HLT 362 Describe the difference between research and quality improvement

The main goal of research is to increase the knowledge and understanding of a specific variable and its possible correlation between another variable. One example would be assessing and analyzing the effectiveness of a drug. Quality improvement, on the other hand focuses on the collection of data and statistics to improve health outcomes. An example of this would be overtime data collected stating certain amounts of insulin helps control blood sugar better and the amount of times insulin is needed to help better control blood sugars. This is all data that is collected overtime, and overall helps improve health. Health care providers and nurses carry out a QI project, it may not be the implementation of something new, but it may be improvement upon something that is already in place (Helbig, 2020). “Quantitative research usually aims to provide precise, unbiased estimates of parameters of interest for the entire population which requires a large, randomly selected sample” (Hannigan, 2018). Quantitative research uses numbers and numeric variables (Helbig, 2020). Qualitative research is collected through descriptive characteristics that cannot be measured with numbers like quantitative research can (Helbig, 2020). Instead of numbers they use open-ended questions, interviews, and observation. In my hospital, leadership uses qualitative research to assess patients’ satisfaction in their hospital and ensure they feel they are receiving the care the need and anything else. They ensure this by rounding on patients and asking them open ended questions on their stay and interviewing the patient. Based on the data collected from patients, leadership connects with the managers on the floor to work on the areas needed according to the patient’s needs. In my workplace we quantitative research by assessing the number of times a patient is readmitted. My hospital strives to have a good turn around and when patients constantly are readmitted there is something not going right in the course of direction. My hospital keeps track of the readmissions and when people get admitted we assess them for high risk of being readmitted as well. When patients are readmitted case management and social worker instantly get a notification to look into their care at home and any possible needs they may need to further reduce readmissions.

Reference

Hannigan, A. (2018, June). Public and patient involvement in Quantitative Health Research: A statistical perspective. Health expectations : an international journal of public participation in health care and health policy. Retrieved February 24, 2023, from https://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pmc/articles/PMC6250860/

Helbig, J. (2020). Reader. BibliU. Retrieved February 22, 2023, from https://bibliu.com/app/#/view/books/1000000000581/epub/Chapter4.html#page_50

Click here to ORDER an A++ paper from our Verified MASTERS and DOCTORATE WRITERS HLT 362 Describe the difference between research and quality improvement:

In simple terms research is searching for new knowledge or using existing knowledge to improve ways of doing something. In other words, it is used to find answers to questions. Research is used to investigate or study and find knowledge about material or resources to establish facts and develop new conclusions. It involves the collection of data, organization, and analysis of evidence to increase understanding of a topic. For example, in healthcare research is used to improve quality care and enhance the patient experience or prevent diseases and cure them. One very common form of health research is the clinical trial, in which patients volunteer to participate in studies to test the efficacy and safety of new medical interventions (Institute of Medicine).

Quality Improvement (QI) is a systematic approach that is guided by collected data with the purpose of improving quality care. (Helbig, 2021). For example, healthcare professionals review patient and other medical data and analyze it then use it to provide quality care to their patients. With the information, they collected from the data, they use it to identify areas of improvement and also to identify areas that are working toward excellence. Their goal is to have positive patient care outcomes. Some quality improvements in healthcare include, decrease hospital readmissions, improved care coordination among departments, and decreased medication administration errors.

One example of the application of qualitative and quantitative research at the organization where I work is used to identify areas of strength and areas that need improvement. The methods they use include management and employee meetings, observations (ex. Employees’ behavior), they hire expert consultation, surveys and perform drug testing to new hires.

References

Helbig, J. et al. (2021). Applied Statistics for Health Care. (n.d.).Statiscal Analysis; lc.gcumedia.com. Retrieved February 14, 2023, from https://bibliu.com/app/#/view/books/1000000000581/epub/Chapter4.html#page_72

Institute of Medicine (US) Committee on Health Research and the Privacy of Health Information: The HIPAA Privacy Rule; Nass SJ, Levit LA, Gostin LO, editors. Beyond the HIPAA Privacy Rule: Enhancing Privacy, Improving Health Through Research. Washington (DC): National Academies Press (US); 2009. 3, The Value, Importance, and Oversight of Health Research. Available from: https://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/books/NBK9571/

Quality Improvement projects work to make the system better, more cost-effective, increase productivity, and create continual gains in an identified process. The QI project is directed to specific processes or practice within the organization and is intended to advance the operation of the system in the organizational environment. Because of the nature of QI studies, participant protections are more easily addressed. QI investigators in health care frequently collect primary data from volunteer participants using anonymous surveys. QI project teams stringently adhere to confidentiality of patient data. QI projects examine internal processes and work to generate solutions to process problems, the new knowledge generated is specific to that organization or system and not generalizable. QI projects have a limited audience. The project results are intended for individuals internal to the organization rather than the scientific community at large.

