Healthcare has changed in the past few decades. The cost of getting and giving healthcare has increased and we are at a point that something needs to be done to make sure the patient gets the care he/she needs to be able to live a quality life. To do this we need to become patient-centered and instead of dealing with the sickness or disease we should deal with the total patient. We can do this by using systems such as Patient-Centered Care, Lean Six Sigma and the European foundation for Quality Management (EFQM) Model or a combination of these. “Quality care means that care avoids adverse effects, improves the patient’s physiological status, reduces signs and symptoms of illness, and improves functional status and well-being. (Sullivan, Decker, Weiss, Lonnquist p.172, 2004) We can accomplish this by using the European foundation for Quality Management (EFQM) Model. This model incorporates the following:
Results Orientation: achieving results that delight all the stakeholders.
Customer Focus: creating sustainable customer value.
Leadership & Consistency of Purpose: visionary and inspirational leadership, coupled with constancy of purpose.
Management by Processes & Facts: managing the organization through a set of interdependent and interrelated systems, processes and facts.
People Development & Involvement: maximizing the contribution of employees through their development and involvement.
Continuous Learning, Innovation & Improvement: challenging the status quo and effecting change by using learning to create innovation and improvement opportunities.
Corporate Social Responsibility: exceeding the minimum regulatory framework in which the organization operates and to strive to understand and respond to the expectations of their stakeholders in society. (Value Based Management, 2006)
Health care is a business and like every other business, it needs good management to keep it running smoothly. Medical and health services managers, also referred to as health care administrators plan, direct, coordinate, and supervise the delivery of health care. Medical and health services managers include specialists and generalists. Specialists are in charge of specific clinical departments or services, while generalists manage or help manage an entire facility or system. The structure and financing of health care are changing rapidly. Future medical and health services managers must be prepared to deal with evolving integrated health care delivery systems, technological innovations, an increasingly complex regulatory environment, restructuring of work, and an increased focus on preventive care. They will be called on to improve efficiency in health care facilities and the quality of the health care provided. (Bureau of Labor Statistics, 2006) Let us look at some of the systems we can use to improve efficiency, patient care and cut costs. The first model system we will look at is Patient-Centered Care which is a new model of nursing care delivery in which the role of the nurse is broadened to coordinate a team of multifunctional unit-based caregivers. In patient care, all patient care services are unit-based, including admissions and discharge, diagnostic and treatment services, such as environmental and nutritional services and medical records. The focus is decentralization, the promotion of efficiency, quality and cost control. The number of caregivers at the bedside is reduced, but their responsibilities are increased so that the service and waiting times are decreased. Some organizations share assistive staff between units, so there is an increasing need for communication and coordination by department managers. (Sullivan, Decker, Weiss, Lonnquist Et All, 2004) In patient-centered visits, the doctor talks
