IHI QI 102 UPDATED QUESTIONS AND CORRECT
ANSWERS
Question:
1. Which of the following statements is true?
Answer:
All of the above
The Model for Improvement is appropriate for all types of improvement efforts and has been used
successfully by thousands of health care organizations in many countries to improve a variety of health
care processes and outcomes. However, there are other useful models to guide improvement out there.
Studies have shown that it is more important for an organization to have a standard road map to conduct
improvement projects rather than have any specific framework. Lean focuses on improving value from the
customer's point of view, by reducing waste of time and resources.
Question:
2. An orthopedic clinic in a busy metropolitan area would like to improve its patient scheduling process.
More specifically, the clinic wants to improve its efficiency and the satisfaction of its patients.The
orthopedic clinic plans the change to improve scheduling, and then it carries out a small test of change with
three patients on Tuesday morning. What's the next thing the clinic's improvement team should do?
Answer:
Measure to see if the change led to improvement.
The team has planned a test of change and now they've done the test. The team must now study how the
test went (the "S" part of the PDSA cycle). They can look at a mix of process measures (such as how often
appointments started on time) and outcome measures (such as how satisfied the patients were with the new
process).
Question:
3. An orthopedic clinic in a busy metropolitan area would like to improve its patient scheduling process.
More specifically, the clinic wants to improve its efficiency and the satisfaction of its patients. Applying
the Model for Improvement to the clinic's improvement goal, which of the following is the most reasonable
aim statement?
Answer:
Increase the number of patients reporting they are "very satisfied" with the clinic's scheduling by 50
percent within six months.
An aim statement must specify "how good, by when." Improving patient satisfaction with scheduling is a
reasonable goal. Answer D is best described as an opportunity statement, as it contains no specifics about
how much the clinic must improve, nor by when. Answer C is more of a "change" statement than an aim
statement.
Question:
4. The Model for Improvement begins with three questions designed to clarify the following concepts:
, Answer:
Aims, measures, changes
The Model for Improvement begins with three fundamental questions about any given improvement,
designed to address the aim (what are we trying to accomplish?), the measures to be used (how will we
know a change is an improvement?) and the changes to be used (what changes can we make that will result
in an improvement?).
Question:
5. When trying to improve a process, one reason to use PDSA cycles rather than a more traditional version
of the scientific method (such as a randomized, controlled trial) is that:
Answer:
PDSA cycles provide a mechanism to adjust improvement ideas as the project progresses.
PDSA cycles allow for rapid and frequent review of data and then adjusting the test of change based upon
those findings. For example, if a new guideline that's meant to improve pneumonia care isn't working,
PDSA cycles allow you to change the guideline quickly and test its efficacy, rather than waiting until the
end of a long study period.
Question:
6. An orthopedic clinic in a busy metropolitan area would like to improve its patient scheduling process.
More specifically, the clinic wants to improve its efficiency and the satisfaction of its patients.After
assembling a team and working through the three questions of the Model for Improvement, the orthopedic
clinic decides to implement an automated reminder phone call 24 hours prior to each clinical appointment.
The clinic's improvement team hopes that this small change will improve scheduling. What is the team's
next step?
Answer:
Test their change plan using the PDSA cycle.
Once you have worked through the first three questions of the Model for Improvement — the questions
about aims, measures, and changes — it's time to do a small test of change using the PDSA cycle. The
clinic should have already developed their measures, and now is not the time for a break — because the
hard work of improvement is just beginning!
Question:
7. Having a clear aim statement is important in quality improvement work because:
Answer:
Aim statements provide a clear and specific goal for the team or organization to reach.
Question:
8. An aim statement should include the following:
Answer:
Numeric goals, specific time frame, and the patient population or system affected
Aim statements should specify measurable numeric goals, a time frame for attainment, and the group or
system affected. Costs and team members, while important to the success of the quality improvement
project, are not part of the aim statement itself.
ANSWERS
Question:
1. Which of the following statements is true?
Answer:
All of the above
The Model for Improvement is appropriate for all types of improvement efforts and has been used
successfully by thousands of health care organizations in many countries to improve a variety of health
care processes and outcomes. However, there are other useful models to guide improvement out there.
Studies have shown that it is more important for an organization to have a standard road map to conduct
improvement projects rather than have any specific framework. Lean focuses on improving value from the
customer's point of view, by reducing waste of time and resources.
Question:
2. An orthopedic clinic in a busy metropolitan area would like to improve its patient scheduling process.
More specifically, the clinic wants to improve its efficiency and the satisfaction of its patients.The
orthopedic clinic plans the change to improve scheduling, and then it carries out a small test of change with
three patients on Tuesday morning. What's the next thing the clinic's improvement team should do?
Answer:
Measure to see if the change led to improvement.
The team has planned a test of change and now they've done the test. The team must now study how the
test went (the "S" part of the PDSA cycle). They can look at a mix of process measures (such as how often
appointments started on time) and outcome measures (such as how satisfied the patients were with the new
process).
Question:
3. An orthopedic clinic in a busy metropolitan area would like to improve its patient scheduling process.
More specifically, the clinic wants to improve its efficiency and the satisfaction of its patients. Applying
the Model for Improvement to the clinic's improvement goal, which of the following is the most reasonable
aim statement?
Answer:
Increase the number of patients reporting they are "very satisfied" with the clinic's scheduling by 50
percent within six months.
An aim statement must specify "how good, by when." Improving patient satisfaction with scheduling is a
reasonable goal. Answer D is best described as an opportunity statement, as it contains no specifics about
how much the clinic must improve, nor by when. Answer C is more of a "change" statement than an aim
statement.
Question:
4. The Model for Improvement begins with three questions designed to clarify the following concepts:
, Answer:
Aims, measures, changes
The Model for Improvement begins with three fundamental questions about any given improvement,
designed to address the aim (what are we trying to accomplish?), the measures to be used (how will we
know a change is an improvement?) and the changes to be used (what changes can we make that will result
in an improvement?).
Question:
5. When trying to improve a process, one reason to use PDSA cycles rather than a more traditional version
of the scientific method (such as a randomized, controlled trial) is that:
Answer:
PDSA cycles provide a mechanism to adjust improvement ideas as the project progresses.
PDSA cycles allow for rapid and frequent review of data and then adjusting the test of change based upon
those findings. For example, if a new guideline that's meant to improve pneumonia care isn't working,
PDSA cycles allow you to change the guideline quickly and test its efficacy, rather than waiting until the
end of a long study period.
Question:
6. An orthopedic clinic in a busy metropolitan area would like to improve its patient scheduling process.
More specifically, the clinic wants to improve its efficiency and the satisfaction of its patients.After
assembling a team and working through the three questions of the Model for Improvement, the orthopedic
clinic decides to implement an automated reminder phone call 24 hours prior to each clinical appointment.
The clinic's improvement team hopes that this small change will improve scheduling. What is the team's
next step?
Answer:
Test their change plan using the PDSA cycle.
Once you have worked through the first three questions of the Model for Improvement — the questions
about aims, measures, and changes — it's time to do a small test of change using the PDSA cycle. The
clinic should have already developed their measures, and now is not the time for a break — because the
hard work of improvement is just beginning!
Question:
7. Having a clear aim statement is important in quality improvement work because:
Answer:
Aim statements provide a clear and specific goal for the team or organization to reach.
Question:
8. An aim statement should include the following:
Answer:
Numeric goals, specific time frame, and the patient population or system affected
Aim statements should specify measurable numeric goals, a time frame for attainment, and the group or
system affected. Costs and team members, while important to the success of the quality improvement
project, are not part of the aim statement itself.
