OC-0618 Clinical audits as a quality improvement tool in radiotherapy departments: the Belgian experience

Interdiction problem as a tool to identify an effective budget allocation to quality improvement plans

In the face of budgetary limitations in organizations, identifying critical facilities for investing in quality improvement plans could be a sensible approach. In this paper, hierarchical facilities with specified covering radius are considered. If disruption happens to a facility, its covering radius will be decreased. For this problem, a bi-objective mathematical formulation is proposed. Crit...

Basic tests in mammography as a tool in quality improvement.

BACKGROUND Mammography is a radiological diagnostic method which relies on an X-ray examination of breasts and is a process involving the use of low-dose amplitude-X-rays (usually around 0.7 mSv). Combining the use of small doses and high quality images requires extensive quality protocols, part of them being included in regulations adopted by the Minister of Health. AIM The aim of this study...

Quality audits of radiotherapy centres in Latin America: a pilot experience of the International Atomic Energy Agency

BACKGROUND In Latin America radiotherapy quality varies significantly among hospitals, where highly equipped academic centers coexist with others not meeting minimal requirements. In 2007, the International Atomic Energy Agency published guidelines for auditing radiotherapy centers, known as the "Quality Assurance Team for Radiation Oncology" (QUATRO) audits. The present report summarizes a pil...

Patient satisfaction survey as a tool towards quality improvement.

Over the past 20 years, patient satisfaction surveys have gained increasing attention as meaningful and essential sources of information for identifying gaps and developing an effective action plan for quality improvement in healthcare organizations. However, there are very few published studies reporting of the improvements resulting from feedback information of patient satisfaction surveys, a...

Coding Audits - A Positive Experience.