Application of Quality Improvement Strategies in 389 European hospitals : Results of the MARQulS project
Lombarts, M.J.M.H. (University of Amsterdam)
Rupp, I. (University of Amsterdam)
Vallejo, P. (Universitat Autònoma de Barcelona. Institut Universitari Avedis Donabedian)
Suñol Sala, Rosa (Universitat Autònoma de Barcelona. Institut Universitari Avedis Donabedian)
Klazinga, N.S. (University of Amsterdam)

Data:	2009
Resum:	Context: This study was part of the Methods of Assessing Response to Quality Improvement Strategies (MARQulS) research project investigating the impact of quality improvement strategies on hospital care in various countries of the European Union (EU), in relation to specific needs of cross-border patients. Aim: This paper describes how EU hospitals have applied seven quality improvement strategies previously defined by the MARQulS study: organisational quality management programmes; systems for obtaining patients' views; patient safety systems; audit and internal assessment of clinical standards; clinical and practice guidelines; performance indicators; and external assessment. Methods: A web-based questionnaire was used to survey acute care hospitals in eight EU countries. The reported findings were later validated via on-site survey and site visits in a sample of the participating hospitals. Data collection took place from April to August 2006. Results: 389 hospitals participated in the survey; response rates varied per country. All seven quality improvement strategies were widely used in European countries. Activities related to external assessment were the most broadly applied across Europe, and activities related to patient involvement were the least widely implemented. No one country implemented all quality strategies at all hospitals. There were no differences between participating hospitals in western and eastern European countries regarding the application of quality improvement strategies. Conclusions: Implementation varied per country and per quality improvement strategy, leaving considerable scope for progress in quality improvements. The results may contribute to benchmarking activities in European countries, and point to further areas of research to explore the relationship between the application of quality improvement strategies and actual hospital performance.
Ajuts:	European Commission 513712
Drets:	Aquest document està subjecte a una llicència d'ús Creative Commons. Es permet la reproducció total o parcial, la distribució, la comunicació pública de l'obra i la creació d'obres derivades, sempre que no sigui amb finalitats comercials, i sempre que es reconegui l'autoria de l'obra original.
Llengua:	Anglès
Document:	Article ; recerca ; Versió publicada
Publicat a:	Quality and Safety in Health Care, Vol. 18 Núm. SUPPL. 1 (february 2009) , ISSN 1475-3901

DOI: 10.1136/qshc.2008.029363
PMID: 19188458

10 p, 245.4 KB

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