Risk and Quality Management Essay Example for Free

Risk and Quality Management Essay Executive Summary The following paper will be addressing the Risk and Quality management of one of the leading health care organizations in the world today and an organization whose benefits many of us have had the pleasure of experiencing: Kaiser Permanente, which is one of the most esteemed and flourishing organizations within the health care field. Kaiser Permanente provides and offers leading health care technologies, outstanding doctors, emergency services, laboratory needs, pharmaceuticals, and other hospital services among other things. They also have a very detailed and successful risk and quality management program which they enforce within their various organizations. Purpose of Risk and Quality Management â€Å"Quality assurance, corporate compliance, and risk management have common elements, they all represent processes by which care and services are scrutinized, audited, and generate action plans intended to benefit patients† (Sollins, JD, 2008). So it is no surprise that within the health care field, risk and quality management’s main purpose is to ensure that patients and employees are always safe and receive the best care possible. Ensuring that both patients and employees are always safe reduces the possibility of any undue or unnecessary risks to the organizations which is why quality assurance and/or management go hand in hand with risk management. In health care Risk management is very critical as it covers so many different areas ranging from proper procedures when handling medications, protecting patient information, making sure training is happening for all employees, and so much more. Risk management is so important because it is what makes sure the facility is operating in accordance with regulations. Quality management insures that patients are receiving quality care for a decent market value, which includes good customer service, timely visits and advanced technology. At Kaiser they value both risk and quality management and make it a core focus at all  times. In fact, â€Å"Kaiser Permanentes Care Management Institute (CMI) is one of the first organizations in the United States to earn disease management (DM) certification from the National Committee for Quality Assurance (NCQA). The 2-year NCQA DM certification was awarded in program design. The program design certification was awarded for four areas: diabetes, asthma, heart failure, and depression. CMI was one of 18 to apply for the NCQA certification/accreditation† (ManagedHealthcare.Info, 2002). Managing the Risks Like all other health care organizations Kaiser Permanente faces many risks on a daily basis, especially since they are dealing with people’s well-being. It is critical that first and foremost a health care organization knows what their risks are and what strategies are in place to address these risks. â€Å"Kaiser Permanente is concerned that too many diverse drug safety programs will impose a burden on the healthcare system and on patients and that this will drive up costs and limit access to therapies. At issue is the growing number of Risk Evaluation and Mitigation Strategies. The FDA has approved nearly 100 in the last three years† (Wechsler, 2010). Suffice it to say any industry that deals with the making or distributing of pharmaceutical or any other type of drugs made for the consumption of the general public has to make sure they have great risk management because there are many risks involved. In drug distribution situations if situations are not handled prope rly, they can lead to not only costly mistakes but can also put people’s well being in danger. Two other typical risks for this type of organization would be patient confidentiality and cleanliness as there are so many germs and diseases that these facilities face daily. These risks could affect the quality because medication may not be correct, confidentiality breaches will have negative results on the organization and the patients, and cleanliness risks will affect the patients, and possibly even the employees’ overall experience and/or health.  Kaiser is always taking steps towards better risk management and trying new policies and training to achieve this. â€Å"Licensing agencies and professional organizations prescribe minimum standards for a health care risk management program. These standards require direct interaction and support between the Risk Management Team, Administration, the Legal Department, Medical Staff, and Quality Management. Mechanisms must be in place for expeditious investigation and reporting of occurrences, prospective and retrospective analysis, and implementing preventive programs. The Joint Commission on Accreditation of Healthcare Organizations published its guidelines for hospitals in its Accreditation Manual for Hospitals. A major part of health care risk management is being knowledgeable of the Joint Commission on Accreditation of Healthcare Organization guidelines and ensuring that departments comply with them. Valuable safety measures with inherent checks and balances are put into place which increase quality of care and also help to curtail liability claims†. Kaiser believes that a complementary relationship exists between risk and quality management and that this relationship, in part, helps improve quality. It is this belief that created a synergistic approach within their Quality Management and Risk Management Departments. In the mid 90’s The Los Angeles branch of Kaiser Permanente’s Patient Care Management Committee voted on actions to improve their risk management. Those actions were: * Incorporation of collective instructional programs to assist in keeping health care staff updated on new techniques. * Develop deeper understanding of confidentiality practices. * Annual risk management refreshers for health care employees. * Providing courses on how to improve medical record documentation. * Updating protocols