Current State of Quality: External Dynamics
The quality of healthcare services provided in our hospitals is dependent on a number of factors both within the hospital and without. Below is a list of external factors that are likely to affect the quality of healthcare services as outlined by Longest (2016).
Economic factors- How well the economy is doing has a direct impact on the nature of quality of healthcare services provided. If the economy is doing well, it becomes possible to hire more health care personnel, purchase essential health care equipment and drugs among other things that impact directly on the quality of healthcare provided.
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Legal factors- By passing various legislation that support healthcare services, it is possible to improve the quality of services provided in the health care sector. For example, legislation that approve more funding for health care services would result in improved services in the hospitals.
Technological factors- The prevailing technology has a direct impact on the quality of services provided in the healthcare sector. For example, by integrating IT into the hospital operations, service delivery becomes efficient.
Cultural factors- Culture has a direct impact on the quality of services provided in the health care setting. It influences the beliefs and practices of people within and without a hospital. For example, a community might not believe in women leaders and this might interfere with service delivery in a hospital where a woman is the head of the hospital as most of her decisions will be challenged.
Demographic factors- These have an impact on the quality of services delivered in a hospital. For example, if a hospital is surrounded by a dense population, it might get overwhelmed and thus result in poor service delivery.
As the new quality improvement director, I would conduct the influence that external factors have on service delivery in the hospital. My assessment would help me identify what areas of service delivery would be improved by focusing on external factors and this would be my focus of the presentation.
References
Longest, B. (2016). Health Policymaking in the United States (6th ed.). Health Administration Press.