Quality is a universal word used in every industry and almost every facet of life, as a means to define and is also attributed to affecting the desired outcome from customers/consumers. The challenging factor of quality is that it is perceived differently by different people. What may be considered a product or service of high quality for one person may not be the same for another. Each industry has their own way of effectively handling and providing different levels of quality for their customers. For example, in the auto industry, quality can be measured by the types of materials and resources used to build the exterior and interior features of an automobile. A care doesn't have to be fitted with the finest leathers and cloths or come equipped with the latest technology to be considered high or good quality. It all comes down to the individual customer and how the vehicle will satisfy their needs and wants. But within the healthcare industry, it would seem that quality is much more difficult to measure and effectively implement. According to Berwick and Joshi (2008), "the quality of care provided should reflect appropriate use of the most current knowledge about scientific, clinical, technical, interpersonal, manual, cognitive, and organizational management elements of health care".
In the U.S. there are close to 50 million people uninsured, 25 million under-insured (Commonwealth Fund, 2008), and unfortunately many of those who have insurance do not possess an adequate amount of health care literacy. So how can we expect our society to benefit from high quality health care service, and for our health care organizations to provide quality care, if most of us do not know how to properly measure it. Many health care facilities have looked at other industries such as hospitality to improve their quality. For example, many hospitals have improved the look of inpatient rooms, installed fancy decorations, flat-screen televisions, and five-star gourmet food. With this strategy, I think health care facilities look to provide better quality in the nonclinical aspect in hopes of having their patient be overwhelmed with luxurious items while still providing the same mediocre or poor quality they've been providing. In actuality, they are possibly masking the real problem at hand of not knowing how to effectively and efficiently improve the quality of care that the patient receives. Also, how much of an impact does this have on outpatients and other customers who don't get the "five-star" treatment? They are left to measure the quality of they care they receive solely on the interactions made with clinical staff members and the results from procedures and health care services they were provided.
For me, quality, especially in health care requires understanding and cooperation from both parties. Quality is in the eye of the beholder, and even the beholder may not know what they want in terms of quality. So it is health organizations who are looking to provide a particular type of quality through the products/services they offer should look to do so by knowing what their customers desire. On the other side of the spectrum, customers need to be informed as much as they can about the industry, having customers who are knowledgeable about their health will result in better relationships and outcomes in terms of care received.
Berwick, D., & Joshi, Maulik (2008). Healthcare Quality and the Patient. The Healthcare Quality Book.
C. Schoen, S. R. Collins, J. L. Kriss, and M. M. Doty, "How Many Are Underinsured? Trends Among U.S. Adults, 2003 and 2007," Health Affairs Web Exclusive, June 10, 2008, w298–w309.
