Performance Management and Quality Improvement

Resources

Organizational Websites with Links to PM / QI Resources –

Many organizations have already built clearinghouse websites with information and resources related to performance management, quality improvement, and performance improvement. Below is a selection of links that will help to meet the varied needs of state, local, tribal and territorial health departments in exploring these topics.

American Public Health Association (APHA)
APHA promotes quality improvement in public health systems in a comprehensive way across the nation. For example, APHA has participated with its key partners to promote the National Public Health Performance Standards Program(NPHPSP), the accreditation of public health agencies, and the certification of graduate trained public health workers.
http://www.apha.org/programs/standards/

Association of State and Territorial Health Officials (ASTHO)
Through its performance projects ASTHO aims to foster a culture of quality improvement in state health agencies and systems. ASTHO's website provides information on the National Public Health Performance Standards, accreditation, quality improvement and other programs. This website includes a link to ASTHO's comprehensive Accreditation and Performance Improvement Guide.
http://www.astho.org/Programs/Accreditation-and-Performance/

National Association of County and City Health Officials (NACCHO)
NACCHO provides tools, links, and technical assistance to local health departments around performance management, quality improvement, accreditation preparation, community health improvement planning, and more.
http://www.naccho.org/topics/infrastructure/

National Indian Health Board (NIHB)
NIHB supports and promotes quality improvement and accreditation efforts in Indian Country.
http://www.nihb.org/public_health/public_health.php

National Network of Public Health Institutes (NNPHI)
National Network of Public Health Institutes is the national membership network committed to helping public health institutes promote and sustain improved health and wellness for all. National Network of Public Health Institutes includes many relevant links and resources, including the tools and experiences from the Multi-State Learning Collaborative, for which National Network of Public Health Institutes has served as the coordinating organization.
http://www.nnphi.org/

Public Health Accreditation Board (PHAB)
The goal of the accreditation program is to improve and protect the health of every community by advancing the quality and performance of public health departments.
http://www.phaboard.org/

Public Health Foundation (PHF)
PHF offers a number of tools and resources for supporting performance management and quality improvement in health departments and organizations across the country. Included on PHF's website are the comprehensive resources from the Turning Point Performance Management Collaborative, and the Public Health Improvement Resource Center which serves as a gateway to information and resources for building capacity of public health systems.
http://www.phf.org/focusareas/PMQI/Pages/default.aspx
http://www.phf.org/improvement/

Public Health Informatics Institute (PHII)
The Public Health Informatics Institute recognizes the value of integrating performance standards into public health processes and works to build informatics skills and capacities within public health organizations.
http://www.phii.org/subjectareas/performanceimprovement.asp

Robert Wood Johnson Foundation (RWJF)
The Robert Wood Johnson Foundation provides targeted investments to strengthen public health systems, to support efforts to build evidence for what works, and to increase collaboration with a range of partners—policy-makers, business, education, health care, and community organizations around public health initiatives. http://www.rwjf.org/publichealth/focusareas.jsp

Webinars

Several of our partners host numerous webinars that are available for viewing at your leisure, and which provide valuable education and training opportunities. These webcasts cover many of the most relevant topics, including developing a culture of quality improvement, preparing for accreditation, assorted quality improvement tools and techniques, the NPHPSP, and more.

ASTHO
http://www.astho.org/Programs/Accreditation-and-Performance/Quality-Improvement/

NACCHO
http://www.naccho.org/topics/infrastructure/accreditation/webcasts.cfm

NNPHI
http://www.nnphi.org/programs/mlc/meeting-and-webinar-materials

http://www.nnphi.org/programs/nphpsp/resources-and-training

PIM Network
http://www.cdc.gov/stltpublichealth/pimnetwork/

Models, Tools and Methods

There are numerous quality improvement methods and techniques that are used successfully in public health settings. These include Plan-Do-Check-Act, Cause and Effect Diagrams, Flow Charting, Root Cause Analysis (5 Why's), and Pareto Charts. The three resources listed below provide an overview of QI tools and their use within public health.

Embracing Quality in Public Health: Michigan's Quality Improvement Handbook: This 115-page PDF guidebook was developed as a product of Michigan's involvement in the Multi-State Learning Collaborative project, and is intended for individuals and/or teams to begin or advance their use of a quality improvement (QI) model to improve public health practice and move toward improving outcomes.
Public Health Memory Jogger II ($): Contains 22 of the most important quality improvement, management and planning tools with real-life examples that relate specifically to public health.
The Public Health Quality Improvement Handbook ($): A comprehensive resource including information on PM/QI tools and models such as dashboards, SMART objectives, the Baldrige Criteria and more can be found in The Public Health Quality Improvement Handbook as compiled by Ron Bialek, Grace Duffy and John Moran.

Modular Kaizen Workbook - This book is about the use of Modular kaizen, defined as an improvement or redesign project planned along a timeline that recognizes the highly volatile nature of the public health organization's core business processes. http://www.phf.org/news/Pages/PHF_Introduces_Modular_kaizen_Dealing_with_Disruptions.aspx

Baldrige Criteria for Performance Excellence - provides a framework that any organization can use to improve overall performance. The Criteria are organized into seven Categories: Leadership; Strategic Planning; Customer Focus; Measurement, Analysis, and Knowledge Management; Workforce Focus; Process Management; and Results.
http://www.nist.gov/baldrige/

Institute for Healthcare Improvement, Model for Improvement
The Model for Improvement is a simple tool for accelerating improvement. The model is not meant to replace change models that organizations may already be using, but rather to accelerate improvement. This model has been used successfully by hundreds of health care organizations to improve many different health care processes and outcomes.
http://www.ihi.org/IHI/Topics/Improvement/ImprovementMethods/HowToImprove/

Turning Point Performance Management Collaborative Resources – The following link includes information about performance management, links to reports, and information about state activities. Resources on this page include a literature review of performance management, a self-assessment for performance management practices, the From Silos to Systems: Performance Management in Public Health document, and the Turning Point Guidebook for Performance Measurement. http://www.turningpointprogram.org/

National Public Health Performance Standards Program (NPHPSP) Performance Improvement resources – the substantial "What Next?" section of the NPHPSP User Guide and website includes ideas, strategies, and example worksheets and resources for identifying priority areas and developing action plans.
http://www.cdc.gov/nphpsp/index.html

Mobilizing for Action through Planning and Partnerships - a framework and tool for community health improvement developed by NACCHO and CDC. http://www.naccho.org/topics/infrastructure/MAPP/index.cfm

Other Useful Resources for Performance Management and Quality Improvement

Journal of Public Health Management & Practice, Accreditation and Quality Improvement Special Editions
Special issues of the Journal of Public Health Management & Practice focused on public health accreditation and quality improvement have been published in recent years. These issues include commentaries and articles about the Exploring Accreditation Initiative, CDC's perspective on voluntary accreditation, the role of the NPHPSP in accreditation and quality improvement, the Operational Definition, current state-based efforts and more.

American Society for Quality – provides information about training and conferences, as well as links to numerous quality improvement resources. http://asq.org/

CDC evaluation resources – because of the importance of evaluation to performance management, see www.cdc.gov/eval