Best practices in implementing and sustaining quality of care. A review of the quality improvement literature.

A literature review was undertaken to explore both published and unpublished quality improvement studies, projects, and initiatives that strove to develop more efficient systems to support an infrastructure for nursing home quality of care. The review included a search of all available, full-text published literature from 1997 to 2007 available from PubMed, CINAHL, and MEDLINE. The methods used by the researchers were varied, and this article identified several primary findings: the use of a specific, measurable mission or goal statement; the use of multidepartmental and multidisciplinary involvement; the need for further education and resource materials; the use of a reward/incentive program; the need for internal and external stakeholders to be identified along with a project champion; and the process of feedback and outcome measurement. This article summarizes the findings from the review and offers key recommendations that are supported for improving quality of care and sustaining quality gains.