International Journal of Health Care Quality Assurance: Volume 27 Issue 8

CRIB conditional on gender: nonparametric ROC curve

Maria Filipa Mourão, Ana Cristina Braga, Pedro Nuno Oliveira

The purpose of this paper is to use the kernel method to produce a smoothed receiver operating characteristic (ROC) curve and show how baby gender can influence Clinical Risk…

Patient-clinician concordance, face-time and access

James E. Stahl, Mark A. Drew, Alexa Boer Kimball

People in socially disadvantageous positions may receive less time with their clinicians and consequently reduced access to healthcare resources, potentially magnifying health…

Library and information services: impact on patient care quality

Joanne Gard Marshall, Jennifer Craft Morgan, Cheryl A. Thompson, Amber L. Wells

– The purpose of this paper is to explore library and information service impact on patient care quality.

Quality and price – impact on patient satisfaction

Angelos Pantouvakis, Nancy Bouranta

The purpose of this paper is to synthesize existing quality-measurement models and applies them to healthcare by combining a Nordic service-quality with an American service…

Improving operating room productivity via parallel anesthesia processing

Michael J. Brown, Arun Subramanian, Timothy B. Curry, Daryl J. Kor, Steven L. Moran, Thomas R. Rohleder

Parallel processing of regional anesthesia may improve operating room (OR) efficiency in patients undergoes upper extremity surgical procedures. The purpose of this paper is to…

Clinical decision support system (CDSS) – effects on care quality

Marco António Ferreira Rodrigues Nogueira dos Santos, Hans Tygesen, Henrik Eriksson, Johan Herlitz

Despite their efficacy, some recommended therapies are underused. The purpose of this paper is to describe clinical decision support system (CDSS) development and its impact on…

Are adequate fluid challenges prescribed for severe sepsis?

Michael Courtney, Bussa Gopinath, Matthew Toward, Rajesh Jain, Milind Rao

Managing severe sepsis early has several benefits. Correct early management includes delivering an appropriate fluid challenge. The purpose of this paper is to assess whether…

Lean practices for quality results: a case illustration

Pauline Hwang, David Hwang, Paul Hong

Increasingly, healthcare providers are implementing lean practices to achieve quality results. Implementing lean healthcare practices is unique compared to manufacturing and other…

IMRT utilization in Ontario: qualitative deployment evaluation

Kate Bak, Elizabeth Murray, Eric Gutierrez, Jillian Ross, Padraig Warde

The purpose of this paper is to describe a jurisdiction-wide implementation and evaluation of intensity-modulated radiation therapy (IMRT) in Ontario, Canada, highlighting…

Quantifying complexity in translational research: an integrated approach

David A. Munoz, Harriet Black Nembhard, Jennifer L. Kraschnewski

The purpose of this paper is to quantify complexity in translational research. The impact of major operational steps and technical requirements is calculated with respect to their…

Guest editorial

Keith Hurst