Quality in Healthcare: Stakeholders, Agencies, and Alicia Richman

This report delves into the critical aspects of quality management within the National Health Service (NHS), examining the multifaceted roles of various stakeholders including service users, service providers, commissioners, and the general public. It highlights the significance of adhering to government standards and regulations, ensuring data privacy, and maintaining cleanliness. The report also addresses the crucial role of external agencies such as the Care Quality Commission (CQC) and the National Institute for Health and Care Excellence (NICE) in maintaining and improving service standards. The analysis uses the case of Alicia Richman to illustrate the impact of poor service quality on stakeholders and emphasizes the need for technological advancements, improved staff communication, and efficient resource utilization. Furthermore, it discusses how external agencies and stakeholders are affected by the quality of services provided and how the NHS can enhance patient satisfaction and outcomes by addressing these issues. The report provides a detailed overview of the different facets of quality management, emphasizing its importance in maintaining and enhancing healthcare service delivery.

MANAGING QUALITY IN HEALTH AND SOCIAL CARE
NHS needs to maintain quality in service as per the needs and
demand of customer and in follow up of standards and laws of
government. NHS needs not only required offering medicines
and equipment but also the privacy of information and
cleanliness. Timely fulfilment of laws and regulations and
fairly treating employees. Moreover, NHS has several
stakeholders including service users, service providers,
commissioners and general public whose perspectives are
different in terms of required facilities. They play an important
role for improving quality of health and social care services
which facilitate to solve problems faced by Alicia Richmam
respectively.
Proper monitoring and evaluation are one of the best
approaches for providing quality services to the service
receiver. There is a need for proper coordination between the
staff to access the patient to have better services. Staff should
consult at the high level when there is doubt in the treatment or
diagnosis of disease. Optimum utilisation of resources should
be implemented to utilise the resources in the right direction
and the right time. The size of employees in the health care
organization should always be double of the average patient
come for availing services. The queue of admission or
registration should also be managed and handled effectively by
NHS. Availability of required staff in this area will ensure that
the patients are able to stand safely. In context of Alicia
Richman, stakeholders of NHS are required to increase levels
of quality of medical services by several ways which are given
below –
Technical quality – The shareholders, owners and board of
directors should focus on advancement of technological
equipment’s in sub organisations and put efforts to implement
new innovative techniques to improve accuracy of treatments.
In case of Alicia Richman, she complaints about improper
communication among employees which can be solved by
advanced technology that helps to reduce risks in treatment
procedures.
Functional quality – The functional quality includes
performance and way of conducting required activities by staff
members of NHS which facilitate to gain desired outcomes of
ROLE OF EXTERNAL AGENCIESHEALTH AND SOCIAL CARE HAVE
REGARDING QUALITY The stakeholder of NHS includes shareholders, carers, service users,
external agencies etc., which get influenced by profit and loss of
organisation. However, poor service quality effects all these
stakeholders in given case of Alicia Richman regarding her
dissatisfaction due to improper treatment and ignorance of significant
symptoms by professionals.
Service users – The poor service quality is harmful and
directly impacts on health of service users by creating severe
complications accordantly. In context of Alicia Richman, she has
problem of breast tissue lump and later found that significant
symptoms have been ignored by the organization. This kind of services
can result in dangerous harm and can also lead to death.
Carers – The poor service quality will result into
dissatisfaction of organisation which effects goodwill in negative
manner due to that people will switch the hospital to gain medical
facilities. The ignoring behaviour and improper communication of staff
in NHS is harmful for patients and reducing in number of service users
may results into decrease in their remuneration.
Shareholders – The shareholders put their precious amount of
money or capital for conducting operations smoothly as they get rate of
return as profits form the same. However, inaccurate service quality
reduced profitability of organisation which impacts negatively on
profits of shareholders of NHS.
Health care organization is ruled strictly by the external
agencies such as Care quality commission, national care
standard commission and social care institute for
excellence. Hence, external agencies are mainly the
government and ministerial department which facilitate the
maintenance of healthy environment and effectiveness in
medical products and services. Care quality commission
ensures that health care organization provide service as per
need and rights of the patient. In context of NHS hospital,
CQC and NICE render effective guidelines in order to
increase quality and standards of medical services which
are beneficial for patients including Alicia Richman.
Care Quality Commission (CQC) – This is an
external agency whose role is to regulate and inspect the
services provided by different healthcare organisations like
NHS. They conduct inspections to ensure that people
including Alicia Richman gain safe, effective and high
quality care.
Supporting People – The external agencies are
also helpful for people by supporting them to gain proper
treatment along with avoiding discrimination in NHS
hospitals. Meanwhile, Alicia Richman can take help from
external departments if hospital authorities may not listen
to her for solving desired problems.
National Institute for Health and Care Excellence
(NICE) – The NICE publish guidelines for NHS for
utilising health technologies, medicines, treatments,
procedures and health promotion. In context of Alicia
Richman, staff of NHS are required to follow standards set
by NICE for providing correct treatment of breasts cancer
in respect making her disease free.
IMPACT OF POOR SERVICE QUALITY