on preoperative and post-operative administration. * Educating and establishing centers of excellence for catheter replacement and selection processes. * Upgrade existing incident report forms to ensure more accurate documentation. * Revamp the use of Administration Records * Audit of Critical Care Units * Upgrading the admission policies and procedures. * Introducing policies for patient medication procedures. Managing Quality There are clearly so many factors which can negatively affect the quality of an organization let alone one that is in the health care field. In fact Health Care organizations may face a magnitude of issues which are not seen in other types of organizations. This is mainly due to the nature of having to deal with not only their employees but also with the welfare and  wellbeing of so many different patients. However, as you can imagine some internal factors that this organization or any other health care organization may face would be training, customer services, and services rendered to the patients. In addition, some external factors that can affect the quality of an organization would be third party vendors, budget cuts, and technical issues with electronic medical records or even any other technology system. These factors could be detrimental to any organization if not addressed properly and quickly. However, one of the reasons that Kaiser is considered one of the leading health care organizations is that Kaiser has a very large focus on quality management and wants to makes sure they are always providing the best quality. Their attention to detail is not only evident in how they perform but also in the reputation that they have acquired based on their extreme attention to these details. According to â€Å"Health Span† (n.d). â€Å"The Kaiser Permanente Quality Management program was designed to improve the quality and safety of clinical care and the quality of services provided to our members. The Quality Improvement (QI) program prioritizes quality activities aligned with the region’s strategic plan and provides resources in support of achieving the QI work plan. This complies with applicable regulatory and accrediting body requirements. Kaiser Permanente’s QI work plan must address: * Quality and safety of clinical care * Quality of service * Program scope * Yearly objectives * Yearly planned activities * Timeframe within which each activity is to be achieved * The staff member responsible for each activity * Monitoring of previously identified issues * Evaluation of the Quality Improvement (QI) program Kaiser Permanente’s Goals Kaiser Permanente’s organization has many goals many of which include helping to lower the nation’s obesity rate, promoting wellness care, promoting global health care, educating the public on health and wellness through classes and seminars, offering the best quality health care for a  good price, and much more. According to the organization’s website in 2002, Kaiser Permanente and CAPH/SNI entered into a formal business cooperative effort to broaden their ability to offer quality care as well as work towards improving the type of health care that is available in many communities regardless of their economic standing. This goal is not only one that would benefit the communities in which they are used but also serve to broaden the vision of those involved in the partnership at the state and local levels between community health care providers, organizations and leaders and staff of Kaiser Permanente to cooperate towards mutal objectives which include: * Collaborating on strategies and resources to promote quality care and enhance the efficiency within the systems * Working in association with community partners to improve the health within our neighborhoods In closing, Kaiser Permanente is one of the leading health organizations in the nation and it is no surprise that they also have some of the best risk and quality management practices to go along with their great reputation. In my experience with Kaiser risk and quality management are a focus at all times. One policy that I know is in place, just from visiting them, is that they conduct mailer surveys regarding patient satisfaction. This is important because it gives the patient the opportunity to voice what they think is great or what the organization could improve about the quality of care and services they received. It is also an important point that this industry has and strives to maintain good risk and quality management because they are dealing on a daily basis, every day of the year with the health and wellness of quite a number of people. Based on the facts stated above, Kaiser is always striving for the best quality and risk management possible. It is evident thru the numerous awards that this organization receives, that they are clearly doing a great job and they are example of how an organization should and could properly manage risk and quality management in a way that not only benefits the organization itself but also the people which it serves. References California Health Care Safety Net Institute. (2013). Partnership with Kaiser Permanente. Retrieved from http://safetynetinstitute.org/goals/enhancequalityofcare/kaiserpartnership/ Health Span. (n.d). Kaiser Permanente’s Quality Management program. Retrieved from http://providers.kaiserpermanente.org/html/cpp_oh/quality.html#Kaiser%20Permanente %E2%80%99s%20Quality%20Management%20program ManagedHealthcare.Info, . (2002, November 11). Quality Assurance; Kaiser Permanente institute earns NCQA Disease Management Certification. NewsRx. Retrieved from http://search.proquest.com.ezproxy.apollolibrary.com/docview/210597878?accountid=458 Sollins, JD, H. L. (2008, May June). Quality Assurance, Corporate Compliance, and Risk Management: Overlapping but Not Identical Tools. Geriatric Nursing, 29(3), 157-159. Wechsler, J. (2010, February). Kaiser Questions Safety Policies. Pharmaceutical Executive, 30(2), 1-18. ProQuest.

