WGU C233 HEALTHCARE QUALITY MANAGEMENT
EXAM QUESTIONS WITH FULLY 100% VERIFIED
ANSWERS
250 QUESTIONS AND ANSWERS
1. Question: What is the definition of quality in healthcare according to the
Institute of Medicine (IOM)? Answer: The Institute of Medicine defines quality
in healthcare as "the degree to which health services for individuals and
populations increase the likelihood of desired health outcomes and are
consistent with current professional knowledge."
2. Question: What are the six dimensions of healthcare quality as defined by
the Institute of Medicine? Answer: The six dimensions are: Safe, Effective,
Patient-centered, Timely, Efficient, and Equitable (often remembered by the
acronym STEEEP).
3. Question: Explain the difference between quality assurance and quality
improvement. Answer: Quality assurance focuses on meeting predetermined
standards through inspection and correction of problems after they occur.
Quality improvement is proactive and focuses on continuously improving
processes to prevent problems before they happen.
4. Question: What is the "Triple Aim" in healthcare? Answer: The Triple Aim,
developed by the Institute for Healthcare Improvement (IHI), consists of three
dimensions: improving the patient experience of care, improving the health of
populations, and reducing the per capita cost of healthcare.
5. Question: What is the "Quadruple Aim" in healthcare? Answer: The
Quadruple Aim adds a fourth dimension to the Triple Aim: improving the work
life of healthcare providers, including clinicians and staff.
6. Question: What is Donabedian's framework for evaluating healthcare
quality? Answer: Donabedian's framework consists of three categories:
,Structure (the settings, qualifications of providers, and administrative systems),
Process (the components of care delivered), and Outcomes (the recovery,
restoration of function, and survival).
7. Question: What is the difference between internal and external customers in
healthcare? Answer: Internal customers are individuals or departments within
the healthcare organization that receive products or services from other
individuals or departments within the same organization. External customers are
those outside the organization who receive its services, primarily patients and
their families.
8. Question: What does CQI stand for in healthcare quality management?
Answer: CQI stands for Continuous Quality Improvement, a philosophy that
emphasizes ongoing efforts to improve processes, products, and services over
time.
9. Question: What is meant by "variation" in quality improvement
terminology? Answer: Variation refers to the differences in processes or
outcomes that occur naturally or due to special causes. Understanding and
reducing undesirable variation is a key focus of quality improvement efforts.
10. Question: What is the difference between common cause variation and
special cause variation? Answer: Common cause variation is inherent in the
process, predictable, and affects all outcomes of the process. Special cause
variation is unpredictable, not part of the regular process, and indicates that
something unusual is affecting the process.
Historical Evolution of Quality
11. Question: Who is often referred to as the "Father of Quality Control"?
Answer: W. Edwards Deming is often referred to as the "Father of Quality
Control."
12. Question: What was the primary focus of Walter Shewhart's contribution to
quality improvement? Answer: Walter Shewhart developed statistical process
control and the PDCA (Plan-Do-Check-Act) cycle, which provided a systematic
approach to process improvement.
13. Question: What is the significance of the "To Err is Human" report
published by the IOM in 1999? Answer: "To Err is Human" brought national
attention to the issue of patient safety by revealing that between 44,000 and
98,000 people die each year in hospitals due to preventable medical errors. This
report catalyzed the patient safety movement in the United States.
,14. Question: What was the main contribution of Joseph Juran to quality
management? Answer: Joseph Juran emphasized the importance of the "vital
few" versus the "useful many" (Pareto Principle), quality planning, quality
control, and quality improvement, known as the Juran Trilogy.
15. Question: What significant shift in healthcare quality occurred in the
1990s? Answer: The 1990s saw a shift toward patient-centered care, outcomes
measurement, and the increasing use of evidence-based practice in healthcare
quality.
16. Question: Which quality initiative was widely adopted from manufacturing
into healthcare settings during the early 2000s? Answer: Six Sigma and Lean
methodologies were widely adopted from manufacturing into healthcare settings
during the early 2000s.
17. Question: What was Philip Crosby's most significant contribution to quality
management? Answer: Philip Crosby promoted the concept of "Zero Defects"
and the idea that "Quality is Free" because the cost of prevention is less than the
cost of correction.
18. Question: What was the primary focus of the "Crossing the Quality Chasm"
report published by the IOM in 2001? Answer: "Crossing the Quality Chasm"
focused on redesigning the American healthcare system to improve its quality,
with emphasis on the six aims for improvement: safety, effectiveness, patient-
centeredness, timeliness, efficiency, and equity.
19. Question: What significant legislation in 2010 impacted healthcare quality
in the United States? Answer: The Patient Protection and Affordable Care Act
(ACA) significantly impacted healthcare quality by promoting value-based care,
establishing Accountable Care Organizations, and creating the Center for
Medicare and Medicaid Innovation.
