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Ten Steps to the Ten Components of Quality in Hospice

 

Quality Partners is NHPCO’s national program to ensure all provider organizations deliver quality care to patients and families.

I. MAKE THE COMMITMENT

  • Make a public commitment to quality hospice and palliative care
  • Have discussions about what quality means to the organization
  • Use the introductory PowerPoint slides to communicate your commitment to patients, internal staff, governing body and the community
  • Begin with one of the ten components because there is no obligation to tackle everything at once

II. SIGN THE PLEDGE

  • If you are not a member of your state hospice organization, go to www.nhpco.org/cos, find the contact information of your state hospice organization and join today.

III. DESIGNATE A LEADER/ COMMITTEE

  • Understand that everyone needs to take responsibility but leadership is critical in the initial launch
  • Understand the vision of Quality Partners
  • Involve staff, family members, community representatives, management and board of trustees
  • Give the individual or committee the authority to inform others in the organization

IV. REVIEW THE MATERIALS ON THE WEB SITE

  • Review the materials on the NHPCO Quality Partners website
  • Read, review, and understand the ten components
  • Avail yourself of the background readings, resources and tools
  • Determine your ability to collect data for the outcome materials

V. SELF ASSESS

  • Use a self-assessment tool for each component: Quality Partners Self-Assessments
  • Involve a cross section of the organization in the self assessment
  • Review your score for each component

VI. DETERMINE PRIORITIES

  • Review the results of the self assessments
  • Determine which areas need attention based on the results
  • Prioritize issues
  • Focus on a particular area in the coming months

VII. DEVELOP A PLAN

  • Determine your strategy for achieving excellence
  • Develop a plan that will build on strengths as well as address challenges you have identified
  • Designate roles and responsibilities
  • Set a realistic goal
  • Schedule achievement milestones

VIII. USE BACKGROUND READINGS, RESOURCES, AND TOOLS

  • Avoid reinventing the wheel
  • Familiarize yourself with fundamental materials in the area you are trying to improve
  • Locate areas where assistance is needed
  • Contact your state association
  • Communicate with your counterparts in other organizations
  • Participate in a Quality Partners Collaborative

IX. IMPLEMENT YOUR PLAN

  • Make the Quality Initiative an ongoing and shared process within your organization
  • Share learning and best practices with other organizations

X. MONITOR YOUR PROGRESS

  • Reinforce the message that quality is the responsibility of everyone in the organization
  • Compare where you are to where you said you would be and revise accordingly
  • Celebrate achievements and success!