Christmas As I Know It :: Personal Narrative Religion Papers

Christmas As I Know It Christmas used to be a tradition in my family — or at least I thought so. I had always associated Christmas with Storyland, and since we are Jewish, that always pleased my father. I think he felt comfortable labeling his children Jewish, and as long as that didn’t upset my mother, he would take us to Storyland to help us forget Christmas. But we still got to go to Storyland. Storyland was always closed in December. We drove by my favorite summertime childhood experience, and I watched as we sped by, wondering why I couldn't hear about Mother Gooses children. "Storyland is closed now, honey," my mom said as she glanced in my fathers direction. He seemed to hide behind the steering wheel, almost ashamed of telling me where I thought we were going. But I know that deep down, he was satisfied that for at least the rest of the day, I wouldnt ask him about Christmas. Instead, the real purpose of the drive was to go to the Christmas Farm Inn, a quiet, quaint inn in Jackson, New Hampshire. I think I was four years old when my family started coming to the Christmas Farm Inn. I still dont understand why my father agreed to go each year, but I guess it was only fair to my mom. My mom came from a Lutheran household where Christmas trees and Sunday services were the norm. She agreed to give up part of her past to raise my sister and I Jewish, but the Christmas Farm Inn was her way of celebrating Christmas. We may not have had a family tree, but we still woke up on Christmas morning with presents awaiting us. I remember I loved Christmas Eve dinner. But I also remember how I loved it too much. There was turkey, ham, mashed potatoes, stuffing, you name it (its funny how I only eat that type of meal once a year on Thanksgiving, while most of my friends have it on Christmas and Easter as well). After dinner, my family went to a party with all the Inns guests, and I made sure I was the first to sit on Santas lap when it was time to read The Night Before Christmas. A tall, blond-haired man who looked like my elementary school principal read the story out loud and I spent my time listening attentively.

