Improving efficiency and quality in clinical practice of endoscopy

The most efficient practices will successfully navigate the dynamic changes occurring in our health-care system. In 2011, endoscopy laboratories must be efficient while delivering quality services to their patients. Efficiency and delivering quality must be viewed as a single process. In a rapidly evolving health-care environment, the practices that best integrate efficiency and quality will continue to enjoy organizational success. In fact, efficiency and quality must coexist, allowing practices to deliver efficient, high-quality, low-cost care to their patients. All endoscopists should implement quality measurement in their daily practice. This should be done through internal and external benchmarking projects, practice guideline implementation, and periodic practice/physician reviews. The benefits of building a quality culture within a practice include improved patient outcomes, increased patient satisfaction, improved efficiencies, and possible financial rewards. An efficient, quality culture is a “win–win” situation for patients, physicians, and payors. In this chapter, basic principles of operations management (efficiency), benchmarking, and creating a culture of quality within an endoscopic practice will be discussed.