title: Practical Approaches to Quality Improvement for Radiologists.
abstract: Continuous quality improvement is a fundamental attribute of high-performing health care systems. Quality improvement is an essential component of health care, with the current emphasis on adding value. It is also a regulatory requirement, with reimbursements increasingly being linked to practice performance metrics. Practice quality improvement efforts must be demonstrated for credentialing purposes and for certification of radiologists in practice. Continuous quality improvement must occur for radiologists to remain competitive in an increasingly diverse health care market. This review provides an introduction to the main approaches available to undertake practice quality improvement, which will be useful for busy radiologists. Quality improvement plays multiple roles in radiology services, including ensuring and improving patient safety, providing a framework for implementing and improving processes to increase efficiency and reduce waste, analyzing and depicting performance data, monitoring performance and implementing change, enabling personnel assessment and development through continued education, and optimizing customer service and patient outcomes. The quality improvement approaches and underlying principles overlap, which is not surprising given that they all align with good patient care. The application of these principles to radiology practices not only benefits patients but also enhances practice performance through promotion of teamwork and achievement of goals.
authors.affiliation: From the Department of Radiology, Division of Cardiothoracic Radiology, University of Michigan Medical Center, 1500 E Medical Center Dr, Ann Arbor, MI 48109.
authors.forename: Aine Marie
authors.initials: AM
authors.lastname: Kelly
authors.affiliation: From the Department of Radiology, Division of Cardiothoracic Radiology, University of Michigan Medical Center, 1500 E Medical Center Dr, Ann Arbor, MI 48109.
authors.forename: Paul
authors.initials: P
authors.lastname: Cronin
mesh_terms: D003196:Computer Graphics; D006040:Goals; D019300:Medical Errors / Q000517:prevention & control; D008962:Models, Theoretical; D061214:Patient Safety / Q000592:standards; D011785:Quality Assurance, Health Care; D011786:Quality Control; D058996:Quality Improvement; D019984:Quality Indicators, Health Care; D011859:Radiography / Q000009:adverse effects / Q000592:standards; D011871:Radiology / Q000193:education*; D012042:Registries; D012984:Software; D012985:Software Design; D013647:Task Performance and Analysis; D017749:Total Quality Management