Reagan Domestic Policy and Developments

Colin Nardella Mr. Conroy AP U. S. History Ronald Wilson Reagan was born on February 6, 1911 in Tampico, Illinois to Nelle and John Reagan. Reagan graduated from Eureka College and studied economics and sociology during his four years there. Eureka College, located in Illinois, was founded by abolitionists who belonged to the Christian Church religious movement (Eureka College). Reagan, a member of the Christian Church himself, based many of his political stances on the values he took from his religion and the college he attended. Before entering into politics, Reagan started out as a radio sports announcer and later became a prominent actor and a television host. During Reagan’s acting career, he became president of the Screen Actors Guild from 1947-1952, which was dealing with suspicions of communist infiltration at the time. After his acting career, he hosted the popular television show, General Electric Theater (â€Å"American President Ronald Reagan†). From Reagan’s time in public service, he was able to gain fame in his acting career. Reagan is most known for surviving an assassination that was attempted by John Hinckley, a mentally disturbed young man from Colorado. What’s extremely disturbing was the reasoning behind his assassination. Hinckley attempted to murder the president not for a political agenda or because he was a part of another party, but mainly for the attention of the actress Jodi Foster. On March 30 1981, after being gunned down, Reagan was rushed to the local emergency room, and while facing death Reagan still kept his character and jokingly asked the surgeons in the emergency room if they were republicans. As a result of his recovery from the traumatic event, Reagan not only pulled through quickly, his popularity among the American people highly increased as he returned to work at the White House (â€Å"American President Ronald Reagan†). Yet with the good comes the bad, Reagan’s popularity rate wouldn’t stay high for a long period of time due to the decisions that would have a major negative impact on the nation economically, as well as socially. A few months after coming back to office Reagan, was confronted with a major crisis. In the month of August in 1981, the U. S. ir controllers went on strike because they felt they served a substantial amount to their government. Therefore, they felt they deserved to be on U. S. government pay-roll, even though at the moment, they were on a pay-roll through a different union. One would think that Reagan would see where the air controllers’ frustrations resulted from, and yet instead of coming to agreement Reagan pul led something extremely dramatic. He came to the decision to fire each air controller that went on strike. Reagan then replaced these skilled gentlemen with individuals who were nowhere near qualified and labeled as â€Å"scabs†. As a result of his negative actions, the commercial flight industry would soon face even more hardships (â€Å"American President Ronald Reagan†). This was just the tip of the iceberg that lowered his popularity rate. Reagan continued with actions that just kept disappointing the American people each and every time his actions did not meet his domestic policy goals. What Reagan failed to address, was not the economic issues in the United States, but the fact that his actions were negatively affecting the social issues in the country as well (â€Å"The Reagan Administration†). When it came to the major AIDS crisis in the United States and the controversial drug issue in the United States, Reagan refused to accept that these two topics were deemed to be critical issues among the people. What’s highly disturbing is the fact that while the AIDS epidemic was hitting the country at full force, the United States’ own president was denying the fact that it was an epidemic even with all the facts in front of him (â€Å"American President Ronald Reagan†). President Reagan looked at the AIDS epidemic extremely casually. In fact, he felt that it wasn’t a social issue, but instead more of a â€Å"moral issue†. Reagan believed that while America was on a moral decline, the AIDS virus was spreading like wildfire. In short, he felt the younger generation lacked the morals that would prevent selfish sexual behavior. So when people of the young generation were diagnosed with the horrid virus, the president looked down on them with disdain. As a result of this theory, Reagan lost a lot of support from the young voters. In this case, the president showed his very conservative beliefs, especially his lack of understanding. Reagan’s conservativeness is evident in his dislike of abortion and homosexuality. Reagan used the Moral Majority as a driving force in his administration. The Moral Majority was a new political movement created by Reverend Jerry Falwell, who said, â€Å"Americans are sick and tired of the way the amoral liberals are trying to corrupt our nation,† in 1979. This movement was also against drugs, the coddling of criminals, and communism (The American Nation). Reagan realized that the United States was in an economic crisis, and figured the best way for the United States to save billions, was to cut the funding of several programs. Reagan’s domestic policy placed a heavy emphasis on cutting taxes, balancing the actual US spending budget, and worse, taking support away from social welfare programs that many lower class Americans needed on a daily basis to survive. Although Reagan promised to cut the budget, his presidency resulted in a national debt, mainly from his military and defense spending. President Reagan supported taking away from programs that helped out the