Quality improvement methods in pharmacy practice research

Abstract

Quality improvement is a problem-based approach to pharmacy practice research with the explicit aim of improving the services delivered from an individual or organisation. As quality improvement science advances, so do the opportunities to assess, monitor and improve services in a rigorous way for the benefits of service users, individual pharmacists and organisations. This chapter introduces some of the approaches taken to the assessment of quality in pharmacy practice and outlines a selection of commonly used models and tools for quality improvement. This is followed by a brief discussion on how to report quality improvement work for the benefit of the wider pharmacy community.