Article Text

Download PDFPDF
Development of a quality improvement program in a department of ophthalmology
  1. Jennifer S Weizer1,
  2. Thomas M Brosnan2,3,
  3. Rex M McCallum2,4,
  4. Maureen S Velazquez2,5,
  5. Paul P Lee1,2
  1. 1Department of Ophthalmology and Visual Sciences, Medical School, University of Michigan, Ann Arbor, Michigan, USA
  2. 2Duke Eye Center, Duke University, Durham, North Carolina, USA
  3. 3Brosnan Eye Associates, Asheville, North Carolina, USA
  4. 4University of Texas Medical Branch, Galveston, Texas, USA
  5. 5Performance Services, Duke University Health System, Durham, North Carolina, USA
  1. Correspondence to Dr Jennifer S Weizer, Kellogg Eye Center, 1000 Wall Street, Ann Arbor, MI 48105, USA; jweizer{at}umich.edu

Abstract

Objective To design and implement a quality improvement (QI) programme in an academic department of ophthalmology.

Design The six core competencies of the Accreditation Council for Graduate Medical Education serve as the model for this programme in an institutional practice. The authors review departmental rates of postoperative infections, unplanned reoperations, intraoperative complications, specific subspecialty postoperative complications and successes, and patient and staff compliments and complaints.

Results The authors describe the structure and evolution of the QI programme in our ophthalmology department.

Conclusions It is possible to implement a structured QI programme in an academic department of ophthalmology. With healthcare oversight increasing, physician self-monitoring of quality of care measures will become even more important.

  • Medical Education
  • Public health

Statistics from Altmetric.com

Request Permissions

If you wish to reuse any or all of this article please use the link below which will take you to the Copyright Clearance Center’s RightsLink service. You will be able to get a quick price and instant permission to reuse the content in many different ways.