The hallmark of research is the process of generating new scientific knowledge. Whether the research has a quantitative or qualitative focus, it is characterized by a design to test a hypothesis or expand current knowledge. The products of research are focused in a way as to generalize to other similar patients and settings so the results are expected to be presented, published, or otherwise disseminated to consumers or the scientific community. The design of the research includes a scientific framework and control of variables. Due to its benefits and risks inherent in research, proposals must be reviewed by an institutional review board (IRB) and approved before research begins.

QI provides steps to assess, plan, implement change, and evaluate results connected to an organizational process, which reflects an internal organizational concern. Research, on the other hand, is focused on gaining new knowledge, within a scientific framework (Reinhardt & Ray, 2020).

Examples of potential nursing research include conducting a systematic review of studies on preventing catheter-associated urinary tract infections (CAUTI), a randomized controlled trial exploring new wound care methods, and a qualitative study to investigate the lived experiences of patients with a specific chronic disease (Conner, 2019).

One example of qualitative research is patient satisfaction surveys as these include collecting data on nurse-doctor communication, nurse-patient communication, and pain management through survey questions. Throughout all of the hospitals I have worked, care is adjusted based on the survey results as the data collected supports quality measures reported to CMS. For example, the AIDET Model (Acknowledge, Introduce, Duration, Explanation, Thank) was roled out to address patient and family frustration with “not being kept in the loop on patient care issues”. Using AIDET increased patient and family satisfaction toward what was happening in the patients care and allowed the patient and family a voice in that care.

An example of quantitative research would be the data collected regarding operating room turnover times. This data is collected in minutes from the EMR and used to help evaluate operating room efficiency. This research is a part of almost every large operating room today. Collection of this data helps the OR and hospital to increase efficiency in procedural areas to improve patient, staff, and physician satisfaction as well as the bottom line of hospital revenues.

References:

Conner, B. T. (2019). Differentiating research, evidence-based practice, and quality improvement. American Nurse Today, 9,6. https://www.americannursetoday.com/differentiating-research-evidence-based-practice-and-quality-improvement/

Reinhardt, A. C. & Ray, L. N. (2020). Differentiating quality improvement from research. Elsevier Science. https://www.memorialcare.org/sites/default/files/media/JoyGoebelResearchorQIMay2014.pdf

QI projects may be similar to clinical research, but the focus and goals are different. A quality improvement project seeks to improve a system, increase productivity, and make it more cost-effective. In general, QI projects improve the operation of the system within an organization by focusing on specific processes or practices. Research in QI is easier to protect the interests of participants due to its nature. Anonymous survey methods are commonly used by researchers in the field of quality improvement in health care. Quality improvement teams maintain strict confidentiality. In QI projects, internal processes are examined and solutions to process problems are generated, so the knowledge generated is specific to the organization. Projects aimed at improving quality have a limited audience. Results of the project are intended for individuals within the organization, not the scientific community. The hallmark of research is new knowledge. Quantitative or qualitative research is characterized by a design that tests a hypothesis or extends knowledge. It is expected that the results of research will be presented, published, or otherwise disseminated to consumers or the scientific community. This will cause these results to generalize to other similar patients and settings.

The design of the research includes a scientific framework and control of variables. Because of benefits and risks inherent in research, proposals must be reviewed by an institutional review board (IRB) and approved before research begins. QI provides steps to assess, plan, implement change, and evaluate results connected to an organizational process, which reflects an internal organizational concern. Research, on the other hand, is focused on gaining new knowledge, within a scientific framework (Reinhardt & Ray, 2003). Examples of potential nursing research include conducting a systematic review of studies on preventing catheter-associated urinary tract infections (CAUTI), a randomized controlled trial exploring new wound care methods, and a qualitative study to investigate the lived experiences of patients with a specific chronic disease (Conner, 2014).

