An Introduction to Quality Assurance in Health Care

by Avedis Donabedian

Avedis Donabedian's name is synonymous with quality of medical care. He unraveled the mystery behind the concept by defining it in clear operational terms and provided detailed blueprints for both its measurement(known as quality assessment) and its improvement(known as quality assurance). Many before him claimed that quality couldn't be defined in concrete objective terms. He demonstrated that quality is an attribte of a system which he called structure , a set of organized activities whihc he called process , and an outcome which results from both.
In this book Donabedian tells the full story of quality assessment and assurance in simple, clear terms. He defines the meaning of quality, explicates its components, and provides clear and systematic guides to its assessment and enhancement. His style is lucid, succinct, systematic and yet personal, almost conversational.

240 pages, Hardcover

First published December 16, 2002

Reviews

[Jonathon Gray]

An excellent review of healthcare quality improvement. a reminder of the key concepts, and that they dont change over time.
Quality assurance as described by Donabedian is "all the actions taken to establish, protect, promote and improve the quality of healthcare

Donabedian suggested changing QA to quality improvement or quality continuous improvement.

[An Te]

A master of the quality of care trade gives his thoughts on what is required to deliver good quality care and ensure its consistent measurement and delivery. For every health practitioner serious about quality of care. A classic read. As informative then as it is today. A seminal book in the health and social care literature. His Structure, Process, Outcome lives on today in some form or other in regards to the categories that influence care quality.