Basic Steps to Achieving Best Practices in Healthcare
Application of best practice in healthcare has to be approached in a manner that secures successful execution and continued improvement. The following are the steps necessary for healthcare organizations to apply best practice:
1. Assess Current Practice
Audit existing practice and identify components of it that need adjustment.
Consult with health professionals, patients, and other stakeholders on aspects of current practice that are not working and that might be done better.
2. Clearly Define Objectives
Establish specific and measurable objectives that are aligned with the mission and vision of the organization.
Prioritize objectives based on impact on patient care and operations efficiency.
3. Best Practice Research
Evidence-based best practices from leading journals, professional organizations, and peer-reviewed studies
Research how best practices have been successfully applied in similar healthcare environments
4. Action Plan
Plan an in-depth implementation activity together with the necessary steps needed to be followed during implementation for the selected best practices.
Define implementation responsibility and timelines, resources necessary.
5. Staff Involvement and Training
Bring out the need for change in relation to best practices to all the staff.
Provide broad training and other supportive services that will enable health professionals to implement best practices.
6. Best Practice Implementation
Roll out the best practices in concert with the action plan, minimizing disruption to ongoing operations.
Closely monitor the implementation process for problems or resistance and take appropriate action.
7. Monitor and Evaluate Progress
Establish KPI’s that measure the effectiveness of the practices that have been implemented.
Periodically review the performance data to ascertain what progress is being made towards the defined objectives.
8. Make Adjustments Where Necessary
From the evaluation results make adjustments to the implementation strategy where necessary.
Observe any obstacles or obstacles that may arise and work for the mitigation of those to create continuous improvement.
9. Sustain and Scale Success
Embed proven best practices into the standard operation processes of the organization.
Look for opportunities to expand proven effective practices across different departments or locations in order to achieve full value from them.
10. Embed a Culture of Continuous Improvement
Embed companywide feedback and collaborative mechanism by the staff for identifying new areas of improvement.
Embed a culture of continuous learning and improvement supported by the leadership.
Thus, through these steps, the healthcare organisations will be able to adopt the best practices which will improve patient outcome, operational efficiency, and overall health system.