How Clinical Protocols Tie into Quality Management Programs - Research Paper Example

Healthcare is an influential aspect of the social, and hence, the economic well-being of any country be it the poorest or the most affluent. Quality health care is extremely significant for the well-being and survival of the patient. Systems and infrastructure to ensure implementation of clinical protocols and therefore, management of quality must be laid down. Thus, sufficient funds should be allocated for quality assurance. Managers with limited budgets should know that quality assurance is a benefit, not a cost. Just like in the corporate world, improved quality will enhance the reputation of hospitals and their standing among patients. Brown et al., second this in their study on quality assurance in healthcare in developing countries when they stress the fact that improving quality actually pays rather than costs, and how health managers with limited budgets cannot afford to ignore that fact (Brown, Franco, Rafeh & Hatzell, n.d.). Buttell et al., mention a few clinical measures recommended by the Institute of Medicine, which are; to improve leadership and knowledge, to identify and learn from errors, to set performance standards and expectations for safety, and to implement safety systems in health care organizations (Buttell, Hendler & Daley, 2007).

In order to achieve the objective of uninterrupted improvement, merely defining the parameters of what quality care actually is will definitely not be sufficient although the mission hasn’t quite reached completion.