20. Question: How did Florence Nightingale contribute to healthcare quality?
Answer: Florence Nightingale was a pioneer in using statistical data to improve
patient care and hospital conditions. During the Crimean War, she collected and
analyzed data on mortality rates, demonstrating that poor sanitation was a major
cause of soldier deaths, and implemented improvements that dramatically
reduced mortality.
Regulatory and Accreditation Bodies
21. Question: What is the primary purpose of The Joint Commission (TJC)?
Answer: The primary purpose of The Joint Commission is to improve
healthcare for the public by evaluating healthcare organizations and inspiring
, them to excel in providing safe and effective care of the highest quality and
value.
22. Question: What is the HCAHPS survey? Answer: The Hospital Consumer
Assessment of Healthcare Providers and Systems (HCAHPS) survey is a
standardized survey instrument and data collection methodology for measuring
patients' perspectives on hospital care.
23. Question: What is the role of the Centers for Medicare & Medicaid
Services (CMS) in healthcare quality? Answer: CMS plays a crucial role in
healthcare quality by setting quality standards, measuring performance,
incentivizing quality improvement through payment models, and publicly
reporting quality information to help consumers make informed decisions.
24. Question: What is the purpose of the National Committee for Quality
Assurance (NCQA)? Answer: The purpose of NCQA is to improve healthcare
quality through the development of quality standards and performance
measures, particularly for health plans, and through its accreditation and
certification programs.
25. Question: What is the role of the Agency for Healthcare Research and
Quality (AHRQ)? Answer: AHRQ's role is to produce evidence to make
healthcare safer, higher quality, more accessible, equitable, and affordable, and
to work with partners to make sure that evidence is understood and used.
26. Question: What is the purpose of the National Quality Forum (NQF)?
Answer: The National Quality Forum works to catalyze improvements in
healthcare by setting standards for measuring and reporting on quality and
endorsing consensus standards for performance measurement.
27. Question: What is DNV GL Healthcare accreditation? Answer: DNV GL
Healthcare is an accreditation organization that offers hospital accreditation
through a program that integrates the ISO 9001 Quality Management System
with the Medicare Conditions of Participation.
28. Question: What distinguishes Magnet Recognition for nursing excellence?
Answer: Magnet Recognition, awarded by the American Nurses Credentialing
Center, distinguishes healthcare organizations that demonstrate excellence in
nursing practice, nursing leadership, and improvements in patient care, with
emphasis on quality indicators and quality improvement.
29. Question: What is the purpose of the Healthcare Effectiveness Data and
Information Set (HEDIS)? Answer: HEDIS is a tool used by health plans to
measure performance on important dimensions of care and service, allowing for
EXAM QUESTIONS WITH FULLY 100% VERIFIED
ANSWERS
250 QUESTIONS AND ANSWERS
1. Question: What is the definition of quality in healthcare according to the
Institute of Medicine (IOM)? Answer: The Institute of Medicine defines quality
in healthcare as "the degree to which health services for individuals and
populations increase the likelihood of desired health outcomes and are
consistent with current professional knowledge."
2. Question: What are the six dimensions of healthcare quality as defined by
the Institute of Medicine? Answer: The six dimensions are: Safe, Effective,
Patient-centered, Timely, Efficient, and Equitable (often remembered by the
acronym STEEEP).
3. Question: Explain the difference between quality assurance and quality
improvement. Answer: Quality assurance focuses on meeting predetermined
standards through inspection and correction of problems after they occur.
Quality improvement is proactive and focuses on continuously improving
processes to prevent problems before they happen.
4. Question: What is the "Triple Aim" in healthcare? Answer: The Triple Aim,
developed by the Institute for Healthcare Improvement (IHI), consists of three
dimensions: improving the patient experience of care, improving the health of
populations, and reducing the per capita cost of healthcare.
5. Question: What is the "Quadruple Aim" in healthcare? Answer: The
Quadruple Aim adds a fourth dimension to the Triple Aim: improving the work
life of healthcare providers, including clinicians and staff.
6. Question: What is Donabedian's framework for evaluating healthcare
quality? Answer: Donabedian's framework consists of three categories:
,Structure (the settings, qualifications of providers, and administrative systems),
Process (the components of care delivered), and Outcomes (the recovery,
restoration of function, and survival).
7. Question: What is the difference between internal and external customers in
healthcare? Answer: Internal customers are individuals or departments within
the healthcare organization that receive products or services from other
individuals or departments within the same organization. External customers are
those outside the organization who receive its services, primarily patients and
their families.
8. Question: What does CQI stand for in healthcare quality management?
Answer: CQI stands for Continuous Quality Improvement, a philosophy that
emphasizes ongoing efforts to improve processes, products, and services over
time.
9. Question: What is meant by "variation" in quality improvement
terminology? Answer: Variation refers to the differences in processes or
outcomes that occur naturally or due to special causes. Understanding and
reducing undesirable variation is a key focus of quality improvement efforts.
10. Question: What is the difference between common cause variation and
special cause variation? Answer: Common cause variation is inherent in the
process, predictable, and affects all outcomes of the process. Special cause
variation is unpredictable, not part of the regular process, and indicates that
something unusual is affecting the process.
