For a continuous quality improvement (CQI) initiative to be successful, it needs to have both a strong philosophical foundation and robust structural elements. Philosophical elements would include the need for customer focus, continuous improvement, employee involvement, accountability, teamwork, and data-driven decision making. This would allow the CQI initiative to prioritize meeting and exceeding customer expectations and needs, and also would foster collaboration and communication among the team members. Structural Elements would include clear goals and objectives, structured planning, training and education, performance measurement, data collection and analysis, and communication and feedback. Developing a plan that would outlines steps for identifying problems, analyzing data, implementing solutions, and evaluating outcomes is crutial for a new CQI initiative to thrive.

Health care uses the Deming cycle because it provides a structure for repeated testing of changes to improve quality of systems. It is a foundational framework for continuous quality improvement in organizations.

Kristina Peregudov

References

National Institue of Health, 2013. Systemic Review of the Application of the Plan-Do-Study-Act Method to Improve Quality in Healthcare. https://pmc.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/articles/PMC3963536/#:~:text=Plan–do–study–act%20(PDSA)%20cycles%20provide,how%20the%20method%20is%20applied.