Present-day hospitals work like corporates. For smooth day to day functioning, hospital operations have to be handled very carefully with quality execution. Being a quality assurance manager in healthcare assures programs and services are implemented at the highest standards and patients receive the highest level of care. Quality managers are responsible for monitoring and updating policies and procedures to include regulatory changes.

They also typically manage through subordinate managers and professionals in larger groups of moderate complexity.

Quality managers intend to guarantee that the product or service an organization provides is fit for purpose, is consistent, and meets both external and internal requirements. This comprises legal compliance and customer expectations.

The role is concerned with monitoring and advising on the performance of the quality management system, producing data and reporting on performance, measuring against set standards.

The quality Manager needs to liaise with other managers and staff throughout the organization to ensure that the quality management system is functioning properly. The role needs to focus on changes and how to implement them and provide training, tools, and techniques to enable others to achieve quality standards.

Responsibilities

Quality managers use a variety of measures and management systems, such as total quality management, to carry out your role. However, a quality manager typically needs to:

  • Devise and establish a hospital’s quality procedures, standards, and specifications
  • Review patient requirements and make sure they are met.
  • Set standards for quality as well as health and safety
  • Make sure that services meet international and national standards
  • Look at ways to reduce waste and increase efficiency
  • Define quality procedures in conjunction with operating staff
  • Set up and maintain controls and documentation procedures
  • Monitor performance by gathering relevant data and produce statistical reports
  • Review existing policies and make suggestions for changes and improvements and how to implement them
  • Measure performance and identify any areas of weakness, recommending and implementing improvements
  • Assess the effectiveness of changes made
  • Use relevant quality tools and make sure managers and other staff understand how to improve the business.

Qualifications

Although a career as a quality manager is open to all graduates, a degree in a relevant area, such as Hospital Administration (BHA). However, a Master’s degree (MHA) along with knowledge about NABH and JCI are commonly quite preferred by employers. Experience is more important in this role. To be a quality manager healthcare typically requires more than three years of managerial experience.

Skills

Quality Manager needs to have:

  • Communication and interpersonal skills
  • Analytical and problem-solving ability
  • Planning and project management skills
  • Persistence and the ability to influence others
  • The ability to lead and motivate a team
  • A strategic approach to work
  • The ability to facilitate change
  • Skills in numerical and statistical analysis
  • Attention to detail
  • An understanding and appreciation of other people’s work disciplines, such as
  • Engineering and science.

Salary 

With respect to job opportunities, there is a huge demand-supply mismatch especially when it comes to India. The starting salaries are around 25K – 40K per month with a stable career progression and very strong chances to be placed abroad especially the Middle East and Western Countries where the quality of Health services is of critical importance.

Similarly, GOI initiatives in form of KayaKalp program, Ayushman Bharat, Mission Laqshya have made the role of Quality managers quite important within the government setups. Hospitals like AIIMS, IBLS, RML apart from all district hospitals pan -India have opened positions for Quality managers with immense job opportunities for the fresh as well as experienced BHA and MHA graduates. The implementation of Quality standards such as NABH, JCI, and NQAS are making it even more demanding with much stronger growth in the near future.