Question

There are many examples of improvement projects conducted by healthcare organizations that can be found on the Internet.

Here are just a few websites where improvement project descriptions may be found:

•Institute for Healthcare Improvement

. •Clinical Microsystems, The Dartmouth Institute

. •Quality Improvement Organizations provides a list of individual websites

Other sites providing project examples can be located using search engines and keywords such as PDSA, CQI, TQM, and healthcare improvement.

Identify two projects, each using a different improvement model from the following list: PDSA, RCI, FOCUS-PDCA, Rapid Cycle Improvement, Lean, and Six Sigma.

Compare and contrast the models used and discuss which you think is the best to use for the cases you selected. Explain why. What is similar about the two projects? What is different?

Answer 1

PDSA and Rapid Cycle Improvement are the models that are more helpful

PDSA, or Plan-Do-Study-Act, is an iterative, four-stage problem-solving model used for improving a process or carrying out change.

When using the PDSA cycle, it's important to include internal and external customers; they can provide feedback about what works and what doesn't. The customer defines quality, so it would make sense to also involve them in the process when appropriate or feasible, to increase acceptance of the end result.

Rapid-Cycle Quality Improvement (RCQI), defined as a “quality improvement method that identifies, implements, and measures changes made to improve a process or a system.” RCQI is based on the Model for Improvement developed by Thomas Nolan, PhD, and colleagues at Associates in Process Improvement. The Model for Improvement is a simple but powerful tool proven to accelerate improvement efforts and has been used successfully by hundreds of health care organizations as well as by educators, by community-based organizations, and in many other organizational settings to improve various processes and outcomes.