Qualitative research includes data collection on nurse-doctor communication, nurse-patient communication, and pain management through patient satisfaction surveys. I have seen care adjusted based on survey results in all of the hospitals I have worked in. The AIDET Model (Acknowledge, Introduce, Duration, Explanation, Thank) addresses the frustration of patients and families with “being left out of the loop”. The use of AIDET increased patient and family satisfaction with what was happening in the patient’s care. The data collected regarding operating room turnover times is an example of quantitative research. To evaluate operating room efficiency, this data is collected in minutes from the EMR. Nearly every large operating room today uses this research. In addition to improving physician, staff, and patient satisfaction, this data helps the OR and hospital increase efficiency in procedural areas.

References:

Conner, B. T. (2014). Differentiating research, evidence-based practice, and quality improvement. American Nurse Today, 9,6. Retrieved from: https://www.americannursetoday.com/differentiatingresearch-evidence-based-practice-and-quality-improvement/

Reinhardt, A. C. & Ray, L. N. (2003). Differentiating quality improvement from research. Elsevier Science. Retrieved from: https://www.memorialcare.org/sites/default/files/media/Joy Goebel Research or QI May 2014.pdf

The primary difference between research and quality improvement is that research is the process of gathering and analyzing data to answer a specific question, while quality improvement is the process of evaluating and improving existing processes and procedures. Research is used to discover the cause and effect of a situation or to develop an understanding of a phenomenon, while quality improvement is used to make changes that will improve the overall quality of a service or product (Gaus, 2020; Davenport et. al., 2020).

For example, in my organization, research could be used to investigate the impact of different types of care on the well-being of the residents. Qualitative research methods such as interviews or focus groups with the nursing home staff and residents could be employed to explore the attitudes and experiences of the residents, while quantitative research methods such as surveys and statistical analysis could be used to analyze the impact of different types of care on the health and well-being of the residents. The results of this research could then be used to inform the development of a quality improvement plan to improve the quality of care provided to the residents. For example, the research could be used to inform changes in the type and amount of care provided, the training and development of staff, or the physical environment of the nursing home. (Gaus, 2020; Davenport et. al., 2020).

References

Gaus, M. (2020). Research vs. Quality Improvement. The American College of Physician Advisors. https://acpa.org/the-blog/research-vs-quality-improvement

Davenport, S. et. al. (2020). Quality Improvement in Long-Term Care: An Overview. Journal of the American Medical Directors Association. https://www.sciencedirect.com/science/article/abs/pii/S1525861019312379

Quality Improvement (QI) in healthcare is a national priority and critical for success in a value-based care model. QI involves collecting data to assess organization and provider-level performance and transforming this information into feedback designed to change and improve healthcare practices. QI capacity, then, is defined as having the knowledge, ability, and commitment to continuously engage in QI activities. In order to promote QI capacity, organizations need to understand appropriate QI approaches, how to collect data and provide feedback, and allocate appropriate resources, which often require substantial time and cooperation of the health care team.

Building QI capacity and creating a QI infrastructure can bring considerable benefits to outcomes of care. QI infrastructure refers to a form of “self-management support” an organization needs to assess, implement, and achieve improvement goals, which fosters the development of QI capacity. Such activities have the potential to promote an organization’s independent ability to effectively recognize and improve quality issues. Organizations with greater QI capacity are able to troubleshoot and allocate appropriate resources to respond to these problems.

Most QI work has focused on the hospital setting, and focused efforts in the ambulatory setting are needed. In 2015, 79% of physician office visits were in primary or non-surgical outpatient specialty clinics, highlighting the importance of promoting quality care in these settings. QI initiatives in these settings have great potential to improve patient safety and preventive care, prevent hospitalizations, reduce costs, and improve population health, as they are the main access point to health care for most Americans.

