supervisors duty to
ensure that every care
assistant is working their jobs
properly or not.
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Unit 5: Understand quality standards in the health sector
the quality service.
2. Why is it necessary to report issues related to resources? [3.2]
In context with healthcare settings, the reports or complaints can effectively decreases the
risk of errors, increases the acquisitions of crucial patient data, decreases the needless
expenditure as well as develop the healthcare processes exponentially. The resource
planning basically provides a knowledge about where the resources are located and what
they are basically doing. It involves the not only an overview but also controls the overall
process. It generally ensures that nothing is forgotten and the problems can be solved ahead
of time. In addition to this, by reporting such problems related to the resources it can directly
impact over the healthcare outcomes. This report can make benefits in the healthcare system
such as report results in preventative management, problems monitoring, patient's well-
being, the performance of the practitioner's and so on. Reporting about issues is quite crucial
in every health care organization as it basically provides a dynamic evidence based overview
about how the interconnected data can develop the care services at the care organizations.
This development not only includes the care services but it can also includes socio-cultural,
political, gender based social problems.
3. Identify how the efficient use of resources contributes to the quality of service. Use
examples from your place of work (or one that you know well) to help answer this
question. [3.3]
In context with healthcare system, when the resources are managed effectively or poorly it
can impact over the care which is provided in the healthcare system. The use of resources
appropriately can leads to decrease the utilization of the non salutary care. It is a type of care
which enhances the costs without associating an increase in belief. The effective use of
resources are important in a healthcare system as it allows the care providers to provide and
continue the services which contains a high quality care to an individual. In every healthcare
organization, the efficient use of the resources can enhance the efficiency or productivity of
the organization by increasing the well-being of the patients. It can also provide the
opportunities to the service user so as to contribute in the efficiency of the system. In addition
to this, if the resources are managed effectively they can ultimately leads to meet the
healthcare organizations goals by decreasing the wastes as well as costs that can improves
the patient's outcomes.
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Unit 5: Understand quality standards in the health sector
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