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Assignment 2 – Critical Thinking Total Quality Management (TQM) is one of the mo

ID: 343970 • Letter: A

Question

Assignment 2 – Critical Thinking

Total Quality Management (TQM) is one of the most prominent developments in management for the past two decades. TQM started in Japan in the early 1980s and spread to the Western countries and Australia. In the 1990s, TQM topics became very important, and many companies were looking to apply TQM and use it to develop and improve their businesses.

Total Quality Management is defined as “a management philosophy concerned with people and work processes that focuses on customer satisfaction and improves organizational performance”  

These days, health organizations face many challenges that can be classified into four major areas: increases in the cost of health services, rapidly growing technology dependence, pressure on health organizations to decrease costs and improve quality to cope with the international organizations that establish standards and give licenses and finally satisfying patients' needs, a major demand requiring hospitals to maintain high quality services.

Such challenges force health planners to adopt a system that can manage health care in a measurable way to offer a high quality service, which is the aim of the quality management programs in hospitals.

The system that can cope with all of these challenges and resolve all health organization's problems is TQM. Total Quality Management is also known as continuous quality improvement (CQI), quality improvement (QI), quality management (QM) and total quality control (TQC).   Experts indicate that the key principles of TQM include the following: customer focus, obsession with quality, scientific approach, long-term commitment, teamwork, and continual improvement systems, education, and training, freedom through control, unity of purpose and employee involvement and empowerment. The liability of nursing personnel is mainly restricted in the implementation and evaluation of the TQM programs. Nurses represent more than eighty percent of the health workers in any Hospital. These nurses have played a significant role in the implementation and success of TQM programs.

Answer The Following Questions (Short Answer):

Describe the History of Total Quality Management (TQM). (2-Marks)

What is Total Quality Management according to you?. (2-Marks)

What are the challenges faced by Health Organizations in implementation of Quality Management Programs in Hospitals?. (2-Marks)

What is the solution to the problems faced by Health Organizations these days?. (2-Marks)

Explanation / Answer

Describe the History of Total Quality Management (TQM)-

Foundation of Total Quality management was laid in early 1920s. In this phase statistical tools & theory was implemented for Controlling the quality of production. Later in Japan in 1940s , TQM concept was developed.Deming, Juran and Feigenbaum were some of the key people involved in the development of TQM concepts. TQM holds the principles of Behavioral Sciences , Analysis of process, Theories of Economics. It also includes quantitative and qualitative data analysis

What is Total Quality Management according to you?

Core purpose of any industry is to increase revenue and focus on customer satisfaction. Through TQM , organization involve its members in improving services, Products, Processes. It also helps organization to develop quality culture at work.

TQM has few Principles as –

What are the challenges faced by Health Organizations in implementation of Quality Management Programs in Hospitals?

Some of the key Challenges in implementing Quality Management programs in Hospitals can be summarized as below:

Data collection through traditional system for analysis

Change management in the current system & Organizational Culture

Making people understand that the problems are for their own wellbeing and help & The solutions by TQM are correct

Regular analysis on Results and sustainability

Sometimes quality programs are risky and mitigation is difficult to achieve

What is the solution to the problems faced by Health Organizations these days?