Taylor E, Peikes D, Genevro J, Meyers D. Creating Capacity for Improvement in Primary Care: The Case for Developing a Quality Improvement Infrastructure. In: (AHRQ) AfHRaQ, ed 2013. [Google Scholar]

2. Taylor E, Genevro J, Peikes D, Geonnotti K, Wang W, Meyers D. Building Quality Improvement Capacity in Primary Care: Supports and Resources. In: (AHRQ) AfHRaQ, ed 2013. [Google Scholar

Quality improvement is a core function of good clinical care. Research is defined as a systematic investigation, including research development, testing and evaluation, designed to develop or contribute to generalizable knowledge (Faiman, 2021). Research provides the data necessary for certain variables while quality improvement works with issues necessary to improve situations. Quantitative research is used to confirm or test a theory or hypothesis, and qualitative research is used to understand concepts, thoughts or experience (Ambrose et al. 2021).

Quantitative research deals with numbers and statistics, while qualitative research deals with words and meanings. Quantitative methods allow one to systematically measure variables and test hypotheses. Qualitative methods allow one to explore concepts and experiences in more detail using the data at hand (Faiman, 2021).

Oftentimes, quantitative research is obtained through analysis of data. My workplace strives to reduce fall incidents among patients. Hence, there is a quarterly report on the number of fall incidents. This quantitative research is done by collecting and analyzing the data of patients that had a fall, their age, diagnoses, time they fell and circumstances. Also, upon admission, all patients are assessed for falls using certain variables. Through the quantitative research, the organization further proposes some measures for quality improvement regarding fall incidents. For instance, having made all the research on falls, my organization would adopt concepts to eliminate or reduce fall incidence. This quality improvement is done through interviews, reviews and opinions.

Reference

Ambrose, J. et al. (2021). Applied Statistics for Health Care. (n.d.). Applied Statistics for Health Care; lc.gcumedia.com. Retrieved from https://lc.gcumedia.com/hlt362v/applied-statistics-for-health-care/v1.1/#/chapter/4

Faiman B. (2021). Quality Improvement Projects and Clinical Research Studies. Journal of the advanced practitioner in oncology, 12(4), 360–361. https://doi.org/10.6004/jadpro.2021.12.4.1

Quality Improvement (QI) has been defined as systematic, data-guided activities, designed to bring about immediate improvements in healthcare delivery in particular settings. Initiators of QI projects identify promising improvements, implement small -scale changes, monitor results, and decide about additional changes and broader implementation. Quality is a core function of good clinical care.

Research is defined by the federal government as a systematic investigation, including research development, testing and evaluation, designed to develop or contribute to generalizable knowledge.

qualitative research is patient satisfaction specifics as these include collecting data on nurse-doctor communication, nurse-patient communication, and pain management through survey questions. Throughout all of the hospitals I have worked, care is adjusted based on the survey health care the data collected supports quality measures reported to CMS. For example, the AIDET Model (Acknowledge Introduce, Duration, Explanation, Thank) was rolled out to address patient broader family frustration with “not being kept in the loop on patient care issues”. Using AIDET increased patient and family satisfaction with what was happening in the patient’s care and allowed the patient and family a voice in that care.

An example of quantitative research would be the data collected regarding operating room turnover times. This data is contained in minutes from the EMR and used to help evaluate operating room efficiency. This research is a part of almost every large operating room today. Collection of this data allows the OR and hospital to increase efficiency in procedural areas to improve patient, staff, and physician satisfaction and the bottom line of hospital revenues.

Therefore, the model of communication called Acknowledge-Introduce-Duration-Explanation-Thank you (AIDET), which is a patient-centered communication tool, has been published by Studer Group of USA in 2006. This mode of communication was performed to lots of medical institutions in the United States, and it was benefit to obtain better achievements by third-party survey. AIDET is a standard communication model in American medical institutions, and it is the first letter of the five key words which make up the communication framework: A for Acknowledge, I for Introduce, D for Duration, E for Explanation, and T for Thank you. AIDET includes the progress and standard phrases of communication in all respects that it can contribute to improve the experiment of the patients. In the previous studies, the AIDET communication mode has reduced patients’ anxiety and improved their satisfaction during the clinical nursing work . To enhance the patients’ satisfaction with kinds of medical treatment, some of the medical institutions have trained the medical staff with the AIDET communication mode, which can improve the nursing care for patients and their family members . In addition, the AIDET communication mode has been applied in the maternal care, as well as in the laparoscopic surgery Preoperative education and postoperative rehabilitation were combined to relieve the maternal anxiety in the maternal care In the laparoscopic surgery, preoperative was used to increase the experiment of patients for improving the treatment effect. On the other hand, the AIDET communication mode can enhance the initiative of nurses during the multiple complex work based on the research by Edwardson N . In china, the AIDET communication mode has been applied. Yue Zhang used the AIDET communication mode in the patients with liver transplantation to adjust the depressive state for conductive to the operation of live transplantation Xiaojing Wang also applied the AIDET communication mode to the patients with hysteromyoma. He found that the patients’ satisfaction with psychological nursing was significantly higher in the test group with the AIDET communication mode compared with the control group . Furthermore, the applications of AIDET communication mode also included alleviating the negative emotions of the elderly parturient, improving the outcome of labor, enhancing the communication effect between nurses and patients during the maintenance of peripherally inserted central catheter (PICC) catheter, and reducing related complications . In this study, we applied AIDET communication mode to the nursing service in the daytime cataract operation, and evaluated its effect.

