The Importance of Health Care Quality Management Departments

Health care quality management departments within hospitals and other health care facilities play an important role in developing, implementing and monitoring policies and procedures that increase quality of patient care, decrease mortality rates and positively impact the establishment's profitability.

Quality Criteria

• According to Georgia State University's study, "The Assessment of Quality Management Practices Within the Health Care Industry," there are seven criteria that a department should assess in considering overall health care quality. These are leadership, customer focus, strategic planning, measurement, analysis and knowledge management, process management, workforce focus, and results.

Affordability

• It is crucial for the department to monitor the efficient use of the facility's physical and staffing resources in order to be financially viable and offer affordable health care services to the public.

Mortality

• A health care facility must strive to decrease premature and preventable deaths. Decreases in mortality rates set a facility above its competitors and indicate that the quality management department is functioning effectively in the policies and procedures it has developed to improve patient care.