title: Patient involvement in quality management: rationale and current status.
abstract: OBJECTIVE
  The purpose of this paper is to review how patient and public involvement (PPI) can contribute to quality improvement functions and describe the levels of PPI in quality improvement functions at hospital and departmental level in a sample of European hospitals.
  
  
  METHODS
  Literature review and cross-sectional study.
  
  
  RESULTS
  PPI takes multiple forms in health care and there is not a single strategy or method that can be considered to reflect best practice. The literature reveals that PPI can serve important functions to support quality improvement efforts. In contrast, the assessment of actual PPI in quality improvement shows that PPI is low.
  
  
  CONCLUSIONS
  Findings are not representative of hospitals in the EU.
  
  
  CONCLUSIONS
  A diverse set of methods and tools that can be employed to realize PPI. Service providers should consider PPI at all stages, in particular in setting quality standards and criteria and in evaluating the results.
  
  
  CONCLUSIONS
  Contextualization of empirical findings with case studies from the literature that inform further practice and research on PPI.
authors.affiliation: Health Services Research & Policy, London School of Hygiene and Tropical Medicine, London, UK.
authors.forename: Oliver
authors.initials: O
authors.lastname: Groene
authors.forename: Rosa
authors.initials: R
authors.lastname: Sunol
mesh_terms: D003430:Cross-Sectional Studies; D006801:Humans; D010358:Patient Participation; D011786:Quality Control; D058996:Quality Improvement; D011787:Quality of Health Care
keywords: EU; Hospital management; Hospitals; Patient involvement; Patient-focused care; Quality improvement