Historical Evolution of Quality
11. Question: Who is often referred to as the "Father of Quality Control"?
Answer: W. Edwards Deming is often referred to as the "Father of Quality
Control."
12. Question: What was the primary focus of Walter Shewhart's contribution to
quality improvement? Answer: Walter Shewhart developed statistical process
control and the PDCA (Plan-Do-Check-Act) cycle, which provided a systematic
approach to process improvement.
13. Question: What is the significance of the "To Err is Human" report
published by the IOM in 1999? Answer: "To Err is Human" brought national
attention to the issue of patient safety by revealing that between 44,000 and
98,000 people die each year in hospitals due to preventable medical errors. This
report catalyzed the patient safety movement in the United States.
,14. Question: What was the main contribution of Joseph Juran to quality
management? Answer: Joseph Juran emphasized the importance of the "vital
few" versus the "useful many" (Pareto Principle), quality planning, quality
control, and quality improvement, known as the Juran Trilogy.
15. Question: What significant shift in healthcare quality occurred in the
1990s? Answer: The 1990s saw a shift toward patient-centered care, outcomes
measurement, and the increasing use of evidence-based practice in healthcare
quality.
16. Question: Which quality initiative was widely adopted from manufacturing
into healthcare settings during the early 2000s? Answer: Six Sigma and Lean
methodologies were widely adopted from manufacturing into healthcare settings
during the early 2000s.
17. Question: What was Philip Crosby's most significant contribution to quality
management? Answer: Philip Crosby promoted the concept of "Zero Defects"
and the idea that "Quality is Free" because the cost of prevention is less than the
cost of correction.
18. Question: What was the primary focus of the "Crossing the Quality Chasm"
report published by the IOM in 2001? Answer: "Crossing the Quality Chasm"
focused on redesigning the American healthcare system to improve its quality,
with emphasis on the six aims for improvement: safety, effectiveness, patient-
centeredness, timeliness, efficiency, and equity.
19. Question: What significant legislation in 2010 impacted healthcare quality
in the United States? Answer: The Patient Protection and Affordable Care Act
(ACA) significantly impacted healthcare quality by promoting value-based care,
establishing Accountable Care Organizations, and creating the Center for
Medicare and Medicaid Innovation.
20. Question: How did Florence Nightingale contribute to healthcare quality?
Answer: Florence Nightingale was a pioneer in using statistical data to improve
patient care and hospital conditions. During the Crimean War, she collected and
analyzed data on mortality rates, demonstrating that poor sanitation was a major
cause of soldier deaths, and implemented improvements that dramatically
reduced mortality.
Regulatory and Accreditation Bodies
21. Question: What is the primary purpose of The Joint Commission (TJC)?
Answer: The primary purpose of The Joint Commission is to improve
healthcare for the public by evaluating healthcare organizations and inspiring
, them to excel in providing safe and effective care of the highest quality and
value.
22. Question: What is the HCAHPS survey? Answer: The Hospital Consumer
Assessment of Healthcare Providers and Systems (HCAHPS) survey is a
standardized survey instrument and data collection methodology for measuring
patients' perspectives on hospital care.
23. Question: What is the role of the Centers for Medicare & Medicaid
Services (CMS) in healthcare quality? Answer: CMS plays a crucial role in
healthcare quality by setting quality standards, measuring performance,
incentivizing quality improvement through payment models, and publicly
reporting quality information to help consumers make informed decisions.
24. Question: What is the purpose of the National Committee for Quality
Assurance (NCQA)? Answer: The purpose of NCQA is to improve healthcare
quality through the development of quality standards and performance
measures, particularly for health plans, and through its accreditation and
certification programs.
25. Question: What is the role of the Agency for Healthcare Research and
Quality (AHRQ)? Answer: AHRQ's role is to produce evidence to make
healthcare safer, higher quality, more accessible, equitable, and affordable, and
to work with partners to make sure that evidence is understood and used.
26. Question: What is the purpose of the National Quality Forum (NQF)?
Answer: The National Quality Forum works to catalyze improvements in
healthcare by setting standards for measuring and reporting on quality and
endorsing consensus standards for performance measurement.
27. Question: What is DNV GL Healthcare accreditation? Answer: DNV GL
Healthcare is an accreditation organization that offers hospital accreditation
through a program that integrates the ISO 9001 Quality Management System
with the Medicare Conditions of Participation.
28. Question: What distinguishes Magnet Recognition for nursing excellence?
Answer: Magnet Recognition, awarded by the American Nurses Credentialing
Center, distinguishes healthcare organizations that demonstrate excellence in
nursing practice, nursing leadership, and improvements in patient care, with
emphasis on quality indicators and quality improvement.
29. Question: What is the purpose of the Healthcare Effectiveness Data and
Information Set (HEDIS)? Answer: HEDIS is a tool used by health plans to
measure performance on important dimensions of care and service, allowing for