References:

Conner, B. T. (2014). Differentiating research, evidence-based practice, and quality improvement. American Nurse Today, 9,6. Retrieved from: https://www.americannursetoday.com/differentiating- research-evidence-based-practice-and-quality-improvement/

Quality improvement is a framework that is applied to systematically enhance the ways healthcare processes are delivered to the patients. Quality improvement possesses characteristics that are measurable and controllable. In addition, the measurements can be analyzed and improved. Quality improvements involve dynamic efforts aimed at achieving stable and predictable process outcomes. In other words, the whole process often tend to reduce process variation and improve general outcome of the treatment process for the benefit of the patients, healthcare providers, and the entire organization. Attaining a sustainable quality improvement requires continuous commitment from the entire stakeholders, especially the top level management.

Undertaking quality improvement involves research processes aimed at highlighting areas of improvement and the processes that need to be undertaken for the successful completion. Also, quality improvement, just like the research process requires constant communication with the stakeholder to create awareness of the possible changes in the operational processes. Most healthcare institutions are always engaged in the quality improvement processes to ensure efficiency and quality outcome in the operational processes.

In my organization, treatment and medication errors are some of the challenges that impede effective patient outcome. From the data, there are increasing cases of medication errors that leads to further complication among the patients. Medication and treatment errors are characterized by the wrong prescriptions of drugs, errors in surgical processes, the application of wrong data when managing the patients, misdiagnosis, the provision of improper doses, provision of unauthorized drugs, giving drugs to the wrong patients, and following incorrect routine of drug administration. Treatment and medication errors often cause high number of deaths and increased complications among the patients. In my healthcare organization, there are always numerous cases of medication and treatment errors, as a result, nurses and the entire healthcare professionals are always advised to be more accurate while undertaking treatment processes. In other words, they are always advised to adhere to the quality measures and the organization’s standardized procedures of work.

Research and quality improvement are two distinct but related processes. Research is the systematic and objective process of identifying, gathering, analyzing, and interpreting data in order to answer questions or test hypotheses. It typically involves a series of steps including data collection, analysis, and interpretation, and is designed to answer questions or test hypotheses. Quality improvement, on the other hand, is a process of continuous improvement that is focused on improving the quality of products and services. Quality improvement involves identifying and addressing problems, developing solutions, and implementing changes to improve outcomes (Brown et al., 2020).

In my organization, both qualitative and quantitative research is used to inform decision-making. For example, a recent project was undertaken to reduce wait times in the customer experience. Qualitative research was used to determine customer perceptions, preferences, and pain points, while quantitative research was used to measure customer satisfaction and wait time benchmarks. This research was then used to inform decisions about how to improve the customer experience, such as training staff on customer service techniques and avoiding double shifts for nurses.

Research and quality improvement are both essential for organizational success. Research provides the data necessary to identify problems and develop solutions, while quality improvement ensures that those solutions are implemented correctly and effectively. In my organization, both qualitative and quantitative research has been used to inform decisions and ensure the highest quality of service. (Crawford et al., 2020)

References

Brown, M., Clements, J., & Lanham, S. (2020). Quality improvement in healthcare: A guide to evidence-based practice. Columbia University Press.

Crawford, P., Herrin, J., & Michener, J. (2020). Quality improvement in healthcare: A process for change. Academic Medicine, 95(2), 209-214.

HLT 362 Describe the difference between research and quality improvement