Ranking of Six Healthcare Quality Domains

Ranking of Six Healthcare Quality Domains
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Ranking of Six Healthcare Quality Domains
Based on the Institute of Medicine (IOM), healthcare quality refers to the degree to which medical services for people and populations are consistent with the contemporary professional knowledge and increase the probability of meeting the desired health outcomes (Agency for Healthcare Research and Quality, 2020). On that note, different individuals might have a distinctive understanding of what quality healthcare services entail. The properties or domains of quality include efficiency, effectiveness, safety, equity, timeliness, and patient-centeredness. The paper ranks these domains starting with the most significant one to the least important property of healthcare quality.
Patient-centeredness is the top-ranking domain of healthcare quality. Specifically, it entails understanding and meeting specific patients’ needs. Physicians must understand that every patient should be handled well based on his or her health condition. That is why they are encouraged to interact with the patient and build a trusting relationship. For sure, patient-centeredness has become increasingly crucial in the healthcare system since it can help healthcare providers to predict patient outcomes, cost-effectiveness, and satisfaction (Kamimura et al., 2019). For example, before a doctor suggests treatment methods for a specific patient, it is good to know the person’s medical history. That way, the healthcare professional will avoid procedures that have been tried and were unsuccessful and choose those that best meet the needs of specific patients.
The second most significant domain of healthcare quality is effectiveness. In particular, effectiveness refers to offering healthcare processes and meeting patient outcomes as supported by scientific evidence. Currently, physicians are encouraged to use evidence-based practice to meet the needs of their patients. Effectiveness facilitates the application of proper health interventions and leads to high-quality patient outcomes (Cinaroglu & Baser, 2018). In other words, it helps healthcare providers to use treatment methods that have been tested and approved, resulting in higher chances of success. For instance, when treating a patient, doctors should recommend the best treatment that is likely to work on a specific patient and oversee the procedure until the end.
Timeliness is the third top-ranking healthcare quality domain. Indeed, it involves providing patient care without delays or at the right time. Mwesigwa et al. (2021) argue that timeliness determines how a patient will cope with a specific health condition (Mwesigwa, Wahid, & Sohheng, 2021). For example, some health conditions require urgent healthcare attention, and delays might cost a person’s life. Let’s assume the case of an individual infected with Covid-19. People are encouraged to go to hospitals when their symptoms are unmanageable at home. If the coronavirus patient becomes so sick that he or she cannot breathe, a delay of a few minutes can lead to death. Notably, if healthcare providers cannot timely offer the required services to terminally ill patients, death becomes the outcome.
Equity ranks number four. In particular, it means providing healthcare services to all people regardless of their personal characteristics. Individual differences emanate from race, ethnicity, skin color, religion, culture, and gender (Wyszewianski, 2014). Some healthcare providers might discriminate against specific groups of people when offering healthcare services. That put some individuals’ lives in danger since their health needs are not prioritized. For instance, some minority gr...