Quality Control & Process Improvement Flashcards

Accurate and complete patient care reports (PCRs) contribute to quality improvement PRIMARILY by:

Answer: Providing data to identify trends, protocol gaps, and training needs

PCRs are the primary data source for identifying care trends, protocol adherence rates, and systemic training needs in a CQI program.

A patrol reviews data showing response times have increased by 30% over two seasons. The BEST quality improvement step is to:

Answer: Analyze contributing factors such as staffing, communication, or terrain coverage gaps

Root-cause analysis of contributing systemic factors—not individual blame—is the correct CQI approach to an adverse trend.

Which of the following is an example of a PROCESS measure in OEC quality improvement?

Answer: Percentage of spinal immobilizations performed according to protocol

A process measure evaluates whether a specific care step is being performed correctly, such as protocol adherence for spinal immobilization.

Peer review in an OEC patrol setting is BEST defined as:

Answer: Evaluation of a patroller's patient care by equally qualified colleagues to ensure standards are met

Peer review involves qualified colleagues evaluating care delivery to identify strengths and areas for improvement within a supportive framework.

A 'near miss' incident report is valuable to a quality improvement program because it:

Answer: Reveals hazards and system weaknesses before they cause patient harm

Near-miss reporting identifies system vulnerabilities and latent hazards before they result in actual patient harm, allowing proactive corrective action.

Which of the following BEST supports a non-punitive safety culture in an OEC patrol?

Answer: Encouraging voluntary error reporting without fear of automatic disciplinary action

Voluntary, non-punitive reporting systems encourage honest disclosure of errors and near misses, which is essential for effective quality improvement.

In an OEC quality improvement context, 'outcome measures' assess:

Answer: The end results of care, such as patient condition at transfer

Outcome measures evaluate the results of care—such as patient status at handoff—rather than whether specific process steps were followed.