minorities of the United States. Even worse, Reagan took away from programs that assisted single mothers and children with no guilt what so ever (â€Å"The Reagan Administration†). During his presidency, he continued to take away from the social programs, in hopes that the US government would be able to save billions. Eventually the United States government minimized welfare program spending by over $20 billion. Reagan also succeeded in slashing taxes to a point where the government was barely collecting any income revenue. Now even though the Americans loved the tax cuts, they failed to realize that tax cuts aren’t always the best solution, especially in an economic crisis. The American people and the Reagan Administration failed to realize that without revenues from taxes, the government was unable to pay for the services it provided. To add fuel to the fire Reagan not only dramatically reduced tax rates, but worse increased total government spending, particularly in the areas of defense. Reagan also reduced federal aid to education, federal contributions to state governments, and placed new restrictions on Aid to Families with Dependent Children. Surprisingly enough, Reagan supported government aid to private schools run by church groups, even with the constitutional principle that separates church and tate (The American Nation). This support showed yet another example of the Moral Majority playing a significant role in Reagan’s domestic policy. Yet unfortunately, the Reagan Administration was unable to control the increasing government spending rate (â€Å"The Reagan Administration†). The United States government was spending billions w ithin their own military, mainly because Reagan believed the U. S. armed forces had been deteriorating and needed to undergo a re-building process, especially with the imminent fear of Soviet attack. As a result of this spending policy, the U. S government increased their military budget by about 35 percent. This military spending budget also included the War on Drugs. In 1987, Reagan signed a drug enforcement bill that granted $1. 7 billion to fight drugs. Furthermore, Reagan increased the space program budget. During his presidency, the manned space shuttle Columbia, which was launched by rocket power, orbited the Earth for several days and was used for the transportation of satellites into space. Another space shuttle called Challenger, which was launched in 1986, is infamously known for its explosion after takeoff, causing the death of all its seven astronauts (The American Nation). The Reagan administration did not have easy terms in office, in regard to the nation’s domestic situation. The administration was forced to deal with a major economic recession, a year after his election. President Reagan believed that his system of â€Å"Reaganomics,† could get his country out of an economic crisis and turn it in to â€Å"booming† economy. Reagan asked Congress to lower taxes by 30 percent, which he reasoned would leave people with more money that they could use to invest. Reagan believed that these investments would stimulate the economy by generating more goods and more jobs (The American Nation). But what Reagan and his administration failed to realize, is that while they did make the American people happy with the tax cuts, they also increased the national debt because their spending did not make up for the loss of profit. Also, the administration didn’t keep in mind the social well-being of some people when they cut spending from multiple welfare programs and educational programs. Reagan showed a greater interest for military programs in his spending then social programs. Also, it is important to note that Reagan nominated the first female justice to the Supreme Court, when he chose Sandra Day O’Connor. The Reagan administration’s accomplishments and mistakes will be permanently remembered in our nation’s history for decades to come; hopefully one generation’s mistakes can help the future generation avoid issues within our economy, and government as a whole. Bibliography â€Å"American President Ronald Reagan (1911–2004). † Millercenter. org. Ed. Lou Cannon. University of Virginia. Web. 11 Dec. 2011. . Carnes, Mark C. , and John A. Garraty. â€Å"Chapter 31. † The American Nation : a History of the United States. 13th ed. New York: Pearson/Longman, 2008. Print. â€Å"Eureka College History. † Eureka. edu. Eureka College, 2007-2009. Web. 11 Dec. 2011. . â€Å"The Reagan Administration. † HowStuffWorks â€Å"Learn How Everything Works! † Discovery Communications. Web. 11 Dec. 2011. . â€Å"Ronald Reagan. † Whitehouse. gov. The White House. Web. 11 Dec. 2011. . Reagan Domestic Policy And Developments By: Colin Nardella

Use Of Social Networking Sites ( Snss ) From The Academic...

The lack of recommendations on the use of Social Networking Sites (SNSs) from the academic literature (148 words) The lack of recommendations on the use of Social Networking Sites (SNSs) from the academic literature is a huge problem of the study on SNSs. First, it does not prove the readers with any straightforward recommendations on the use of SNSs. Secondly, the researchers rely on previous ideas proposed by academics and, in many cases, do not attempt to confirm or dispel a suspension with their own samples Thirdly, whereas the authors find it necessary not to limit the research to a specific social networking site, it could have been more beneficial to include the differences between the most common SNSs, such as Facebook and Twitter, and see how the recent findings correlate with each other on these grounds (Rodrà ­guez-Hoyos et al., 2015). 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