What influences improvement processes in healthcare? A rapid evidence review

Format:

Book

Author/Creator:

Ali, Gemma-Claire

Contributor:

Altenhofer, Marlene

Gloinson, Emily Ryen

Marjanovic, Sonja

Language:

English

Place of Publication:

Santa Monica, Calif. RAND Corporation 2020

Summary:

Poor-quality healthcare has significant health-related and economic consequences for patients and the wider health system. Although many healthcare organisations are now engaging with improvement activity, the challenges associated with improving care quality remain considerable. The field of improvement research has significant potential to contribute to a better understanding of how improvements in patient care can be achieved and sustained. It is an interdisciplinary academic field, and although the literature on quality improvement is broad and diverse, it is also fragmented. Many studies look at individual improvement models, approaches and interventions, and focus on understanding what works in relation to specific improvement aims. There is less consolidated and curated evidence on learning about the process of doing improvement. A better understanding of the nature of improvement processes and influences on them could inform both ongoing and future practice, by drawing out practical insights such as those related to the challenges faced by improvers and the strategies used to overcome them. Against this context, The Healthcare Improvement Studies (THIS) Institute commissioned RAND Europe to conduct a rapid evidence review of the academic and grey literature, to draw out initial learning about what influences quality improvement processes in healthcare, and to inform potential themes to explore in future research.