• 
• 
• 
• 
• 
• 
• 
• 
• 
  • Articles & White Papers
  • Catherine's Blog
  • Jeanne's Blog
  • Links
• 

Has the Focus on Quality in Health Care Become Compromised?

Okay. So we all know about health care reform and the greater access and more affordable care the new legislation is intended to bring. But, what about quality in health care? I can’t help but think we lost our focus on quality. It’s the old quality versus quantity argument. Sure, more people will have coverage, but is there any movement to start really caring about the quality of care we’re providing? There’s no question that under certain categories of care, quality is a second cousin to cost. Medicare, for example, comes to mind. Everyone has at least one horror story relating to a nursing home patient’s “quality” of care experience. Forget about all the regulations and accreditation bodies. Real quality of care must emanate from depths far beyond mandated standards of care. Forgive the pun, but band aids won’t due when surgery is needed. A good start would be to empower nurses, care managers, patient advocates and other front-line medical professionals to start measuring quality of care at the grassroots level. From evaluating preventive, diagnostic and therapeutic levels of care to medical facility administration, patient education and patient relations, we must start somewhere with a refocus on quality. What do you think?

Write a comment

Name: *
Email: *
Subject: *
Comment: *

Help prevent spam - enter security code above:
 

Catherine Mullahy
Posts: 2

Quality Care
Reply #2 on : Fri January 14, 2011, 12:39:38

---

Thanks so much for your comments, Linda. Do not be discouraged. I don't know whether I'm the eternal optimist, however I really do believe that each one of us...if we really care...can truly make a difference. We need to make a concerted effort to rise above that which seems to be pulling us down. While there will always be those who may have taken a different path, perhaps choosing business goals over and above what's best for our patients, I also know that others still continue to follow a path toward excellence. It does begin with each one of us. The passion that you possess, Linda, can, indeed, inspire others to be better...to do more...to care more, AND to serve as mentors to those who are looking to find their way in our profession.

Keep the faith...and keep in touch!

Catherine

Linda
Posts: 2

quaility in health care
Reply #1 on : Sun January 02, 2011, 15:22:54

---

Catherine, you are so right. The healthcare industry has been taken over by business; as long as healthcare is driven by profit, things will only worsen. These administrators, and I blame nursing leadership even more, have turned our noble profession into the hospitality industry..it makes all of us begin to lose faith; I've alwayas belived that nursing has failed in their ability to harvest dynamic talent, it still is who you know, not leadership qualifications..