What is QUALITY:

Defining quality is not easy. It is a simple word used widely all over, and defined differently in different institutions. It is “fit for purpose”, “achieving excellence”, or “customer satisfaction” ,..

In order to define you have to set first the criteria for the organization’s  acceptable performance, that is in turn based on a clear performance specification. The overall management process that link these performance activities forms the management system.

To achieve quality, you need to have a total quality management system. The Key of a strong management system is the commitment not only of the top management, but of everybody in the organization, working in harmony for a successful and continuously improved quality process, and striving to see the quality through the eyes of the customers, to achieve their satisfaction.

THE What and Why  OF ISO 9000

Sahel General Hospital was established in 1983, and since then is striving with its young, scientific and dynamic management team to achieve a real quality service to satisfy its community. It was the first hospital in its region to have a quality department that monitors the work process and performance.

As every business organization, Sahel General Hospital has its goals and objectives that are continuously measured, evaluated and updated as implied by its management system. In order to ensure that a good total quality management system is adopted we needed to evaluate against a system model. Being a health care organization that surely includes a wide range of services, clinical conditions, health function status, customer satisfaction, and administrative considerations, we needed a tool that is process based, rather than just compliance, that is where ISO standards were considered.

ISO is a tool developed by the International Organization of Standardization, which help rationalize the business process. The intent of the ISO 9000 requirements is simple. It requires that a basic quality system having the capabilities and tools to provide quality products and or services be implemented. Clear documentation of all work processes affecting quality is required, but that documentation can be facilitated through:  

·          Identifying elements such as supplier control, process control, inspection management and training to achieve quality results for the customer

·          Not necessarily  transformation of management practices, but continuous improvement of the system through preventive or corrective action to prevent occurrence or repetition of mistakes, in order to satisfy and exceed the customer stated and implied needs

In order to comply with the ISO standards and have our management system registered to ISO 9001: 2000, a plan was prepared and implemented with the help of all the hospital personnel. We were all committed and determined to have a quality system consisting of a work management process that is clear, detailed, documented, measured and evaluated and continuously improved.

We were audited by QMI, a division of CSA Group,  from Canada, and recommended for registration with no record of nonconformities even from the first audit. Our certificate was received and our hospital was registered as a hospital with a quality management system in compliance with ISO 9001: 2000 in August 2003.

 

     

THE BENEFITS

  • Customer Satisfaction: through a clear process for
    • Knowing and understanding customer requirement,
    • Ensuring that our work meets these requirement and continuously strive to exceed them
  • Greater Productivity: facilitated through
    • Clear goals and quality objectives
    • Common language and consistency of quality practices
    • Improved documentation
  • Improved provider and customer confidence and loyalty
  • Cost saving,  in a time where decreased financial resources and expensive new technology are prevalent

CONCLUSION
Complying with ISO 9000 standards doesn’t mean that every product or service meet the requirement, it just denotes that the quality system in use is capable of meeting them.
Our Hospital has a management system that allows to continuously assess how to satisfy customers and continuously improve the process related to the outcome of the services we are providing.